A new sword

[Yggdrasil]

((ooc: rusty, pluss i am going to be trying to find a writing style for this character, thats gonna take a few trial and runs

Open so join in))

“ As a Hjor, you are among the most reckless I have had the pleasure of meeting ”

Shinn smiled, as best he could without wincing in pain, being stabbed multiple times tended to leave mortals such as him on the ground in a state of perpetual pain, and yet Shinn had to be given some credit, for such a normal man, he was enduring his fair share.

It could only watch, despite urging the man to go seek medical attention he instead was adamant that he was going home, and it could not do anything to change his mind, his current level of pain was blocking all attempts to even tug the right emotions to make him listen.

So where was this wounded man going, where was his destination, it was rather simple for it to figure out what he wanted, Humans were always easy to figure out in a way, but every so often one would surprise even it.

He was heading home, even with the wound he sustained; he was determined to go home, even if he would have to crawl there.

‘Only among the most reckless? How disappointing’ his thoughts had mirth to them, a testament to the mans strength that even dieing he would …

Shinn stumbled mid stride, crashing to one knee while his shoulder crashed into the wall he had been almost crawling across, bloody red teeth grinded together as the pain seemed to flare-up, was that it, could this possibly be his last breath, somehow he didn’t think so, he still had some fight in him, all he wanted was to just go home and sit in his chair overlooking the fire one last time.

The city of Scara Brae had no real name, it was simply a city, industrialised, sturdy and economically stable, as it had been for a long time, it itself was fairly new to these lands, spending countless years drifting until it’s previous Hjor carried it here before it moved on, like it always does.

Stone pavements dripped red with Shinn’s blood, seemingly slowing down, it could have been a good thing, but it wasn’t he had bleeding for a while now, and there was no doubt that his strength would fail, long before he would ever reach his home.

‘Ya, know this really sucks’

“yes, I would imagine that your slow death would indeed be painful, perhaps you should have sought medical aid instead ”

“Fuck you, you know it all piece of shit, I am the one dieing here I don’t need to listen to you on how to die, I am perfectly capable of doing it on my own”

Shinn yelled out as he felt his strength returning once again, Trust that damn thing to spur him on like that, just what he needed, here he was literally on his last dieing breaths and it is being such a poor company with it’s indifferent remarks, like the bloody thing was waiting for him to kick the bucket and continue on it’s own.

Shinn took three heroic steps before his strength gave out once again and he plummeted against the wall, his breaths frightfully shallow and the taste of blood even stronger in his mouth.

Shinn took a deep shuddering breath and he realised, he truly realised how scared he was, he didn’t want to die, he wished he had listened to that artefact and sought out medical aid instead, but now… everything it was just getting heavy, slower

No, NO!

He fought for his strength rising once again, he could see a street up ahead, one of the main ones if his knowledge of the layout of the city was accurate enough, he took a step, and he wasn’t going to die.

He took another, he would refuse to fall in a gutter and die

Another step, he would find help

His eyelids were not getting heavy, they weren’t, but they were

His breaths weren’t getting shallow, but they were

And …

He stopped, he had made it to the street but he had no recognition of it, why was he stood there, why, why was he dieing. His eyes trailed down his own body and took in the blurred glowing bracelet around his right wrist, what was that, it didn’t look familiar

“ Rest, my Hjor ” … an angel?

Shinn crashed to both knee’s his energy spent, and ungracefully without resistance, his chest crashed into the street as well followed by a sickening crack when his head also made impact with the stone pavement, his eyes looked on, before they simply lost focus.

Those in the street looked on, some panicked others more used to such things gathered there wits and called for help while others still rushed forwards in aid

He had died

And still the bracelet the man had been wearing glowed further still, intricate patterns stood out more and previously unlit veins also surged with movement until the glow engulfed the bracelet entirely and rose from the mans wrist, floating up 4 feet before coming to a stop

People watched on, for a brief moment before once again spectators were split, some in watching the odd blue/what glow or uselessly trying to revive the fallen man. Then there came a sound, akin to a drop of water hitting a pond, but it was nothing like that, it was much higher pitched and more like a Bell, it echoed, such a quiet sound no one should have heard but it was

The Glow faded and Scara Brea was introduced to an ancient item, a crystal blue sphere, flawless and most likely precious, but there was more to it than it simply floating there like that, a lot more than most looking at it would ever comprehend

The item was Yggdrasil

[Bevel]

The man died in plain sight.

Naturally, the populace divided into two types. The first group stood around, slack-jawed, watching his life seep away. The second, smaller but more interesting group, rushed forward to give him aid.

Well, most of them rushed forward to give him aid.

Puffing along like a locomotive was a somewhat overweight drow elf, who just knew there had to be something worth salvaging on his person.

"Clear out! I'm a doctor!" he bellowed, and obediently, the flock parted to let him through. The dark elf offhandedly remarked to himself upon the stupidity of humans - say something loud and authoritative-sounding enough, and you can get them to do anything.

Though, that could apply to pretty much any sentient race. For being self aware, we were honestly quite dumb most of the time.

"My lord, he's still alive!" the drow breathlessly lied. "Quick, a compress!"

The drow selected the cleanest rag he could and began binding the man's gashed arm in a tourniquet fashion. He set his pack down.

"All of you, back up! He's going to need air!"

Helpfully, a few souls turned around and started shepherding people back while the drow worked. He knew a small bit of medicine, but not enough to save this man even if he were still alive. In the confusion of everyone backing up, nobody seemed to see the drow scoop the shiny object under his pile of rags.

The dark elf finished tying the tourniquet and moved on. "He might make it!" he announced. The shock of a death would soon begin to wear off the crowd, he knew, so he had to move quickly.

[Yggdrasil]

Yggdrasil Found it’s current Situation both amusing and heavily annoying, simply put, in the chaos and Confusion of it’s previous Hjor’s death it had to wait the total length of five whole seconds before a would be thief or simply someone curious at what the “Shiny glowing Sphere like thing could be”

That was how it works; being shiny and mysterious attracted quite the attention

Said Amusement did not include being scooped up into a pile of cloth material, that would have come under the annoyance.

It was supposed to be a weapon of grand proportion, the ability to link with a Person and fight along side them as well as protect them to the best of its ability, Shinn had been a reckless Hjor and Yggdrasil could not protect its Hjor against recklessness.

And here is was being handled like a simple gold coin, oh no doubt someone would eventually take an interest in it and unknowingly reach out to admire it’s perfected form, and when that happens it would form a link, It would gain a new Hjor and the Hjor would gain a protector

Or a weapon

It was times like this that it also resented it’s current form, being so helpless, being unable to do anything but float and attract attention, sure it could call out to who now held it in it’s possession, but that could scare him off, that has happened before.

And so the beauty and Mystery of Yggdrasil was quickly covered up from the world in unfit rags for such an item

[Bevel]

The problem with faking medical skills is that it usually isn't long before you're discovered. And as Bevel found himself sheepishly bandaging a cadaver, he wondered how long it would be before someone piped up.

So he got proactive.

If he had to be a thief, Bevel LeChaudiere Kessler was going to be a damn good one. And now, in the few moments of confusion his manipulation of the crowd had bought, he reached into his bag and palmed a smoke bomb and a tiny amount of iron and chalcite powder. He had to work quickly.

From the crowd's perspective, it all went to hell fast.

The dark elf tending to the dying man leapt back like he'd been burned, and a few onlookers swore they saw the man jerk in unholy death throes.

"CURSE!" yelled the panicked drow, and no sooner had he said that than a giant plume of smoke erupted from the body, throwing unearthly green and yellow sparks all around.

The crowd panicked. Mundane deaths were one thing, but magic deaths... well, common wisdom dictates you don't want to be anywhere near a cursed corpse. People stampeded, a few were jostled and an unfortunately placed fruit vendor's cart was upended as the thick smoke enveloped the entire street.

Understandably, the poor fellow who'd been tending to the body took off like a rocket. Who could blame him?

....

As he ran, the shiny artifact tucked into his bag and his wallet a few gold heavier, Bevel allowed himself a rare smirk.

He missed the one citizen, though, that didn't run in terror.

******

In hindsight, renting out that room for the week wasn't a bad idea. He'd done it partly because the innkeeper gave him a discount, but moreover he liked the food there.

In the solitude of the room, the crowd having since dispersed, Bevel reached into his pack and procured the spoils of his little gambit. "Let's see," he muttered to himself. "Seventy-two gold, shiny. One map, torn and ruined. One pouch of tobacco, moderate quality. One bit of jerky-" *chomp* "......chewy."

"And then," he said to himself, with the air of a child who's saved the largest birthday present for last, "you." The drow reached into the bag, retrieving a startlingly beautiful blue sphere. The light came in the window, into the depths of the sphere and ignited that cold brilliance only the finest jewels could produce.

Completely entranced by his new prize, Bevel couldn't keep the smile off his face. "I wonder how much gold you'll fetch...?"

[Yggdrasil]

The chaos and panic of a man dieing was bad enough Aiesear Thawnson was one but among many who witnessed the man fall to the ground dead creating panic and caution. Aiesear was one of the few who’s eyes boggled at the sight, fear and the urge to run gripped him, his feet never moving if not for the morbid Curiosity of the mans life

A young lad of around 15, with dark brown hair down to his shoulders a sleeveless tunic, three sashes around his waist, loose trousers and old worn brown leather boots, he looked like any other kid his age up and pretending to be an adventurer, heck he was one of those kids save he had an old iron broadsword in it’s sheath attached to his side and had basic camping equipment on the bag on his back.

Aiesear was also one of the few, who had actually spotted the Glowing sphere and caught a quick glance at the non-solid glowing version of it too, but within the chaos, two maybe three people had crossed his path and like a ghost it had disappeared.

Had it disappeared, probably not Aiesear thought, if he was closer to that man his first instinct would have been to nab it, probable with a lot less finesse, but then again Aiesear also thought it was a figment of his imagination.

Then there was the dark elf, a suspicious looking person and as shady as he probably was ugly, you know, the face only a mother could love? He passed himself of as a doctor, and Aiesear being the finely tuned rookie adventurer that he was, believed him in a heart beat just as much as he now believed the previously thought dead man to be simply wounded.

<<<>>>

Yggdrasil took note of what the man carrying it was now doing, supposedly he was trying to “heal” it’s previous Hjor, a useless thing to do considering the man was dead already, was he simply trying to make his fallen body more presentable.

Doubtful

It watched as he continued about its false healing or whatever he was doing, bandaging up it’s Hjor while proclaiming to those around it that he was still alive, surely he realised he was dead, he wasn’t even breathing, if it recalled the fight correctly the one who had gotten away and had made the final blow had struck the Hjor’s left lung both blindsiding Yggdrasil and Shinn himself

Although for a being of indifference and no attachments to previous Hjor’s it did feel disdain for the dark elf who quite literally planted a smoke bomb into a wound, leapt back proclaiming a curse

Such disrespect for the fallen, even Yggdrasil had a sense of honour to never desecrate the dead, the best it could do would be to scare the living hell out of the dark elf should form a link, then again maybe not, no sense in having a Hjor want to rip it from there being rather forcefully

The Dark elf took off at a run to go examine his spoils in a safe location, which would be what Yggdrasil would have concluded if it understood the concepts of a con artist and a thief

So for now it simply stopped observing

<<<>>>

Aiesear Jumped back in surprise when the mans body started to expel a rather large amount of smoke, and so like any rational adventurer, he would have assumed that it had been a smoke bomb, However this is Aiesear and he immediately assumed the mans ghost had become a wraith and that it’s unseen eyes was piercing his soul

He would have turned to run if his feet could move, and he was actually rather glad his bladder had nothing to expel, however he was pushed over onto the floor when someone else leaped to the side having avoided the rather ugly dark elf … ya he had a good idea

So Aiesear took off running too

<<<>>>

As a sphere in life there wasn’t much to do but sit and wait and observe it’s surroundings, and unluckily for the Dark elf, he failed to realise that this sphere is in fact a highly sentient being, if it could it would wait a thousand years for the man to make a move to touch it, but luckily for divine patient ones it came sooner than expected

The man had been taking stock of what he had took from it’s previous Hjor, and saved it for last, his hands dived into the Rags and took it in hand before closing his face towards it to marvel at it’s beauty

Now it was for Yggdrasil’s favourite part, it figured the man was a screamer

The sphere rippled with a small amount of Manna, as glowing veins came to life a brief instant, causing it to glow to an illuminate level and morph itself from the sphere, snaking around the mans wrist to form the same intricate looking bracelet the previous Hjor had.

If the Elf had not been surprised by the metamorphosis then it would in a moment, they were always surprised, and what the man didn’t know was that a link had been established, one direct to his mind and so communication commenced

“ Greetings My Hjor ”

But it wasn’t spoken with words, instead it was a feeling, an emotion, a will and desire had just flowed through his head, he would not hear the words, nor would he see the words, instead his mind would read it. And if he worked out what had happened then Yggdrasil would be most impressed

“ What is your desire? ”

[Bevel]

Somehow, in the back of his head, Bevel knew this was going to happen.

It wasn't precognition; more like an overfamiliarity with Murphy's Law, Article 3.DC.810.42.Z, appendix five, stating that 'Bevel Kessler is never allowed to loot an insanely sellable piece of treasure without something going wrong.'

If he knew his history, these things had a habit of bonding to the first person to touch or otherwise interact with them, and were notoriously hard to get rid of if you were so inclined. That said, it didn't mean they didn't have their uses.

Thus, when the artifact came to life in his hand, snaking around his wrist like some demented blacksmith's nightmare, all the drow really managed was a startled jump. A low one, at that.

"Right," he muttered to himself, "an empathic artifact."

First, he'd have to test out what the device was capable of. "Device," he queried, "what is your purpose?"

That ought to get an interesting response.

[Yggdrasil]

Yggdrasil despite usually being an indifferent and aloof being was not above amusement, and it knew that one of the better ways to obtain it’s amusement was too see people squirm, get hurt and say stupid things for the most stupid of reasons.

And with it’s recent disappointment of not being able to hear the man scream it oh so wanted to tell him false information, people tended to get a little uppity about that, then again it could also tell the man the entire truth and he probably would not believe it, despite being most serious about it.

“ I am a Symbiotic entity with the ability to become any item or weapon of your desire; although my functions are limited I am also able to grant you enhanced abilities for a set period of time. ”

The truth but also one that left out a lot of its Purpose, how was it to say that one day it was going to become something he would not comprehend, all he would know is that a tree is a tree and it would be so simple.

“also in approximately Five minutes I will have also devoured your soul ”

A lie

But Bevel’s reaction to such a statement would be so amusing, and he had failed to state his desire, so as far as Yggdrasil was concerned no desire, all the more reason to get its kicks. But the worst part was that the statement had been said with its classic indifference possibly only a hint of its amusement was leaked.

Besides Previous long term Hjor’s had always said that it should brighten up a lot more

“ Would you prefer if I take in a more appropriate form for communication ”

A statement that time, a said without even acknowledging it’s previous statement that it was going to eat his soul, while it Could tap into that energy, without permission or a main way to vent it, it would be rather pointless

[Bevel]

OOC: Bunnying to speed things up. Let me know if this is a problem and I'll edit it.

Bevel gazed levelly down at his new bracer.

"Yes, that would be most convenient. A disc, made of silver, eighteen inches in diameter, mounted upright upon a tripod."

The device complied, to which the drow stoically placed it upon the table. "You know, you make a fine mirror," he grinned, adjusting his jacket and hair.

Four minutes.

Reaching down to the pack, the drow lit up a bit of the tobacco and had himself a smoke.

One minute.

Ah, that was a good smoke. Bevel snuffed out the tobacco and awaited his fate. If the device was perceptive, it would notice that the drow was looking placidly at his reflection in the mirror, the face of a man whose life is now forfeit. The regret of the life that could have been -

-time's up-

The drow's face cracked into the insolent grin he'd been holding back, before erupting into full-on gales of laughter. Clearly, the device's bluff had been called. "Ha, I wish you had a face so I could see the look on it. I like you, Device. You've got a sense of humor."

Well, that was amusing. If Bevel was stuck with a sentient weapon....thing, it might as well have a funny bone. Or, uh, girder. Crystal lattice structure. Whatever. "Funny blade" just contradicts itself, doesn't it? Anyway. "Device," he said, hoping that if he called it 'device' enough times it'd spit out its name, "you can become any weapon, or any bit of armor, right?"

"How about an Alerian flintlock pistol? Without the ammo, though, I've got some here."

[Yggdrasil]

Complying Yggdrasil become as close to the specifications as been declared, however reconstructing itself into silver was rather impossible, but it was interpreted that the man wanted a mirror of some kind and that was no problem. The mirror itself had a matching appearance to the bracer, although it lacked the glowing veins it separated from the bracer so it could keep the link, (and the actual form)

He then proceeded to make himself presentable before awaiting the end of his existence, such a helpless look was priceless, and most of all amusing to the Symbiotic entity, it could say that it was a joke, but it also reconsidered that it would be very out of character for itself, so it simply waited enjoying every second for the remaining three minutes.

Idly it cast a small non-existent glance to the room the man had taken it too, it seemed to barely liveable, not downright ugly, but not like the grand halls of a castle either, it could be called typical, a small bed, a bedside cupboard the table which it was currently on, and the chair that went with the table.

Small, so in case of attack a short sword would be the preferable choice for a weapon, or a dagger depending on its Hjor’s skill which at the moment seemed to lie in talents other than fighting. Then again it was also highly unlikely that the man would be attacked, but Yggdrasil was constantly planning, and plotting, and being prepared was always a good thing.

Bevels laughter cut through the air, as the specified time to when it would devour his soul was now up, to see it’s Hjor accepting inevitable doom one second then to go on to springing with joy, that itself held a little … feeling.

Then he wished it had a face … oh it could do so much better than that.

Behind the man it cast fourth an astral projection of it’s preferred avatar for such occasions, but considering what Yggdrasil was itself, a small 12 year old girl was not the first thing one would think to associate of a weapon.

Long light purple hair flowed perfectly straight with a Red bow attached; a pixie like face with bored red eyes and odd markings with small pointed ears, blue crescent moons under her eyes pulsed in similar ways to the veins on the bracelet and on her forehead too.

A symbiotic weapon would also not be associated with a 12 year old girl wearing a white silk sleeveless top with a dress like bottom, and yet glove like sleeves on her arms that formed bells around small delicate hands, decorated with golden ornaments and, jewellery plus more red ribbons flowing in an unfelt wind, Bare feet was perhaps the oddest feature to the floating girl.

“As I said there are limits, Pistols are machinery at best, I am unable to take such a complicated form”

Yggdrasil tilted its head in thought as if considering something else with a small finger to its chin

“If I may, there is a task I would like for you to perform”

[Bevel]

The drow hadn't asked for a face for kicks, mind you. He wanted to see what this new windfall was capable of before he decided what to do with it. It had asked for a task, though, so...

"First things first, do put the girl away, or at least make her a lot older, or something." The drow gave the projection the same bored look she/it was giving him. "Perhaps you mistook me for Alerian nobility, but prepubescent humans are not my cup of tea."

Whether or not the device complied with that remained to be seen. Nonetheless, the drow still liked the device, insofar as it had a sense of humor. "So, I assume you've already divined my name," he smiled, cocking an eyebrow at the mirror, "Is it customary among you magical artifacts to withhold your own?"

In the same breath: "Also, what is this 'Hjor' business you're talking about, anyway?"

[Yggdrasil]

“I had been told this form was aesthetically charming, and did well to make Previous Hjor More comfortable”

Yggdrasil explained with a simple shrug of its shoulder before it started to glow once more, expanding and growing taller, it was clear from the glowing silhouette that this new form was male and much older than that of the girl.

When the glow faded it was a young man with the same hair and markings with the main change in clothing being that he wore loose pantaloons rather than the dress the girl had, and the ribbon in his hair was used to tie up the long locks while the others became more like sashes.

The voice that followed was also defiantly more masculine, although some would probably ask if there was a gender change at all, then again it also had to be noted that it really didn’t have a Gender to begin with

“Although if you prefer the company of a man, this form should suit you” it said the uttermost seriousness, save for the miniscule of its lips twitching into a small smirk

“I usually withhold looking at the surface thoughts of my Hjor; such actions can be rather impolite. And my name is unimportant at the moment, or rather I will allow you to name me as you see fit”

Truthfully it hadn’t found Bevel all that worthy to know it’s name, such a thing could bring a lot of unwanted attention, especially if the man knew anything about it’s history, a tale here or a roomer there was all it took to make a Hjor rather antsy about it

The same could also be said for people that had no clue about it and became rather paranoid about it’s abilities, they were rather straight forward, especially at it’s current level of evolution.

“Hjor’ is simply the term I refer my current wielder, it’s rough translation into common language would be “sword”

[Bevel]

Bevel cracked a grin. "First an underage girl and now a strapping pouf? Your previous Hjors must have been human. I hear they go for all sorts of strange kinks. Probably their short lives or something, drives them mad."

In truth, there were rumors of Alerian nobles taking in young human women (and occasionally boys); apparently they viewed them as disposable, like tarted-up mayflies. The lower classes, such as Bevel and the dwarves, wouldn't dare bring this up in polite society, as the prospect of going headless wasn't all that appealing. As far as strange attractions went, though, the humans had every other race unquestionably beat.

Bevel reclined. "Well, I can't blame you for withholding your name," he offered, poker-faced. It wasn't clear that something had him thinking. Specifically, that there was something odd about the term 'Hjor.' The device, if it wasn't lying -and it had demonstrated the capacity to do so- referred to its "owner" as a sword. Interesting.

"Your Hjor, then. What happens if you lose your Hjor, if he misplaces you? What capacity do you have to retain him?"

[Yggdrasil]

“I believe you would be amused by some of my previous Elfin Hjors. Personally I do not actually care much for my form, and I usually change it on a whim”

It stated offhandedly, it was Sure that this Hjor would indeed be amused at some of its previous wielders, if not it had been defiantly been inwardly laughing at a few of them, and that wasn’t even touching the subject of other such races.

Indeed there had been some unique Hjor’s a few among them had been truly unique, and other’s had been memorable, like Shinn, yes, It would be fitting if it found some form of revenge, such things were usually beneath Yggdrasil, but it thought that maybe, just this once, it would honour it’s previous Hjor.

Although man did ask a usually unasked question, perhaps for what he lacked in one area, he made up in another, probably the truth in one way or another, but either way there wasn’t much to it, and Yggdrasil had already figured that its stay with the Dark elf would be short at best.

“Perhaps I should explain three rules I am sworn to

1: Love the Hjor, become there shield for there life is precious
2: never harm the Hjor, perseverance of there life is top priority
3: never get attached, Even if facing a previous Hjor, never think twice cutting them down

In response to your question, the third rule would be appropriate since I am a rather difficult item to ‘misplace’ I do not Retain any previous Hjor’s unless they have been counted as a ‘Hildebrand’. Another Term a Wielder can be known as”

A rather long stream of words but then again, it really didn’t have to stop a breathe, it tilted it’s head once again quizzically, if it wanted to Avenge it’s former Hjor then it had to be careful, this new Hjor was of the tricky sort.

Why couldn’t people be blunt and straight to the point without complicating things?

“Is that all you would like to know? There is still the task I wish you to do”

[Bevel]

The drow got out of his seat, still addressing the device. "A task, then," he mused, cracking open the door. He picked up the mirror and held it in his off hand as he leaned slightly out of the doorway. "Right. Fire away. But first-"

"-we need to get you into a form that's not so bloody suspicious." Bevel glanced down the hall, where a dumpy-looking cleaning wench was scrubbing the floor. "Okay. See those clothes?" he asked, angling the mirror around the doorway. "A normal-looking human woman, in her thirties or forties -I can never remember human life cycles, blast it- wearing garb like that. We can pass your projection off as a cleaning lady."

Whether the device was computing that statement, changing its form, or just being its usual playfully insolent self, Bevel closed the door and set the mirror back down. "Right. What about that task, then?"

[Yggdrasil]

The astral Projection blinked once then twice, its Hjor was asking it to become unsuspicious, didn’t he realise that it could just go back to the voice in the head if it wanted. Probably not, or he preferred to have the projection to talk to rather than the strange words flowing through his mind, usually everyone preferred its astral projection.

Very well then

The Projection started to glow once more becoming what would be female with hair flowing out of its tied hair sprayed out and the pure solid glow faded as quickly as it appeared. Stood there now was what an adult version of its child form would look like, but defiantly nothing like it.

“This will have to suffice to your tastes”

Dark skin and silver hair were among the first differences, the clothing had shifted to a loose white shirt with form fitting trousers and simple brown boots. Yggdrasil honestly didn’t know why the man wanted to it to change it’s avatar like that, he must not realise that to anyone else the man would have been talking with himself, but Yggdrasil wasn’t going to tell him that.

If the man was smart he would work it out that no one else would pay attention to the rather striking Woman floating around him.

“The task is actually rather simple”

The mirror that had been resting on the table then started to change it’s form stretching itself out like water before details started to push outwards before it became solid again. A sword was now left where the Mirror was, a 30 inch broad sword once again held the same intricate patterns, the same blue material.

It was actually quite a beautiful looking sword even though those designs made it feel for pure ceremonial purposes, it was still very functional

The avatar looked at him with the same bored expression it seemed to always have

“I want you to kill someone for me”

[Bevel]

The device's projection once again morphed, this time assuming a female figure clad in the same rags as any other cleaning lady. Sardonically, Bevel noted that in place of the real cleaning woman's lumpy, soft features, the projection bore a striking figure; curves in all the right places pushed the loose cloth pleasingly outward, completed by exotic hair and skin.

The drow, having already lived longer than most humans would ever hope to, had learned one of the most difficult and important Lessons of Masculinity: honestly, it's usually better to think with the head that's attached to your shoulders. Thus, instead of being consumed by lust like a human, Bevel simply noted the presence of the attractive illusion and his mind kept working, analyzing the device.

Vanity, he figured. Even when given an order to assume the most mundane form possible, the device had to manifest its avatar in an attractive form. It could be some quirk of the device, magically hardwired into its workings when created, but Bevel figured the device was just plain vain.

Artifacts, the sentient ones, tend to fall into one of two categories: good, and evil. "Good" identifies itself as a sort of boneheaded paladin, constantly compelling the wielder to rescue damsels in distress, fight the forces of darkness and so forth. (Said wielders tend to have short shelf-lives.) The evil ones are so absurdly, derangedly evil that their eventual goals are unfathomable at best. However, the evil ones seem less preoccupied with outward appearances; they're more content to be harmless-looking books, or small daggers. The heroic artifacts, by contrast, are usually the gleaming Long-Swords of Holy Jingoism, or Necklaces of Suicidal Valor, or the like. And this particular, vain artifact had just tasked him with killing someone.

Bevel's reaction?

"Ah," he muttered, under his breath, "...fuck." He picked up the sword, noting his own sardonic grin in the shining metal. "Ha, then. Still playing, are you?" he asked the illusion.

[Yggdrasil]

The avatar quirked it’s head, as though curious to the man’s response, but soon straightened itself and proceeded to look eternally bored with the world.

“Quite the opposite” it simply said before rising a hand out to form a small image of the man it remembered, the killer of it’s last Hjor

The Trouble with asking this request was that it almost directly referenced to the third law, Do not get attached, and while true it would not hesitate to cut down a previous Hjor, it still wanted the man dead for his deed. How?

Well cutting a person down for revenge wasn’t exactly part of the third rule, not really

And setting a random task for a Hjor was as common for it as humans talking about the weather.

“Name: unknown: age: estimated mid Twenties, Race: Human”

It said for the dark elf with as much knowledge as it had on the man, which was actually close to absolutely nothing

“Last weapon, dagger, Magic, Estimated none, last seen in Scara Brae exactly half a mile from this current location”

The small image of a normal looking man with long sideburns and an almost mullet like hair style continued to spin, showing the man’s muscled build hidden under a yellow tunic and black pants. Overall he wasn’t much to look at … well more aesthetically charming than its current Hjor actually.

But not everything was gifted with beauty, not liked it cared anyway, much like it’s avatar, since it had no corporal form it could simply make up an astral form. The current trouble wit that was that the avatar only existed for the Hjor, no one unlinked could see it, unless they had some psychic ability.

A form was a form at the end of the day, such things as vanity was useless

It was just ignorant to such things … wasn’t it?

It didn’t matter

“A simple task, no?”

And with a wave of it’s hand the image was dispelled and the avatar raised one hand to it’s lips with the other to it’s elbow in a think motion, like it was contemplating something more. Actually it was assessing the fighting skill of it’s current Hjor, which despite loving it’s Hjor, wasn’t actually all that much

It actually had to suppress a cringe

But then again It’s fighting capability was much better, it was a weapon after all

[Bevel]

The drow glanced sidelong at the avatar. "Simple for you, maybe. Your purpose is killing."

"Me?" he huffed. "I don't take requests for death, even if they are delivered by a pretty illusionary girl." He sat heavily down. "In case you didn't notice, I'm not a bounty hunter."

Bounty hunters - ugh. The dark elf's eyes flicked down to the floor, remembering his last encounter with them. The Explorer I was quick, but she couldn't outrun a pirate airship in full sail. With a tailwind. The crimson mass of the pirate ship caught up with his vessel like a hawk pouncing on a sparrow, firing talon-like harpoons into her envelope, hull, and rigging. One pierced the chest of a deckhand, instantly separating him into about three dozen barely-recognizable bloody parts.

Then came the boarding, and the screaming, and the clash of steel on steel. It was over very quickly - one man dove overboard with a parachute, while Bevel himself had dodged into the engine room, already bearing a fine spray of blood from a vaporized crewman. The trapdoor was hauled open, a parachute was donned and the boilers were closed off and fired - the better to take these bastards with them.

Bevel unclenched his fist. He hadn't realized he'd been clenching it so hard. His was a face unsuited to displaying emotion; the flabby cheeks and baggy eyes didn't lend themselves to either joy, sadness or rage. It was likely, though, that the bloody sword could probably tell what he was thinking anyway, so he stated flatly:

"Forget it. Nothing could make this worth it."

[Yggdrasil]

“Hmm?”

Now that was interesting, while it was indeed reluctant to dive deep into a Hjor’s mind, surface thoughts really did sing out to it, and after watching a rerun of the mans life was a little more than interesting. Indeed seeing a brief and chaotic battle upon an airship before an escape was very interesting.

More than that it seemed to have stuck a nerve with the man

Button, button who’s got the buttons

“I had assessed that you are not a fighter”

Needless to say it was anticipating the man’s reluctance, he didn’t seem the sort to do anything as drastic as actually killing a person, aww and it had worked so hard in perfecting this avatar to manipulate men, phooey

Then again when it had decided a task in mind for the Hjor, it had been anticipating a similar scenario to this, and the Ancient weapon still had thoughts that given the correct incentive, it could get the man to do what it wanted, the target wasn’t dangerous, and had little chance of provoking the second law in the first place.

“And the Risk is quite minimal at best. But yes you are Correct, I am a Weapon, and a weapon is made to kill and to protect. I am also a shield to defend. But my main purpose is that I am a seed for the future”

The avatar said was slowly sensuously walking over to the door then back again towards the window where it kept it’s back to the man as so to hide the small smile, dropping off such a huge hint such as that ‘seed for the future’ indeed

It almost made the entity chuckle

There were very few people who knew what Yggdrasil’s name was, and fewer still that knew what it’s purpose beyond a weapon was, but sadly that purpose was long off, and only time and patience would reach it.

“However if it a motivation you need then I can provide one. If you complete this task I shall give to you a Tear of Life, The item would allow you to summon me from anywhere, if I don’t already have a Hjor”

Such an item, Yggdrasil wouldn’t tell the man the possibilities for such an item other than summoning a Weapon such as Yggdrasil when needed. The man was smart no doubt he could find a way to profit from such a thing, over and over, that did seem to be in the man’s character.

If he took the bait would be one thing, if he got that idea would be another.

Truly Yggdrasil was now curious to know if it could get the man to actually go kill the target or not, serving the Hjor was a rather simple task, easing eternity with manipulating Mortals was quite another

[Bevel]

The dark elf's brow furrowed, and he gave the sword a sardonic smile as he turned it over in his hands. "Hmph, 'Tear of Life' my arse."

Now, he addressed the illusion. "Don't think I don't realize the implications of such a tool, if it actually works," he said. That was putting it mildly. Having your own piece of metamorphic metal, summonable from anywhere at any time, was a staggeringly useful prospect. Oh, and all you have to do is kill one man. One piddly, insignificant man, just take the fancy talking sword's word for it...

Hah, fat chance.

Bevel was no fool. Any supernatural entity or creation that wants to strike a deal with you should be setting off alarm bells in your head, unless you happen to be stupid. Read the stories. There were a million and one ways for such a device to screw you over in the end, playing you for a sap and ruining your life.

In order to get anything done -which, after all, he did- he'd have to go about it on equal terms. He had a feeling that the two of them could only respect each other via displays of wit or cunning. Simply running off to do a sword's dirty work simply wasn't going to get him anywhere.

"What about your past Hjors, then? How come they haven't yanked you back through the aether yet?" He looked levelly at the girl. "I can't imagine I'm the only one you've promised a Tear of Life to."

[Yggdrasil]

“No” it agreed turning around once again to look at the man, no this man wasn’t he first it had ever offered a tear of life too, but the last one that had been found worthy of the Title of Hildebrand and received the Tear was not a very common occurrence.

“In truth no one of this millennium has been found worthy of the Tear, and the last one who was worthy had died a long time ago. The abilities of a Warrior or a mage’s skill and will has diminished quite astonishingly over time”

From a certain point of view that would hold quite a lot of truth, many people this day and age, fighters and explorers alike sought out ancient objects of power, old enchanted swords. Many lacked the imagination and skill to forge there own, to create something that in a few thousand years, will also be sought out by an adventurer.

Not to be confused, there were still some that did have such imagination or will to go and create there own marks or ancient artefacts. Yggdrasil’s own animosity stemmed from the lack of such people, it had not openly told its name to anyone in the past 150,000 years.

There were probably nameless legends of it out there, but not likely, Yggdrasil itself was actually rather new to these lands, not that it mattered, given time, roomers of an ancient weapon would spread, and it too may be sought out.

“While you may not seem to possess the skills of a warrior or a mage, your skills lie elsewhere, you have an imagination that could one day become great. I would enjoy seeing the extent of this skill, and consider you a Hildebrand, but I will not give a tear of life Freely”

[Bevel]

Time certainly had flown while Bevel met with his new prize. Or rather, what turned out to be more than he had bargained for. His heart long since settled into a regular rhythm, the drow now felt somewhat fatigued from the earlier excitement. He suppressed a yawn, badly.

"I'll think about it, and that's final," he stated flatly. "You have to realize, asking someone to step over a body for a vague promise is quite the tall order."

His belly rumbled. Gods, was it dinner time already?

"I don't know about you, but I'm famished," said the drow. "Change into something unobtrusive, like an iron bracer sans glowy bits." When the device had done so (or not) he wrapped it in the cleanest cloth he could find and tucked it safely into the depths of his bag. The illusion, he figured, could stay if it so desired.

The street had dimmed in traffic; the human flux diminished itself to a dinner-hour level. Bevel had no problems finding taverns, but first, he wanted to investigate. A few streets down was where he had pilfered the shiny blue orb from the dead body. Not the most heroic of acts, but hey, airships are expensive and they don't pay for themselves.

To his complete lack of surprise, the body was gone, along with everything else the man had carried in life. All that remained were some scorch marks on the ground from his little pyrotechnic display. It illustrated a sad fact of life - if you don't get first pick, the crowd will do it for you. There was a demand for everything - his clothing, his gold, even the body itself was valuable to certain mages. The drow shuddered a bit, glancing back at the illusion knowingly. His expression read: I did nothing that other's wouldn't have.

"Welcome to the real world," he muttered.

[Yggdrasil]

This small battle for the wills had seemed to have lasted quite a while and the Dark elf had put it effectively on hold. Apparently the man was feeling his stomachs cry for food, understandable, Yggdrasil knew that all Hjor had to Eat, sleep and other such things, unlike itself which was pretty much constantly static in its current state.

“Of Cause, in the end it is your decision”

It could have said something else but chose not too, there was urging people to do things and then there was badgering people to do things, if it kept on pushing him it may not get anywhere at all.

The man requested it become something that wouldn’t catch anyone’s attention, it would comply but it wasn’t exactly happy about it, the initial design of it was created to attract attention, Mostly in it’s unlinked state people could be almost instantly drawn to it.

But it complied without voicing it’s dislike, the sword faded, flowing back into the bracelet which itself dulled to an almost steel grey, the patterns straightened out and the surface flattened and like a healing wound the glowing Veins closed up on itself

How boring

The avatar stuck around and followed the Dark elf without a word, and despite its exotic appearance no one gave it a second glance, heck no one gave it a first, such was the effect of an astral projection, the only reason Bevel could see it was because of the direct link to his mind.

Hmm maybe it should invest some time in making it so that anyone could see it, it’s interaction abilities would be increased dramatically, as well as having a small tactical advantage.

Maybe it should seek out Ezekiel one day

Maybe another time perhaps, he lived such a distance away and – oh

The avatar looked on and recognised the street, it was the place where Shinn had fallen, he had never got home, it was actually rather depressing, that a Hjor would die while it was being wielded, that had happened before but not often was it blindsided with a sneak attack.

Bevel also seemed to act strangely to the rather empty sight, the Body had been moved and Yggdrasil didn’t think beyond it, the body was gone plain and simple; it’s only regret that it had not performed as well as should be.

Bevel muttered something but Yggdrasil heard it well enough

“So said the man speaking to an illusion” that did bring a small smile to the avatars mouth

[Bevel]

The drow turned, giving the illusion a wan smile. "I caught on as I -we- walked," he again muttered under his breath. Clearly, the sword hadn't realized he'd been speaking to it under his breath. Reinforcing this, he tried something. I don't really feel like looking like the town looney, he added mentally, curious if the sword could understand him telepathically.

Without looking so much sideways at the illusory woman, Bevel turned around and sought out a tavern. You're a tricksey one, not telling me you were invisible, he added, wryly smiling. I admit I'm impressed.

The tavern was like every other the drow had ever been to. The smell of unwashed bodies mingled with that of a crackling fire and hot stew being served - cloying, but not overpowering. There were worse smells in the world. Dinner turned out to be vegetable soup without any meat, but a small bit of crumbled cheeses mixed in with the broth to give it some flavor. Finishing the soup, the drow twirled his fork absently, looking between the tines at the projection.

No matter how he tried to get rid of it, the question was still in his mind - kill some random man for this sword, and maybe it'll give you the capacity for crazy amounts of riches?

He'd have to sleep on it. Bevel finished his bread, quaffed the remaining ale and paid the head wench.

He needed a walk.

[Yggdrasil]

The avatar shrugged lazily, placing smooth ‘Fake’ hands into it’s pockets, so the man had caught on to it’s lack of interaction with others, it happens, usually the smart ones notice it fast and start keeping it secret that they were literally hearing voices in there head.

Even Shinn had noted that

“You never asked if anyone else could see me, so I presumed that you already knew”

Being aloof with it’s own emotions came in handy, it could say anything while keeping the most calm and straightest face possible whilst saying something so utterly compromised with bullshit that even it struggled to suppress that mocking grin it usually could obtain.

No this Hjor was interesting to say the least, smart and cunning, defiantly a refreshing change over those paladin types, being put into so many evil hands in such similar ways tended to get dry.

“I shall strive to impress you further then” it added after a moment while acknowledging what it perceived to be a compliment. There was little to note after that, the man entered a Tavern and gained a meal, while Yggdrasil stood by, it’s ‘eyes’ scanning the people around, curious to see who was there, and curious to see if by some sort of irony the target it set would be here.

It would be just like fate to be tempted, but he wasn’t it noted with disappointment.

<<<>>>

Aiesear Couldn’t be more happy, or rather, his stomach couldn’t be more happy. Once more he dipped his loaf of bread into the warm stew and took what he considered to be heroic bite. Only to not notice a dwarf nearby almost eat the table due to it being to close to his roast pork mountain.

But what Aiesear didn’t notice wouldn’t hurt his pride

The advantage of ignorance

He was done rather quickly and stood up taking his dirty dishes over to the bar and paid his tab without any hassle. He was quite ready to go on an adventure now, slay dragons, save a damsel in distress. Get married to said princess and live happily ever after

Ahh the grand scheme of things, all of this may happen, then again the princess might be an evil one … all the better a dark seductress

Aiesear was not practical, heck he had little common sense, the only thing the kid had going for him was that he was street wise and rather stubborn, in an ideal sort of way, indeed his father reckoned he would become quite an accomplished city guard

Aiesear considered himself the future king of Scara Brae, it really wasn’t going to happen, the kid would be lucky to survive till his 23rd summer

However there was one thing that Aiesear did have, and that was he had a keen eye for anything that needed to be spotted, and what could be needing more attention to that rather … beautiful, heck he didn’t know a word to describe it

Well tanned skin, bright snow white hair and interesting tattoos? On her face, oh he found something to look at and he had stopped dead on his feet simply staring.

That was until he finally noted that she wasn’t stood there anymore but already heading out the door. Oh heck no, he just found his princess and there was no way he was going to let her leave without at least knowing her name

The boy quite literally lunged his whole body out of the door in desperate search of his beloved.

I would also like to take the time to point out that at this moment in time the boy should be pitied, let’s take a moment to pity the boy

<<<>>>

Yggdrasil had the most … strange feeling it had ever had, for quite a while since leaving the tavern it could have swore that someone was calling for it, of cause that feeling became one of confusion and amusement when a young boy/man? Came to an almost skidding halt beside it to fall into step

He was looking right at it’s avatar with an almost goofy grin, said avatar blinked in amazement twice for its expression went straight back into neutral

“So … um, what’s your sign?” the boy said smoothly, and the avatar stood stock still

Stared at the boy before turning to bevel

“Children do not usually get this sort of attention” it spoke in reference to it’s usual avatar, while this one attracted attention, it also attracted that certain, looks at Aiesear, unwanted attention

Aiesear then looked over to bevel in immediate recognition “Hey you’re that … umm doctor right? I thought for sure that curse got you”

[Bevel]

Nighttime was earnestly the drow's favorite. Not because he identified with darkness or shadows or what have you, but because tonight, like the past few in Scara Brae, the stars were out. Night air washed coolly over his face as he walked, the illusion keeping soundlessly up beside him. At night, things were quiet and peaceful, and so long as you watched your step, it was, all things considered a fine night in Scara Brae.

Was, in this instance, being the operative term. Pattering feet drew Bevel's attention quickly, swiveling his head around to check for danger. Hands braced to grab sword or wrench in defense relaxed, though, when the newcomer turned out to be a simple boy. The drow glanced disapprovingly at the boy, who clearly couldn't see anything but the sword's illusion.

Actually, that was interesting. Nobody had taken any notice of the illusion until now, and the drow had an odd feeling that it wasn't the device's fault. After all, the tavern had been packed and no drunken suitors had staggered forth to lay claim on what honestly looked like a beautiful, exotic woman.

Bevel narrowed his eyes, thinking briefly at his device. What's the deal? I thought you were invisible. His poker face, however, went right back up when the boy asked him a question.

"Hey, you're that - um - doctor, right? I thought for sure that curse got you!"

The drow couldn't help but agree. "Nasty things, curses," he said, friendly but dismissive. "Glad it was a weak one."

"Now, what brings you out so late, boy?" he asked. "You're liable to get yourself in trouble running around here."

There's something that Fate, in her infinitely creative malice, finds interesting about those kinds of statements. They work on the literal level, and on the ironic one. Bevel himself was long overdue for a slip like this. Fate had been waiting, and she is not a patient one. Somewhere, in the infinite cosmos beyond mortal reason and logic, Fate smiled evilly.

And if Yggdrasil had any sort of Spider Sense -or even the metaphorical hackles to rise- it clicked in now.

Clicked in like the hammer of a flintlock pistol, from the shadows some unplottable distance and coordinates away.

[Yggdrasil]

Yggdrasil was quite literally was at literal stand still in the ways of the world, no wait it was already assessing the boy, and honestly it really didn’t rate the kid as much of a threat, and ranked only marginally higher than it’s current Hjor.

There are people said to have untapped potentials, that they could exceed what they current were if only they could tap into it, a natural talent they had since being born that they could honestly not understand that it wasn’t a natural talent having never known the difference.

Aiesear probably fell into a similar category, being that he had so much potential for his mind to develop, possibly becoming a great magus, that or it was a one in one million chance that the kid had some natural talent to see things that could usually not be seen.

Yggdrasil considered relaying this information to Bevel, but chose to save it’s Hjor the headache, and instead chose to summarize it down in a private conversation as bevel once again had the most unusual sensation of reading words through his minds eyes, only for it to be translated for him so that it simply sounded like an disembodied voice

“I presume he has some kind of talent that allows this”

It said refusing to allow itself to illiterate further, it was smart and existed on a slighter higher form of sentience than those around it, but that didn’t make it all knowledgeable, it was smart yes but there were things it didn’t know and some things it chose not to know.

And some things it unfortunately did know

One of these higher life form traits however did not include a sixth sense, actually Yggdrasil has no sixth sense of any kind, or a few of the others for that matter. Nor did it let on that it was currently limited to focusing on at least two points of interest at once, these being Bevel and Aiesear

So whatever fate had planned for that moment, Yggdrasil had not received the letter and so could do nothing as said flintlock pistol from an undisclosed location and distance, fired

Nor could it react fast enough to adjust to the quickly changing situation

And yes even it could sum it all up into one word

“SHIT!”

[Bevel]

Talent, hm? thought the drow. Interesting, but not overly usef-

BLAM!

Flintlock pistols are loud. A microsecond before the sound arrived, Bevel's right calf exploded outwards in a small glob of blood and tissue. Pain flooded evilly through his system, racing upwards and outwards, spiderwebs of fire overtaking his skin and raking his skull.

The dark elf himself lurched in surprise and pain, stumbling blindly around a corner. Instinctively, he reached for something -anything- in his pack, and his fingers closed around something metallic. It was, unhelpfully, his pipe wrench. Trying again, the dark elf rooted blindly in the pack, sorting through bits of metal and leather bags of food, before finally settling on the rags.

Bevel had realized that he was bleeding, but getting out of gunshot range was somewhat more important. He dropped the wrench with a heavy thunk and worked to patch himself up with the cleanest rags he could find. The pain wouldn't go away - sweet thunder it hurt - what the hell was going on?

Fingers used to mechanical work were useful for quick first aid, and while a fair-sized chunk of calf was now missing, an attempt at staunching the blood flow had been made. It worked.

The drow ground his teeth, trying to block the pain from his mind. This didn't. One hand groped around for his heavy wrench, trying to find something to steady him.

That's when the unmistakable sound of a running pair of boots caught his ears, and they were getting louder...

[Yggdrasil]

Oh now that was sloppy Yggdrasil, Sloppy work. Rule two had been breached and the ancient weapon was now in full battle mode and assessing the situation, Yes the avatar was still stood where it had been and had watched both Bevel stumble for cover and for Aiesear literally flee as soon as the shot was made.

Bevel was wounded, dangerously so, and Yggdrasil was indeed thinking it’s time with this Hjor would indeed be rather short, but not if it could help it, growing attached was out of the question, defending the Hjor with all of it’s wits and power was another, and the big guns were about to be called out.

Bevel quickly tended to his wound, which was good but time consuming as it allowed this foe, whoever it was to get closer, which itself was a double edged sword. Being closer let the attacker get a better aim for something more vital than a man’s calf, however Bevel had it in it’s hands … err no he had a wrench in his hands, or at least he did till he dropped it.

What was worse was that the attacker was now charging.

Yggdrasil immediately went straight from boring bracelet into a dangerous looking sickle. The weapon was chosen because of a slight similarity to Bevels wrench one a nasty 8 inch blade was put there instead. Intricate patterns emerged without a single thought about it.

Not only did it form the weapon it also made the initiative to forge the handle within the mans constantly searching palm, almost like fate was wanting such a reaction from the weapon.

The invisible avatar watched from its vantage point as the rather rough looking attacker crept up to the corner bevel was hiding behind

“ The attacker is just around the corner, the man is left handed, holding ... a dagger?”

not the attacker but ...

Anxious, that was an understatement, for it's hjor's condition and the coming attack. heck it was downright planning on it’s own counter attack and without bevels say in the matter, the small red core on the sickle that should now be in the mans grasp shot out three glowing needles out of the corner.

Said Needles then arced in the air by themselves turning to attack the man dead on, striking his right arm with only one accurate needle, still the man gave a startled cry before reigning himself own to curse and get ready to attack.

“Now” The avatar said calmly with only a hint of it’s anxiousness from before.

[Bevel]

The drow grunted, calf a mass of bloody pain and sweat starting to bead on his forehead. He realized he'd dropped the device on the ground earlier, when he yanked out a mess of rags to bind his wound. Somehow, it got into the weapon's head to turn itself into a sort of auto-turret, spraying the attacker with some needles. As the man, forced backwards by the device's assault, staggered out of the alley into the starlight, Bevel got a glimpse of his attacker.

The man was clad in a dark tunic that someone imaginative could call "yellow." Black pants, longish hair swept down the back of his head, and a far more athletic build than Bevel himself -well, that wasn't saying much- all convinced the drow he'd seen this guy before.

Just then, the man picked the needle from his flesh and dodged back around the corner. Unmistakably, his cry of "I found it!" rebounded back down the alleyway. "He ain't going nowhere!"

Another voice, this one more refined, echoed back. "Good! Get the boy - no witnesses now!"

"Right," replied the first man, "On it!"

"Oh, crap," he muttered. Device, you know that guy you wanted me to kill? He followed you into town.

The first attacker turned and started after the doubtlessly running boy, sword drawn for the kill. And he brought -friends.-

The drow's heavy feet ground on the dirt beneath him. Every motion from his right leg brought a new explosion of pain welling up from beneath the knee, and Bevel realized this was going to put a serious crimp in any attempt he'd be making at defending himself. He planted the wrench firmly in the ground and leaned on it, willing himself to his feet. He began hobbling over to where the device lay on the ground, still in mutant sickle-needle-thing mode.

Just then, that same refined voice came from behind: "Drop it." The click of a pistol-hammer punctuated the second word. Not given much choice, Bevel retracted a pudgy hand. The other one was still planted unsteadily upon the top of the wrench, keeping him upright.

"Er," he managed, hobbling around between bursts of pain. "Who...who are you?"

"Nobody important, really," said the voice. "Someone that would prefer you alive."

"Hence the leg," replied Bevel. He reached a position where he could incline his head to see the attacker. A dark elf, like himself, stood there. This was a more standard-looking elf, slender and handsome, but wearing common clothing. The better to blend in with a crowd. He brandished an Alerian flintlock long-pistol and the cold face of an indifferent killer - not malice or delight, mind you, just the face of some shmoe who'll blow your head off for enough gold.

Funny, that.

"Hence the leg. Was aiming for your knee, but my associate here-" -at this he looked around for the yellow-tunic man- "charged in early. Anyway. Note that you're preferred alive. I still get paid for a dead sack of blubber, but not as much as for a live one."

Bevel closed his eyes, putting his free hand obediently against the wall. He thought rather unpleasantly of the gun in the man's hand. Device, he thought, please tell me that you've got some ace up your sleeve for this situation.

[Yggdrasil]

Now things had gotten interesting and it found itself once again calm so that it could once again assess the new situation it was in, and quite simply it wasn’t all that good, the best thing it could do vs. that gun was to change into a solid wall between them, good but it would take longer than a bullet could travel.

Of all the irony’s of all mother of irony’s that had to be played this night, the one that really stood out was the man that Yggdrasil had tasked the dark elf in killing, who had turned up from nowhere along with the others and had attacked it’s Hjor while the other half seemed to be aiming for it

NOW that was irony in all mother of forms

And Yggdrasil really appreciates irony, it really does, just not as much when it itself is caught within the said situations.

For now it could only stay as it once resisting the urge to attack, and by now the Avatar was now completely dropped and the exotic girl was nowhere to be found.

Another thing it had noticed was that this Hjor had not yet learned that it was supposed to be worn and not truly wielded, if it was it could have become some armour for the man, but now, most of it’s form was now on the ground while a thin bracelet that kept the link established was left on the man.

How vexing but nothing that could be dealt with this moment, if only not to make the other dark-elf bounty hunter? And Attack due to its strange activities.

“My ‘ace’ as you put it is that I am able to enhance your strength, speed and magic abilities to a certain degree for a short time, however I would advise against it, the attacker has us at a severe disadvantage at the moment”

True, there were a few things it could try to do at this moment in time, but there was no way it was going to put it’s Hjor into any unnecessary danger, the attacker wants him alive, and Yggdrasil would comply with that for the time being, besides the situation wasn’t all quite helpless yet.

<<<>>>

Aiesear ran, dodging into an alleyway and then took a sharp right, determined to pour on more speed when he heard quick and heavy foot falls behind him. Oh crap he was being hunted on such a dark night like tonight, he would be killed and wouldn’t be found until his corpse started to stink so bad they would investigate.

Then he quite literally hit a dead end

“Crap” he looked forward and in front of him was a brick wall

To his left another wall with something rather nasty clinging to it

To his right a barricaded door and a few rubbish tins

“Unlucky kid, but you were just in the wrong place at the wrong time”

The man with the yellow tunic, Yggdrasil’s initial target smirked as he stepped forwards, so Aiesear had two options, beg for his life or fight, well he was sure begging was not going to work

sooo

His arm snaked up to his shoulder and clasped the hilt of his sword and with a mighty swing the sword swung over his shoulder to the ready stance he had been shown. However what also happened was that when the sword was pulled from his back, due to the looseness of the sheath, which came with it too

And at the apex of the swing took flight, the only way that both of them found out that it had took flight was when it crashed into something meaty, being said meaty thing was in fact the guys face, who was now howling with pain and clutching his now busted nose

Aiesear lost all of his fear for that moment and replaced it with confusion and curiosity, he certainly hadn’t meant to do that, and by the looks of it he had hit some kind of weak point and scored some pretty massive damage to the guys face

He impressed himself

Until the would be killer furiously glared at him so determined he was to skin the kid alive and rip his heart out so the kid could watch did Aiesear feel his fear return ten-fold, that and his bladder became empty real quick.

“Oh your so going to pay for that!”

Aiesear screamed and started to swing his sword wildly in fear, only for it’s rather smooth hand grip to slip through his smooth hands and take flight too, Aiesear screamed once more and shut his eyes tightly and covered himself with his arms in the standard feeble position.

His death was going to be gruesome, and he could hear the headlines already “Hero killed before his time” life was just so unfair

So feebly he waited

And waited

And eventually got bored of waiting in wet pants that he eventually opened one eye to see what the hold up was, and quite frankly he was rather startled

One guess where the sword landed

[Bevel]

At least, shoot some spines or whatever at him - anything, thought Bevel, his whirring mind split by a wedge of pain. The gun, Device!

Never mind. Leaning heavily on the wall, Bevel summoned the strength to force out a question: "Wh-who are you, and why me?"

"Because you, my good sack of shit, are worth a decent amount back home," replied the bounty hunter. "You're wanted for grand larceny -quite a bit of money- and your creditors would like to talk to you about that." At this, he began striding nonchalantly towards the device. The gun, however, stayed leveled at its mark the whole time. "And by talk, I mean 'torture.' Apparently, you still have some value left to you, even in this sad state."

Behind his poker face, Bevel couldn't believe it. This guy was monologuing. Keep it up, he thought at the bounty hunter, still clueless for a plan but glad that his adversary was granting him time. Consciously or not.

"As for me?" said the slender drow. "I'm just a bounty hunter, though doubtless you've figured that out by now. I collect these jobs and bring the marks back to Alerar, or whoever's hiring me presently." He cleared his throat, inspecting the device as it lay on the ground.

Pick it up...pick it up... thought Bevel. He hit upon an idea. If he picks you up...can you hinder him somehow? he asked the device.

"I'm quite proud of myself on this one," continued the drow. "Two birds with one stone, as the humans say. You were the easy one - all that commotion you caused today made it all too simple to track you down. Now this device here...that was interesting." He pulled a small compass-like device from his pocket and inspected it. "I tracked something magical -valuable- outside town, and it turned out to be another of my marks. That robber likely had no idea what it was, save a shiny sword he wanted."

At this, the bounty hunter stooped, and picked the device up from the ground.

"You made it all too easy, Kessler," grinned the drow.

[Yggdrasil]

“ Taking out the gun is half the fight, I am not willing to risk anymore harm coming to you ”

Yggdrasil stated rather forcefully, it was one of those moments where it would not agree with it’s wielder, it wasn’t in a position too actually do anything but wait, a frustrating concept, if it was anything but a gun then this situation could have been dealt with already.

However when the guy did start monologue Yggdrasil was surprised to actually find out that it was on a hit list or something, true it’s reputation had once gotten out of hand, about a thousand years ago.

But someone was still actively seeking it out; someone must read it myths a little too much

“ Such a dangerous situation, but the target is currently entering a position to which to attack ”

There are actually quite a few of some things that no man should ever do, picking up a weapon that is telekinetically linked to the guy your threatening isn’t a smart thing, terribly more wrong when said weapon has the ability to shape shift

So when the man held the sickle up to gain a better look at its craftsmanship it attack, the sickle quickly changed into a mass of moving metal that before he could even register something was wrong a blade had punched through the mans arm, severing it quickly a cleanly.

He didn’t even have time to yell out when the mass of metal started to spread becoming an unrefined glob of mess around his hand, binding it to his side and legs as well, until it immobilized the man while at the same time putting pressure on his wound to keep him alive.

Not it’s first choice but Yggdrasil wanted answers

“ Attacker: subdued ”

The bounty hunter should be thankful, from it’s position Yggdrasil could have done a whole lot more, and it’s attractive lure made him briefly take his attention of it’s hjor, brief but a mistake all the same.

[Bevel]

"You stupid twat," Bevel nearly spat.

The heavyset drow detached himself from the wall and began limping over to his adversary. Where the hell were they finding these bounty hunters these days? This one bad broken two universal Villain Rules in under a minute. Number one, don't talk so much your foe thinks up a plan to beat you. Number two, don't pick up the obviously enchanted artifact you're after until you've examined it thoroughly.

Ah, a third: don't drop your gun. Bevel picked it up.

"Evening," he said humorlessly, and shot the man dead.

The drow allowed himself a sigh of relief, watching a droplet of sweat fall from the tip of his nose. "Device," he panted, settling to his good knee, "go find that idiot boy, and tell him to run back here while I reload."

Whether the device balked or complied, Bevel took the opportunity to rifle through his former adversary's pockets, looking for a hit-list. He found a bit of gold, a pair of daggers, all junk...ah, a leather parchment case! That must be it.

No time to look through it now. Bevel's fingers fumbled with the gun, loading powder, wadding and shot into each of the long-pistol's two chambers. He realized his aim was going to be pretty pants at night, wounded and stressed, but he at least had the element of surprise over his would-be killer.

Now, he just had to wait...

[Yggdrasil]

Yggdrasil was prone to two main cases of emotion, the first was humour, which it had at times went out of it’s own way to achieve, right now it was feeling quite the opposite, annoyance, being the second one, and it had some good reasons why it was indeed annoyed, three things actually.

So when its prisoner was shot dead, it mentally grumbled and the mass that had acted as the mans binders simply broke down into a fine mist before disappearing back into the bracelet on bevel. There was a reason why it had attacked the mans arm and not his face, although tempting, it had gathered getting information directly out of him would have been for the best.

Until he was shot dead with his own weapon by Bevel

Strike one

So once again an avatar appeared before him invisible to all except a rare few, and immediately it crossed its arms and its bored expression was almost a glare in his direction.

“There was a reason I incapacitated the man my Hjor, killing him before I extracted information from him is most displeasing” it said but it would take no action against Bevel.

Strike two came in the form of ordering it to go search for the boy, normally not a usually a request it could deny, since the occurrence of such requests almost never exist, but bevel didn’t know that its avatar had a range. Besides it had assessed the boy’s skill and found that his chance of survival was minimal.

“I will can not, and will not leave you unattended” a half truth at best, and it only considered this a strike against bevel mostly because it was already pissed off.

The 3rd strike was actually unintentional

Bevels prize was something dangerous, and as soon as he took it his attention had been took from Yggdrasil and concentrated on reloading it. Yggdrasil would admit it was a form a jealousy, yes jealous of the pistol.

Why not, here it was a weapon that had the potential to turn people like Bevel into forces to never be looked over, sentience to offer advise and wisdom to look out for its user, a near infinite supply of weaponry to the Hjor. And there he was feigning over a Pistol, Yggdrasil had half a mind to crush it.

A Pistol, such a rather, obscure tool, Yggdrasil refused to call the thing a weapon, such fragile things but when used correctly brought fear to mortal creatures, and so it should.

It wouldn’t say anything, it did after all ‘Love’ it’s Hjor, but being pissed off at it’s Hjor wasn’t a breached in he rules, and so it forgot it’s jealousy in favour of calculating the new turn of events.

“The chances of the boy surviving his assailant are not exponentially high, the chances of the boy winning are-“

The avatar cut off in favour of turning to see the boy walking around the corner, a little dirty from falling back into the ally and wet pants that made his cheeks red with embarrassment, but did nothing to hide the ‘I just seen a ghost’ look on his face, clearly distressed over something.

Yggdrasil appreciated irony, and inwardly it almost sighed at such the occurrence

“- are rather good apparently” it finished it’s sentence with a certain deadpan expression as thought the avatars face reflected how even it believed that such an occurrence should be impossible

“uh … hey guys” the boy droned out, his eyes glancing over to the dead man on the street briefly, hesitated for a full three seconds before approaching

“I uh, killed the guy who followed me”

Yggdrasil smiled a tiny smirk finding that news amusing, if it was not mistaken then Bevel could never complete it’s task it had given

[Bevel]

"Y'know, you could have said that," Bevel told the device. He finished reloading the pistol, bracing himself to fire.

Just then, that lunatic boy rounded the corner, announcing broadly that he'd killed the guy following him. Bevel blinked - "You whatnow?" he managed. That a random kid could just take out a fully armed and grown robber with murderous intent was nearly unbeliev-

-wait. What was more distressing was the cavalier way he announced his kill. A human boy, no more than twenty...twenty, right? Ten? Blast these human years. Whatever. An ungrown boy, at any rate, had just killed an adult with much more combat training than him, and felt little remorse or even emotion beyond Hey Guys Check This Out from the blood on his hands. Besides, y'know, the soiled pants. Beyond that, the boy was not nearly as shaken up as he should have been.

While Bevel pondered this, the pistol fell apart in his hands. He blinked at it.

"Well, that's interesting."

Inside the stock was a small clockwork that Bevel must have mistakenly tripped. The gun had been held together by a small array of springs and levers, quite a bit more complex than the average Alerian long-pistol it was intended to emulate. Inside there was a tiny bit of parchment, folded up into a square.

Intriguing. The drow scooped up the bounty hunter's parchment case and dropped the tiny parchment square inside, along with as many parts of the gun as he could salvage. The damned thing had blown tiny springs and clockworks everywhere, and as far as he could see even all the Queen's living horses and men weren't getting it back together again.

Hmph.

The drow shakily rose to his feet, putting his weight on his good left leg. "I admit I'm impressed," he told the boy. "How'd you kill him?"

[Yggdrasil]

“With your quick wits, I had not anticipated that I would need to, considering you’re also wounded”

The avatar countered absently while also subtly pointing out that its Hjor was still wounded, that had been bugging Yggdrasil, it was too similar to it’s last but the man had hours still to go get it healed properly.

Yggdrasil’s forgotten ire surfaced briefly so it could become happy as Yggdrasil witnessed the pistol self destruct and fall apart by the hinges. Truly the gods were smiling upon the ancient weapon, truly it still had there favour and blessing for such a grand case of irony –plenty of those today- had happened before its very existence.

The avatars smirk became a little wider but still not really noticeable, but it still relished in that victory, you wasn’t going to see Yggdrasil self destruct anytime soon, in fact it didn’t have a self destruct feature

“The boy” it spoke quietly and out of the blue, actually it said as it looked over to the young boy who still carried his sword and sheath somewhat limply, the avatars eyes narrowed slightly, and despite the boys somewhat carefree but subdued nature it recognised what the boy was going through

It had seen it plenty of times, it was probably his first kill, and the shock and surprise had either not settled in, or by observation his relieve to still be alive was currently tilting the scales of relief and shock.

Or something like that, Yggdrasil had ran around in people’s heads but it had made no point to study a humans mind and the way it works, it was much too complicated, not as straight forward as it could be, and far too many raw emotions for it’s liking.

“I ah” the boy stuttered when asked the simple question before his eyes became wide and almost freaked on the spot

“I didn’t mean too, it was an accident, the sword slipped from my fingers!”

The boy said now growing alarmed and Yggdrasil’s avatar scoffed with a smirk, oh it could picture how such a kill came to be, while not yet having the pleasure of being accidentally thrown to kill someone, it still found such action amusing.

Then just to add it in

“You do know, the man I assigned you to kill was the one the boy has killed. Your task is now impossible to complete”

[Bevel]

Frankly, Bevel didn't care about the sword's task, and he idly wondered how such a self-important chunk of scrap could hold a vendetta against a common thug. He shot a wan smile at the illusory woman, who had the gall to remind him he hadn't finished its little assignment. A hotter-blooded one would have taken the idiot sword to the nearest foundry and cast it in, but Bevel Kessler kept his ire well under control. His right calf, still going through waves of pain, reminded him that there were more important issues than a talking sword.

Through it all, though, the drow managed to keep his poker face up. He turned to the boy, whose humanity -interesting word, that- was finally settling in after the adrenaline left. "S'alright, never mind," Bevel told him. "You did well tonight."

Most important now was finding a healer. His makeshift bandages had largely staunched the bloodflow, but a small trickle still seeped around them. He knew he had to move, no matter how his leg protested. Gah, why had he left his walking stick at the inn? Of all the times he could have used it, now would be at the forefront.

Bevel started walking, caring little if the boy decided to tag along or not. He had salvaged a bit of gold from the bounty hunter, who had turned out to be disappointingly poor for having such an intricate weapon. Bevel honestly felt rather low, robbing the dead like that, but this gold would likely pay for a healer to patch his leg up again.

A pipe wrench as a crutch made for slow going. Unfortunate, then, that his inn was across town. Fortunate, though, that out here the sounds of violence and gunfire were taken for granted.

"Fortunate" if loosely defined, that is.

An agonizing half hour later, as Bevel's right calf was beginning to seize up and go cold, he found a hospice of Citadel monks. Thank heavens. A few knocks on the door rewarded him with an elderly man in a brown robe.

"Come for a challenge, have you?" creaked the monk, scratchily.

"Er, no," Bevel replied, wincing at the prospect of fighting someone else in this state. "Need to get patched up." At this he shuffled slightly, taking the weight off the wrench in his right hand. More importantly, causing the sound of a small quantity of gold jingling to emanate from his pocket.

The elderly monk's face split into a yellowed grin. "Ah-ah-aaah!" he cackled. "A donation! Very good, come right in!"

Money makes the world go round, thought the drow, and entered.

Fifteen minutes later, with the efforts of a couple of Citadel friars, Bevel's leg felt as good as new, with the exception of a low, dull throbbing of pain starting in the calf and running up his spine to the base of the skull. He needed sleep.

His wallet was minus the gold he'd found on the bounty hunter's body, but Bevel didn't care. He had something rather more valuable - a hit list, some parts of a new gun and a valuable new sword. Dealing with the latter would be an exercise for tomorrow.

[Yggdrasil]

Yggdrasil kept quiet, it’s avatar following the man silently, initially when they had come across the Citadel monks it had been expecting that one of them would also display the ability to see the avatar.

The could not, how disappointing.

The would be adventurer boy tagged along in silence, horrified expression across his face, was he expecting the ghosts of those dead to leap from the shadows, not likely, at least, not yet, the boy would be ok and the monks had been gracious to quick dry his pants for him, taking the payment out of what Bevel did hand over to the monks.

Bevel, now that was an interesting subject.

In honesty Yggdrasil found the man to be rather simple to figure out, give him enough of a motivation and you could get him to seriously consider killing someone, it however hadn’t provided the right motivation. The man had smarts and quite a stretch of bad luck, either it was his own making or karma, Yggdrasil couldn’t decide, not to mention that it scoffed at the mans preference in weapons.

True bevel wasn’t a fighter, a thinker more like it that gave respect where he received it, the fact he wasn’t a fighter really jerked on the Weapons chain, finding a powerful wielder for it to grow stronger and faster was more preferred than what it has.

Plus the man had bounty hunters after him, which made him cautious and hard to play around with, heck even it had bounty hunters after it, that concept alone came straight out of the left field. Two of them sticking together would bring double the trouble, and Yggdrasil didn’t think Bevel could defend himself from such forces

Yggdrasil didn’t think it could protect him either if they were using those pistols, maybe it was out of it’s element, it didn’t know, it fought wars not evade a predator

And given Bevels new destination, it would seem that the man would be turning in for the night, not what the weapon wanted at the moment but it had came to a conclusion on how to better protect it’s Hjor.

“Bevel, at the present time I judge that I will not be sufficient in providing you protection from future encounters like before”

It spoke after what could seem a long time, startling the now quiet boy who followed because he didn’t know what else to do at the moment.

“The best way I know of which to protect you, is to draw off some of this force which is hunting us, Splitting up would be more beneficial to you”

The boy blinked and muttered under his breath “That’s some way to brake up a relationship”

[Bevel]

A quick turn of the face, just enough to expose the nose and mouth from the fedora's shadow, and Bevel grinned. It wasn't a predatory grin, nor a deviant smirk, but not wholly innocent either. It was an engineer's grin, the one that exposed a mass of twirling gears and chains behind it, clicking towards some predictable if elaborate result.

"Part ways then, is it?" replied the drow. "Perhaps. But I'm tired, and you more than likely are as well," he told nobody in particular. And indeed he was, the pain in his leg now a dull throbbing ache, something that called for rest. "Let's ponder this further in the morning."

It had been a long day. An uneventful morning, to be certain, but the lunch hour picked things up substantially. After all, it's not just any day one practically trips over a valuable artifact, a sentient one at that, that ends up saving one's life from a bounty hunter tracking them both. Bevel had to hand it to said hunter - it was due to his machinations that the day's events had come to pass. Except for a few key mistakes in the alley, the drow displayed quite the cunning streak.

But it was just that, wasn't it? This drow couldn't afford those kinds of mistakes. Constant vigilance, that was the key, and patience as well, and cunning to complete them, would see you through.

As he walked, Bevel idly mused on this. Realistically, he could not hope to hold onto a sword like this forever, because he wouldn't be using it for its intended purpose, to battle and grow stronger like some kind of warped gladiator. Whether or not this device was good or evil, it needed blood. Practically thirsted for it. And Bevel knew, deep down, that such artifacts have a way of working themselves out of equilibrium, like the wind that upsets a house of cards, and into entropy.

Regardless of the bounty hunters after it or him, regardless of the device's own personality, it had to change hands, and it brought bloodshed with it. Simply handing it to that idiot boy would be giving him a death sentence, or at least dooming him to a life of battle and steel. No, he needed a way to give the boy a choice in the matter. If the boy and the device were meant to be, they...

...would. A-ha, realized the drow, the slow smile again crossing his face. The boy would be the gust of wind, and the device would be the cards; the only difference here would be the builder, who was setting the house of cards in order to fall. He knew what to do.

But first, sleep.


*******

The next morning, a refreshed Bevel Kessler strode from the inn, pack situated comfortably on his shoulders and a lessened thumping of pain in his right leg. The sky bulged nonchalantly overcast; the drow would have preferred sun but at least it wasn't raining today.

A stack of red apples gleamed enticingly from a fruit vendor's cart. Bevel selected one, a red delicious dark like purple velvet, paid the vendor and munched heartily. He had time to kill until the boy arrived from wherever he was coming from, and rehearsed the ploy in his head one more time.


OOC: Already sent the plan to you. Hooray

[Yggdrasil]

“ Although I admire this scheme you have cooked up, I am not thrilled about the prospect of being sold like a mere piece of treasure ”

Despite how true that statement could be given its present time, but Yggdrasil had to at least add that in once more, indeed before it had suggested that it could be used this way, but it still didn’t enjoy it.

The city of Scara brae in the mornings held such a contrast to the city it was at night, it seemed cleaner for one, bathed in a majestic fresh light, still quiet and only just rousing. Bevel himself had recently purchased some kind of fruit whilst he waited once more for the boy to show up.

He had told the kid last night to meet him hear but he had not divulged the reason why, and if Yggdrasil had an avatar it would have openly sighed but seeing as it was still a bracelet, no it was only able to quietly observed.

It couldn’t help notice that bevel had formed an opinion of it, and despite how mistaken he was about some things, he had noted others correct. Bloodthirsty was not among it, it found no thrill in killing things, but it had to be done, and it did it, fast and quick.

After all, who were the ones that killed those bounty hunters last night?

“ Is Gold all you can think about? Surely there are more precious metals out there that would be of more value than some pretty looking one ”

It asked merely out of boredom, and curiosity, it had not asked this question before, and Bevel’s quiet thinking was enough to almost bore the weapon to death, almost.

“Hey” Aiesear said simply as he walked up, the boy was still subdued, and rather quiet, hmm maybe not, the boy had shadows under his eyes, and his stance slouched with hair unkempt.

Obvious signs of lack of sleep

“You wanted to see me?”

[Bevel]

The drow smiled thinly. Gold? Well, gold itself isn't overly valuable, except as a currency. There isn't much you can *do* with gold. Ah, but what gold could buy...

Gold could buy steel and titanium for cylinders and pushrods. Gold could buy treated trakyr wood for cladding the boiler, could buy strong fabrics and tough cables for the envelope, ingots of green metal for the firebox and a shipbuilder's hull to house it all in. Gold could buy a future.

The smile broadened. Oh, it's useful, all right.

The boy arrived just then. Bevel had explained the plan to him last night before hobbling off to the inn, and to the drow's dismay, the boy's eyes were roving all around, trying to catch a glimpse of the sword. Bevel grumbled softly, below audible range of the boy and clear-minded enough for the device not to hear. He didn't like the kid's lust for a weapon, as weapons were tools, just as much as wrenches or hammers, not symbols of glory or personal power.

This reminded him that he needed to fix the gun somehow, but there would be time for that later. Right now, it was time to make some gold. "Remember," he told the boy. "You'll wait for exactly one hour, and think over if you want this sword or not. There's no going back." Nodding to the kid, Bevel took off into the market. Now that that was out of the way, he knew just the people to con.

Wulfschein Antiquities, one of the larger treasure fences on Scara Brae, loomed ahead behind closed doors. This was a subtle tip to treasure hunters: their buyers made enough money for a permanent shop, not a tiny stall like most blacksmiths. They did it two ways: one, by offering their buyers a tiny fraction of what the true item was really worth - honestly, all the treasure buyers did - and two, they sold standard weapons as well, albeit of a higher grade than most blacksmiths in the market. The first, though, was the reason questing after gold or craftsman's writs was much more profitable than straight treasure.

After the urn incident, Bevel had been wanting to put one over on these jerks for a while. He walked nonchalantly into their shop, where a tiny brass bell tinkled above his head. Soon enough, a middle-aged clerk appeared wearing a dapper suit and a lupine smile. Bevel shot him the same one.

"Mr. Kessler, I presume?"

"Wulfschein," said Bevel.

"Thomas Wulfschein, junior," he replied. "My father is presently indisposed." Getting to the point, he asked, "So, what have you brought me this time? Another valuable funerary urn?"

"Not this time," Bevel politely replied. "Something altogether less fragile," he said, and at this, pulled the sword Yggdrasil from his pack, a shining broadsword with a razor-keen edge, jeweled hilt and crosspiece whose metal washed in fluid motion like the sea, "and more valuable."

Thomas Wulfschein was used to fantastic artifacts, but this one was unlike anything he'd seen before. Even his excellent poker face cracked slightly. Bevel noticed, and continued. "I found her -it- while exploring a thane's tomb in northern Alerar. Dangerous place if you're not a dark elf."

He issued a few mental commands to the sword, preparing his show to go on. Bevel was certainly glad that it was Wulfschein Junior here, rather than his father, a notorious haggler and liable to give you the worst deal in town. Junior certainly took after the old man, but wasn't quite as experienced.

"Very nice," said the buyer. "I suppose I could give you two hundred gold for the sword."

Bevel smiled - a sword that looked like the device did now would easily resell for thousands. Amateur. "Well, I'm afraid I'll have to pass," he replied. "After all, this 'sword' is really any weapon or armor you want it to be."

The metal became fluid in Bevel's hands. Jewels swam like tiny fish up the silver current, from the hilt of the sword to a series of flanges appearing on top. The blade thinned and became cylindrical as its mass displaced to a heavy, flanged head adorned with a regal crown. In seconds, the dark elf held a scepterlike paladin's mace in his hands, trimmed in gold and silver with business ends of the whitest mithril and titanium.

"Metamorphic," said Wulfschein.

"Metamorphic," replied Bevel. "Any piece of armor or weapon, all of them fit for a king. Cannot break, period, regenerates due to the same enchantment upon it. As it is an entire arsenal and armory in one, this is an understandably valuable weapon. I can't take less than three thousand for it."

Wulfschein narrowed his eyes, picturing the extreme amount of gold this would sell for. Still, three thousand was entirely too much, the upper end of a haggler's game.

The haggling went on for nigh on half an hour, and finally - finally - Bevel Kessler walked out of the shop, a thousand gold richer. He had to hand it to the device - it certainly had turned a tidy profit for him. Bevel imagined the look on Junior's face when he couldn't find the gleaming weapon to show his husk of a father, imagined him turning the shop inside out to search for it and the resulting tirade when the "misplaced" weapon was never found. Not that he'd hurt those jerks in any way - the income from everything else they sold turned a hellish profit that Bevel envied - but it felt good being the one on the giving end for once.

Overall, it had been a profitable few days.


OOC: Judge, I'm shooting for around a thousand or so gold from this - if you think that's too much reduce it accordingly. It'll be ages before Bevel *spends* any of it anyway.
Yggdrasil, it's your show now.

[Yggdrasil]

Yggdrasil waited for the final moments, being silent and complying with Bevels orders for its current form, becoming as well decorated and as extravagant is it could possibly be, a little too much maybe. And then it became a sword once more, intricate pattern all over the place as well as a razor edged blade of fine steel.

And when Bevels hand left the hilt of said sword to pass it on to Thomas so did the link and Yggdrasil found that once more the world became almost dead, sure it could still hear, and still see what was going on but beyond that there was nothing. In another way it was thankful that it wasn’t in its natural form, being the only form that could establish a link with a potential Hjor, and because it was a sword it didn’t create a link with Thomas at all.

‘How hollow’

It thought absently as it watched bevel leave literally counting his gold as he went, making a tidy profit, quite a bit of profit actually but it considered that the Dark elf had been ripped off, Yggdrasil was worth far much more than that, it’s true powers had not even formed yet, nor did he know it’s true goal.

‘His loss’ it thought with a mental smug grin

Thomas pawned over it, examining it with an even keener eye then before, grinning madly and placing it on a shelf among other swords for now until he could set up a display case.

An hour eventually went by and Aiesear did eventually enter the shop, saw Yggdrasil and bit his lip as he looked around for a store owner. He immediately took Yggdrasil by the hilt and the sword turned from the most beautiful looking sword imaginable to something that looked as if it was ready to be melted down.

Now he had to bite his lip to stop himself from laughing, Bevel had a rather devious idea, going to sell it as an expensive item and buying back a cheap sword was rather cruel but amusing. But Aiesear was curious, why would Bevel ask if he would want the sword, wouldn’t the dark elf be better off simply keeping his so called majestic blade, especially if he was being attacked.

Where had that woman gotten off too, it was like she had disappeared from the face of the planet.

And where was this shop keeper, Aiesear called out loud multiple times before Thomas turned up again with an annoyed expression on his face.

“Keep it down ya whelp”

“I want to buy this sword” he stated quite clearly and the man looked at it and scoffed, not that he had remembered seeing one in as in poor condition as this one, he wasn’t exactly expecting anything below 70 pieces of gold at least.

“30 pieces of gold” Thomas stated, yes he thought he was being generous, but with that metamorphic sword he had just acquired he didn’t doubt that he would be getting something a lot more than he paid for it.

Aiesear quickly agreed, slapped the gold down on the counter and was out the door before Thomas could blink, so with a shrug he turned and went back to getting that display case setup.

It was here he had the nasty feeling that said junky weapon he just sold was the metamorphic sword …

“nah”

Aiesear looked at the ‘new’ sword in his hand and narrowed his eyes at it, sure it could make itself look pretty but what else could it do. That was around the time that the sword became a sphere of solid looking water glowing calmly, like the one he had seen yesterday afternoon and his hand instinctively reached out to it.

“Greeting my Hjor”

[AdventWings]

Story

Continuity - 4

Initially, I had a hard time putting the story together about why this is happening. Even after the story ended, the only person I found disclosure in was Bevel's character who acted in need of getting the money for a pistol and an airship.
For Yggdrasil, I still have no idea why it wanted his last Hjor's killer dead. The circumstances surrounding the sword being hunted also remains a mystery, although I believe this to be intentionally left for future tie-ins.

Setting - 5

Mainly neglected, but not always ignored. Both writers should try interacting with the environment more - less observation, more usage. Clamber against the wall, slide across watery streets, weave around a tree or chuck a beer keg at someone. The interaction would not need be ICly intentional or important to the storyline, merely to keep the readers tied into the atmosphere and spatial awareness.

Pacing - 3

Both writers have a tendency to loop back into each other, which is frustrating for the writer because it forces the readers to re-read something that had been said almost a thousand times over. Transition from post-to-post should try to become either seamless or chronologically logical - An example would be the transition from Post #39 to Post #40. Thus, these kinds of writing almost require cooperation between writers before a smooth transition can be achieved. Take your time and think out how each post should blend into the other as well as pay more attention to Narration Perspectives.

A second concern stemmed from the side-effects of bad (or botched) post transitions - The story seemed to drag on past the initial stage of effectiveness. Just because a feeling is interesting does not mean that it has to dominate the flow of the story.

Writing Style

Mechanics - 3

Yggdrasil - There is an alarming tendency to neglect proper punctuation. Commas should not be used to separate sentences - at best, it is more effectively used to separate phrases and clauses from each other and one sentence should not contain more than two independent clauses. A quick trip through an English textbook will help point out how to properly use punctiation as well as some basic grammar styles. Remember: To learn Unconventional Writing Styles, one must master (or at least be proficient) in the Basics. Please watch out for capitalizations as well: Capitalization should be reserved for words that start a sentence or Specific Names.

You also have a tendency to misspell many words (Post #39; "That's some way to brake a relationship." <Correction: break>) or unintentional ones which resulted in ambiguous meanings (Post #11; The voice that followed was also defiantly more masculine,... <Correction: definitely (?)>) which also leads to miscommunication and misunderstanding between the writer and the readers. Don't be afraid to consult your favorite (hard-covered or paperback) dictionaries and thesaurus if you're unsure of what you spelled. Also, remember that not every words sound the way they are spelled. Also be careful about similar-looking words with radically different meanings (Post #27; It said refusing to allow itself to illiterate further <Correction: iterate>)

Bevel - No problems in the basic English grammar or style. While you did not take much advantage of advanced literary techniques, they were not tasteless.

Technique - 4

Looking beyond the slightly confusing writing style, I did see a plethora or simile and metaphor strewn throughout the thread. The flashback sequence was not very attention-catching, however, nor served quite as effective as it had been initially thought by the readers. I also did not find a central theme or underlying message that could serve as the turning point of the thread - therefore, not much of a climax event where the characters could develop deeper meaning to the events.

Clarity - 4

Beyond the diffucult reading, you did not waste words too often when trying to convey the story. However, there were some that seemed entirely unneeded. I attribute one part to the odd paragraph structure and the second part to some ambiguous passages. (Ex., Post #23; “Of Cause, in the end it is your decision” <Correction: "Of course, in the end it is your decision.">

Character

Dialogue - 6

I like how each characters have their own unique voices - Yggdrasil appearing calm and collect (minus that one surprise outburst when Bevel got shot) as well as packing good wit. Bevel sounds like a genuine trickster full of witty remarks and sharp understanding. Aiesear, however, remained flat and uninteresting.

Action - 7

Not much could be said, although I credit both of you for doing your best in keeping within your characters.

Persona - 6

Same could be said for this category as Dialogue. Bevel packed a good deal of personal motivations and decisions into his story while Yggdrasil breaking character once (which arguably cheapened the character's actual maturity) in an attempt to achieve a "Shock Factor" where it would normally be the role of a more nervous-prone character. Aiesear, however, appeared as an interesting secondary character later in the story with great potential for character development.

Miscellaneous

Wild Card - 6

Both of you did well to bring this thread to a close, so give yourself a round of applause.
Bevel - Good luck on your next adventure!
Yggdrasil - Brush up on your grammar a bit and let's continue! Good luck!

FINAL SCORE – 48!

((Rewards + Spoils))

Yggdrasil receives 1000 EXP and 350 GP. Yggdrasil also receives his new Hjor NPC, Aiesear.
Bevel receives 1000 EXP and 400 GP.

[Cyrus the virus]

EXP added, Yggy levels up!