[IC] Botanist And Bards

[Rune_Alchemist]

~Charlotte LaChance~

---

"Hey hey!" Suddenly, she was tackle hugged from out of nowhere.

"GAH - Flora - I told you not to bother me while I'm doing something!" She nearly knocked over a beaker of a rather corrosive substance that would have very likely eaten through the stone floor.

"But you were glaring again. Glaring is no good, lottie."

"I Glare at everything." Charlotte said, shoving the other girl off of her.

"Wah, don't bully the flower!" She playfully giggled as she stumbled backwards onto the bed.

"And my name is 'Charlotte' not 'Lottie', and you are most definitely not a flower."

"But my name is Flora. It's a flowery name!"

"It's also the name of a very annoying person who should be very wary of what they eat next."

"Wooow, death threats already. That's the fastest someone has resorted to that." She gave a smug grin, as if proud of that accomplishment.

"That isn't something you should be proud of." Charlotte replied with a small frown...before immediately being poked in the forehead.

"Your glaring again."

"...I really don't like you."

"Lies, dear madam! You would have kicked me out already!~" She giggled in a fairly dramatic fashion. In response, she simply glared again and whacked the back of her head and shoved her out the door to their dorm.

---

"...you were asking for it..." She grumbled to herself, finally becoming conscious of her surroundings again. Her entire body felt like she was on fire and she felt so...thirsty and weak. Well, what did she learn here? Don't drink mysterious liquids that are full of some sort of essence or you could die. Hell, the average person probably would have died. It was likely the only reason she was still alive was because she often experimented with such things, and her body had built up more of a resistance to housing a lot of essence at once.

"Ais...linn?" She said, eyes adjusting to the light of the cave. Not exactly who she was hoping to see, but she was grateful for the drink regardless. She grabbed the entire thing, quickly gulping down the contents of it in a matter of seconds.

"Urgh...note to self...that was a terrible idea." She attempted to stand up, but dizziness quickly destroyed any notion of actually standing for now. After stumbling and nearly falling over again, she instead took to sitting down, leaning against Aislinn. "Thanks..." She quietly replied. She would have likely been find on her own, but it was at least good to have someone else around in a situation like this.

[Roleplayer001]

Aislinn watched as the black haired woman chugged the offered beverage a bit too quickly for what was likely healthy, the native girl concerned it would make her sick. It seemed her condition improved a little after it though, so the native let out a sigh of relief.

Of course the relief was gone the moment the other woman tried to stand up. "Don't!" Charlotte quickly collapsed back down to the ground though where the younger native helped lower her into a sitting position with guiding hands. Aislinn then wrapped her in a hug and gave her a disapproving stare as she looked at the other woman with great concern. "A bad idea? It looks like you almost died! What were you trying to do, Charlotte?"

She figured the explanation probably wouldn't make a lot of sense to her though so she let out a sigh. "I'm going to stay here and take care of you for a bit. You don't look like you are doing so well, and you still feel like a fire." One of Aislinn's hands reached up to Charlotte's head and rested there for a moment.

[Rune_Alchemist]

~Charlotte LaChance~

---

"Ha," Charlotte laughed though it was decidedly a bit weaker than she would have liked. "I'm fine. Just a bit too much...essence." Charlotte shook her head. "Hmm...not the first time it's happened. It's always a danger when trying new potions. Human bodies can only handle so much." Charlotte cast a glance to the tattoos that covered her body. "...that was a lot, though." It could be very likely if she didn't have the tattoos - she could have very well died form that amount of it. The tattoos seemed to be fairly good at burning off excess energy.

That said, her head was still swimming from the overwhelming sensory input.

"Just need to rest a bit." Charlotte continued. "...Where have you and Cait been for the past week or so, anyways?" She didn't want to really admit it, but she did sort of miss their company.

[Roleplayer001]

Aislinn looked at Charlotte clearly upset. "A bit too much!? My hair turned crimson from just being near it! Don't fool yourself!" The native gripped more tightly onto her friend than before as if she was concerned that letting her go meant the same thing would happen again. "No more, alright!?"

It took a couple of minutes of the clearly upset girl calming down for Aislinn to respond to the second question. "Cait ... I've been taking care of her. She's still recovering. Outside of that, I've been wondering around the woods and trying to gather herbs ... I met this strange lady named Delphi, she was a lot of fun!" It would probably surprise how calm and mature Aislinn was sounding, at least at first. "She told me to say hi to you!"

[Rune_Alchemist]

~Charlotte LaChance~

---

Cait was...recovering? What in the world had she missed? Something the great mothers mentioned when she visited came to mind. Something about her being a traveling hero or something. She forced her curiosity down. It wasn't any of her business, after all. With a sigh, she fumbled for a few seconds with something inside of her cloak, pulling out one of her vials. The liquid in it it was a muddy, dark color. She hadn't had enough time to chug it before she passed out.

"I see." Charlotte replied with a small frown. Delphi? Say hi to her? She didn't know anyone by that name. "I don't really have time for your games, Aislinn." Charlotte continued with a shake of her head. "I don't know anyone by that name." She brought the vial to her lips and drank half of its contents."And don't worry, this is a...sort of antidote to this little condition." It wasn't going to cure it immediately, but it would help burn the excess energy off. All of it. Would probably make her feel a little sluggish and tired.

"....hey, Aislinn." Charlotte continued. "I uh...I'm not really good with these sorts of things." Charlotte looked across the room. "Look, uh, both you and Cait have been pretty good to me and I-uh, well I know I'm not exactly the easiest person to get along with and all so I was sort of hoping one of you'd come by or something and well, I'm talking too much now and I should probably stop." The alchemist frowned. If Aislinn would have happened to look around the small abode, she'd likely have noticed that all of Charlotte's equipment had been more or less been put away. Materials that could have been preserved were stashed, and those that couldn't, were used.

"I'm leaving." She said with a sigh. "Your Great Mothers gave me more questions then answers, and while they helped a lot I just can't sit here on my butt any longer."

[Roleplayer001]

Aislinn frowned when Charlotte said she doesn't have times for her games. Who was this Delphi character then? The native frowned slightly before deciding it probably didn't matter a lot as she continued and drank an 'antidote'. The pink haired girl simply hoped she wasn't about to fall into another fit. As the black haired girl began to relax though, the girl felt a bit of relief.

Though as the she began to say she was going to leave the native felt a little sadness well up in her chest. She tried not to cry. She tried harder.

Only a few tears dropped as she gripped her friend tightly.

"You aren't hard to deal with, friend. Except maybe that one time you tied me up ..." The girl smiled at what had been a scary memory. "And it was nice to have you around. Make sure you make those tattoos stay useful, alright? Only dresses for now on!"

[Rune_Alchemist]

~Charlotte LaChance~

---

"Ugh, don't ruin this." Charlotte said with a huff, poking Aislinn on the head. "And dresses hardly make good travel clothing. They're cold, get wet easily and don't have anything I can store something in." She continued, standing up tiredly. She was hoping she could see Cait again, but...well, she guessed that whatever she was doing wasn't something she could stop. Well, that was fine, she supposed. Charlotte walked over to the blue stone, setting the flask and stone back upright.

"I'll keep practicing with them, though. I still don't know how to use them so well, but...I'll figure it out." She chuckled, covering the flask with a thick sack of leather. No need to advertise what the contents of it was. She tied the sack tightly together, and tied it to her belt. "There's a few things I'm leaving behind, too. A couple of things that should help with healing and other things. They're labeled so if you need some for whatever reason, feel free to use them." She turned back to Aislinn.

"I plan on leaving early tomorrow...so I'm going to be turning in for the rest of the day." She gave Aislinn a slightly unsure stare, as if she was considering asking her something but didn't seem entirely intent on asking whatever it was.

[Roleplayer001]

Aislinn frowned as Charlotte said she would be leaving early the next day. It was unfortunate but ... as the black haired woman stood and stared at her for a few seconds the native started to worry. Were the potions having a residual effect on her mental processes? "Is something wrong Charlotte?" The pink haired girl blinked before guiding the taller woman to the makeshift bed and making her lay down. "You don't look so well. It's probably best to turn in for now. Is there anything you need, friend?" She tilted her head and gave off a smile as she sat down on the edge of the bed with the black haired woman and let a little concern run across her face.

[Rune_Alchemist]

~Charlotte LaChance~

---

"It's nothing." Charlotte said with a somewhat forceful sigh, face reddening slightly. Ugh, she was terrible at this. "But yes. I was...thinking about turning in." Whatever was on her mind Charlotte at least seemed like she made up her mind - or rather, Aislinn seemed to have made the decision for her. The Alchemist seemed more or less happy as she ever did, at any rate as she went on to explain the 'medicine' she took earlier. "The medicine isn't really a medicine, but a type of poison. It forcefully causes any essence in the body to leave. It's a fairly good way of getting rid of such poisoning as that. It does leave the person extremely tired afterwards, though." Great, falling on her old habit of over explaining things when she was nervous like usual. "Also could kill someone if they drank it otherwise." She could have probably left out that morbid detail.

Charlotte removed her cloak, hanging it nearby the bed making sure to finally shut her mouth as she sat down on the cot.

"Not usually a good thing...but it can also help with getting to sleep if one is tired." She yawned as she sat at the edge of the bed. The tattoos seemed to finally start dimming as well.

[Roleplayer001]

Aislinn was a little surprised as she looked at her red face. Then when she started explaining more she seemed ... nervous ...? The content of what she was saying was a little terrifying, but the native found herself slightly distracted. "Well, I'm sure a proud black haired girl who ties up poor native girls with rope for fun will survive this small little bit of poison then!" The pink haired girl gave Charlotte a smile - it was hard to tell if she was trying to insinuate something or not.

As the other woman began to calm down though Aislinn looked towards the tattoos - they still had a little light in them! With a big smile the native gave Charlotte a look with big eyes. "Wait! Strip! Look at the pretty designs!" As if to demonstrate, the native removed her dress and pointed to some of the designs on her chest and thighs as she made them activate. "I'd just like to look at my work of art! Make sure there aren't any imperfections, you know?"

[Rune_Alchemist]

~Charlotte LaChance~

---

"You...just have to ruin the moment, don't you?" Charlotte said with a sigh, not even batting an eye at Aislinn's body. "Not happening." No way she was removing her clothes just for this. She was tired, and she honestly just wanted to go ahead and get some sleep. Not that she really also felt like arguing or messing with Asilinn if she pressed the issue either, though. With a yawn and a stretch, Charlotte kicked off her boots and for the most part, ignored Aislinn's request after telling her no.

Didn't stop the blush spreading across her face from deepening though. If something like this wasn't in purely scientific inquiry, she wanted nothing to do with it...usually.

[Roleplayer001]

Aislinn pouted slightly as Charlotte refused to strip as well. Those lines were fading, and it was getting a little irritating how this woman was such a prude about things. Wasn't she nervous when she had tried to paint her as well?

It was time for the Queen to give out her orders. "Take your shirt off for me!" The native seemed a little demanding. "I need to look at the tattoos to make sure they are all set well, alright?" She really wanted to look at them anyways as they all glowed. "And besides, you should look at them sometimes! That was a lot of hard work you know!" With that, the native kneeled on the bed beside the black haired woman and started to try and take off the alchemist's shirt so she could inspect her handiwork.

[Rune_Alchemist]

~Charlotte LaChance~

---

"G-get off!" Despite Charlotte's attempts to shove Aislinn off of her, she was too tired to really say no if she was this intent on it. "F-fine, I'll do it just get off already!" It'd be easier just to go along with Aislinn's shenanigans rather than argue with her anyways. Whatever happened though, eventually the alchemist was once again, completely without clothing again. Ugh, she had never been naked so many times before coming here. It was more than a little annoying, that was for sure.

"lets get it over with, then." Charlotte grumbled, though she seemed a bit more in control of her nervousness.

[Roleplayer001]

Aislinn smiled as the black haired woman removed her clothes, her eyes running over her still slightly glowing handiwork. The native reached out and traced one of the lines that started on her cheekbone, following the thin curve down her neck, between the breasts, down her stomach and on the inside of the right thigh before ending at her ankle. "It might be dangerous, but at least it is pretty!" The pink haired girl gave a wide grin up to Charlotte with a smile. "Now you are a work of art. I know your people tend to not enjoy being exposed but it's beautiful, isn't it?" Aislinn smiled as she observed many of the swirls and lines that ran across Charlotte's body.

Then she went from a kneeling position to laying down next to the other woman. "It's a bit late for me to be heading home - mind if I sleep here for the night?" Cait would have to simply rely on someone else for the night, wouldn't she?

[Rune_Alchemist]

~Charlotte LaChance~

---

This entire thing was annoying. Admittedly, the tattoos were beautiful in their own way, but that didn't mean she was comfortable with just blatantly showing them off. And all the touching! Gah, she felt like smacking Aislinn upside the head. Or at least sneak something into her food the next time she saw the native...if...she saw the native again. Charlotte frowned, not meeting Aislinn's gaze as the other girl inspected the tattoos. Well, at least she mostly kept her hands to herself.

"Took you long enough," Charlotte grunted as the native finished, getting off the bed and walking over to where she had packed her things. Specifically, over to where she had packed the dress, pulling it out and quickly donning it. "I have half a mind to kick you out...but fine." Charlotte walked back over to the bed, taking a seat on it. "Just keep your hands to yourself."

The next morning came swiftly. Charlotte slept well enough, easier than she previously had with the native sleeping in the same vicinity as her at least. By the time the sun rose the next morning though, the Alchemist had woken and pulled off the dress and put on her usual attire. She wasn't traveling in just the dress - it offered almost zero protection from the elements. Granted, she doubted she'd run into sudden snow storms and blizzards down here, but still. It was a bad idea.

Checking the last of her supplies, Charlotte hung a few more sacks from her belt - some supplies, preserved ingredients, and other things she could use to make things whenever she made camp. With the stone she wouldn't have to worry about water or food, really, but it'd still be a bad idea to completely rely on it.

She cast one back look over to Aislinn who was still sleeping. She was never really good with good byes or other overly touchy feely things. With a small smile, walked out of the cave and started walking.

---

~END PART 1~

[Roleplayer001]

The Stormlands

There came a time in every man's life when it would come to an end. Most would consider themselves unfortunate in his predicament, and many would curse god as their feet trudged along the ground and blood dripped from your mouth.

But he'd had a good run. Sixty years, grandchildren at home ...

It wasn't a bad way to go.

... but it could have gone so much better. And maybe with just a bit of luck, he'd start over again.

An ... angel ... approaching?

---

A knight of some sort wondered down road, wearing a set of armor that most warriors would be jealous of - a full set of plate, obviously meant to be fitted to his body as it moved along with his hobbling. His helmet had fine purple plumage from the top that was soaked with splotches of dried blood. The edges of the armor were encrusted with a gold that had jagged cuts running through the soft metal, and the plate itself was made of a fine steel that had stood up to most of the blows it had taken.

Most.

It was easy to tell the large wound in his side was a death sentence. He looked up for a moment, and then collapsed and remained still as the sunlight shined through the trees and onto his body. Although now it was easy to see that a large Greatsword strapped to his back via a cord - it would take several seconds to remove if someone had decided to attack the dead man while he still walked - which was likely part of the reason why a mace was on his belt.

The blade itself seemed to glow with a small blue light even from a distance, as if it was calling to anyone nearby to approach and take interest.

[Rune_Alchemist]

~Isabella~

---

"Eee, these trees are so tall!"

"Someone's excited."

"Well have you ever seen such tall trees before, Kinsey?"

"Heh, well I have now."

"Aren't they gorgeous? You'd never see anything like this back in the Monarchy."

"Yea, the nobles would use 'em all for their private hunting grounds and whatnot, Edith."

"Pfft, that's terrible Kinsey. Princess might leave ya here if she hears ya talking like that."

"And I'll have you flogged and tied for your slacking." A serious voice interrupted the jovial banter of the cartographer and other guard as she approached.

"Eeep! Valora, when did you get here?"

"Hmph. Shape up, Edith. You're not a guard but you joined in on this little venture. I expect some form of discipline. Kinsey, you should no better. We're in unfamiliar territory here, and our duty is to protect the princess." The princess in question was currently dressed in silver armor, custom fit for her as to provide both the best protection as well as offer a small sense of elegance to it. She sat on a fine white steed, one of the best bred horses the king and queen could get their hands on. She was royalty after all, even if all the way out here so far from the Monarchy. Even if her parents had practically disowned her. At least they had the courtesy to exile her instead of simply ordering her execution for treason and had given her at least a smidgen of a chance of survival out here.

She cast a passive, neutral glance to the two guards and Cartographer. Edith immediately straightened her posture and gave a quick bow. Kinsey waved casually before yawning, earning a smack on the side of his head from Valora. To them, it probably looked like she was just coolly demanding some sort of obedience. In truth though, she was wondering what they were talking about but was too nervous to ask about it. So instead, she remained silent and turned her head back towards the road behind them. A wagon full of supplies trudged along behind them at some distance - on the seat sat an older blacksmith and a commoner. Mervyn and Lana, if the princess recalled.

"Hey! Someone's coming!" One of the other guards - Prescott, she thought his name was. Valora turned in the direction he had indicated.

"He's wounded! Tripp, Prescott approach with caution!" Valora commanded, the two trained guardsmen didn't need much more convincing before hurrying to the mans side.

A wounded man? Isabella frowned, hopping off of her horse with all the grace one might expect of her.

"Princess?" Valora questioned, but before she could stop Isabel the princess had already walked over to the mans side with the two guards. She knelt beside him. Oh dear, his wounds were severe. More than she'd be able too heal, even with her...skills. She had been hoping that she could help, but all she could do was give him her usual calm expression.

"...is there anything we can do?" She asked the wounded man. Normally speaking was somewhat difficult for her, especially to strangers. This though, was different. Her eyes drifted over to the blade that rested on his back. A dull blue glow easily caught her attention. Tripp and Prescott had their hands on their weapons, just in case something happened. Everyone knew the princess wasn't exactly the most combat capable of people.

"...Princess," Prescott said with a sigh. "He's...no longer with us. We should probably get a move on. Whoever or whatever did this probably is still around." Isabel frowned, but said nothing. She had never seen a dead person before. That said...there was something she was extremely curious about.

The sword.

But taking a sword from a dead person? That would be...rude and bad and all kinds of terrible, wouldn't it?

[Roleplayer001]

As the body remained still in the forest path Prescott's conclusion was proven to be more and more correct. As time passed, that probably would not startle the naïve princess.

What likely would was how the sword's shine increased just slightly as the woman observed it. As the glow increased to an eventually blinding level, it would suddenly subside. The sword that remained would be a greatsword, but it would be what the princess would consider to be the ideal combination to create a combination of elegance while having a slightly righteous appearance.

The obvious expense and even the unnatural glow were not what made this sword unusual. It was rather how it shook slightly in place - it wasn't going anywhere anytime soon, but it would likely surprise those around it in an unusual phenomenon. A male voice would echo in the head of the princess. "Your highness, the guard is correct in their statement." The voice that spoke was that which would be expected from a man who had seen the darkest of days and yet still had some earnest goodness somehow persevering. "However there is no bandit to accost you - he reigned victorious in the battle he fought."

[Rune_Alchemist]

~Isabella~

---

The princess lowered her head, saying a small prayer for the dead from her homeland, for whatever religion would be worth to him. Prescott was right though, but she really wanted to inspect that blade. She turned her head back to it, frowning slightly as the soft glow it was giving off suddenly turned into a near-blinding level of brightness. There was a shout from one of her guards - Tripp she thought his voice sounded like - as he quickly moved in front of her while Prescott pulled her roughly back from the blade. Whatever it was, it ended quickly and whatever it was had the princess' attention.

Then the blade shook in its shackles

and spoke

"By the divines!" Prescott shouted, nearly stumbling backwards in shock.

"Princess, stay back this is likely the work of-P-princess?"

Before Tripp or anyone else could stop her, she had already moved back over to the body and untied the straps holding the blade in place. What greeted her, was a blade befitting of a Queen.

The sword it self was simple as it was elegant. The steel blade shone in the sunlight, reflecting a beautiful and untarnished blade. Its hilt was covered in a comfortable grip, dyed a dark blue color. The cross guard was covered with gold plate, the ends of the latter ending in angelic wing like designs indicating perhaps some holier origins. The pommel was set with a beautiful, near perfect cut emerald that seemed to glow with some sort of magic. Upon the blade, extending from the cross guard was a simple, gold colored line that extended until the end of the blade.

She held the blade in front of her, standing up with it in her hands. In all, the sword was about as tall as a princess and definitely designed to be used with more than one hand…but the princess had never used a sword a day in her life, let alone a large one such as this.

"Princess!" I was Valora. "What in the name of the holiest ones soiled knickers are you doing?! And what is that?" Isabella turned her head coolly towards Valora. She was equal parts scared and terrified of this thing, but it was so...beautiful, wasn't it? It almost looked like the elegant sword her father wielded, and it was clearly magical! That was the best part. She looked at the blade and then back to Valora.

"Burial." She replied quietly, looking down at the man. He was likely someone of some importance. It would be foolish and disrespectful to leave his body to the animals. Prescott and Tripp simply looked at each other, trying to figure out what to do in this situation. Without another word, she walked back over to her steed and inspected the blade further. Oh dear, what should she say though? That hadn't been some sort of trick of her and the others hearing, had it?

"...Fool girl is going to hurt herself." Valora commented as she turned to Prescott and Tripp. "Oi, you two, you heard the princess. Bury the man and I expect that grave to put the royals to shame!"

[Roleplayer001]

The sword went along willingly with the Princess as it was carried by her - it now shone with an emerald glow to match the gemstone contained within the pommel. A slightly more cheerful tone came from the blade though as it was inspected however. "Thank you for doing that, your highness."

It was the right and proper thing to pay one's respects after all. But aside from that, the sword seemed to fall silence once more, it's short statement finished and completed.

However the next order of business was brought up. "A highstorm approaches however - I would advise finding shelter as soon as that man is buried." The impersonal way of referencing his prior wielder would perhaps be surprising, but the sword gave itself a mental shrug before continuing.

A highstorm was a devastating funnel torrent of winds that passed over the country every other weak, lasting for about a day. Winds would be fast enough to tear through skin, and lightning would strike the ground seemingly at random. Although there was flooding at times, most of the water cleared away quickly.

The thick trees had adapted to the winds with thick trunks and deep roots. The animals themselves were bulkier and heavier than those in other parts of the world, and the massive boulder like land crabs known as chulls would place their legs into the ground so they could not be shifted. Crops had been raised and chosen based on the vulnerability to surface conditions - fields of wheat weren't really possible in the Stormlands.