MERC

[Morty]

[New Recruit]

"She's all yours," Kuvesh says as the goblins hand the cannon to Frigate. Olvisin, meanwhile, heads over to help Sian.

"Sure thing. That's a perk of metal arms. Though they only go so far... they don't make me much heavier for one."

[ForTheGnomes]

[New Recruit]

Jerick sits down on a chair, pulls out his notebook, and starts scribbling notations, events of the day, and any other things that may need to be written, all the while looking to see if the cannon, and more importantly the multi-element extension for it, works. Another he was paying attention was Olvisin and the Nock gun.

[Earl of Purple]

New Recruit

Frigate gets to work on loading the cannon, presumably with a ball that he'd given the goblins that went unfired. He's not likely to just be carrying around an eight-pound lead ball. He does use his own small powder flask, though; Jerick might be interested to realise it's enchanted, and even after loading a cannon once and the Nock gun at least twice, it's still not empty.

Frigate doesn't fire immediately, though. "She'll be loud. Ye got ear defenders? I don't want t' deafen ye." Once they've all either put ear defenders on or earplugs in, or otherwise reassured Frigate, he'll set the cannon to 'fire' and pulls the lanyard that triggers the gun. It is, as promised, loud, and as Earl has apparently decided it's a demiculverin, it may cause more damage to the rear of the range than expected.

Sian, meanwhile, will also put her ear defenders back on and gives the Nock gun to Olvisin, kneeling behind the goblin to help show her how to hold a gun, though if she's used a rifle before she'll likely have the rough idea.

[Morty]

[New Recruit]

Three of the goblin siblings stand a safe distance away from Frigate and admire the first test run of the cannon they made. With ear protection, of course.

Olvisin, meanwhile, has used a rifle before but it was a while ago and she's definitely more used to handguns. Her cybernetic arms steady her, but Sian might need to intervene and prop her up at some point.

[ForTheGnomes]

[New Recruit]

Jerick also puts on his own ear protection, a pair of earmuffs more similar to headphones than anything else with runes inscribed on both ear cups, then continues taking notes and observing the two weapons.

[Earl of Purple]

New Recruit

The cannon rocks backwards as it's fired, sending a ball wreathed in flame speeding towards the target at the back. It hits dead on target, blasting a fist-sized hole through the target which is then set on fire. The ball continues past and hits the wall, cracking the bricks and igniting the backdrop. Frigate has immediately began the process of cleaning the weapon, barely glancing at the target between the shot being fired and the ball's impact. Which does mean he's missed the fire. He whistles appreciatively. "She works great. Fire be devastatin'."

Further down, Sian's going to help move Olvisin's arms into position, staying close behind Olvisin and possibly pressing her chest into Olvisin's back or head as she does so. After getting the Nock gun tucked into Olvisin's shoulder, however, she's going to reposition the volleygun so it's fired from Olvisin's hips. "Were this any other gun, I'd hold it at your shoulder. But the recoil's immense, and your face too nice to smash with wood. Shoot from the hip first, see if you think your arms can hold it steady to actually aim it."

[Morty]

[New Recruit]

"My face is nice? Why thank you for noticing." Olvisin grins as her ears perk up. She innocently leans back against Sian. "But alright, let's give it a shot." She squeezes the trigger and does manage to hold the gun steady. Maybe those metal arms are stronger than she gave them credit for.

Her siblings, meanwhile, whoop and cheer as Frigate praises the gun they made.

[Shadowcaller]

[Scholarly Visit]

Ambrosia hadn't set her foot in this base since the time before Ugi was born. Now she was here again but with quite a different objective in mind.
Hopefully Dena wouldn't mind her being here.

...

But just in the case she would mind she had made sure to visit when she knew she was at the Riverside office.
She might have learned of the gorgon's entire schedule through her father's contacts. Not that anyone needed to know that of course. This was just a happy little coincidence.

And with a little more luck she'd run into a goblin that she could ask a few questions.

[Gullara]

[Scholarly Visit]

It appears the first face Ambrosia will come across is an unfamiliar one. Valerie is on duty today, and she perks up behind her desk when the door opens. "Hello, welcome to Merc. Can I help you with anything?" She greets.

[Shadowcaller]

[Scholarly Visit]

Yes, unfamiliar. Though she isn't sure how she managed to miss who appeared to be the greeter.
Perhaps she was new?

"Yes, my name is Ambrosia Ithil and I'm researching fey for a project halo is engaging in. While it might sound bizarre coming to MERC for that I'm told that many of the goblins who work here are knowledgeable of the specific myth that I'm searching for."

She holds up Ugi. "And this is of course my little assistant."

[Gullara]

[Scholarly Visit]

Valerie's expression shifts from a polite smile to one more broad and warm for the baby. "Ohhh, and what's your assistant's name?"

She does, however, avoid being totally distracted by the baby. "Ah, a myth? Well I'm not sure exactly who you might be looking for, but we can start with Dipsnig. If he's not familiar himself, he's in the position to know the goings on and might be able to point you in the right direction. Does that sound like a plan?"

[Shadowcaller]

[Scholarly Visit]

"His name is Ugi." Ambrosia gives the child an adoring look while he's locking eyes with Val. Giving her a curious look. Tilting his round head ever so slightly.

"And that sounds like a plan. If he isn't too preoccupied of course. Then I can talk to just anyone that knows about the myth. I could give you brief description of it if It'd help things along. It's about how the goblins were enslaved by a fey king but managed to break free from his rule."

[Gullara]

[Scholarly Visit]

Valerie, still smiling, gives Ugi a little wave. Adorable! It's just a shame she has to do silly things like her job.

"Understood, let me just call him." Valerie picks up the phone and hits a single button. She turns away from Ambrosia as she proceeds to give a short explanation. Then she turns back. "You're in luck, he can see you right away. Just follow me." The secretary will get up and lead the way to Dipsnig's office. When they arrive she knocks on the door, "Ambrosia to see you, sir." Then she opens it to let Ambrosia through.

[Morty]

[Scholarly Visit]

The door opens to Dipsnig's oddly double-sized office. Its owner is small, but he frequently receives larger people. Dipsnig is seated behind is desk and there's a wolf stretched out on the floor next to it.

"Miss Ithil. To what do I owe the pleasure today? Valerie mentioned a research project."

[Shadowcaller]

[Scholarly Visit]

Ambrosia might be larger than Dipsnig but less so than most non-goblins even if the armor she nearly always wore made her seem bigger.

But what really will draw his attention is probably the baby held in her arms. A baby that Dipsnig might have seen pictures of since he was the product of the whole Dena deal. "Is it okay if I bring him in? I can always leave him outside with someone if you prefer." Though it isn't really clear who this 'someone' would be. "He's not a very screaming baby though."

[Morty]

[Scholarly Visit]

Dipsnig does indeed put two and two together and recognize Ugi. So this is the child that Dena gave birth to. Weird to think about. And his half-brother is living with Fettina and Cantata now.

"Hmm. No, it's fine. You can trust Rigu to be well-behaved too."

The wolf raises his head at the sound of his name but doesn't move from his spot.

[Shadowcaller]

[Scholarly Visit]

Ambrosia gives the wolf a glance.
Paradoxically Dipsnig's reassurance worried her as she hadn't even regarded the animal as a concern before. But as she looks back to Dipsnig she decides that it ultimately it was probably inconsequential.
"Glad to hear that, since I'm not sure how well he works with animals yet." Though the idea that a dragon be afraid of a wolf seemed pretty laughable in her mind.
"But as I told the, ah, secretary I came here tracking down what seems to be an ancestral myth of your people. Foundational I've even heard it called. Something regarding a fey ruler who supposedly ruled all of you in some mythological past."

[Morty]

[Scholarly Visit]

There's a brief but noticeable stiffening in Dipsnig's posture. His ears dip downwards as well. He did not expect this question and hearing it triggered an irrational flight response.

"Hmm. Where have you heard about this myth? It's not something we share eagerly."

He's certainly not bothering to deny that it exists.

[Meowmai]

[Familiar Feathered Faces] [Closed]

A new figure makes her way through the front doors of the MERC building. Her dress is simple- a green jacket, brown shirt, tan shorts, boots, a small leather satchel slung over her shoulder. She wasn't carrying any adventuring kit with her, not today at least, and Silver was absent too. The only particularly noticeable thing about her dress was a small brown choker, from which hung a golden arrow charm. Feathers sprouted from her arms and ears, while also fanning out behind her in an array of tailfeathers.

She wore a mildly curious expression on her face as she looked around, approaching the counter though her focus seemed to be elsewhere.

[Gullara]

[Familiar Feathered Faces]

"Kes?" A familiar voice cuts through her distraction, and she'll look up to see Valerie's smiling face. "Now what is my new favourite babysitter doing all the way out here?" Val considers that for a short moment and adds, "Sorry, that's not reductive is it? I was trying to find the right word and it was what my brain came up with."

[Shadowcaller]

[Scholarly Visit]

There's a brief but noticeable stiffening in Dipsnig's posture. His ears dip downwards as well. He did not expect this question and hearing it triggered an irrational flight response.

"Hmm. Where have you heard about this myth? It's not something we share eagerly."

He's certainly not bothering to deny that it exists.

[Scholarly Visit]

"Second-hand information at best, meaning rumors shared to me in confidence. So I haven't been able to verify anything yet. Which is why I came here looking for the closest thing to a first-hand account, you. But is there a reason why your people don't like sharing this particular myth?" The scholar asks, gesturing at Dipsnig.

[Morty]

[Scholarly Visit]

"We're a secretive and private people, culturally." Certainly true, but that's not all there is to it. "And this one is... personal. Besides, people who already consider us pests or potential slaves wouldn't improve their outlook if they knew we might have originated as fey arrow-fodder." A flick of his ears, not quite amusement. "Still, no use denying it. I knew it as the Tale of Three Brothers, when I was young. A dread king made us to be his footsoldiers but we rebelled. We, that is goblins, hobgoblins and orcs."

[Meowmai]

[Familiar Feathered Faces]

Huh? Oh, Val!" Kestrel snaps back to attention, looking just as surprised to see Val there as Val did to see her. "Hi! No, no, it's fine, really! I uh, didn't know you worked here." A pause, and she blinked. "Do you work here, then?" She scratches the back of her head, and then positively beams as she realized Val had specified favourite. "Though uh, well, now you say it... I'm not just a babysitter, actually. I kinda... didn't expect to end up at GLoG? Though I'm glad that I did!" She adds, rather hastily, in case Val got the wrong idea. "But well, I was an adventurer before I got here. Except the Nexus has no adventurers guild, so I didn't really know what to do to continue, but then I heard about this place!" She gestures around for emphasis.

[ForTheGnomes]

[New Recruit]

Jerick looks up in time to see the cannonball crash through the dummy and into the wall, igniting everything it comes into contact with. He takes off his earmuffs and walks toward the dummy. He seems completely unphased by the fire. "Hahaha!! It looks like it works well! Well then, now I have an idea for another cannon extension. Ah, another project for another day."

Jerick takes a look over to where Sian and Olvisin were trying out the Nock gun, the back to Frigate. "That's quite the gun you've got over there. It is yours, right?"

[Shadowcaller]

[Scholarly Visit]

"We're a secretive and private people, culturally." Certainly true, but that's not all there is to it. "And this one is... personal. Besides, people who already consider us pests or potential slaves wouldn't improve their outlook if they knew we might have originated as fey arrow-fodder." A flick of his ears, not quite amusement. "Still, no use denying it. I knew it as the Tale of Three Brothers, when I was young. A dread king made us to be his footsoldiers but we rebelled. We, that is goblins, hobgoblins and orcs."

[Scholarly Visit]

"You wouldn't be the first people to have myths of being enslaved by some twisted entity. Even beings as mighty as dragons have one. Indeed, one of the most fundamental parts of many cultures is the 'parent-murder'. How the child or children of the old gods overthrow them and bring about new era where their people are free to shape their own destinies. But that said, could you share the tale in its entirety to me?" Her eyebrows raise as she meets his gaze.

She couldn't help but to wonder how similar it was to the tale she had mentioned.

[Earl of Purple]

New Recruit

"Oh, like you didn't already know." Sian says, supporting Olvisin as the seven-barrelled volleygun discharges all its barrels with a thunderous roar. It doesn't leave much of the target after, though it's also very inaccurate. Good at killing people all bunched up, less useful for much else.

"Aye, it be mine. Not warsmith-made, though. Jus' a regular volleygun, made by a mundane gunsmith. Lubbers called John Wilson an' Henry Nock, methinks. Picked it up on me travels, 'long with th' original demiculverin ye've fixed up fer I. Got more in me rooms, muskets an' blunderbusses an' such, even got a rifle." Which were cutting edge military technology when Frigate left his homeworld, rare and expensive and not very practical for war.

[Morty]

[Scholarly Visit]

Dipsnig rubs his temples.

"I'm really not much of a storyteller, but I'll try. How did it go... there was a great fey king. He needed more soldiers to wage war on the mortal realms and his fey hosts weren't sufficient. So he mixed his blood with the soil of the mortal world and created the gol-kin."

He falls silent for a while as he tries to recall it and put it into words.

"The gol-kin fought and died in his service but grew to prefer the mortal world to the fey realms. So three brothers among them decided to flee. One went to the harsh wastes and became the first orc. One went to the great expanses of plains and woods and became the first hobgoblin. And the third hid underground and became the first goblin. And their desertion exposed the king's weakness so he was cast down."

[New Recruit]

"I do know. But it's still nice to hear someone say it. Many people can't see past the tusks." Olvisin gives the target a long look once the shot is fired. "It certainly sends a message. Precision could be better, though."

[Gullara]

[Familiar Feathered Faces]

Huh? Oh, Val!" Kestrel snaps back to attention, looking just as surprised to see Val there as Val did to see her. "Hi! No, no, it's fine, really! I uh, didn't know you worked here." A pause, and she blinked. "Do you work here, then?" She scratches the back of her head, and then positively beams as she realized Val had specified favourite. "Though uh, well, now you say it... I'm not just a babysitter, actually. I kinda... didn't expect to end up at GLoG? Though I'm glad that I did!" She adds, rather hastily, in case Val got the wrong idea. "But well, I was an adventurer before I got here. Except the Nexus has no adventurers guild, so I didn't really know what to do to continue, but then I heard about this place!" She gestures around for emphasis.

[Familiar Feathered Faces]

"Oh really?" Valerie puts and elbow on the deck and lightly rests her chin on her hand. "Mild mannered babysitter one day, daring adventurer the next are you?" She observes, eyes alight. "Lucky for you, Merc is just the right place. There's all kind of job postings, including just the sort of thing you're looking for, I think."

"Oh, and I do work here. So I can help you with everything you need." She smiles broadly.

[Shadowcaller]

[Scholarly Visit]

Ambrosia's eyebrows raise as she hears the tale.

She gently caresses Ugi's head, considering the goblins words. "An escape? Interesting. But there has to be many variations of the tale, no? Have you ever heard a version where the brothers slay their former master before making their escape?"

[Morty]

[Scholarly Visit]

Dipsnig nods slowly.

"Of course. The story I told you is the one I heard from my grandfather. It reflects our cultural values, which includes discretion being the better part of valor. I haven't been able to obtain any details, but I believe orcs tell a version where they fight the king. I don't think they slay him, though. The Gentry can't be killed in a conventional sense and I think the legends reflect it, without knowing it."