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One moment Loki is trying to kill the snake-monster before it gets any closer to civilization, and then next -
She jabs at its face, but with momentum intended to meet resistance, and there is none. With momentum intended to compensate for a dodge on the part of the creature, but it surges forward. She's engulfed, and then there is no snake, and there is no ground, and she's falling.
She gasps. The air is clean; she doesn't need to heal poison out of herself with each breath. She sees - floating land, of sorts, there, some kind of oddly geology-themed ship maybe. She could, potentially, turn Lævateinn into something with enough surface area to steer herself onto it rather than fall farther and suffer worse from the fall, but she just recently perfected a new...
She's a bird, a swift, and she catches the wind, and her spear is a twig clutched in her feet, and she wings her way to the land.
Rockeye's first glowfic. Loki (a Bell) falls on Nick in Cloudbank.
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purposeful_glory
purposeful_glory
And then they can spend the morning teaching him to hit things. Such as Loki, who can take a Midgardian's fist to the nose without flinching if he happens to hit her, which he doesn't.
cloudwanderer
He seems to be watching himself for signs of tiredness this time, since he gives up and takes a break much sooner.
They arrive at the town. There is a careful dance of ascending and descending and left and right. Apart from Nick swearing at the pilot of another ship with poor maneuvering skills (Nick's ship comes off better from the encounter, it's made of rock and the other one is not), nothing particularly exciting happens.
The squid-lady apparently had someone watching the skies for Nick's ship. She is waiting eagerly by the docks. With her fine clothes and guards, of course.
They arrive at the town. There is a careful dance of ascending and descending and left and right. Apart from Nick swearing at the pilot of another ship with poor maneuvering skills (Nick's ship comes off better from the encounter, it's made of rock and the other one is not), nothing particularly exciting happens.
The squid-lady apparently had someone watching the skies for Nick's ship. She is waiting eagerly by the docks. With her fine clothes and guards, of course.
purposeful_glory
Loki disembarks and sketches a privately ironic bow. "I've killed a squid for you."
cloudwanderer
"And I will pay you for it," she replies. "As soon as I receive it, of course."
cloudwanderer
The rich lady has someone inspect and weigh them. Nick watches carefully. He mentions that he and Loki have some other squid-parts, too, would she like to see them and make an offer? She would.
Nick is a good negotiator. Unless Loki objects or wants to keep a trophy, he sells every part of the squid, from the poison barbs to the teeth to the deflated gas sac, except the chitin shell, which he wants to keep for himself.
Nick is a good negotiator. Unless Loki objects or wants to keep a trophy, he sells every part of the squid, from the poison barbs to the teeth to the deflated gas sac, except the chitin shell, which he wants to keep for himself.
purposeful_glory
Loki doesn't object and has no need for a prize from this squid.
cloudwanderer
When the prices are all settled and the accounting finished, Baroness Hath opens up a small chest and starts counting out coins.
When she's finished, she addresses both of them. "I would like to invite the two of you to a feast in your honor, two days from now, if you would accept. We will eat the first of this wonderful bounty there."
Nick glances at Loki.
When she's finished, she addresses both of them. "I would like to invite the two of you to a feast in your honor, two days from now, if you would accept. We will eat the first of this wonderful bounty there."
Nick glances at Loki.
cloudwanderer
"I accept as well," Nick adds.
The Baroness nods. "My staff will contact you with details. Any clothing of reasonable quality will be appropriate so long as it... Minimizes exposure." She leaves.
Nick turns to Loki. "Your share is 2060 grams of silver. My share is 1900 grams. The difference is to account for the chitin shell, as if I'd bought your half of it. Does this sound reasonable? I have the accounting all right here, if you wish to check."
The Baroness nods. "My staff will contact you with details. Any clothing of reasonable quality will be appropriate so long as it... Minimizes exposure." She leaves.
Nick turns to Loki. "Your share is 2060 grams of silver. My share is 1900 grams. The difference is to account for the chitin shell, as if I'd bought your half of it. Does this sound reasonable? I have the accounting all right here, if you wish to check."
cloudwanderer
"I'm surprised you're just... Trusting me to handle the money. I wouldn't trust me to handle the money. Since it's such a large amount, I would appreciate it if you looked over my math either way."
The math is in long rows of neat handwriting. The figures line up perfectly, every part of the squid accounted for, as well as the original cost of squid-hunting supplies.
The math is in long rows of neat handwriting. The figures line up perfectly, every part of the squid accounted for, as well as the original cost of squid-hunting supplies.
purposeful_glory
"Your math is correct. I have little enough familiarity with the markets that I cannot but trust your pricing of the chitin, but you came to ready agreement with the Baroness on the other parts. And if I find that you have been cheating me, I will be very angry with you. Should this not suffice?"
cloudwanderer
"I'm too used to never seeing people who manage to cheat me again. The world is in constant motion, and you're only likely to find someone you look for at great effort and expense or by chance five years later."
"When I originally dropped you off here, I fully expected not to see you again for many years, if ever. Then the squid-hunting opportunity came up. I might have just wandered off again, but with this much money I suppose I shall take a break from wandering."
"When I originally dropped you off here, I fully expected not to see you again for many years, if ever. Then the squid-hunting opportunity came up. I might have just wandered off again, but with this much money I suppose I shall take a break from wandering."
purposeful_glory
"Then it is all the more likely that you expect I will not find you have been cheating me, is it not?"
cloudwanderer
"Indeed. But I gave you the chance to verify that I am not cheating you, since I would have expected the same."
cloudwanderer
"It seems like common courtesy. In any case, enjoy your hard-earned wealth! I'm off to buy a nice steak, and then lots of supplies and hired hands for my ship."
purposeful_glory
"Enjoy."
Loki changes some of her silver for wooden coins, gets lunch - until she has a reliable income she will stick with vegetarianism - and then goes to visit the glazier she was talking to. She could probably buy her own workshop now, but she has little desire to churn out telescopes by hand. She would rather get a cut of what he profits by making them and spend her time on magic and exploring her new surroundings.
Loki changes some of her silver for wooden coins, gets lunch - until she has a reliable income she will stick with vegetarianism - and then goes to visit the glazier she was talking to. She could probably buy her own workshop now, but she has little desire to churn out telescopes by hand. She would rather get a cut of what he profits by making them and spend her time on magic and exploring her new surroundings.
cloudwanderer
The glazier is rather surprised to see her. He had heard that she left a few days ago. It seems the expectation of never seeing someone again is strongly rooted. He still has her telescope diagrams, but has not yet attempted to construct one. He has questions - first of all, where does she expect to get enough silver to make mirrors on any kind of scale. Second of all, how in the world is he supposed to make a curved mirror?!?
purposeful_glory
Working from memory without any of the notes she took while studying optics makes it difficult, but she does her best to render the steps into something he'll be able to do. He should certainly make one prototype and see how easily he can sell that before he tries to churn out a great many improved telescopes, she does not disagree.
cloudwanderer
He agrees to follow her instructions and try to make various pieces of unsilvered glass in the correct shape. Making the glass in the first place will certainly be the most difficult part of the construction if not the most expensive.
purposeful_glory
Then isn't it lucky she has a glazier?
She wants fifty percent of whatever he makes on the telescope, less the materials cost.
She wants fifty percent of whatever he makes on the telescope, less the materials cost.
cloudwanderer
The glassmaker is not familiar with this kind of telescope. He doesn't want to make them himself or be too invested in such a strange project until it proves its worth.
He is, however, willing to develop mirrored lenses to specification for a reasonable price plus materials cost, and let her build and sell the telescopes herself or hire someone else to do it.
He is, however, willing to develop mirrored lenses to specification for a reasonable price plus materials cost, and let her build and sell the telescopes herself or hire someone else to do it.
purposeful_glory
Fine, fine. She'll pay him to make the components and assemble a prototype.