[RQ] Watch me dazzle

I have never feared the storm

Sah had needed to ask around to determine where the team should look for stones. There were plenty in Halo, given its mountainous terrain, but he'd never sought out shiny ones. A few hunters and merchants had suggested the Fangs and after inspecting it for himself, the Wild Thunder agreed with their assessment. Sending word, he asked the team to meet him in the morning after breakfast.

As the sun rose, Sah found himself waiting for Amhran and Ravenna to arrive. Beside him was a sled, capable of holding and transporting their haul. As the duo came into sight, the hybrid waved. "Morning. We're going to need quite a few stones for this. The shinier and easier to stack, the better."

Sah

Ravenna

Venna waved as she came waddling up to Sah. Possibly she may have overdone the layers a bit, because her figure was rather more rotund than it had been at the meeting. Still, she was taking the dangers of the cold very seriously, even though she couldn't wait to see more of the region than the Citadel.

"Morning!" she chirped, the cheerful smile mostly hidden behind several windings of scarf. "This is exciting, isn't it. What counts as shiny - like metal, or just anything at all that catches the light?" Kicking at a clump of ice with the toe of her boot, she had to wonder if they were jumping the creek to gather water, so to speak. But perhaps ice wasn't permanent enough? It didn't really matter of course, she was happy just being included in the project. "I'm Ravenna Hale," she introduced herself, "but Ven or Venna is fine."

Don't talk like you know me
when I don't even know myself

Code by Skylark

the harder the rain, honey, the sweeter the sun

Like Ravenna, Amhran arrives suitably bundled up against the cold, ningo pom pom hat and all. His willowy figure and long legs make it easier to cut through the snow, granted, but he isn’t in the habit of taking any unnecessary risks, and he raises a gloved hand in greeting as he comes across them. ”Good morning,” he chimes, falling to a halt beside the sled.

”Nice to meet you, Venna. I’m Amhran Siol, but you can just call me Amhran,” he says, his accent lilting melodically around the sound of his name. To Sah he offers a polite nod, of course knowing the Wild Thunder by sight and previous encounters. ”This reminds me of decorating the rainbow gate a bit,” he admits with a smile. At least their region is abundant in shiny rocks, or so it seems.

I have never feared the storm

Sah's lips twitched as a thoroughly bundled child arrived, "Good morning, Venna. I'm Sah." Nodding at Amhran as he arrived, the hybrid's small grin turned into a warm smile. "You're right. It does feel familiar." Hopefully no one would become trapped this time. Although it had been amusing once it was clear that the Demi-god was unharmed, it was still something he'd rather avoid.

The Wild Thunder gestured to the sled and the various tools for digging and loosening stones leaning against it. "I think I have everything we need, but if you come up with something else, just let me know. I can use magic to create it." Using his telekinesis and water magic, the hybrid cleared the snow and ice around them, revealing earth laden with stones. he glanced between his fellow collectors. "Let's get started."

Grabbing a shovel and bolstering his efforts with magic, Sah began to harvest stones.

Sah

Ravenna

Looking between the two men, Venna decided that they were both pointlessly tall and left the first impression at that. Standing back while Sah cleared the ground, she was suitably impressed with the magic he displayed. She had her own, of course, but it wasn't nearly as versatile or effortless. Maybe she ought to practice more.

Crouching down over the bared patch of earth, she began to flip over stones in search of any that fit the criteria. Since her question had been ignored she went with her own definition of shiny, and fought to pick them up with her gloved hands. In the end, she gave up and magicked up a pair of ice cube tongs for herself, that made things a lot easier. They may be crude and wouldn't last more than a few hours, but what did it matter if it got the job done?

Don't talk like you know me
when I don't even know myself

Code by Skylark

the harder the rain, honey, the sweeter the sun

Similarly impressed by the ease with which Sah is able to clear the snow and ice around them - and raising his eyebrows with a small grin to see Venna conjure herself a pair of tongs to aid the process - Amhran, alas, is left with only his own devices to collect the stones. He does have magic, of course, but none of it particularly useful when it comes to this sort of thing, and so he reaches into the sled and selects a small pickaxe before approaching an area yet to be investigated.

”It will be nice to have the hotsprings back,” he says conversationally, his pickaxe thocking into the earth with a satisfying echo, scattering a few stones for him to be able to sift through. ”I didn’t have reason to go and visit it before, but I know a few people who wil be glad that it’s fixed. And a lot closer, too.” He smiles.

I have never feared the storm

It was as Sah started working on a stubborn stone that he realized he's forgotten to answer Ravenna's question in the bustle of beginning their task. Smiling sheepishly, he called over, "Ah. Sorry, Venna. As long as they reflect light to some extent, they should be shiny enough." He noted her tongs, and the smile widened. "Creation magic? Well done."

Using telekinesis, he hoisted his extracted stone onto the sled as Amhran spoke. "It certainly will be. I always loved to stop by there after a difficult hunt." After making sure that his stone was secure, Sah began to dig out the next one. Between the relaxation and healing properties, the hot springs had always been a welcome reprieve. The healing properties were less critical for him after the Wild Thunder learned healing magic, but he knew that they had saved the lives of at least a few people.

~
Round 2/4 of collecting!

Sah

Ravenna

Even a belated answer was better than none. Ravenna flashed Sah a pleased grin, now able to confirm that she had been doing it right all along. "Got it! There's a really good patch of glimmer over there, if anyone wants it." Pointing out a spot she hadn't gotten to yet, she felt generous enough to share it with the others.

Just like Amhran, the girl hadn't had a chance to visit the springs before on account of being too little to venture out on the Tundra, even in adult company. Now all they had to contend with was queues and crowds, which was probably better than ursurs.
"D'you think we'll be getting dibs on the spring for helping with the build?" she wondered hopefully. "I wouldn't mind having it nearly to myself at least once..." Not because she needed a reward for helping out, but she also wouldn't say no to one.

Don't talk like you know me
when I don't even know myself

Code by Skylark

the harder the rain, honey, the sweeter the sun

"Thank you," Amhran calls to Ravenna, fully intending to take her up on that patch of shimmering stone nearby. He hasn't had much luck with his initial dig, finding a couple of shiny specimens to add to the cart, but eventually abandoning his first site to drift towards the one Venna has mentioned. As for dibs, a notion the Raeling has at least come across a couple of times by now, he tilts his head and considers, before swinging the pickaxe into the rock.

"I'm not sure we'll get priority over people who need it for healing," he says with a slow tilt of his head, quietly pleased to see a scattering of very shiny stones for him to collect. "But if it's empty, I don't see why not. We should see if Halo can make some other hotsprings to just relax in, if it becomes popular at the Infirmary." He's never experienced them either way, figuring that it would be like sitting in a large bath, but that's not necessarily unpleasant, right?

I have never feared the storm

Sah nodded, watching as Amhran moved to investigate @Ravenna’s find. His own patch was proving to be bountiful in stones. The Wild Thunder freed one more, particularly shiny rock, and placed it on the sled as the team chatted. "Priority probably will end up going to those who are injured. Still, depending on the size, there should be room for multiple people at a time. When they were in the Fangs, even the smaller sections could usually hold at least a few." He'd even seen an ursur in there before.

After double checking that his stone was secure, Sah returned to digging. Each stone was inspected for its shine and those that passed were placed in a pile to be brought to the sled.

~
Round 3/4 of collecting!

Sah

Ravenna

Picking up a decent sized rock with her crusty tongs, Venna turned it over with an air of deep concentration. A nice piece of quartz embedded into otherwise gray material caught the light as she turned it thid way and that, and with a nod of approval she added it to the 'keep' pile.

"Oh yeah, of course the injured goes first. I was thinking more about a party or something to celebrate when it's done... You know. Cutting ribbons and trying it out to make sure it works." Which may or may not be wholly truthful but sounded a lot better, since both of the guys were so very dutiful and sincere that it made her look bad.

Reaching for a small pickaxe to knock out more stones, she found the work oddly satisfying, in the same way she was enjoying carding wool and sorting out the different fibers. "So what do y'all do for a living?" she asked idly, between the ringing sound of steel against stone.

Don't talk like you know me
when I don't even know myself

Code by Skylark

the harder the rain, honey, the sweeter the sun

Amhran perks up at the idea of a party, setting down his pickaxe to kneel and sift through all of the stones he's managed to free this time. "That would be nice. It might cheer up some of the people who have to stay at the infirmary as well," he agrees with a nod; it can't be much fun to be stuck there when you just want to go home, so a hotsprings opening ceremony might be just the thing to feel better. (And of course they can be healed at that point, too!)

Separating the nicest specimens from the rest, the Raeling gathers them up and takes them to the sled before grabbing his pickaxe to have one more go. "For a living...?" A little puzzled at Venna's question, Amhran nevertheless tries his best to answer. "I mainly grow plants in my mother Evie's greenhouse," he says. "But I try to help out at the larger greenhouse in town as well. I like to collect rare plants."

I have never feared the storm

Sah freed one more stone and added it to his pile. Letting out a hum he nodded, "That does sound like a good idea. I'm sure many people would end up participating." Halo didn't part anywhere near as often or as heard as its closest neighbor, but when they did, it was always fun.

Adding his most recent pile to the sled, Sah noted their progress, "I think we're almost there." Securing the stone, he paused at Ravenna's question. Amhran's response was new information to the Wild Thunder, but it fit his impression of the Demi-god. He could easily picture Evie and her older son tending plants together while Deimos entertained Erebos.

"I'm a hunter by trade, but I often get pulled into other pursuits if they benefit Halo." The hybrid was well aware that he'd become one of his home's strongest defenders, even if was still hard to wrap his mind around at times.

~
Last round!

Sah

Ravenna

A hunter and a gardener, huh. The work seemed on polar ends of things, somehow, and both fascinated her immensely, the way unknown things often did.
"Cool! I'm apprenticing to become a weaver," she announced proudly, more than a little pleased with the position she had decided on, applied for and showed up to all on her own. "It's interesting how these projects make us talk despite doing such different things. I mean, I've never been to the greenhouse at all, or gone hunting, and still I got to meet both of you! I like it."

Shuffling over to the sled with an armful of carefully stacked glitter in her arms, Venna deposited her findings and beamed happily at her new friends. If this was part of being adult, then she'd absolutely made the right decision in becoming one, no matter what Noah grumbled. "I hope there really will be a party. It would be fun to see you both again." Who knew what other interesting people she'd get to know besides.

Don't talk like you know me
when I don't even know myself

Code by Skylark