GLoG

[[brackets lover]]

[The Challenge]

"Yeppers," Asami replies to Sophie.

Asami blocked out Nathair's mockery, but becomes adrenalized as he points the machine gun at Sophie. Asami quickly runs in front of the bullets faster than the speed they're firing at, letting out a sonic boom. At the speed at which she's moving, its unlikely for Nathair to think fast enough to move the bullets out of the way. Thus, in all likelihood the bullets will collide with Asami and potentially break her skin. In this case, she'd grit her teeth and wince. The nanobots, however, would find Asami's internal temperature to insanely hot. Anything that wouldn't survive a trip to the sun would quickly vaporize a few milimeters into Asami's skin.

[Morty]

[The Challenge]

Sophie seems ready to raise her shotgun to defend herself against the bullets, somehow, when Asami steps in the way. Nonetheless, there's a shimmer around her and a suit of armor made of golden sunlight manifests. It looks like the equipment of a modern-day soldier or riot control officer, rather than the ancient plate one might expect.

"She did escalate the fight several times despite your best attempts not to. Maybe it's not right of me to step in her defense," she says casually, as if he hadn't just tried to kill her. "Will you accept the responsibility if innocent people get caught in the crossfire?" she asks Asami.

[Meowmai]

[Birds and Babs- Treasure Hunt]

As the two woblins lead the way to the kitchens, they'll find them mostly empty. No meal is currently being prepared. They stop in front of the door uncertainly.

"Should we go in?"

"Usually the treasure is outside."

They conclude that they need to look outside and start scurrying along the walls. Before they can find much of anything, Kes might spot a grey-skinned face with orange eyes watching them through the window. The woblins are so focused on their search they haven't spotted her yet.

[Birds and Babs- Treasure Hunt]

"Well, that's up to you two, though maybe start outside first." Kestrel weighs in, only to turn and find the woblins have already concluded much the same and gotten on to searching. She watches for a moment, just making sure neither of them get into any trouble, before noticing the figure in the window. The birdgirl gives them a smile and an idle wave.

[quillpleasant]

The Challenge

The nanobullets are indeed unable to react fast enough to avoid Asami, and are swiftly melted by her internal heat. Nathair lets out a foul curse of anger, potentially increasing her vocabulary a bit.

"Stop it! I DON'T WANT TO HURT YOU!" he yells, a metallic screech entering his voice. His gun melts back into a hand as he takes a step back, shaking his head in disbelief.

"Wow, listen to yourself," he spits at Sophie, "You're really questioning defending this kid after she literally took a bullet for you? Some hero you are." The irony of feeling contempt when he's the one who shot those bullets seems lost on him.

Nathair takes a couple steps back, waving his hands in front of him. "Enough. Enough! I try to keep one standard and the world seems intent on testing me. Don't I have enough guilt without murdering some stubborn kid? Don't bother coming to Riverside, just leave me alone. I hope I never see you again." He turns his back on the pair of them and tries, once again, to leave. This time by simply walking away.

[[brackets lover]]

[The Challenge]

Asami's breathing accelerates from the pain. "Eh? Yeah," she casually replies to Sophie as she remains on-guard.

Nathair walking away, however, prompted Asami to follow him at the same pace. "You're in no position to make demands," she says, callously, "This wouldn't be happening if you hadn't stalked me, or used children as leverage in a negotiation, or told me to come alone to a different city-thing entirely where you could easily kidnap me." She curls one of her fists in anger and continues, "If you really don't wanna fight me, why don't you just turn yourself in to the police?"

[Halae]

[Playdate]

"She says, ignoring the fact that teenage me was cutting deals with devils for power and gallivanting off to kill things for money. I dare say if our boys are anything like either of us, we've got our work cut out for us," it seems Trick's resigned to this fact.

[Ironsmith]

[Playdate]

Braon, already giggling from before, escalates all the way up to cackling at Sophie and Trick's follow-ups, setting Niamh down so she doesn't run the risk of dropping her amidst the uncharacteristic merriment. She makes several attempts to follow up, all of which are promptly lost in the laughing fit, and by the time she settles she's too out of breath to say anything.

She must be going mad again. But this time she gets to enjoy it.

[Morty]

[Birds and Babs- Treasure Hunt]

"Hi! Are you the new caretaker? Aunt Reelshka mentioned you," says the goblin in the window. The sound of her voice gets the attention of the woblins.

"Brinika!"

"Hi Brinika!"

"We're looking for your treasure! With Kes and Silver!"

"We already found the flowerpot!"

"Is the next clue inside our outside?"

"Come on, kids, I can't tell you that. It'd be cheating." She looks back to Kes and Silver. "Is that a real wolf cub with you?"

[The Challenge]

"Enough." Sophie's voice doesn't rise, but there's a tone to it that makes impossible to miss or ignore. "His judgement will come in due time. But I won't have you endanger yourself or this place in a pointless brawl. We know who he is now and he knows better than to return here."

She's speaking from her devotion to keeping children and GLoG safe, and imparts it to everyone around her. It demands acknowledgment, even if not obedience. With Asami, it's an admonition that aims to cut through her self-assured aggression; with Nathair, it's a dire warning of retribution.

[quillpleasant]

The Challenge

Nathair scoffs over his shoulder at Asami. "Right you are, police time. Gonna go pay penance for my oh-so terrible crimes." Of which the ones Asami has mentioned are some of the least by far.

To Sophie, he gives a mocking salute. He's not going to continue arguing, especially since she's aiding his escape by trying to curtail Asami. And he truly has no desire to return to this place. But there's no fear of retribution. In fact, Nathair is starting to lose the concept of fear entirely. He continues walking away, providing an easy target should Asami ignore Sophie's warning.

[[brackets lover]]

[The Challenge]

Sophie's dialogue does effectively distract Asami from Nathair completely, causing her fists to curl up as she turns back. "Uh, no, we really don't know who he is! What even makes you think he won't return? That kind of brashness will get you killed in these kinds of situations," Asami asserts, pouting irately.

[Meowmai]

[Birds and Babs- Treasure Hunt]

"Hiya! Yup, that's me!" Kestrel nodded, seeing no need to introduce herself by name as the woblins do so for her. "And yea! He's a goblin-raised wolf, too! Helped some folks out in finding his lost sibling, and before we knew it the little fella had bonded to me." She leans down to scratch the cub behind the ears a little, and is met with a wagging tail.

"Oh, you're Brinika, huh? I thiiiiink the twins mentioned you worked on this map?" That seems to match one of the names they mentioned earlier. "But yeah, I'm helping these two with the treasure hunt."

As if to emphasise this, she looked back at the twins. "Well, if you don't find anything outside soon, we'll go on and nosey around inside, hmm?"

[Morty]

[The Challenge]

"I have been in this kind of situation before." Sophie keeps speaking with an authoritative, commanding tone, but it's no longer entirely a deliberate posture. She's irritated by how this belligerent child is lecturing her. "So I know when to keep fighting and when to stop. You should learn to do the same."

[Birds and Babs- Treasure Hunt]

"Yeah, that's me! I helped make this map. We do it for them pretty often. Them and their older brother and his friends." She peers down at Silver. "I've never heard of a wolf cub being given away like that. That's really cool."

As the two talk, Balthuk's voice can be heard.

"Look! Here, behind the firewood! That's sneaky!"

Brinika gives a cackling laugh.

"That didn't take them as long as I thought. You should go make sure they continue in the right direction."

[quillpleasant]

The Challenge

With Asami and Sophie arguing, Nathair takes the opportunity to make a break for it. His body discorporates into a cloud of nanoparticles, flying away swiftly into the woods. With any look, he'll soon be out of view in the trees, and he can rejoin with his other parts elsewhere.

Well, that wasn't a failure. Even if he didn't get the ring, he acquired something even more impressive. And he's learned something about what things he's willing to do. Seems there's still some old morality lurking under the surface.

Best to kill that. Just like all his other weaknesses, bit by bit.

[[brackets lover]]

[The Challeng(ing Child)]

Asami winces with frustration, puffing out her cheeks for a second. She holds her hand out towards Sophie in an argumentative gesture. "T-that's purely anecdotal! Do you have any objective proof that I should stop fighting, huh?" debates Asami, raising her voice at Sophie.

[Morty]

[The Challeng(ing Child)]

Did she really just pull out the "objective proof" argument? By the prophets.

"The fact that we're near a campsite made of wooden building and a forest, both of which can go up in flames from a stray shot," she says, as though it was patently obvious.

[[brackets lover]]

[The Challeng(ing Child)]

Asami throws her hands up in frustration. "So what? I would never let that happen! And even if I did, I can just fix it easily."

[Meowmai]

[Birds and Babs- Treasure Hunt]

"You and your cousins did a great job! I woulda loved to have something like this to do when I was younger," Kestrel says. "And yeah, there was a little bit of fuss about it, I think I was quite lucky to keep him." She smiles at the cub affectionately.

Then the clue is found, and it seems it's time to move on. "Right. See you around some other time then!" The birdgirl gave Brinika a little wave, before moving to rejoin with the twins.

"Good spotting Balthuk! What's the next clue?"

[Morty]

[The Challeng(ing Child)]

"I have seen far too much death and tragedy caused by people who were sure they could avoid the consequences or deal with them if they came." Sophie's bright blue eyes have a cold gleam to them. She's speaking from bitter, personal experience. "I will not risk it in a place I'm responsible for." Once again, the weight of her conviction is almost tangible and difficult to struggle against.

[[brackets lover]]

[The Challeng(ing Child)]

Asami shakes her head, glaring back with an equal conviction. "And I've prevented just as much tragedy with swift and decisive action. Therefore your point is moo," she fires back, crossing her arms and not realizing she got the word 'moot' wrong, "Or do you really think your own way is without risk?"

[Morty]

[Birds and Babs- Treasure Hunt]

The third piece of the map points towards a building marked with a cross and a bandage. Strangely enough, there's also a picture of a shoe there.

"That's the infir- innn- uh, the place people go when they're hurt!"

"We're only allowed into the first room."

"And what's a shoe doing here?"

[The Challeng(ing Child)]

It occurs to Sophie that she's beating her head against a wall.

"One way or another, he's gone. Now we need to go and check if everyone in the campsite is alright."

[[brackets lover]]

[The Challeng(ing Child)]

Asami sighs, feeling a similar sense of futility to Sophie. "Fine, I'll do just that. One sec."

Asami's form devolves into a beam of light firing out away from Sophie.

[Meowmai]

[Birds and Babs- Treasure Hunt]

The third piece of the map points towards a building marked with a cross and a bandage. Strangely enough, there's also a picture of a shoe there.

"That's the infir- innn- uh, the place people go when they're hurt!"

"We're only allowed into the first room."

"And what's a shoe doing here?"

[Birds and Babs- Treasure Hunt]

"Infirmary." Kestrel nods affirmingly. "And I dunno. Maybe cus it's good to wear shoes in medical spaces? Hmm. Well, I'm sure we'll see when we get there!" And with that, she'll lead them on.

[Morty]

[Birds and Babs- Treasure Hunt]

"I've only been there once. When I got sick. The doctor said I was very brave and gave me a chewing gum!" Maltrika declares proudly as the two kids follow Kes to the infirmary.

When they reach it, the building doesn't seem to be very busy at this time of day. Voices are coming from one of the offices, to the waiting room is empty. There's also a shoe rack with a few errant pairs. Balthuk immediately takes one of them and starts looking inside. The twins might make a mess if Kes doesn't intervene.

[Meowmai]

[Birds and Babs- Treasure Hunt]

"I'm sure you were the very bravest." Kestrel has to suppress a small giggle. It was very adorable how proud Maltrika was about that.

Kestrel doesn't immediately step in, but after a short moment she'll have a moment of realization and kneel besides Balthuk. "Hey now, be careful with those. Remember that this is other people's stuff. Maybe we should try looking around elsewhere first?" She says, doing her best to sound sweet rather than chastising. "And be sure to put people's stuff back properly, alright?"

[Morty]

[Birds and Babs- Treasure Hunt]

Balthuk stops himself, holding someone's shoe in both hands. He puts it back with due reverence.

"Okay. Mom would get mad if we made a mess."

As the twins get to searching, Kes might spot something. There's a very small shoe under one of the benches. Perhaps the presence of the shoe-rack is only a decoy. But the kids might need to be pointed in the right direction.

[Meowmai]

[Birds and Babs- Treasure Hunt]

The birdgirl smiles gently at Balthuk, reaching to gently ruffle his head for a moment before returning to the search.

And once again she finds something before the kids do. And once more she needs to figure out how to help the kids without giving the game away. Eventually she settles on something silly, pretending to drop a coin near the bench which falls with a noisy cling. "Oops!" Maybe not the most subtle, but subtlety has never been her expertise.

[Earl of Purple]

Arrivals

Somebody is flying in, landing near the lake. They are a winged human-ish figure with short black hair, grey eyes and a pair of stubby auk wings with eyes in the central joint. They are wearing a red chequered shirt and a pair of jeans, with hiking boots on their feet and a canvas satchel with a stylised corvid embroidered onto the flap.

[Morty]

[Birds and Babs- Treasure Hunt]

The kids, who have been fussing over the shoes to no avail, gasp and turn around when they hear the sound.

"What was that?"

"Wait, look! There's another shoe there."

"It kinda looks like Brinika's shoe."

"Maybe there's a clue there!"

There is, indeed, a final part of the map folded and hidden in the shoe. It shows the route leading to one of the play areas near the daycare. There's a simple drawing of a scarecrow next to it.

"Whazzat?"

"Is it a doll? It looks weird."

[Meowmai]

[Birds and Babs- Treasure Hunt]

Kestrel picks up her dropped coin, gently smiling to herself as the kids find the coin.

"That's a scarecrow." Kestrel said, leaning forwards to look at the map. She was surprised the woblins hadn't seen even a drawing of one before. But then again, she didn't know if these kids lived on the surface. If they lived underground like normal goblins, it probably would never come up, would it? "We used to have one on the farm I grew up in. It is sorta kinda like a doll, actually. It's a big fake straw person, to try trick birds and scare them away from the crops. Make them think it's a person, y'know."

[Morty]

[Birds and Babs- Treasure Hunt]

"Woow. That's so clever! Otherwise a person would have to stand around all day."

"Mommy says goblin farmers have to worry about molerats and rift-lice and grubs, not birds. I don't think they use scarecrows on them."

The two woblins chatter as they head towards the play area. Sure enough, there's a small scarecrow in a sandbox.

"There it is! Now we gotta dig. Treasure is buried often, so you gotta dig."

"Can Silver help us dig?"