ꙮ The thing about Queenstown you come to realise fairly quickly is that, no matter what direction you look in, there’s something eye-catching. Something bright, something smoked and tasty-smelling being hawked by a street vendor, some troupe of dancing Endjinn to marvel and gawp at for a few moments along a broad thoroughfare, some snatch of music that catches your ear. You could take a few steps in almost any direction, and find SOMETHING interesting. So, face whichever way your heart tells you, and explore!
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- Archie
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← Active ScenesExploring Queenstown, I
#awoken
: does take a moment to view and cheer on the dancing Endjinn- who knew they could move like that! He then sniffs the air, but it’s not meats and bakeries he’s searching for, but instead the smell of linen, leathers, and… steel?
: “Everyone’s loaded for bear… and these clothes are too fine to be rough and tumble in the red sand!” he says to Nobody-In-Particular.
ꙮ They are very fine indeed! But perhaps not the right clothes for the circumstance, it’s true. Another true fact about Queenstown is that you can perk your ears up (metaphorically, if you’re not a metahuman), and listen for the song of a hammer on an anvil, that’s another song it’s hard NOT to catch little snippets of, here.
closes his eyes and inhales deeply, focusing all his will on hearing the beat and answer of hammer on metal, the hiss of jetting steam. By this compass, his heels turn, and his legs guide. (He also slightly opens one eye so he doesn’t accidentally bump into someone, but is trying to make the journey by vibes and mostly-closed eyes.)
ꙮ There’s a little bumping and jostling – but you traverse the streets in one piece and in relative peace, following the song of ringing steel. Turn… and turn… and down this way, a slightly but only slightly narrower, less-busy road. Everyone’s out and about, it’s crowded in a way that Almachadta and Samudra never felt – but it doesn’t feel uncomfortable, at least not to you.
ꙮ When you open your eyes, you’re standing in front of a sign that advertises– well. It’s obviously a workshop, and there’s stylish and functional armour displayed in the windows for all sorts of bodies - there’s something an Endjinn could wear, even, to protect more vulnerable gears and joints, there’s something sized for– something short, but the proportions are pretty strange – and the sign itself’s got a big heavy-looking anvil with a :3 face stamped into its surface. Gato & Gato, Associates. The door’s open.
’s face brightens into a sly smile. “Oh ho ho, what a cheeky sign. This bodes extremely well!”
welcomes himself in with a few confident strides, looking around the place, threatening to make eye contact with anyone inside.
ꙮ The – person? Creature? – working what appears to be the front of the store meets your eyes first and welcomes you with an incredibly expansive gesticulation– “Welcome to Gato & Gato’s, we’ve got everything you’re looking for!” She then does an elaborate somersault off the front desk and offers a paw to shake the Awoken’s hand – did I mention that she’s a stockily built four-foot-tall tabby cat? Dressed to the nines in remarkably-articulated flexible light armor, obviously a ‘display piece’ along with the acrobatic performance– her whiskers twitch and her ear flicks and she grins. “First time to Queenstown? You’ve got that look about you.”
joyfully clasps the paw for a handpawshake! “As far as I’m aware! Got the star-studded introduction and everything!”
ꙮ She goes, “Ohhhh, you’re one of them that drew the big crowd at the train station, I’ll bet! I couldn’t make it, but I heard it was a hell of a show! Can’t blame you for lookin’ for some armor first thing, you’re dressed for a fancy ball, not a scrap on a train platform! Gwahahaha!” She head-over-tail flips backwards thrice, in rapid succession, and gestures for the Awoken to follow. “Human and human-ish armor is over this way. Got an idea of what you’re lookin’ for?”
: “I plan on keeping style in mind! But at the same time, let’s armor up a bit without losing too much maneuverability. Let’s start at the chest, and the forearms. I do a lot of this-“ He mimes thrusting a spear, “-but then also some of this-“ this time raising his hands up above his head, phantomly spinning it above his head, “-and then a little of that!” He shrugs one shoulder, then the other, and then jerks a thumb to point at himself.
: “So, pauldrons? Probably out.”
ꙮ She calls out towards the back of the shop, “Hey, Gato, we’ve got customers!” – there must be an entire forge back there, shared between a handful of workshops and storefronts that all needed roughly the same thing, and you see – you’re not sure WHAT you thought he was but very quickly you realise he’s an eight-foot-tall, incredibly round, shiny-polished Endjinn- all orbs and rods connecting them together in fluid articulation, with comically-oversized pointy cat ears giving him a rather memorable profile - and he waves amiably, and rumbles out a “Hello, customer!”, before Gato - the other one, apparently - listens to the Awoken’s explanation and nods in satisfaction. “Alright, I think we can work with that. You saw me boundin’ around when you came in, you know we’re good for it.”
: “Yeah, that was pretty impressive! My name’s Awoken, by the way. Sorry for not introducing myself!” He punches a fist into a palm. “Both Gato, right?”
ꙮ ”Gato and Gato, like the sign says! Nice to meet you, Awoken!” And then she scampers- holds up a ‘hang on one sec’ paw- THEN scampers- and is back with a matched set of stuff - leather, with a layer of scales of light, fine metal with a white shimmery sheen to it. There’s a breastplate, matching bracers, poleyns and faulds, and they all look like you could dance in them if you wanted to.
claps excitedly. “That’s it, that’s a good set to have!”
: “Do you also carry heat-resistant tights, or linens?”
ꙮ ”We certainly do, wait one moment– they’re not ours, but we work with the most amazing suppliers, you won’t be–“ –and she trails off, because she’s already darted off into another corner, looking for something. A moment later, she comes back with a selection of battle-ready garments for the Awoken to try on. “In the back, go past Gato and then take a left, sing out if you need help with any of the buckles, wanna make sure we can make any adjustments we need to~”
gathers up the breastplate and bracers in one arm, and then hooks the poleyns by the buckles with the other, and shrugs the faulds up onto a shoulder, and then– whoop, gotta get the tights, so he hooks them between fingers on both hands, and makes way for the back! He’s sure to pass the Larger Gato, and hangs a left, looking for an appropriate changing room and not a broom closet.
ꙮ There’s a sign, but it’s just another sign with a :3 on it. It’s in the direction the Smaller Gato pointed out, though, and it turns out, it’s not a broom closet! (Or if it is, it’s a remarkably comfortable one, and appropriate to change into your potential new armour in.)
ꙮ And… it fits like a charm! It might even be charmed to fit right - you can feel some very subtle workings of gnosis, embedded into the leathers.
emerges armored up- shoulders bare, but the tights under the breastplate and down his legs- with much less of the frilly and flowing cloth accoutrements, his frame looks noticably smaller, but also has the effect of fully bringing into focus how quick and smooth his movements are. His normal wear is neatly folded and gingerly held (he’ll have to deposit it on the coat rack in the Library later), though his bottles still hang from his waist strap. One Sweet Tea. One Ale. One Mysteriously Empty.
hops a bit from foot to foot, causing the armor to settle more in line with how his movements happen.
ꙮ And settle it does. Gato the Larger looks up from his work - he’s making adjustments to some unbelievably ostentatious feathered pauldrons that can’t possibly be functional, but the feathers on it got burnt to shit and are being replaced, so maybe it is and just– someone made some choices, for sure - and applauds. “Knew the right person’d amble in and get found by that set.”
nods enthusiastically. “Good, good! I just have a few more adjustments to make, it’ll help if someone has an extra hand or paw to help tie them on.” He holds up the charms made by himself and Salme, along with the thin, bare wreath of flowers.
: “A knight’s garlands are precious, and I’m accepting recommendations of displayed and movement-acceptable places.”
ꙮ Gato the Smol-er’s got TWO paws and she’s more than happy to help. “Everything fits right? Nice and comfy? Good gear ought to make you feel like you’re on top of the world.” There’s a couple of places on the set that looked like they were designed specifically for emblems, garlands, and so on - the charms could tie on right over his heart, if he wanted them to. Or they could go somewhere more out of the way, near the waist or dangling off one of the faulds.
considers… “The charms over the heart. The flowers… heh, I can’t resist having lengthy motions. Those can go off of the faulds.”
ꙮ She nods with a knowing smile. (There’s an enameled, stylised cat making a :3 face over her own heart.) “Absolutely, we’ll just get that nice and secure, and– stars, you look sharp.”
: “Sharp and protected from sharps!” He stretches long one-ways onto a foot on one side, and then all the way back to the other- he sweeps his foot along the ground and tosses his folded clothes into the air! Masterfully, they float in a bundle, and stay in a bundle, and drop right into a waiting bag that he’s unfolded.
ꙮ Gato the Larger claps, again, from the back. (He was watching, but being sneaky about it.)
ꙮ ”So, where are you off to next? Or are you staying in town for a while?” The cat takes a few steps back, to admire the ensemble, and fusses with a ledger.
: “Weeeeeeeeeeeeell…” He straightens back up, and rocks back and forth on his heeled boots…
: “Oh, almost wonder if I should have different footwear…” He shakes it off.
: “Anyway, I’m staying in town, at least until after the Iron Chef tournament. I’m friends with one of the entrants!” He nods confidently.
ꙮ She gives the heels in question an appraising glance, but- they seem like what he’s comfortable moving in, with the moves he made, so… “Oh! Oh, that’s terribly exciting! Best of luck to them, then! And if you need to go chop up a fiend for an unforgettable ingredient, you’ll be well-protected indeed.” She beams, and– there’s some back-and-forth about how much Lucre the set was, but Saranzaya’d given you well more than enough to not have to worry about it too hard.
: “A fiend…”
’s eyes light up.
: “That’s where I’m going next, for sure!”
: “Hey, what’s the quickest way to trouble? I have to do a field test of this equipment!”
ꙮ Gato the Larger laugh-rumbles from the back. “Step one, look in a mirror. Step two, Clan Twitherym’s trying to match Clan Too Many Boots leve-for-leve and hunt-for-hunt and they’re bringing in some outside help to keep themselves fresh. Look for the big purple butterfly and their peacock of a clan leader.”
ꙮ (And you DID see some purple butterflies, you think– well, you had your eyes closed. But if you go outside NOW, there’s some cheap posters posted up, ensorcelled playfully with gnosis such that purple butterflies seem to be swarming around the notice-boards, until you get too close.)
laughs short and sharp! “Gotcha! I’ll let you both know how the armor works out- but I think you already know the answer!”
jogs outside of the shop, and sure enough, the gnosis-laced posters with their playful butterflies catch his eye. He’s not closing them now, instead dancing around the crowd and foot traffic, half showing off, half testing the maneuverability of his light armored self. (He even feels a little breeze, now!)
ꙮ You move through the streets, and the wind whispers wordlessly, but joyously, in your ears. Eventually, you hear a commotion - a procession of sorts, heading to the nearest gates, which spill out into More Queenstown, because there’s concentric circles of walls and gates, old to older to oldest.
ꙮ It’s led by a striking figure with incredibly tall, loud, bright pink hair and pink eyes and dark tan skin, wearing lapis and turquoise silks with silver charms dangling off, and two enormous, sharp, wicked-looking knives hanging off either hip. He’s being followed by six people - four of them are dressed like him, but somewhat less loudly, but only somewhat; the other two in the kind of congeries of armor and monster parts you’ve already started associating with the Beast’s fiend-hunters more generally.
eyes widen at the absolute ostentatious procession going on. His eyes dance from color to color to sharpness to cut body and the whole trail of colors following behind him (which are also people, but I mean, it looks like coattails, almost.) “…yeah, I’m pretty sure that’s the Twitherym Clan!”
ꙮ It’s a safe bet, even before you notice the purple butterfly his right-hand cat is wearing clipped into their headfur!
: “…better get to them before they get too far!” He kicks off the ground and darts through the crowd, twisting like an uncoiled whip lashed out through the air. The snap of said whip? Aimed directly for intercepting the clan before they reach the gates.
ꙮ The clan leader notices you, out of a corner of his eye; quirks his mouth up in a smile and holds his hand up, and the procession Halts.
peers down at the Awoken, curiously, glancing about. Alone; new armor; stylish as fuck. Yes, this’ll do. “Looking for trouble?”
’s dashing comes to a halt, and the kicked up dust finally catches up with him. “Found it in the mirror, first. Now I’m looking for some to fight.”
grins. “Your luck and ours, we’ve got room for one more hunter. There’s a matamata the size of a house that keeps lurking ‘round the outskirts and we’re gonna get to it before Too Many Boots do!”
pounds a fist into a palm. “Size of eight makes a full party! Count me in!”
: “The name’s Awoken!”
gesticulates welcomingly, much like Gato the Smoller did. “Rohirek of Clan Twitherym! I’m sure you’ve heard of us. Who do you run with?” The Awoken’s swept up into the adventure, which swiftly courses in the direction of the outermost gatehouse along the radial road spiking out from Queenstown’s heart.
: “A mixed crew, named… uh…” his eyes dart back and forth, before inspiration strikes, “-The Saving Worlds Clan! There’s a few locals you may know - Luĉja, the Clockwork Knight, and Annarr, who goes by Aurelius… at least that’s what we call him! And then others who you will see around! Archie’s going to be in the Iron Chef tournament, Wolf isn’t a wolf per se but you’ll see it right in his eyes, the storyteller saint Salme who weaves words and wields steel,” he asides with a wink- “–we’re dating!” And he dangles the charms from pinched fingers from their spot on his breastplate.
punches his fist into his hand as he – it’s not marching down the city street, it’s much too dancelike for that. But it’s got the military cadence of a driving march to a known destination– “Ahh, good, that must explain the commotion earlier!” …seems like you’ll be getting that a lot. He grins down at the Awoken, looking over his charms- with a quick eye you could notice a remarkably nondescript charm tucked away into his silks on a fine silver chain. One of many necklaces, but it’s the one tucked away- and nods. “Very nice! Then we’ll hunt well, and make sure the Beast knows those names as well as ours!”
ꙮ You see the matamata long before you’re anywhere near in range of it. It’s– “big as a house” might have been an understatement, honestly. Big as a large house. Big as a respectable but modest mansion, perhaps. Its shell is deepest azure, covered with hard spikes; its skin looks tough as leather. One of its eyes is all gnarly and fucked-up, not in any kind of an eldritch way, just in a ‘monster that lost a scrap, maybe years ago’ way; the other’s peering around in a way that looks curious as to whether or not ‘people’ are as tasty as they look.
claps his hands together, then does a stepping lunge and thrusts his palms out- a halberd with a red, almost-rubylike blade conjures out of his palms! He grasps it with both hands and raises it above his head, slightly aimed downward, ready to strike, his legs ready to bound.
: “Waitin’ for the call to pull! It’ll know what hit ‘em, for sure, and regret it!”
ꙮ Rohirek drops into a fighting stance- still dancing, dancing even more than before- and the four of the group that are part of his clan fall easily into formation with him, the two strangers guarding the flanks - there’s a handful of much smaller blue-shelled crabs with mean-looking claws that started attacking from tbe sides, as soon as you approached the matamata.
: “Hahahah! Of course we came prepared for a pincer attack! Awoken, go get that big thing’s attention and let’s walk home with some trophies!”
sneers. “You got it!”
launches himsel from his partially-crouched stance- with a streak of white and red, he quickly closes the space between himself and the Matamata, striking directly towards its blindside, and then whips the spear about directly into the beasts’ view, directly looking to antagonize it! The charge pierces here and there, but it’s arcing, threatening cuts are what’s really eyecatching!
[Big Damn Hero]
ꙮ The Rite is joined! Lines of fire and bright white light trace themselves in the air in the afterimage of his spear, and he’s got its attention! And then one of Rohirek’s crew is behind it, somehow, and Rohirek himself is a whirlwind of knives– the Matamata, for all its ponderous shell, gets one really good ground-shaking stomp in, that rattles everyone’s bones, and dishes in the cupboards of houses throughout the outskirts of Queenstown, before Rohirek’s feline companion lights his knives on fire–
: “Stay in its field of view, and give it your best shot! I’ll be following up with mine!”
: “I hear ya! Get ready to close ‘er out!” He steps back, and points at the Matamata! “You’re gonna take four shots, and hit the ground!” A wave of tenebrous gnosis ominously flutters over Awoken. ⁂
[Dark Prophecy!], which targets...
’s spear dissipates as he goes for a backswing, and a giant hammer with thick, red, crushing spikes materializes! He follows-through on the swing, smashing it directly into the side of the Matamata! The force of the blow cracks the air around them with a bellowing THUD, and the giant beast is off-balance from the blow… ⁂
... [Bonebreaker] ...
ꙮ Crack!
plants his feet into a wide, anchoring stance, bringing his arms back up again, dissolving the hammer, and now grasps a staggeringly long ruby greatsword, primed up for the biggest swing– wait for it– wait for it– there’s a sudden glimmer off of the blade, and Awoken twists into the swing, sharply cutting through the softer sides of the beast… ⁂
...[Real Ultimate Power]...
traces a hand into the air, and identifies all the gnosis being woven around the beast… yes, there is a way to amplify it off of all the strikes that just happened. Awoken drops the greatsword and it dissolves into nothing, and he brings his hands together again. They turn a dark, pulsing purple, and his eyes glow faintly of azure as he sees the gnosis in the air, all the elements dancing in a violent concert, and there is a current to follow, a current that accelerates and amplifies those who ride its wave. With a violent shout, he thrusts both arms forward- a shimmering mixture of violet and blank something streaks toward the Matamata at a screaming speed!! Hearts skip a rhythmic beat at the deep pulse that warps the air and ground and everyone around, before a dark energy explodes, equal parts shining and empty, deep within the Matamata!
... [Tracer!] [Void Flare]
ꙮ Rohirek laughs, and laughs, as the fiend literally explodes with gnosis - the bulk of it vaporizing almost instantly, the shell cracking along every seam, bursting apart into a confetti of fierce-looking azure conical shards. One of them lands directly at the Awoken’s feet.
checks himself once over- breastplate good, charms still in place, bottles secured, bracers did their job, fauld flapping with thigh movement, poleyns barely felt like they were there. He notices the shell at his feet, and squats down to dust it off and rotate it about in his hands.
: “(Requiescat in pace.)“
ambles over, arms crossed in front of his chest. Seems like he’s also paying his respects to the fallen fiend. And then, after a moment of that: “Well done, Awoken, of Clan Saving Worlds. Or whoever you all are.” He grins. “Ya don’t fight like anyone I’ve ever seen. That was one heck of a thing to watch. If you’re ever lookin’ for fiends to fight… remember Clan Twitherym! Oh, and, that shell piece? ‘s the best out of the lot, and it’s all yours. Obviously it picked ya itself, who am I to say no to that?”
looks up and smiles from his crouch. “Right? I think it’ll go nicely over a shoulder. Already know who I want to help secure it, too.” He holds out a hand for Rohirek to help him up, and as he does, he continues. “I’m sure we’ll meet again when the moons shift change!”
reaches out a hand to help the Awoken up, patting him good-naturedly on the shoulder with the other and giving him a slightly askance look. But only slightly. “Hey, if you figure out where the moons’ve been hidin’, that’ll be the biggest leve of ‘em all. Good hunting, my new friend.”
: “I was hoping someone had a clue, but it’s okay. If they’re under the ground, I’ll dig ‘em up. If they got swallowed into a hole, I’ll pull ‘em out. If they turned into stardust, then I’ll press them into diamonds.”
: “Good hunting, Rohirek, of Clan Twitherym!”
ꙮ He gives another beaming grin at that, and salutes the Awoken’s- and his clan’s- victory. People who’d showed up to watch the fight either filter back in through the city gates, or start unpacking their picnic baskets now that the immediate risk to life and limb has abated.
makes his way back into the city, giving greetings, high-fives, and cheek kisses to anyone who asks, and his stride is purposeful, heading back to Gato and Gato’s, Matamata shell in hand. “Heyyyyyyy, I’m back! I have one more altercation I need!”
ꙮ Gato the Smol-er glances up from a ledger she’s been grumbling at for a few minutes- and laughs! “I’d say you’re the expert at altercations, given that trophy, but we’re the experts at alterations! Lemme guess, you want that worked into the armor? You’ve got a good eye, it’ll suit ya.”
laughs! “Whoops, got the two words mixed up!” He gives himself a lil’ one-handed noogie. “Yeah, I definitely need this as a left-shoulder pauldron. Effective, protective, and stylish? Yeah, we’re doing it.” He walks a bit further in, finding a stool to sit on for Gato to better reach and take measurements.
ꙮ Measure twice, drill careful little holes in a priceless monster trophy once! It’s not long in Gato’s capable paws until the trophy’s integrated into the armor as a pauldron. NOW you look like a real fiend-hunter of the Beast!