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Post by Cachot Maître on Aug 25, 2009 3:23:21 GMT -5
Lips are turning blue,
A kiss that can't renew. Everyone always stared, gawking at her lack of clothing. Maya was used to it by now, even if the others weren't. There she was, a woman of beautiful qualities. Her long, flowing black hair was kept in a bun, like every other day in Sacro. The weather was always scorching hot, but the breezes off the ocean's waters helped cool things down, if only by a little. Despite tradition and moral ethics, let alone the ethics of society, Maya walked along the city streets in nothing but a skimpy top, that revealed so much skin that it was horrifying to look at, but yet arousing to so many foreign eyes. To top that off, she lacked pants as well, wearing a matching bottom piece, that covered just enough so not to expose the more private areas of flesh, but, revealing enough that it was sin.
Despite her being a cleric, and a very devoted one at that, Maya flaunted her curves and showed off her natural beauty for all the see, though not entirely on purpose. She wore what she wore out of comfort, rather than anything sexual or egotistical. The weather here was so hot and unbearable, many people came into the Temple of Pelor due to heatstroke, and, after lines began to form, Maya decided enough was enough. Despite what the other clerics said about her outfit, and the whistles and gawking she would get as she walked down the street, Maya enjoyed what she wore, feeling every part of the wind as it licked at her exposed flesh.
Today was going just as well as any other. Maya offered her daily prayers to Pelor, and the moment she set out for the streets, several new traders to the island city whistled at her, shaking small pouches full of coins, lust in their eyes from being out at sea for several months. To which she turned her head away in slight disgust, and continued her pace, leaving several disappointed sailor's behind. Those who actually tried to follow her were quickly lost in the massive crowds and many turns. That was one reason why Maya loved it here so much, the sheer size of the island. It was easy to get lost in, and there were sometimes when she needed to be lost, but not today.
Taking a left and returning to one of the more thicker and busier roads, several traders waved at her, which she replied to with a smile and a wave as well. After four years of serving Pelor, and earning a reputation for her sinful appearance, everyone knew Maya, if only by stories alone. Out of all the people she wanted to run into today however, there was one that was at the top of her list. Dominic Torellion, an eccentric inventor, and a longtime friend. Maya could hardly remember how they first met, but, however their meeting went, they soon became quick acquaintances, and even more quickly, great friends.
Maya enjoyed his company for many reasons, one, because he could keep a conversation going, even if he derailed. He always had a way of keeping her entertained, and she liked that about him. Running up the steps of one of the more remote towers near the higher regions of the island, Dom's base of operations had a magnificent view, which was another reason why she loved visiting him.
Rapping the backside of her hand gently on the door of his main study, she slowly pushes the door open, peeking inside silently, so not to disturb him if he was tinkering with some arcane gizmo or gadget. "Dom? You busy?" She stepped inside the room, closing the door behind her as she entered. After all those times being scolded at the temple for leaving doors open even only slightly, the habit was set in her mind like stone.
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Post by ippo on Aug 25, 2009 3:48:45 GMT -5
"Nnnrrraaaaaagh!"
Maya was one for timing. Her head had peeked past the door just in time to see a misshapen, tattered ball of metal sail towards her. Fortunately, the scrap had swung way wide of her and slammed itself into the stone wall next to the opposite side of the door. With a clank-clank and a clatter, the metal settled itself on the floor, which itself was littered with odd trinkets and doodads. Not enough that you couldn't see the floor anymore, but plenty. Maya would hear a huff before the alto voice called to her.
"Maya?" Dom asked, pulling his goggles up to reveal his brown eyes. His chromedome silhouetted against the backdrop of the wide window on the opposite wall, which gave way to a beautiful, sunny view of the bay below. That beard of his looked trimmed and neat, unlike most of his workspace. Strewn about were tables covered in materials, tools, or alchemical sets, a proverbial cave for a proverbial madman if it weren't for the light. He was seen in a collared shirt, the sleeves obviously rolled up, and his pressed slacks. For a would-be mad scientist, he had a habit of dressing well. At the sight of the young cleric, Dom visibly relaxed and waved her in. "Stop being such a wallflower, Maya. Come in, come in." He waved away that ball of scrap he just chucked at the wall. "Don't worry about that. Just another damn faulty servo."
A wrench flopped onto a tabletop as Dominic shuffled across the room to an open comfy chair, a drink in front of him. He never bothered with how Maya dressed. How one chooses to look is completely up to her, and no one should fault her for her choice. Besides, it's bloody hot, and he couldn't blame her. Fortunately, it was a tropical sort of hot, not like the blasted desert heat. At least here, he could go for a swim if he wanted to. Motioning to an empty spot on the couch across from him, he flopped into his seat, possibly worn out or just relieved that something finally came to pull him from his work. The iced drink came to his lips for a couple seconds.
"So," Dominic began, leading into that ever-present inquisitive nature of his, "what can I do for a beautiful, pious and wonderfully buxom, albeit comparatively-underdressed, cleric of Pelor?"
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Post by Cachot Maître on Aug 25, 2009 4:03:08 GMT -5
Lips are turning blue,
A kiss that can't renew. Dom certainly seemed like the mad scientist type. Every time she came to visit him, he was always tinkering with some device or arcane construct that was bound to go wrong. Despite all his failures, he made up for them with an equal amount of successes. If the failure was great, the success was greater. That seemed to be the way of things around here, and Maya would never have it any other way. "I just dropped by to say hello, Dom. I haven't heard from you in a couple of days, so, I wanted to make sure you didn't kill yourself in some sort of explosion."
While that wasn't the only reason she dropped by, she felt like Dom was smart enough to figure out the others. In truth, she needed to get away from the temple, and the praying, and all the ruckus around the city. A hand rose absentmindedly to feel the brand on the back of her neck as she sat down on the couch across from her verbose friend. Crossing one leg over the other and letting out a sigh of relief, Maya leans back happily into the couch, pushing aside what ever spare parts were in the way for her to do so.
"Did you ever manage to finish that one gadget you were raving about the last time I was here?" She took notice of her hand behind her neck and quickly removed it, then pointed at the metallic thing that could of hit her square in the face. "Or is that it there...?" She looked back up at him with a friendly smile. She loved watching Dom fiddle with all his strange devices. It all seemed very foreign to her, yet very interesting. She wouldn't be able to work any of these things to save her life, and she hoped to Pelor that she would never have to.
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Post by ippo on Aug 25, 2009 4:23:55 GMT -5
Dominic chuckled at Maya's response. He'd gotten good at reading the young cleric. This tower was more-or-less her home away from home. And for her, he was all too willing to offer her space to stay.
As the two talked, a small construct, a tiny brown robot no larger than Dom's hand with little arms and legs and a round body, had hopped onto the table, carrying another glass of the iced tea. Maya knew the little fellow as Tonk. Tonk was a happy little fellow who absolutely fascinated Maya the first few times she was here. When he danced for her, she had broken into an uncontrollable laughing fit. Tonk was one of Dom's true successes, a reliable servebot who could help around the joint. The bot had set the glass, which was as tall as him, on the table in front of Maya before waving at her and shuffling back, taking a seat at the end of the table.
At the sound of Maya's question, though, Dom's brow furrowed, looking at her incredulously. "What do you mean, 'that one gadget?' I've got thousands of 'that one gadget' all over the place. You're going to have to--" He stopped himself, pausing for three seconds. "Wait. I think I know what you're talking about." He bent over the side of his chair and rummaged about the floor a bit before he let fly a sudden "Ah-ha!". He pulled up what looked like a gyroscope on a small pedestal. Carefully, he set it on the coffee table between the two. He put up a single finger, so as to hold Maya's attention, then, with a push on a point, the gyroscope began spinning, it's motion self-sustaining. As it whirred, a light-blue glow began emanating from the center, the arcane charge building from the center. The sight of the machine moving by itself would be fascinating to anyone.
"Put your hand over it," Dominic ordered Maya. If she did so, she would feel her hand bristle with energy, warm and tingling. The longer she held it and the more the gyroscope turned, the greater the sensation, to the point where a tiny discharge of energy connected her hand and the machine with a pop and a jolt of electricity. With a triumphant chuckle, he hit a button on the side, and the gyroscope slowed down, the glow dieing down. He sat back in his chair, arms crossed over each other, as if he'd just conquered a mountain.
"It's not complete yet," the artificer pointed out. "But if and when it is, it could be a new and efficient power source for all my machines! It's amazing!" Yes, even the Dom surprised himself once in a while.
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Post by Cachot Maître on Aug 25, 2009 4:37:23 GMT -5
Lips are turning blue,
A kiss that can't renew. Maya was incredibly happy to see Tonk again. Though it took a lot of self control not to stand up and hug the tiny device, she managed, then raised a brow at Dom as he rummaged through various parts and pieces of metallic this and that. With an "Ah-ha!", he removed a curious looking device from the mess, and set it on the table in front of her. All of Dom's devices were fascinating, be they ruined beyond repair, a prototype, or completed. Maya looked at the device with curiosity etched all over her face, she was just about to poke it when Dom ordered her to put her hand over it as a faint blue light began to shine.
Maya did so without hesitation. She trusted Dom enough that he would have tested the device on himself before making her use it. With an audible gasp, Maya was completely taken by surprise by the bristles of energy inside and outside of her hand. This was true arcane technology, and Maya knew she could never begin to fathom the complex design at work here. All she knew was that it was amazing in every way imaginable. Maya gasped again as the energy from her hand and the device connected, resulting in a pop, and a joyous shout from Dom, who proceeded to turn off the device.
"Dom, I don't know how you do it, but, you're nothing less of a genius." She grinned at him, studying the device after breaking the gaze. It looked rather simple, but she knew it must have taken weeks to craft it, and it wasn't even done yet. "You just keep working your way up. It's amazing." She glanced around the room, taking note of all the finished and unfinished arcane constructs laying about. "One thing you need to work on is your organization though. That would be an achievement all on it's own if you could clean this place up." She winked at him, giggling faintly as she does so.
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Post by ippo on Aug 25, 2009 4:49:26 GMT -5
"Hee heeeee." Dominic was almost full of himself. Maya had a way to make his pride swell. Finally, someone who could appreciate his work. He turned his gaze upon her with the most confident of grins, pointing a finger straight at her nose. "I'm no genius. I am Dominic Terillion. There's a differce. You should know that by now." Oh, his chest was about to burst right now, he was puffing it out so much. "And you have a way of stroking a man's ego, if I may say so myself."
His grin drooped considerably though at the accusation that his organization was less than shoddy. "Unorganized? Impossible. Everything is perfectly oriented and orchestrated as I see fit. I have everything sorted under the 'I know where it is, don't move it or I'll kill you' system of planning and design. It's truly a magnificent system. You should try it sometime." In all honesty, Maya was quite possibly one of the only people he would ever allow to fiddle or move his things without him getting nervous or fidgety. Considering they've had that whole "trust" thing going for a few years now helped, too.
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Post by Cachot Maître on Aug 25, 2009 4:59:55 GMT -5
Lips are turning blue,
A kiss that can't renew. Maya giggled at his remark, then shook her head sympathetically. "Alright, so long as you can find everything. I just don't want to have to tiptoe around piles of gears and gizmos every time I come to visit." She smiled at him, knowing that he'd never organize anything more than it already was, even if royalty was coming for a visit. He always seemed to have an excuse, logical, but an excuse all the same. His way with words always made Maya feel better, as even the sound of his rambling voice made her smile.
"Just of out curiosity though, what are your plans throughout the week?" She turned and laid on the couch, head resting on the arm, while her body laid flat, hands formed together by the fingers and resting above her naval. Her expression was far from bored, simply tired. Exhausted from the daily routines at the temple. She considered asking Dom if she could stay here for the night. She wanted a long vacation from the temple, and from the opinionated glances and glares of her peers. Many of them considered her to be unholy, seeing how the very way she dressed was a sin. Dom remarked several times about how they were probably jealous. Maya honestly didn't know what to believe.
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Post by ippo on Aug 25, 2009 5:19:03 GMT -5
Maya was welcomed to make herself comfortable on the couch. Angie didn't mind her lounging. Heck, he was even ready to roll out the futon if she even asked. She did make a habit of staying over every once in a while. The extra voice and body made the nights so much more exciting. Just like back then.
At the sound of her question, he audibly sighed as he pulled himself up out of his seat, making his way towards the large window. Since his tower was on one of the further-back and taller hills in Sacro, he had a view of quite possibly the entire city. The size of it all never ceased to amaze him. Still, he hadn't gotten up to marvel at the view. His face had become more sullen, hands jammed in his pockets. The dots milled about, shifting this way and that like a living painting. He had fallen silent for a couple seconds. Tonk tilted his head in minor confusion.
"Same as every week, I suppose," Dom remarked solemnly. "Keep working on my projects and my alchemy. At least--" He paused for a moment. "At least until there's a lead on Sophie."
Sophia, his only "apprentice," had fallen out of contact a year and a half ago, traveling abroad to supplement her studies under her teacher. There were only two people in this world Dominic could ever possibly consider potential apprentices, and the other was lounging on his couch right now. So he was understandably concerned.
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Post by Cachot Maître on Aug 25, 2009 12:11:42 GMT -5
Lips are turning blue,
A kiss that can't renew. Maya could feel the mood shift as Dom stood and walked over to the large window, overlooking the entire city. Her gaze moved over to Tonk, who looked a little more confused than she was. Then, all was revealed, and Maya could feel herself frown at his words, not at him, but at herself.
Sophia, as far as Maya was concerned, was Dom's pride and joy. Out of all of his inventions, and all of his deeds, he would gladly throw all of them away to have her back. Maya knew the whole story, but, it pained her to think about it. "Has there been... any... improvement?" Maya almost didn't want to ask. To ask meant carrying the conversation further. She knew it hurt Dom to talk about it, and it would hurt him even more if no progress was made, but, Maya had to ask. If not she, then who?
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Post by ippo on Aug 25, 2009 12:34:49 GMT -5
Dom audibly rumbled, his head drooping. A hand came up and rubbed the top of his dome, feeling the smooth skin beneath. He had to ask; it was only natural.
"To be honest," he admitted plainly, "I was hoping you had heard of something. Otherwise, I got nothing." His hand dropped limp to his side, falling silent for a moment. There was nothing more that could be said. It's not often that Dom was at a loss for words. If there's anything he hates, it's when he can't understand something. It leaves him at a loss. This whole situation with Sophie bothered him, certainly, but he couldn't let it drag him down. With that, he clapped his hands together without warning, making Tonk jump a bit.
"Well!" He turned around with that wide mad scientist grin of his. "There's no reason to mope about it. All things will come together in due time. After all, that's how the Grand Machine works, doesn't it? Now, then, let's see if I got any food around here." His hop was back in his step as he tiptoed over piles of scrap and blueprints towards what he assumed was his kitchen.
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Post by Cachot Maître on Aug 25, 2009 21:13:23 GMT -5
Lips are turning blue,
A kiss that can't renew. Her mood brightened slightly by his dance around the piles of tools and scrap. Watching him until he was out of sight, headed for his kitchen, Maya beckoned Tonk over with a wave of the hand, and happily hugged him when he was close enough for her to grab. She cradled him like a young girl would her favorite dolly. Maya lacked such a thing when she was growing up, but considered Tonk to be that very doll, metallic of not. She counted herself lucky that it didn't care when she squeezed it lovingly, pressing it against her breasts.
Maya slid slightly to hang her head off the side of the couch, and peered about the room, looking for a sign of Dom. "I don't suppose you have any tea, do you?" She knew Dom stocked tea like it was going out of style, but, she also knew he drank it like the world was going to end the next morning.
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Post by ippo on Aug 25, 2009 21:40:36 GMT -5
"Fah!" Dom scoffed from the other side of his countertop, which, unsurprisingly, was covered with tools and blueprints. "Tea I can understand. But if you're honestly asking for hot tea on a day like this, you've got less sense than a gibbering barbarian of Kord. There should be some iced tea in front of you already." He kicked the door to the fridge closed and danced about the counter, high-stepping over rows of parts, glass of iced tea in one hand, a sandwich in the other. He sounded like he was humming some sort of ditty. With a twirl and a bend, he set the second glass in front of her before prancing about a bit more, chomping on his sandwich.
Seriously?
Dancing?
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Post by Cachot Maître on Aug 29, 2009 19:37:19 GMT -5
Lips are turning blue,
A kiss that can't renew. Maya felt silly for asking. She didn't even notice the tea in front of her, and now that she did, she wished she had taken a long drink of it earlier. Letting go of Tonk, she reached over to take the glass and sip away at it, sighing in relief that it was still cool, despite the hot day. Maya glanced over at Dom, and never felt her jaw drop. Was Dom... dancing?!
No, it couldn't be! Oh, but it was! Dom was dancing, and he did a fairly good job at it too. His humming helped set the mood, she supposed. Even though there were bits of bread and such in his mouth, his humming wasn't hindered, and, Maya began to wonder if he would sing. Oh, now that would just be too much.
Dom?
Singing?
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Post by ippo on Aug 29, 2009 19:51:20 GMT -5
Hey, for all Maya knew, Dom could be the greatest baritone opera singer in the world and she wouldn't even know it. Regardless, with a "Hup!" and a "Ho!" he bounded around the room, drawing a finger across an occasional project or two. Sandwich half gone by now, he took a couple final spins before plopping himself into his comfy chair again with a thankful sigh.
"Man, I needed that," the inventor remarked. "It's good exercise, and it takes care of whatever stress you've got. Very helpful in an industry like mine. When you've got a boss leering over your shoulder, making sure your blacksmithing or alchemy or what have you is top notch, living up to ridiculous standards. It's good to let loose once in a while, work it all out. Besides, I am my own boss! Ha!" He flopped back, taking another hearty munch out of his sandwich.
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Post by Cachot Maître on Aug 29, 2009 22:17:57 GMT -5
Lips are turning blue,
A kiss that can't renew. With a giggle, Maya shook her head at Dom, not in disagreement, but slight embarrassment. As she set her glass onto the table, a faint noise buzzed from outside the window, one she thought she would never hear inside this protected city. A scream far away, followed by another, then another, until it grew loud enough to hear as if it was right outside the door. Hundreds of people, screaming in agony and fear, others shouting orders. The stinging noise of clashing metal rang throughout the streets as Maya leaped from the couch and ran to the window to investigate. Down below, a mighty pyre burned in the central district of the city, and the small figures of the citizens scurried about, all fleeing the source of the flames.
A massive group of people surrounded the central district. Sacro's militia, with it's army not too far away, rushing to the scene to aid in the defense, but the defense of what? Then, she saw it. Out from the flames ran a thousand black specks, running straight into the militia and tearing through like it was a thin sheet of paper. Risking no time to shout at Dom, Maya rushed for the door and down the steps, hoping she wouldn't be too late.
As a cleric, it was her duty to help. Not only that, but there was a terrible evil at work here, one she simply could not ignore.
Do you think you're better than me?
Do you want to kill me, or befriend me? Everything was going exactly as planned. Entering the city was just as easy as Kanom foretold, and finding the central district was as simple as asking for directions. All around her the city burned, and smoke began to cover every visible inch of the sky. From her robe she retrieved a small black orb, which sprung to life as she whispered an incantation. A sinister smile formed upon her lips, and she took a moment to gather in the entire scene. "Everything is falling into place. The city will burn to the ground before your arrival." She was quite pleased with her work. It was incredibly easy to smuggle in a few summoning scrolls, and even easier to get some corpses into the city. With her Goddess on her side, she had no doubt that this plan would succeed. The Temple of Pelor would be the first to fall. Once his site of prayer was destroyed, others would follow in due time.
A simple nod of the head, followed by an audible 'good', was all that was given to her, before the orb returned to it's natural black color. With a wave of her hand, she signaled to the cultists and ghouls alike to send the second wave, and to open the way for her to pay a visit to the temple. They complied, and screams of terror and agony shot out left and right as she followed the path of carnage. Those who fell by the ghouls would be consumed, and those who fell to the cultists, would be raised to act as their servants, and follow in with the ghouls.
Everything was going just as planned.
If she was lucky, she'd reach the temple before the clerics responded to the alarm.
"And it all comes crashing down... Sacro will be the first to fall. With Pelor's light blotted out, nothing will stop Grona's Blight from consuming this pathetic city."
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