World Tree MUSH

  After staying a few days in Death Mountain to round up all the Goron specialists and their equipment, the royal caravan started down the trailhead once more. It turns out the Gorons are quicker than expected on the march, even with all their equipment, and no beasts of burden. They take turns pulling their machinery, mounted on massive stone wheels and pulled by massive iron chains. Others curl up on themselves and roll quickly on down the road.

  Zelda's set a brisk but not brutal pace, and the caravan's made good time. The boisterous Gorons have been good at dissuading trouble. Even the beasts of the Twilight haven't bothered lurking about. As they've moved south and east, the charred stone of Eldin Province has given way to the ash and blackened soil of Hyrule Field. Drought has prevented regrowth. River beds and streams lay dry and dead; cracked and broken earth beneath a merciless summer sun.

  With so little water, there hasn't been any regrowth just yet. The water the caravan carries has been rationed carefully, with no one knowing when they'll find the next clean water source. Heat waves shimmer on the horizon, and the air is uncomfortably dusty; preternaturally still. It's the same story here: Settlements burnt to ruin, and surviving villagers scattering at the caravan's approach. There's rarely anything salvageable or useful in the empty ruins. They've burnt so hot even metal tools have run like slag.

  Evening only offers some relief. The temperatures sink with the sun, but the air is still gritty and acrid. Zelda's found what used to be a creekside to camp for the night. Like the rest of the plains, the streambed is cracked, parched; wholly bereft of water.

  The princess has wasted no time in going back to her commoner's garb; it's too hot for anything more than a loose tunic and riding breeches. She's unhitched her horse from the wagon, and at the moment she's taking the time to curry the dust from his coat and brush him down. He's too tired to even snap at people who get too close, head drooping and eyes half-closed.

  Zelda looks like she feels about the same, and the only thing keeping her upright is having tasks like caring for the horse to do.

    In this kind of heat, Yumi is doing everything she can to help ease the trip - and that includes, when needed, making trips for more water. With a rugged off-road bike and a sturdy backpack, she can bring in a fair amount on a given trip. Of course, every time she comes back from a trip she has to climb into the wagon and lie there for a while; in this heat, it's an exhausting trip, and on one recent water run she also ended up getting into a little bit of a 'save Lex' scrap on the way. Probably a good few hours' sleep from that one.

    As it so happens, she's just climbing her way out now, and she's doing so with a bottle of water - which she immediately holds out to Zelda. "Here."

Lucianne left after the feast in Death mountain to go explore, ran into Yumi for that 'save Lex' scrap and has just made it back along with aforementioned Lex. She's wearing a denim jacket despite the heat, left arm planted firmly in a pocket. On her right shoulder she carries a heavy bag, which she drops when she arrives. "Hey, I got some more drinks." She offers, planting the bag on the ground. If anyone opens it, it's full of Orange-Sun Multivitamin disposable drinking pouches, straws included. About a gallon's worth.

    Knowing himself how bad drought can be for those not of Troldkind, Taavit has pretty much left all water to everyone else; and instead has taken to drinking the strange brew that eminates from the 'mysterious keg' he carries on his back tied to his backpack, supporting the head of his sword-bladed polearm. The 'brew' is disgusting looking at it's *best*, and at it's *worst* not even a desparate animal would touch it. But Taavit downs it with flair and aplomb. .. He always seems to *teeter on his feet* for twenty minutes afterwards, but he otherwise keeps the drink to himself, leaving others to the far more potable liquids Yumi brings back.

    (Anyone capable of detecting Alcohol would more than likely have figured out the second or third day in that it's a form of grog with a *really* pungeant swampy smell.)

    He also seems to be in high spirits (badum-tish) as he walks, humming various songs to himself, all broadcast to his ear by a singular air bud from his prized MP3 player. But he's *not* without care; every so often, he's casting a worried glance about them all; he's picked up an actual stick somewhere to use as he walks instead of his weapon. His tail swishes side to side with his steps- and he's keeping an eye on Zelda. The knowledge that she is apparently heir apparent to the throne of this land, but is also travelling in secret, and *also* a fairly powerful ... Priestess (he'll stick to that story for now at last, for her sake) .. well.

    "... Roads go ever ever on, over rock and under tree, by caves where never sun has shown, by streams that never find the sea.." Taavit sings to himself on sudden thought. He's a small man with very hairy bare feet. Trust me. It's appropriate.

    Speaking of 'save Lex' ...

    She's been absent ever since the Goron feast with no explanation unless Yuni relayed the situation. Now, as she follows close behind Lucianne, there's two immediately-obvious to anyone who's seen her before. The first is that her left arm and leg are now obviously prosthetics, made of mint-green and white plastic. The second is that, where she was fairly reserved before, she now looks actually gloomy.

    Oh, and there's also a great big high-tech curved sword on her back. That should probably be mentioned, too.

    "I've tried 'em, they're good," she says, gesturing to the drinks Lucianne brought. "Or I mean, not bad. But. Uh. Yeah." She glances at Yumi, before focusing on Zelda. "I'm ... non-combat for a while, kind of thing. But, uh, yeah, this is my new Atlantean sword." She reaches back to touch the handle. "Lightshard 18."

    "Hello there," says the sword, in an electronic girl's voice. "You must be Sheik. Pleased to make your acquaintance." (Evidently, Lex hasn't told Lightshard 18 about Zelda's true identity.)

    The brisk pace is of not difficulty for Rydia of Mist. Riding on her trusty chocobo steed, the girl doesn't seem to be all that bothered by the heat.
    It might just be because of the swirling mists that linger close to the child, that might have something to do with it.
    Really, when your best friend is a dragon made out of chilly water vapor, there are all kinds of subtle bonuses, and Rydia hasn't so much as shed a bead of sweat since leaving the general vicinity of the Goron's mountain home.
    "Wow they sure can move, though." She muses on how the Gorons have gotten on ahead by rolling along.
    Eventually though, when the caravan does come to halt for camp, she plops off her bird and gives him a brushdown before wandering towards the others, mists floating around her lazily.
    "I'll take one." She says, willing to try this myserious Orange-Sun concoction. Before she peers at Lex's sword.
    "So you traded your cutlass for a talking sword. ... Can swords get jealous?"

    Ah, Lex and Lucianne are back. Yumi's face lights up at the sight of both - particularly at Lex being up and about. "Hey, you're back," she calls out, taking a few steps over closer to the two. "You two didn't have any trouble getting back here, did you? How're you holding up, Lex?" She eyes the Orange Sun thoughtfully, but decides not to take one for the time being; better to leave it for people who need it more. She can always get some offworld for herself.

"Not much, bit chilly out here, but otherwise quite fine." Lucianne answers Yumi, clearly joking. Left hand still stuck firmly in that pocket, "So I figured I'd put on a jacket to keep myself warm." She doesn't look like the heat bothers her much, though she is sweating a little. "I think talking swords can." She answers Rydia. "So how's everyone doing?"

  "Welcome back, Yumi Tachibana." Zelda's greeting is weary. The heat's sapped even her iron will, and she's not making any effort to hide how tired she is. The water bottle is taken, its cap twisted off with a quick, savagely efficient turn of a wrist. "Thank you for bringing in supplies. Your efforts are keeping us on the march." Her expression falls, a little.

  "There should be more water here, even in the midst of summer." She shakes her head. "I now understand why." The headwaters at Zora's Domain are frozen. None of the rivers are flowing, and it's so hot that what's left are evapourating faster than they can be replenished.

  "Miss Helia." A faint nod in greeting. Lucianne does earns a look from Zelda, but the bag full of Orange-Sun Multivitamin Drinks earns a much longer and more dubious look. She'll stick with... water, for the moment.

  She's almost gotten used to the smell of Taavit's grog. It beats the acrid tang of char and smoke, and truth be told, she can't even smell it that much because of the aforementioned char and smoke. The reek of smoke is in everything. She continues her brushing somewhat unenthusiastically, trying to whisk the ash off the tired horse's pelt. It isn't working. More keeps settling. There's been a fine sifting of the stuff for the last day or two, which suggests they're skirting the edges of another fire.

  ...She's also been ignoring the way Taavit keeps watching her, although she does spare an annoyed look every so often; one that seems to say, I'm not made of glass, knock that off.

  Lex, however, earns a much more comprehensive look. Zelda's arm even stops long enough for the horse to turn his head and nudge at her with his nose, staggering her a half-step. Her brushing is distracted when she starts up again, frowning thoughtfully. She'd only heard the basics of whatever it was happened to Lex. Her hands had been full crossing the plains: Dangerous territory for a plethora of reasons, not the least of which involves keeping an eye out for fast-moving fires.

  To Lex's assertion that she's in the back ranks for a while, Zelda only shakes her head. Not a problem. There are Gorons around to serve as meatshields. They're very good at it. In fact, most of them are not too far away, camped around their heavy machinery with kegs of whatever it is they brew their Goron ale out of, a campfire, and lots of carousing and drunken singing. (They do not have the best singing voices.)

  "Mm." This, in response to Lightshard 18. The Hylian looks somewhat uncomfortable to be talking to a sword. It stirs uncomfortable memories-that-aren't-hers.

  She glances over to Rydia, and then back toward the direction the Gorons are (not so subtly) camped in. One shoulder rises and falls. "They can, when they must. Stones and rough road are of little concern to them; their bodies are made of rock."

  "Tired," she answers Lucianne, giving the horse a final pat and meandering toward the central area of the camp, plunking down on a rock. When she rubs her face, her hands come away slightly sooty. "And hot."

  Obvious princess is obvious.

     And as they come to a stop at the side of the cracked, parched earth crying out for water, Taavit's tail does a side-to-side twitch at the tip, and he hums to himself. He reaches to his MP3 player, fiddles with the buttons, and then settles on a song that seems to set a bounce to his step. Leaving it alone from there, he summarily starts to himself (again, what is WITH this kid) as he drops his bag to the ground, and begins to 'break camp'; setting the keg aside with a friendly pat.

    A grin to himself as he grabs the bottoms of his backpack, gives it a good shake, and then just upends it. A folded up disk of canvas and wires tied flat, a rolled up log of cloth, a small burlap bag of buckwheat, a stein, a second set of airbuds, a mess kit of two 'plates' wrapped in string around a set of wooden cutlery, and a laptop fall out. The last item is stuffed back into the bag; the disc of canvas and wire is untied, and then tossed at the ground, where it pops! Up! Into a travel tent the vague size one would buy for a child camping in their back yard; the rolled up cloth is then uprolled into a homemade bedroll which is spread out in the bottom of the tent, and the buckwheat - .. Oh. A burlap bag of buckwheat for a pillow. Smart kid. The second set of airbuds is shoved into his pocket as he tosses his backpack into the tent, claps dust off his hands, and turns to give a cursory glance about him. Zelda's withering looks are met with an ernest grin. Kid means well. Being annoying is just his way of being careful! 

    .. Of course, that tail of his tells another matter entirely. It hasn't left it's drooped, slightly close to leg placement in a while. 

    Concerned Fraggle is Concerned.

    "Only the intelligent ones," Lightshard 18 answers Rydia without missing a beat. "And considering the enemy evidently used me to smash Lex's cutlass to bits, I don't think that's going to be an issue regardless."

    Lex laughs weakly. "I'm ... doing pretty much as well as you can expect," she says, giving Taavit an uncertain little wave before turning back to Zelda. "Short version ... I got attacked by an elf who's part of this terrorist group called the Dawnfall, and I ... partly merged with Lightshard 18, who was cursed and was being mind-controlled at the time and stuff. And ... lost my arm and leg in the process."

    She gestures vaguely with her left hand. "These are sort of magical constructs, basically, and it's sort of like, I'm constantly maintaining a spell to keep them 'existent'. The curse is still sorta buried inside us. And I ..." Her tone falters. "... if it wakes up again, I have to worry about dying."

    "And possibly, apocalyptic damage to whatever Blossom we're in," says Lightshard 18, "but that depends on the fairly ridiculous belief that our world is the source of all life and magic in the World Tree." Her tone makes it clear that she is not someone who holds this belief, though she can't keep all the worry out of her tone.

    "What's with the hand?" Rydia asks of Lucianne as to why she's got her hand stuffed in her pocket.
    Rydia of Mist, asking all the important questions here. The girl really has no filters.
    Nevertheless Rydia gets answered by a talking sword, and she's not quite sure how to actually react. Does she talk back to the sword? Does she talk back to Lex? Especially when Lex details exactly what Rydia has missed in the last week or so. A curse.
    "Oh. That sucks. Sorry to hear that."

"I'm not sure Helia is a surname." Lucianne answers Zelda, with a slight frown; clearly unsure. She's about to say something else when Lightshard 18 brings /that/ particular belief up, and she folds over double giggling, her left arm leaving her pocket. It kind of looks like her hand was cut in half and the thumb was cut off; long enough ago that there's now skin and stuff covered it. Of course, Rydia has to ask. "Someone." She glances to Lex, "Thought it was a good idea to disarm me. I seem to be getting better, so I won't hold it against her."

    Yumi watches Taavit's pop-up tent with a fair bit of interest; suddenly, she's cursing herself for not thinking of the same. But she's stretching her allowance a little bit thin just bringing supplies right now, so she'll just have to do without. She shifts her attention instead to Lucianne again, laughing a little at the joke, and giving a faint nod. "Good, good. And I'm glad your hand is growing back. That's some regeneration you've got."

    Most of her concern right now is reserved for Lex, though. Mention of the curse still being present causes her a soft frown. "...Well, that is pretty ridiculous," she says, trying to sound optimistic. "There's worlds out there where magic is just a myth. Even just taking it from one world to another isn't always great. I bought the magic equivalent of a digital pet once, it stopped working within a couple days of taking it home. And my world /does/ have magic."

    She shakes her head, then adds, "But either way, Lex, if something does happen, I'll fight as hard as I have to to bring you back from the brink, or... or keep people from getting hurt, I guess."

  As Taavit breaks his own camp, the princess pulls her hair over a shoulder. She watches the others somewhat sideways as she tilts her head, deftly undoing the messy braid her hair was in, combing it out with her fingers and starting again. It's full of ash, soot, and goddesses know what else, but she doesn't seem to care so long as it's out of her face.

  A bath would be nice, but there are lots of things that would be nice. There's not even a mud flat on the plains, let alone an actual pond. The water is gone.

  To Lex's explanation, Zelda only blinks, somewhat owlishly. "I see. Curse?" That draws a sharper look, and it might be a little bit like a mouse being stared at by an owl. It fades after a moment. Too tired to bother. "If you require assistance with that, the lifting of curses is... something of a specialty of mine."

  "Then if you have something you would prefer me to call you, by all means," she says, to Lucianne with a shrug.

  Fortunately for Yumi it's as well they're not using tents. It's too damn hot for some of them to be comforable that way. It's also a good idea to keep an eye out for fires, monsters, Twilight Messengers, and less savoury things. With a dearth of villages to torment, various and sundry monsters have taken to roaming about Hyrule Field.

  Zelda just shakes her head. The others can hash out the mythologies, the current events, and the everything; she's too exhausted and overheated to bother, settling for just sitting there with her bottle of water until someone gets her attention directly.

    Rydia doesn't seem all too bothered by the sight of Lucianne's mangled hand. Between that and Lex's new curse the girl rubs at the back of her neck.
    "Geeze, it sounds like you sure had a hell of a time."
    Taavit breaks camp. That looks like a good idea right about now, considering the small Summoner's big yawn. But she doesn't go off to do that just yet.
    To Yumi: "What's a digital pet?"

    Taavit finally sucks in a deep breath - and regrets it immediately of course, coughing into a fist, and shaking his head. Oh, goodness. "Nothing like, " He wheezes out between coughs, "A good campfire." He coughs again, then adds, "And this is nothing like one!" with a spit aside at the smokey earth. Then, he considers those all around him, rubs his chin with a thumb and turns back to his tent. He grabs his backpack, shakes it up a bit, then opens it, shoving his arm deep into it. (Deeper than he possibly should be able to, but, no one's paying attention to the carpet bag, right? It's not like he's got a talking bumpershoot..) After a moment of shoulder deep rummaging, his tail jerks in delight as he finds what he's looking for, and pulls out a dingey jar. 

    Kicking his bag back into his tent, he's already unscrewing the lid from the jar as he's heading towards the ladies around him - Zelda first, of course, you *always* take care of your healers / scary powered women first. "Here, this might help. It isn't much but." He has the jar open by the time he's gotten there. The jar is... full of wet naps. The kind one normally gets with finger lickin' good chicken. With a faint citrus smell and everything. Not *large* by a long shot. 

    "You wipe your hands and face down with these, and it's *kind* of like a handwash in an envelope." He offers handiwipes to everyone- grabbing one himself and ripping the pouch open to show them all, as he wipes a layer of ash and soot off his face, hands, and the scruffy mutton chops and his tufty ears.

    Lex nods to Rydia. "I mean, yeah," she says. "I'm still putting myself back together." Beat. "Metaphorically, instead of literally, kind of thing."

    "Both of us are," Lightshard 18 interjects.

But then Lex raises her hands at Lucianne's snide remark. "Look, I was mind-controlled at the time!" she says. "I was literally not operating on my own initiative, and all that! I would absolutely never voluntarily --" She groans, and turns back to Yumi. She hesitates, and simply nods.

    She also nods to Zelda. "I'll, uh, we can talk when we're not all about to fall asleep for the night." She yawns. "... Wow, I'm kinda running on empty myself. This magical expenditure is yeahhhh." She smiles faintly to Rydia. "And yeah. 'A hell of a time' is the most accurate thing anyone has said to me, like, practically all week."

    She accepts the wipe from Taavit. "Oh, thanks," she says. She pockets it, though; she only just got here, and doesn't feel the need to use it just yet.

"Lucianne, Lucy, Luces, or Lucianne Helia will all work." Lucianne answers Zelda. "And maybe once I figure out whether or not Helia is a surname, we can include miss Helia; but it just... sounds wrong. And if it's a surname, it shouldn't, right?" A pause as she tries a phrase, "Mrs. Helia?" Another pause, "No that's even worse." She shrugs towards Lex, "I'm teasing." She shrugs. To Yumi, "Yeah it's... useful, I guess? It does hurt though, so I'd rather not rely on it. Good to know it's there, but..."

    "Oh, um." Yumi blushes a little, having forgotten her audience. "A digital pet, it's like... you know those games I play on my phone sometimes? It's a lot like that. It's a little gizmo that simulates a very simple pet. I thought it would be fun to have one along that I wouldn't have to worry about batteries or charging for when I'm offworld, but..." Shrug.

    Wait what? Wet naps? "Oh wow, thank you," Yumi says, reaching out to take one from Taavit gratefully. Not many opportunities out here to get cleaned up, so even a little thing like this is nice.

    While she's wiping her forehead off, the redhead nods to Lucianne. "Yeah, I don't blame you. I know people who can fix up a gunshot wound and all, but I'd still rather not ever get shot again if I can help it." Of course, she won't hesitate if the need arises, but... "If it starts itching, let me know, I can pick up some creams or something back home." Will regenerative healing like that itch? No telling.

    Rydia listens intently to Yumi as she accepts a WET NAP. She has come to eye Taavit less warily of late seeing as how the troll seems much too good natured to be a threat. Rydia usually has a decent intuition when it comes to reading people.
    "Thanks."
    Thus she busies herself with wiping her hands and face as she listens to Yumi.
    "Yumi. I'm an orphan from a backwater valley village that never had any contact with the outside world until very recently." She says very levelly. "I'm fine with being treated like an adult most of the time, but you say things like 'digital' and 'phone', and 'gizmo'. Use your 'talking to a child words' please." She says.
    Oh Rydia clearly understands Yumi and her explanation.
    She's just being sassy.

Lucianne rolls her eyes at Rydia, "What she says, except without the sass, and not the child voice." She takes a seat and sits down. "Because unlike the orphan from a backwater valley, I actually haven't been around enough to pick up what some of these techy words. The other day, someone asked for my 'prison phone'? or whatever."

    Yumi blinks. "I'm pretty sure you-" Her words halt as it hits her, and then her expression narrows into a silent, 'oh, uh-huh. I see what's going on here.' There's a pause for a moment, and then...

    She reaches out and pats Rydia on the head. Pat. Pat.

    "It's like a little magic box that has an imaginary friend inside, and you get to take care of the friend like a momma! Doesn't that sound fun~?" That's about two notches too far on the child-o-meter. Pat. Pat.

    To Lucianne, she adds, "It's a toy made from technology, but apparently some magical worlds have something similar. It's just kind of a fun diversion, I guess."

    Well, yeah, Zelda waves off the wipe; Taavit's ears droop a little, but. He can understand. Not everyone likes smelling like they just ate a bucket eight piece, twelve tenders, two bowls o' potates, a bowl of 'slaw, and four biscuits and gravy. Besides! She seems to be about as tired as her poor horse, he'll let her be. (Not everyone is a Trold, he tells himself; not everyone runs on nasty Toadbrew, bags of tough jerky and even tougher crusts of bread, music, and general party mood!)

    Once everyone else has taken an offered wet-nap, he closes the jar back up, and wanders back to his tent to toss the jar back in his bag; then he hefts the bag up, and nods to the ladies: "I am going to talk to the Rock Tro- ah, goron. See if they need anything they want to barter for. Then see if I can forage for it." He smiles genuinely, then tottles off that direction.

    Lex sputters and giggles at the 'Mrs. Helia' bit. She opens her mouth to respond to Yumi's comment about getting shot -- it seems like a very specific example to focus on -- then glances down at her arm and closes her mouth. She knows what she's going to be using as an example of grievous bodily harm for the foreseeable future.

    She waves goodbye to Taavit. "Y'know what, I'm gonna turn in myself," she says. "Guess I'll see everyone later, and all that."

    "Goodnight," says her sword.

    Once she has a sleeping bag set up, she settles down, and Lightshard 18 dematerializes in a pulse of green light and Elvish computer code which vanishes into her prosthetic limbs. A moment later, her prosthetic limbs do the same.

    Rydia looks smug when she gets patted on the head and gets the explanation to follow. The little sassmonster's mischief has been managed.
    But then, with a yawn, she rubs her eyes. "Okay. I get it. I'm gonna turn in now. We've got a long trip ahead of us in the morning." She mutters and wanders over to her chocobo. And curls right up against the dozing bird's fluffy feathers to get some sleep of her own.