Court of Harmony: A Prelude-Amble and Beets
Jun 21, 2022 22:47:01 GMT
Merla, the Daughter of Summer, Velania Kalugina, and 2 more like this
Post by Beets The Beetle (Feenix) on Jun 21, 2022 22:47:01 GMT
Set after: A Giant Mess-16/06/22
(COMING SOON)
"Hello Beets, what're you doing up here?"
A short gnome sways gently in the breeze, up near the edge of a roof, overlooking DA.
Amble spies beetle girl perched atop the spine of the rooftop above him against the setting sun, the streaks of hot orange and red and gold throwing her form into deep silhouette form, recognisable instantly though by her iconic beetle horn that stands proud from her head.
"I tend to find there's not many other people in this town who take advantage of the great views up here ... a shame, I think. "Although in the last few weeks there has been a bit of odd traffic up on the rooftops ... I'm slightly worried that it might be a bunch of youths up to no good, about to get themselves hurt for the thrill of it..."
The shape of wings suddenly flit up in response from the form, their movement sharing the same audible insect buzz, though definitely not the usual look of Beets' insect panes. Long pointed fingers splay up from its back, sharp taloned points glinting as they catch the red setting sunlight. Tattered papery flesh spreads between them, the sun pushing through their red hue down to their edges, where suddenly they turn blackened and smoky like burnt parchment. A long spiny tail whips up as if in response to the wing rise, thick and serpent like, the light glinting off its scales.The torso slowly turns to face him, revealing more scales running the course of one thickly muscled arm, down to a claw of short stubby fingers ending in razor sharp black talons. Thick golden plates run the course of the neck up to the head, where a long elongated reptilian jaw reaches out, spikes jutting out from the chin, splayed hand like fronds of frill bursting from each cheek bone. The snout mirrors the pointed nose of the fairy he knows, but is even sharper and more pointed Little black nostrils sit below thick ridges of scale that run in tracks back towards the eyes, which are small and sunken, but filled with blazing golden light like glowing hearths, strong and stable. Strangest of all, is the trident formation on its head, thickly ridged horns that sweep either side of the brow-line, the thickest flowing the shape of Beets' iconic beetle horn to end in three sharp pronged points. "Oh...Hey Amble!" Says the face, the mouth of razor sharp teeth opening to mirror the sound of his friend's normal sounding voice, as the bright eyes catch sight of his floating form in the air behind it.
Amble swallows in relief, "Oh, it is you Beets, after all! That's quite a new look you've got ... Is this another one of your disguises? I must say, it's a lot more convincing than your Gith impression!" He pauses, and concentrates a moment as his cloak forms into an answering pair of equally tattered wings, which hang loosely at his side. Another moment later, a small burst of flame appears to emerge from his mouth, and he grins.
He scrambles up the roof tiles, unconcerned by the long and precipitous drop down to the cobblestones, many gnomes below... "Is everything alright? I didn't mean to tease you too hard about your disguise - it was actually very good - just a shame that a realistic Githyanki accent is so hard to emulate the first time around!"
"Here, you're welcome to share some of my lunch if you'd like..." He riffles through his various pockets, gradually accumulating a small pile of nourishing odds and ends - some more appealing, some less so. You could probably make quite a good sandwich from them, if so inspired.
The dragon headed creature gives a laugh, which as it does so slowly melts away to reveal the normal form of Beets, a little tousled haired and sweaty, but not a scale in sight. "Amble it's like..."She pauses thinking, then clicks her fingers, reaching into the sash around her middle and drawing out a silver pocket watch on a long chain which she examines..."It's like 7pm!" She exclaims, holding the watch out to show him, it's face mirroring the clock tower literally just to her left behind her. "Seriously, what time did you wake up!?" She ends with a good natured sharp toothed grin.
"Oh, already? No wonder my stomach has been rumbling", he replies, even more tousled himself. "Nice watch, by the way, I think I saw you with it in Kul Goran. Is it an arcane or a mundane horological device? Very clever, all the same."
"Uhm.." Beets makes a show of examining it, her tongue sitting out thoughtfully and then giving it a generous listen she presses it to her ear..."I'm not exactly sure.. Moon magic make maybe? All I got told by a pretty scary woman was that it could tell the right time no matter what plane I'm on. Speaking of the moon, why don't you join me for dinner?” She says, holding up a large paper bag. "I've got some leftover buns from paradise frost. They always keep some back for me. Not that your...pocket cheese..doesn't look...tasty...She ends with a rather convincing grin as she gestures to the slightly furry block of cheese held in his palm."
"That would be lovely, Beets! Don't mind if I do. Maybe I could take a closer look at that watch too, if you don't mind?"
"Sure thing!" she says as she hoists it over to his open hands on its chain, as he takes a seat beside her. "Maybe you can work out what makes it...'tick'! She adds with a grin and a wink, before then fishing a large glazed bun out of the bag, and taking a huge chomp out of it with her fangs. 'Ohgmh muhug tis gis gregt!" She chews out, giving Amble a light dusting of crumbs as she munches contentedly.
"Yes ... that's the plan," replies Amble, raising an eyebrow. "Talking of which, back to my original question ... What brings you up here Beets? What is it that makes you 'tick' these days?"
"Oh.." She swallows", Well I was just chillin' after training The Rooftop Squad. You know they're pretty buggin' good at dodging my dragon fire balls now "she says, lifting a little weighed pouch tied with a loop at her waist, "and Daimen only fell off a roof twice during the whole thing! Thats 3 times less than last time I saw them all! I'm really flittin'pleased with how far they've come! She gives a proud smile, the final blaze from the setting sun making her face glow as it slowly sinks behind the horizon.
"As for what makes me tick,'' she says, reaching for another bun. "Rooftop moonlight sleeping, early morning flights-and pretty much anything from Paradise Frost," she adds, before cramming the whole bun into her mouth, a spurt of jam escaping onto her chin as she bites down, before continuing her cycle of happy chewing.
"Oh.." She swallows", Well I was just chillin' after training The Rooftop Squad. You know they're pretty buggin' good at dodging my dragon fire balls now "she says, lifting a little weighed pouch tied with a loop at her waist, "and Daimen only fell off a roof twice during the whole thing! Thats 3 times less than last time I saw them all! I'm really flittin'pleased with how far they've come! She gives a proud smile, the final blaze from the setting sun making her face glow as it slowly sinks behind the horizon. (edited)
"Those all sound lovely. It's a good read, that - quite thought provoking, but with a compelling narrative too. "The Rooftop Squad ... what do you mean by that, Beets? Who has been dealing with the "topplers"? Someone with Feather Fall, someone who can fly, or just a really good healer?!"
Beets pulls a confused face at Amble's words before glancing over to see him deep in thought examining the inner workings of the watch, barely registering her words. A sudden magical blue zap from deep within the clocks' cogs zips up his finger with a loud, Vrrrt! Adding a sudden extra layer of poof to his already impressive tower of hair. But also zapping him almost back to reality, triggering his next line of questioning as if nothing had happened.
"Oh, that's my elite Yanki-dragon fighting force-I've been training them up so the city has a rooftop line of defense from those flapping buggers. As for the slippers, well I've been catching them! Okay so there've been a couple close calls, and a few bruised butts, but other than that everyones been okay!" Beets says matter of factly.
"Okay, well glad to hear that someone has been keeping an eye on them. I can certainly see the advantage of having defenders at every elevation in DH - especially when the Gith are so mobile themselves, even without their dragons!" His stomach rumbles. "You were saying something about dinner?"
Beets fishes out a final bun for herself and holds it in her teeth before passing the still rather full bag into Amble’s lap! “Hemlp yoougelf!’ She murmurs through her bun before flipping the whole thing up with a jerk of her head to catch in her wide open mouth, giving a it few chews before swallowing the mass whole! “Ahh, flit that was good!”
“Well talking of having allies at every ele-ela-different heights-“ she resolves on, “That’s kinda why I’m here, I’m hoping to recruit some of our own dragons!” She gives him a wide grin with her sharp fangs, only slightly speckled with the remains of devoured buns.
"Oh ...", he looks at the bag, "'Paradise Frost' the bakery ... I thought that you were referring to the book of the same name! Don't mind if I do." He works his way through a bun with enthusiasm, apart from the last mouthful, which he crumbles into a small paper bag in one of his pockets. As he does so, his brain catches up with what else Beets has been saying. "Wait a minute?! Dragons?! Where are you going to find some of them, let alone convince them to join us?! The only ones that I know of live in the Spine, and those certainly weren't the friendliest towards adventurers, as far as I recall! "I do love your Beets disguise, but I'd be loathed for you to rely on only that and your best 'dragon impression' to help you win over some allies and not end up as their snack instead!"
“No don’t be silly Amble! The last time I came face to face with a wild dragon I nearly died!-twice even!” “No”, she says, sliding down the roof slightly before laying back against the tiles, her hands behind her head, looking up as the circular form of the moon come into clear view, the sky beginning to darken to a midnight blue hue. “I’m gonna go see Qirliria the Bright!”
"Queer Leah the Bright ...? I'm sure that they're lovely, Beets, but I can't say I've heard of them ... "Some kind of Queen?! I thought we were talking dragons, not drag ... Good for you though, Beets, I'm all for it. You can consider me a proud ally myself. That could be very entertaining, but I don't see how that will help us with the Gith...?"
“What?! No! I’m not-“ Beets’ face flushes beetroot red, “Is there something in your ears?!” She exclaims, grabbing Amble’s head, twisting it sideways as she peers into his ear canals before taking the initiative to speak loud and slowly, QIR-LI-RIA! She’s a DRRRRRAGGGOOON!”She says, drawing out every syllable, still holding his head close to her’s.
Amble winces. "It's ok Beets, there’s no need to shout. Thanks for clarifying. "I still don't know who she is though... Can I ask you to tell me a bit more about her, why you think she might help, and what you're planning on doing about it?"
“Well firstly she’s a dragon-and a buggin’beautiful one at that! Not like those ugly lizards the yanki’s after riding! Next she’s from The Court of Harmony-it’s in the Fayewild, that’s where Merla, Ma-“ Beets’ enthusiastic speech stops suddenly, the colour draining from her face in time with the final rays of evening sun as they disappear behind the tall dark town walls.
[
"What's up Beets? Did something happen there before?"
“It's..it’s nothing-I’ve not been there before anyway!-“ she says after a vigorous head shake, “She told me if I ever needed her I was welcome to go visit, and who’d be more helpful to fight big ugly dragons than a big beautiful Fey Dragon!-Hey! You should come!” She says, flitting up into the air, still holding Amble by his head.
"Beets ... Beets ... BEETS!!!" His hands have instinctively grabbed hold of her limbs to relieve the tension in is neck, but his face has started to go a slightly beetroot colour despite this. Despite Kavel's urgings, he still hasn't made it down to the gym to work on his pull-ups.
“Awh I thought you’d be excited, after all we’ve been on a good few adventures together! I still can’t believe you jumped off Gandenthor to catch up to us on the Paperwing! That was pretty buggin awesome I’ve gotta say!” She looks up, reminiscing the speed of their escape dive, the surge of the wind rippling through her hair!
Amble feels the blood pulsing hard in the veins in his head. He begins to feel that familiar sensation of the first hints of consciousness starting to slip away. He reaches out to the magic around him through his crystal, and a miniaturised lightning bolt shoots out from the palms of his hands, into whichever limbs he has a hold of, and the unsuspecting Beets.
The flashes from Amble’s first bolt tingling over the fairy’s arms don’t distract but in fact enhance her daydream recall of that flight-‘Huh, I don’t remember there being a lighting storm…” she thinks, before a blazing bolt in the dream streaks towards her, causing hot white juttering pain across her arms-“YEEEOOWWCCHH!!!” She cries, instinctively flinging her arms out, sending Amble flying, right off the side of the roof!
As he starts to fall, his body tumbles. Through bleary, streaming eyes, he sees first the cold, distant blue light of the stars, and then the warm, yellow/orange light of civilisation, then both of them, alternating. Dimly, he hopes that he didn't hurt his friend too much... She'll be alright - it's Beets, after all. The cold wind whistling past and through his clothing starts to sharpen his senses, and his hands instinctively grip his now dragon-wing-cut cloak, fanning it out in well-practiced fashion, to stop the tumbling and steady the fall. His body straightens, as he holds the material taught, starting to turn his vertical velocity more horizontal. He can think. A bit. He knows that he is up high ... but he won't be for long, and there are hard things below. Travelling faster than any of the birds this evening, he disappears over the edge of a roof, turning and heading down into an alley, but finally at a slightly shallower angle...
“Ouch! Where did that come from-OH FLIT! AMBLE! AMBLE I’M COMING!” Beets cries, her wing beats already kicked into high gear as she dives bombs down into the alley, arms outstretched to snag him out of the air at the last second.
She turns the corner into the aftermath of what befell a hurtling gnome just seconds earlier. With adrenaline pumping through both her heart and her wings, time slows down, or seems to. Beat. The moment that she turns the corner down into the alley, is just a split second after the screaming starts in earnest. Beat. It is not a pleasant sound. Beat. Beat. Her eyes flick down to the very approximate circle of people 100ft ahead, some gazing down, while others search the skies above. Beat. A woman looks up at Beets' silhouetted shape, points and screams so loudly that it cuts across the other noise. Beat. Beat. The circle of people draws your eye to a crumpled shape on the ground. Beat. A small, crumpled shape - hard to make out against the packed dirt of an inconspicuous side street. Beat.
Beat. Perhaps, on closer inspection, there is more than one of these shapes? Beat. Three, four, five? Beat. They could just be piles of clothing from where you are now Beat. Or freeform skittles in a giant bowling game Beat.
Beat. The woman who saw you first is yelling hysterically, between the sobbing Beat. "... another dragon! Another Yanki dragon, come to attack us like its friend!!!" Beat "Quick! Get back!!! Before it swoops at us!" Beat
Beets freezes mid dive and hovers in the air, her visage of screaming folk below her flicking suddenly to an armed mob of fairies, bitter and angry, hurting and yearning for vengeance.
"N-No I-I didn't mean to...I-I'm not a.." Her words stumbling out of her mouth as her breathing becomes more intense, panicked.
Beat. After the initial instinctive reaction wears off to being pointed at, singled out, vilified, Beets realises that only a small part of the crowd's attention is on her beat.
Beets follows the gaze of the citizens and whirs about to scan the night sky.
She has a plan. It's simple, it's not much, but it's enough that your heartbeat begins to normalise, and the pounding in your head becomes less all-encompassing.
She notices three things.
A half-elf woman with a bit more composure than the rest, possibly an adventurer, pushes her way slowly through the crowd, un-shouldering her longbow, and focusing on a spot high above the circle.
As her eyes followed hers, Beets realise what had been niggling in the back of her brain ... about the sky in that direction - it's kind of hazy. She’d thought it was just her hur eyes adjusting to the glow of the lamps, but it seems that it's something else.
The hazy "cloud"(?) high above the street shifts and shimmers ... little ripples flowing through each of the glowing halos surrounding the lamps on the far side. There's a sense of "twitching". It reminds her of something...
Beets draws her moonlit sword ready at her side and then surges forward, ready. 'I may go down again if this really is another dragon, but I can't let those people get hurt..and Amble's somewhere down there.'
--------
In the moment just before she flies above the circle, you realise exactly what that haziness reminds you of... The way that it catches the light is reminiscent of the delicate way that light scatters, first thing in the morning, in fields of long grass - as it plays along a million, million tiny fibres, and the shimmering droplets on them... A natural fibre, beautiful - but potentially deadly too ... as see was well aware from her experiences in the FeyWild and of the cautionary tales of little children who go wandering off into the older parts of the forest, or certain long-abandoned caves...
Cobwebs ... and as she pulls up sharply, that thought brings Beets back to the "twitching" that she noticed earlier...It seems to span the width of the relatively tall, but narrow alley, 15ft across, and at least as high, starting about 20ft up from the ground -which Beets can tell from a similar altitude.
Beets stops her advance curiously, and suddenly remembering with a snap of her fingers holds out her free hand, her sword slightly lowered, and with her free hand extending she snaps her fingers again.
Three things happen, in quick succession.
A dazzling display of coruscating moonlight dances along the webbing, like a harmless crackle of lightning from a performing magician. It draws a few surprised "Oohs" and "Ahs" from a few of the onlookers, followed by some bashful coughing, in reaction to the glares of some fellow bystanders. But it doesn't linger, almost like it's reflecting the transient, insubstantial nature of the webbing.
As the last spark fades, a few glowing figures remain ... a few birds (mostly pigeons), out of their minds with fright, and a form that warms Beets’ heart, as she suddenly takes her first breath in a good few seconds... Caught, as if in mid-flight, she sees her her friend, Amble, a few feet away
However, that isn't what the crowd sees ... they see an unknowably large shape, which is caught in mid-flight an uncertain distance away from them. It has a splendid pair of tattered dragon wings, a fiery tuft of orange/red at the end of its head ... and it has just started glowing... "Thank you", says the half-elf archer from below, as she steadies her aim, her eyes focusing on her now conveniently glowing target.
Beets hears the archer’s words and the pull of her bowstring grow taut! With a sudden zip she flips round, arms extended wide as possible to shield Amble. “Whoa, whoa! Hold on a flittin’minute bow-girl! That’s my friend you’re pointing that thing at!”
Amongst the general hubbub, the archer can't make out Beets’ words, but surprise at her actions causes her to lose a little of her focus as she releases/
In this case, since her target had always been Amble, Beets’ flailing limbs aren't quite able to get in the way as you intended. Beet’s has had to dodge around the webbing in the dark, which is no easy task itself, and jer smaller frame doesn't form as complete a shield as she would like ... But she had done enough to startle the archer ... the arrow whistles past her, just ... but there are no familiar sounds of arrow-tip piercing flesh, instead there is a soft ringing sound as the arrow deflects away from something around Amble, and continues its upward trajectory.
... Beets feels a ... presence pushing at the edge of her conscience ... gently, but quite firmly. For a moment she gets an impression of freshly fallen forest leaves, the smell of baking loaves in an oven, the scent of parchment, the scratch of a quill pen, and a pair of sparkling green eyes. "Beets ...", she thinks, hopes that she can hear inside her head, " ... it's me, Amble."
"Amble!" She glances black at his form, her arms still spread wide, her voice a mixture of relief and panic. "Amble we need to go-these people think we're monsters!
... Hearing Beets’ thoughts as much as her voice, Amble replies (again, inside her head), "You're right, Beets, with that archer below, we don't have much time, and with the mood that this crowd is in we wouldn't be able to talk them around if we had all evening - which we don't ..." "I don't think that know what you are any more, so I need you to play along..." "Fly lower, and let them know that the Rooftop Squad is here, that you've got the 'small dragon' in'your Web', that you need to take it to the Council ... and that they were never in any danger with you lot about."* "I'll drop concentration on Web after that, and then you can get me the 'flit' out of here as fast as you 'buggin' can!"
"Uh..ok-Okay!" She responds, a smile curling at the corner of her mouth at Amble's use of her terms. "Be-be right back!" She flutters down till she's at height level with a street lamp, landing on the cross bar protruding from the neck just below the lamp instead so that the golden light clearly reveals her form!" Hey Citizens of Daring Heights do not fear-The Rooftop squad is here! We've captured the small dragon and will bring it before the council! Know that your nights will be safe with the Rooftop squad watching the skies above as you sleep! Her voice builds with confidence as she speaks, adding flourishes and gestures with her hands to help capture her audience and get them to buy into the act!
It is one of the best performances of Beets' lifetime: she takes their nervous energy and molds it like putty in her hands. Frankly, they are also relieved to see someone taking charge, who speaks with confidence, and makes them feel a little a little bit safer, once again. 'The Rooftop Squad ...' you hear a few of them mutter to each other, intrigued, and not in a bad way. As you speak, a few of the crowd start to help the feinted halflings upright, fanning them gently, and reassuring them. They look like they're not from round here - and seem pretty on edge still, even as the rest of the crowd relaxes ... These days Daring Heights is no longer the welcoming kind of place that travellers can relax in.
"I guess it's time for you to 'arrest me' and to carry me off now", thinks Amble,"but maybe not by my head this time?!"
The moon is fully up now as the two friends sit atop the clock tower roof in Daring Heights, the silvery light making the tiles on the rooftop shimmer and glow, like large scatterings of crystals..
"I'm really buggin'sorry Amble!" Beets says for about the fifth time in the last 2 minutes.
"Don't worry about it, Beets - I'm sorry that I gave you such a fright!" "Everyone seems to think that Feather Fall means that you can just float down," explains Amble,"but really you're still falling at 10ft per second ... which is plenty fast enough to cause an injury to an unsuspecting citizen. I'd been wondering about using Web as an alternative means to break someone's fall, and I guess now we know, right!". He grins. "I was trying to Message you as soon as I saw you, but I think that you were a bit too far away, given that I was concentrating on my Web, as well as trying not to get shot down!", thinks Amble, demonstrating, "At first, when you got a bit closer, I couldn't seem to get into your mind ... it seemed too full of other stuff and, like I said, I couldn't spare my full attention."
"Oh uhm..yeah I guess..I mean the upcoming Yanki attack, and going to see Qir and..worrying Paradise Frost won't get damaged or burnt down."
"You didn't even notice when you lifted me up by my head the first time. Clearly you've got something playing on your mind. "Whatever is, you're welcome to share it if and when you want to - but I'm confident that you'll get through it one way or another, whatever it might be. "Tell me a bit more about Qir, and how you got to know one another - that seemed like a happier subject to me." (
Beets thinks, twiddling her fingers as her legs dangle over the edge of the tower but gets Amble a thankful smile for not pressing too hard. "Thanks Amble..I've just..I've just got someone I need to talk to...That's all."
"Oh” she starts, “Well it all started on Coll's date with Velania!"
Even halfway through the tale, Amble's shoulders shake with silent sobs of emotion, and swallows more often than is usual. He interjects occasionally with sympathy or interest, as appropriate. "Thank you, Beets. I'd heard a short version of what happened to Coll from Velania, but I didn't want to press her to hard for the details. "Thank you for sharing your story too. I agree with Velania - you are brave too. Your dad would be proud of you, I'm sure." He pauses. "I'd like to help you find this dragon, wherever she is."
Beets sniffs herself at the mention of her Papa then claps Amble on the back.
The impact is sudden and knocks the wind from Amble slightly, but thankfully is only a fraction of the fairy's truth strength and-most thankfully-not enough to send him on another downward tumble to the streets far below. "Well if it just so happens I know exactly where she is..." Says Beets, resting her hand on his shoulder, "..And you're coming with me Amble, we're off to the Court of Harmony!" Emphasising, with a dramatic point to the night time sky.
Amble smiles through slightly watering eyes, as he tries to get some breath back into his lungs. "What do you expect us to find in the Court of Harmony? "Does it hold many risks and dangers, or the journey there? Will Stiffy be welcome too?"
"Of course your pup can come..." she says, holding her pose, and "most likely-cause Amble..We're looking for DRAGONS!"
The view of the two friends sitting atop the clock tower slowly pans out to show the rooftops city, and from a distance Beets’ voice floats up saying..."I don't actually buggin' know what way Court of Harmony is...."
Amble smiles inwardly. Even getting lost will end up being good fun with a friend like Beets. He wonders who else will come along for the ride.
Co written with james p
(COMING SOON)
"Hello Beets, what're you doing up here?"
A short gnome sways gently in the breeze, up near the edge of a roof, overlooking DA.
Amble spies beetle girl perched atop the spine of the rooftop above him against the setting sun, the streaks of hot orange and red and gold throwing her form into deep silhouette form, recognisable instantly though by her iconic beetle horn that stands proud from her head.
"I tend to find there's not many other people in this town who take advantage of the great views up here ... a shame, I think. "Although in the last few weeks there has been a bit of odd traffic up on the rooftops ... I'm slightly worried that it might be a bunch of youths up to no good, about to get themselves hurt for the thrill of it..."
The shape of wings suddenly flit up in response from the form, their movement sharing the same audible insect buzz, though definitely not the usual look of Beets' insect panes. Long pointed fingers splay up from its back, sharp taloned points glinting as they catch the red setting sunlight. Tattered papery flesh spreads between them, the sun pushing through their red hue down to their edges, where suddenly they turn blackened and smoky like burnt parchment. A long spiny tail whips up as if in response to the wing rise, thick and serpent like, the light glinting off its scales.The torso slowly turns to face him, revealing more scales running the course of one thickly muscled arm, down to a claw of short stubby fingers ending in razor sharp black talons. Thick golden plates run the course of the neck up to the head, where a long elongated reptilian jaw reaches out, spikes jutting out from the chin, splayed hand like fronds of frill bursting from each cheek bone. The snout mirrors the pointed nose of the fairy he knows, but is even sharper and more pointed Little black nostrils sit below thick ridges of scale that run in tracks back towards the eyes, which are small and sunken, but filled with blazing golden light like glowing hearths, strong and stable. Strangest of all, is the trident formation on its head, thickly ridged horns that sweep either side of the brow-line, the thickest flowing the shape of Beets' iconic beetle horn to end in three sharp pronged points. "Oh...Hey Amble!" Says the face, the mouth of razor sharp teeth opening to mirror the sound of his friend's normal sounding voice, as the bright eyes catch sight of his floating form in the air behind it.
Amble swallows in relief, "Oh, it is you Beets, after all! That's quite a new look you've got ... Is this another one of your disguises? I must say, it's a lot more convincing than your Gith impression!" He pauses, and concentrates a moment as his cloak forms into an answering pair of equally tattered wings, which hang loosely at his side. Another moment later, a small burst of flame appears to emerge from his mouth, and he grins.
He scrambles up the roof tiles, unconcerned by the long and precipitous drop down to the cobblestones, many gnomes below... "Is everything alright? I didn't mean to tease you too hard about your disguise - it was actually very good - just a shame that a realistic Githyanki accent is so hard to emulate the first time around!"
"Here, you're welcome to share some of my lunch if you'd like..." He riffles through his various pockets, gradually accumulating a small pile of nourishing odds and ends - some more appealing, some less so. You could probably make quite a good sandwich from them, if so inspired.
The dragon headed creature gives a laugh, which as it does so slowly melts away to reveal the normal form of Beets, a little tousled haired and sweaty, but not a scale in sight. "Amble it's like..."She pauses thinking, then clicks her fingers, reaching into the sash around her middle and drawing out a silver pocket watch on a long chain which she examines..."It's like 7pm!" She exclaims, holding the watch out to show him, it's face mirroring the clock tower literally just to her left behind her. "Seriously, what time did you wake up!?" She ends with a good natured sharp toothed grin.
"Oh, already? No wonder my stomach has been rumbling", he replies, even more tousled himself. "Nice watch, by the way, I think I saw you with it in Kul Goran. Is it an arcane or a mundane horological device? Very clever, all the same."
"Uhm.." Beets makes a show of examining it, her tongue sitting out thoughtfully and then giving it a generous listen she presses it to her ear..."I'm not exactly sure.. Moon magic make maybe? All I got told by a pretty scary woman was that it could tell the right time no matter what plane I'm on. Speaking of the moon, why don't you join me for dinner?” She says, holding up a large paper bag. "I've got some leftover buns from paradise frost. They always keep some back for me. Not that your...pocket cheese..doesn't look...tasty...She ends with a rather convincing grin as she gestures to the slightly furry block of cheese held in his palm."
"That would be lovely, Beets! Don't mind if I do. Maybe I could take a closer look at that watch too, if you don't mind?"
"Sure thing!" she says as she hoists it over to his open hands on its chain, as he takes a seat beside her. "Maybe you can work out what makes it...'tick'! She adds with a grin and a wink, before then fishing a large glazed bun out of the bag, and taking a huge chomp out of it with her fangs. 'Ohgmh muhug tis gis gregt!" She chews out, giving Amble a light dusting of crumbs as she munches contentedly.
"Yes ... that's the plan," replies Amble, raising an eyebrow. "Talking of which, back to my original question ... What brings you up here Beets? What is it that makes you 'tick' these days?"
"Oh.." She swallows", Well I was just chillin' after training The Rooftop Squad. You know they're pretty buggin' good at dodging my dragon fire balls now "she says, lifting a little weighed pouch tied with a loop at her waist, "and Daimen only fell off a roof twice during the whole thing! Thats 3 times less than last time I saw them all! I'm really flittin'pleased with how far they've come! She gives a proud smile, the final blaze from the setting sun making her face glow as it slowly sinks behind the horizon.
"As for what makes me tick,'' she says, reaching for another bun. "Rooftop moonlight sleeping, early morning flights-and pretty much anything from Paradise Frost," she adds, before cramming the whole bun into her mouth, a spurt of jam escaping onto her chin as she bites down, before continuing her cycle of happy chewing.
"Oh.." She swallows", Well I was just chillin' after training The Rooftop Squad. You know they're pretty buggin' good at dodging my dragon fire balls now "she says, lifting a little weighed pouch tied with a loop at her waist, "and Daimen only fell off a roof twice during the whole thing! Thats 3 times less than last time I saw them all! I'm really flittin'pleased with how far they've come! She gives a proud smile, the final blaze from the setting sun making her face glow as it slowly sinks behind the horizon. (edited)
"Those all sound lovely. It's a good read, that - quite thought provoking, but with a compelling narrative too. "The Rooftop Squad ... what do you mean by that, Beets? Who has been dealing with the "topplers"? Someone with Feather Fall, someone who can fly, or just a really good healer?!"
Beets pulls a confused face at Amble's words before glancing over to see him deep in thought examining the inner workings of the watch, barely registering her words. A sudden magical blue zap from deep within the clocks' cogs zips up his finger with a loud, Vrrrt! Adding a sudden extra layer of poof to his already impressive tower of hair. But also zapping him almost back to reality, triggering his next line of questioning as if nothing had happened.
"Oh, that's my elite Yanki-dragon fighting force-I've been training them up so the city has a rooftop line of defense from those flapping buggers. As for the slippers, well I've been catching them! Okay so there've been a couple close calls, and a few bruised butts, but other than that everyones been okay!" Beets says matter of factly.
"Okay, well glad to hear that someone has been keeping an eye on them. I can certainly see the advantage of having defenders at every elevation in DH - especially when the Gith are so mobile themselves, even without their dragons!" His stomach rumbles. "You were saying something about dinner?"
Beets fishes out a final bun for herself and holds it in her teeth before passing the still rather full bag into Amble’s lap! “Hemlp yoougelf!’ She murmurs through her bun before flipping the whole thing up with a jerk of her head to catch in her wide open mouth, giving a it few chews before swallowing the mass whole! “Ahh, flit that was good!”
“Well talking of having allies at every ele-ela-different heights-“ she resolves on, “That’s kinda why I’m here, I’m hoping to recruit some of our own dragons!” She gives him a wide grin with her sharp fangs, only slightly speckled with the remains of devoured buns.
"Oh ...", he looks at the bag, "'Paradise Frost' the bakery ... I thought that you were referring to the book of the same name! Don't mind if I do." He works his way through a bun with enthusiasm, apart from the last mouthful, which he crumbles into a small paper bag in one of his pockets. As he does so, his brain catches up with what else Beets has been saying. "Wait a minute?! Dragons?! Where are you going to find some of them, let alone convince them to join us?! The only ones that I know of live in the Spine, and those certainly weren't the friendliest towards adventurers, as far as I recall! "I do love your Beets disguise, but I'd be loathed for you to rely on only that and your best 'dragon impression' to help you win over some allies and not end up as their snack instead!"
“No don’t be silly Amble! The last time I came face to face with a wild dragon I nearly died!-twice even!” “No”, she says, sliding down the roof slightly before laying back against the tiles, her hands behind her head, looking up as the circular form of the moon come into clear view, the sky beginning to darken to a midnight blue hue. “I’m gonna go see Qirliria the Bright!”
"Queer Leah the Bright ...? I'm sure that they're lovely, Beets, but I can't say I've heard of them ... "Some kind of Queen?! I thought we were talking dragons, not drag ... Good for you though, Beets, I'm all for it. You can consider me a proud ally myself. That could be very entertaining, but I don't see how that will help us with the Gith...?"
“What?! No! I’m not-“ Beets’ face flushes beetroot red, “Is there something in your ears?!” She exclaims, grabbing Amble’s head, twisting it sideways as she peers into his ear canals before taking the initiative to speak loud and slowly, QIR-LI-RIA! She’s a DRRRRRAGGGOOON!”She says, drawing out every syllable, still holding his head close to her’s.
Amble winces. "It's ok Beets, there’s no need to shout. Thanks for clarifying. "I still don't know who she is though... Can I ask you to tell me a bit more about her, why you think she might help, and what you're planning on doing about it?"
“Well firstly she’s a dragon-and a buggin’beautiful one at that! Not like those ugly lizards the yanki’s after riding! Next she’s from The Court of Harmony-it’s in the Fayewild, that’s where Merla, Ma-“ Beets’ enthusiastic speech stops suddenly, the colour draining from her face in time with the final rays of evening sun as they disappear behind the tall dark town walls.
[
"What's up Beets? Did something happen there before?"
“It's..it’s nothing-I’ve not been there before anyway!-“ she says after a vigorous head shake, “She told me if I ever needed her I was welcome to go visit, and who’d be more helpful to fight big ugly dragons than a big beautiful Fey Dragon!-Hey! You should come!” She says, flitting up into the air, still holding Amble by his head.
"Beets ... Beets ... BEETS!!!" His hands have instinctively grabbed hold of her limbs to relieve the tension in is neck, but his face has started to go a slightly beetroot colour despite this. Despite Kavel's urgings, he still hasn't made it down to the gym to work on his pull-ups.
“Awh I thought you’d be excited, after all we’ve been on a good few adventures together! I still can’t believe you jumped off Gandenthor to catch up to us on the Paperwing! That was pretty buggin awesome I’ve gotta say!” She looks up, reminiscing the speed of their escape dive, the surge of the wind rippling through her hair!
Amble feels the blood pulsing hard in the veins in his head. He begins to feel that familiar sensation of the first hints of consciousness starting to slip away. He reaches out to the magic around him through his crystal, and a miniaturised lightning bolt shoots out from the palms of his hands, into whichever limbs he has a hold of, and the unsuspecting Beets.
The flashes from Amble’s first bolt tingling over the fairy’s arms don’t distract but in fact enhance her daydream recall of that flight-‘Huh, I don’t remember there being a lighting storm…” she thinks, before a blazing bolt in the dream streaks towards her, causing hot white juttering pain across her arms-“YEEEOOWWCCHH!!!” She cries, instinctively flinging her arms out, sending Amble flying, right off the side of the roof!
As he starts to fall, his body tumbles. Through bleary, streaming eyes, he sees first the cold, distant blue light of the stars, and then the warm, yellow/orange light of civilisation, then both of them, alternating. Dimly, he hopes that he didn't hurt his friend too much... She'll be alright - it's Beets, after all. The cold wind whistling past and through his clothing starts to sharpen his senses, and his hands instinctively grip his now dragon-wing-cut cloak, fanning it out in well-practiced fashion, to stop the tumbling and steady the fall. His body straightens, as he holds the material taught, starting to turn his vertical velocity more horizontal. He can think. A bit. He knows that he is up high ... but he won't be for long, and there are hard things below. Travelling faster than any of the birds this evening, he disappears over the edge of a roof, turning and heading down into an alley, but finally at a slightly shallower angle...
“Ouch! Where did that come from-OH FLIT! AMBLE! AMBLE I’M COMING!” Beets cries, her wing beats already kicked into high gear as she dives bombs down into the alley, arms outstretched to snag him out of the air at the last second.
She turns the corner into the aftermath of what befell a hurtling gnome just seconds earlier. With adrenaline pumping through both her heart and her wings, time slows down, or seems to. Beat. The moment that she turns the corner down into the alley, is just a split second after the screaming starts in earnest. Beat. It is not a pleasant sound. Beat. Beat. Her eyes flick down to the very approximate circle of people 100ft ahead, some gazing down, while others search the skies above. Beat. A woman looks up at Beets' silhouetted shape, points and screams so loudly that it cuts across the other noise. Beat. Beat. The circle of people draws your eye to a crumpled shape on the ground. Beat. A small, crumpled shape - hard to make out against the packed dirt of an inconspicuous side street. Beat.
Beat. Perhaps, on closer inspection, there is more than one of these shapes? Beat. Three, four, five? Beat. They could just be piles of clothing from where you are now Beat. Or freeform skittles in a giant bowling game Beat.
Beat. The woman who saw you first is yelling hysterically, between the sobbing Beat. "... another dragon! Another Yanki dragon, come to attack us like its friend!!!" Beat "Quick! Get back!!! Before it swoops at us!" Beat
Beets freezes mid dive and hovers in the air, her visage of screaming folk below her flicking suddenly to an armed mob of fairies, bitter and angry, hurting and yearning for vengeance.
"N-No I-I didn't mean to...I-I'm not a.." Her words stumbling out of her mouth as her breathing becomes more intense, panicked.
Beat. After the initial instinctive reaction wears off to being pointed at, singled out, vilified, Beets realises that only a small part of the crowd's attention is on her beat.
Beets follows the gaze of the citizens and whirs about to scan the night sky.
She has a plan. It's simple, it's not much, but it's enough that your heartbeat begins to normalise, and the pounding in your head becomes less all-encompassing.
She notices three things.
A half-elf woman with a bit more composure than the rest, possibly an adventurer, pushes her way slowly through the crowd, un-shouldering her longbow, and focusing on a spot high above the circle.
As her eyes followed hers, Beets realise what had been niggling in the back of her brain ... about the sky in that direction - it's kind of hazy. She’d thought it was just her hur eyes adjusting to the glow of the lamps, but it seems that it's something else.
The hazy "cloud"(?) high above the street shifts and shimmers ... little ripples flowing through each of the glowing halos surrounding the lamps on the far side. There's a sense of "twitching". It reminds her of something...
Beets draws her moonlit sword ready at her side and then surges forward, ready. 'I may go down again if this really is another dragon, but I can't let those people get hurt..and Amble's somewhere down there.'
--------
In the moment just before she flies above the circle, you realise exactly what that haziness reminds you of... The way that it catches the light is reminiscent of the delicate way that light scatters, first thing in the morning, in fields of long grass - as it plays along a million, million tiny fibres, and the shimmering droplets on them... A natural fibre, beautiful - but potentially deadly too ... as see was well aware from her experiences in the FeyWild and of the cautionary tales of little children who go wandering off into the older parts of the forest, or certain long-abandoned caves...
Cobwebs ... and as she pulls up sharply, that thought brings Beets back to the "twitching" that she noticed earlier...It seems to span the width of the relatively tall, but narrow alley, 15ft across, and at least as high, starting about 20ft up from the ground -which Beets can tell from a similar altitude.
Beets stops her advance curiously, and suddenly remembering with a snap of her fingers holds out her free hand, her sword slightly lowered, and with her free hand extending she snaps her fingers again.
Three things happen, in quick succession.
A dazzling display of coruscating moonlight dances along the webbing, like a harmless crackle of lightning from a performing magician. It draws a few surprised "Oohs" and "Ahs" from a few of the onlookers, followed by some bashful coughing, in reaction to the glares of some fellow bystanders. But it doesn't linger, almost like it's reflecting the transient, insubstantial nature of the webbing.
As the last spark fades, a few glowing figures remain ... a few birds (mostly pigeons), out of their minds with fright, and a form that warms Beets’ heart, as she suddenly takes her first breath in a good few seconds... Caught, as if in mid-flight, she sees her her friend, Amble, a few feet away
However, that isn't what the crowd sees ... they see an unknowably large shape, which is caught in mid-flight an uncertain distance away from them. It has a splendid pair of tattered dragon wings, a fiery tuft of orange/red at the end of its head ... and it has just started glowing... "Thank you", says the half-elf archer from below, as she steadies her aim, her eyes focusing on her now conveniently glowing target.
Beets hears the archer’s words and the pull of her bowstring grow taut! With a sudden zip she flips round, arms extended wide as possible to shield Amble. “Whoa, whoa! Hold on a flittin’minute bow-girl! That’s my friend you’re pointing that thing at!”
Amongst the general hubbub, the archer can't make out Beets’ words, but surprise at her actions causes her to lose a little of her focus as she releases/
In this case, since her target had always been Amble, Beets’ flailing limbs aren't quite able to get in the way as you intended. Beet’s has had to dodge around the webbing in the dark, which is no easy task itself, and jer smaller frame doesn't form as complete a shield as she would like ... But she had done enough to startle the archer ... the arrow whistles past her, just ... but there are no familiar sounds of arrow-tip piercing flesh, instead there is a soft ringing sound as the arrow deflects away from something around Amble, and continues its upward trajectory.
... Beets feels a ... presence pushing at the edge of her conscience ... gently, but quite firmly. For a moment she gets an impression of freshly fallen forest leaves, the smell of baking loaves in an oven, the scent of parchment, the scratch of a quill pen, and a pair of sparkling green eyes. "Beets ...", she thinks, hopes that she can hear inside her head, " ... it's me, Amble."
"Amble!" She glances black at his form, her arms still spread wide, her voice a mixture of relief and panic. "Amble we need to go-these people think we're monsters!
... Hearing Beets’ thoughts as much as her voice, Amble replies (again, inside her head), "You're right, Beets, with that archer below, we don't have much time, and with the mood that this crowd is in we wouldn't be able to talk them around if we had all evening - which we don't ..." "I don't think that know what you are any more, so I need you to play along..." "Fly lower, and let them know that the Rooftop Squad is here, that you've got the 'small dragon' in'your Web', that you need to take it to the Council ... and that they were never in any danger with you lot about."* "I'll drop concentration on Web after that, and then you can get me the 'flit' out of here as fast as you 'buggin' can!"
"Uh..ok-Okay!" She responds, a smile curling at the corner of her mouth at Amble's use of her terms. "Be-be right back!" She flutters down till she's at height level with a street lamp, landing on the cross bar protruding from the neck just below the lamp instead so that the golden light clearly reveals her form!" Hey Citizens of Daring Heights do not fear-The Rooftop squad is here! We've captured the small dragon and will bring it before the council! Know that your nights will be safe with the Rooftop squad watching the skies above as you sleep! Her voice builds with confidence as she speaks, adding flourishes and gestures with her hands to help capture her audience and get them to buy into the act!
It is one of the best performances of Beets' lifetime: she takes their nervous energy and molds it like putty in her hands. Frankly, they are also relieved to see someone taking charge, who speaks with confidence, and makes them feel a little a little bit safer, once again. 'The Rooftop Squad ...' you hear a few of them mutter to each other, intrigued, and not in a bad way. As you speak, a few of the crowd start to help the feinted halflings upright, fanning them gently, and reassuring them. They look like they're not from round here - and seem pretty on edge still, even as the rest of the crowd relaxes ... These days Daring Heights is no longer the welcoming kind of place that travellers can relax in.
"I guess it's time for you to 'arrest me' and to carry me off now", thinks Amble,"but maybe not by my head this time?!"
The moon is fully up now as the two friends sit atop the clock tower roof in Daring Heights, the silvery light making the tiles on the rooftop shimmer and glow, like large scatterings of crystals..
"I'm really buggin'sorry Amble!" Beets says for about the fifth time in the last 2 minutes.
"Don't worry about it, Beets - I'm sorry that I gave you such a fright!" "Everyone seems to think that Feather Fall means that you can just float down," explains Amble,"but really you're still falling at 10ft per second ... which is plenty fast enough to cause an injury to an unsuspecting citizen. I'd been wondering about using Web as an alternative means to break someone's fall, and I guess now we know, right!". He grins. "I was trying to Message you as soon as I saw you, but I think that you were a bit too far away, given that I was concentrating on my Web, as well as trying not to get shot down!", thinks Amble, demonstrating, "At first, when you got a bit closer, I couldn't seem to get into your mind ... it seemed too full of other stuff and, like I said, I couldn't spare my full attention."
"Oh uhm..yeah I guess..I mean the upcoming Yanki attack, and going to see Qir and..worrying Paradise Frost won't get damaged or burnt down."
"You didn't even notice when you lifted me up by my head the first time. Clearly you've got something playing on your mind. "Whatever is, you're welcome to share it if and when you want to - but I'm confident that you'll get through it one way or another, whatever it might be. "Tell me a bit more about Qir, and how you got to know one another - that seemed like a happier subject to me." (
Beets thinks, twiddling her fingers as her legs dangle over the edge of the tower but gets Amble a thankful smile for not pressing too hard. "Thanks Amble..I've just..I've just got someone I need to talk to...That's all."
"Oh” she starts, “Well it all started on Coll's date with Velania!"
Even halfway through the tale, Amble's shoulders shake with silent sobs of emotion, and swallows more often than is usual. He interjects occasionally with sympathy or interest, as appropriate. "Thank you, Beets. I'd heard a short version of what happened to Coll from Velania, but I didn't want to press her to hard for the details. "Thank you for sharing your story too. I agree with Velania - you are brave too. Your dad would be proud of you, I'm sure." He pauses. "I'd like to help you find this dragon, wherever she is."
Beets sniffs herself at the mention of her Papa then claps Amble on the back.
The impact is sudden and knocks the wind from Amble slightly, but thankfully is only a fraction of the fairy's truth strength and-most thankfully-not enough to send him on another downward tumble to the streets far below. "Well if it just so happens I know exactly where she is..." Says Beets, resting her hand on his shoulder, "..And you're coming with me Amble, we're off to the Court of Harmony!" Emphasising, with a dramatic point to the night time sky.
Amble smiles through slightly watering eyes, as he tries to get some breath back into his lungs. "What do you expect us to find in the Court of Harmony? "Does it hold many risks and dangers, or the journey there? Will Stiffy be welcome too?"
"Of course your pup can come..." she says, holding her pose, and "most likely-cause Amble..We're looking for DRAGONS!"
The view of the two friends sitting atop the clock tower slowly pans out to show the rooftops city, and from a distance Beets’ voice floats up saying..."I don't actually buggin' know what way Court of Harmony is...."
Amble smiles inwardly. Even getting lost will end up being good fun with a friend like Beets. He wonders who else will come along for the ride.
Co written with james p