Time
Moderator 
THE ONE PIECE! THE ONE PIECE IS REAL!!
Posts: 449
|
Post by Time on Aug 27, 2023 17:47:41 GMT
Roman was starting to get a better idea of King's views. Brutality was probably very common to him.... In fact, Roman began to wonder an interesting thought. What if these Keys affected someone's demeanor? If so, Brutality, conquering, and violent threats would be a core attribute to King as much as breathing was to living.
He could likely test this theory with one of the other stonelings, but he lowered his head in defeat none the less. Magic it seemed would not be so simple for him to even remotely achieve. ""Okay, I suppose I shouldn't be too surprised. It'll likely take too much time and be wasteful on resources if I try to experiment. Especially if gold is a standard requirement for all rituals. So we should get straight into the meat of this. Mainly obtaining the gold.". Roman clarified.
He did take note that King had never heard of pacts or something, nor even of things like elves and dwarves. He had also mentioned other realms, so perhaps there were just things that didn't have logical reasoning to them. None the less, Roman would have to ponder on it later.
"So.... Our main problem right now is the acquisition of gold. I for one am homeless at the moment, and have no funds outside of what I require to survive for a week. The Mall was where I was planning to stay since in my world it's under my name. However, circumstances being, Do you care if I reside in it? Second, If I am to gather funds for gold, I need to work. This also means that I need something to start a business plan. The problem is however that I can't exactly have Stonelings wandering about in the Mall if I open it up again. Sooo.... I need something to sell. Do you have any suggestions?". Roman worried that the Dragon would just tell him that it wasn't any of it's business, in which case, it'd be a problem. At the moment, without funding, he'd likely end up like his father. "actually.... You said your denizens mine right? Doesn't that mean they harvest metals and gems on occasion?"
|
|
|
|
Post by swapgo on Aug 27, 2023 20:07:38 GMT
The dragon straightened up and crossed his forepaws, yet elicited a wistful groan, as if he was simultaneously glad that they could begin setting things in motion, but disappointed that the time for reminiscing was cut short. "I see it's been a hectic week", the dragon mulled. Sure, Roman had already tried to explain a lot of his current situation, but the dragon likely glossed over all of it for not grasping the words. "As I said once, the mall belongs to you, though, I'm told you 'let the sun in' somehow? That's terribly inconvenient for us to keep contact", he tlted his head aside. "Something to barter? Ah yes, it's like a deluxe market, that edifice, right? Well, you have its belongings. When we poured into the rift, my subjects took everything they could over the span of several nights, and stored it in what I call the Vault, you can peruse it if you wish", he waved, it answered where he was getting these sundries from. "They have disposed of certain things that 'smell dead' but it should largely be on one piece"
The dragon didn't flinch, but his aide seemed quite riled at the idea of harvesting gems, to which King replied with a soothing hush. "I presume you are unaware, but I request you don't use my subjects as fowl", he said in strict calm, apparently, the gems on the walls weren't being dug out for ceremonial or magical use; they were Stone Kin waiting to be born. "Though there is perhaps something that might be of use to you", he pondered, leaning forward to relay a message to his aide, who made stomping steps to vent off. "Metal gets in the way all the time, it is litter, perhaps some summer cleaning is due"
|
|
Time
Moderator
THE ONE PIECE! THE ONE PIECE IS REAL!!
Posts: 449
|
Post by Time on Aug 27, 2023 21:42:09 GMT
Roman breathed a bit of a sigh of relief mentally. In all honesty, considering that most of those books were in pristine condition Roman was hopeful that he could find useful stock to at least sell online to begin the starting funds. Still, as King mentioned the 'sun' incident, Roman chuckled in embarrassment. "A right. I basically did what is the equivalent to lighting candles about the place. REALLY bright candles. At the time I considered it my best line of self defence."
Of course, Roman watched as King's aide seemed to get riled as Roman mentioned the question of resources. When King mentioned fowl, Roman himself looked awfully confused and even tilted his own head to indicate as such. "I'm.... Sorry? I don't quite understand what you're implying." . Roman watched as the aide stomped off, before turning back as he continued, "What do you mean by that? I don't even think they're considered fowl.... Actually, better question, what exactly are they called? The ones I met called themselves Stone Kin, or Kin of stone. Also, why was your aide so angry right then? And before you ask, no, I've never seen creatures like them... Well ... Actually, they kind of remind me of Kobolds, but I'm half afraid that those are a different race from a different realm as well.... Or human fantasy.". Roman questioned and mused. He did nodd and bow his head at the mention of the metal being given to him. Even something like iron could be sold if raw, and it could only help him even more.
|
|
|
|
Post by swapgo on Aug 28, 2023 0:20:34 GMT
"Vicious, exploiting their darksight and lack of eyelids", the King complimented his quick thinking, was he absolved? "But well, such were the circumstances", he dismissed the line of thought, watching his aide return and sit cross-armed and legged on his chair, a bit slower to forgive.
"They're the Kin of Stone, that's as much of a name they have", the King shrugged with his wings. "And these gems you see through these walls are not sterile decors, they're beating hearts, the next generation. Taking them for profit would be tantamount to kidnapping", he explained. "A conscious, thinking, immobile conscience, and to think of the barbaric 'refinements' humans perform of these minerals. I wouldn't stand by it", he waxed dramatic, raising his claw to his maw in exagerated despair, then winking an eye towards Roman.
|
|
Time
Moderator
THE ONE PIECE! THE ONE PIECE IS REAL!!
Posts: 449
|
Post by Time on Aug 28, 2023 0:47:03 GMT
Roman was starting to understand something. King was vicious. No, vicious wasn't the right word. He knew what power was, and that it came in many forms. Roman was certain that admiration towards overpowering one's prey was also in King's tastes.
Once the Aide returned, and it was explained as to what they were called, Roman suddenly looked up at King's sudden call, noticing the wink. Looking at the dragon in with a blank state, Roman tried to piece together what had been said, and what was implied, before suddenly catching on.
Unfortunately Roman was not a good actor, but he could at the very least try and go with the overly exaggerated route. His face looking between the aide and the dragon, his face slowly morphed into horror, his lips lowering into as best as he could to show terror before he suddenly fell to his knees, "I-i-i implied no such thing your grace! Had I or my Kin known!" . Roman played along as he suddenly clasped his hands together in a praying motion before lowering down even more before the two, his face looking up to the dragon as his voice shook, before he remembered something.
His aide was blind.
Quickly realizing it, Roman gestured to the king by looking as though he was growling though being careful to be silent.
|
|
|
|
Post by swapgo on Aug 28, 2023 1:42:08 GMT
The king gave a soft chuckle "Now now, this one is younger, more brash and bold. We'll hold off retribution for today, there will be plenty of time to make ammends. Now then, do consign his name to the mountain", he asked of his aide, who almost tipped his seat standing up. He whispered something into the walls, and Roman could feel the mountain shake in coordinated clamor, the aide hobbled back to his seat and leaned his head, "We expect much, Kin of Sun", he added sternly, his King nodding in satisfaction. "Cheers to you, you are now 'him', my subjects will aid you in any capacity they are able", he laid down, leaning onto his side to approach his stack of magnified books. "When night falls and they can join us in the summit, we might be able to arrange things more favorably, in the meantime, make yourself useful, will you? There's myriads of knickknacks in the Vault that my subjects haven't figured out, I'd appreciate if you surprised me"
|
|
Time
Moderator
THE ONE PIECE! THE ONE PIECE IS REAL!!
Posts: 449
|
Post by Time on Aug 28, 2023 2:48:26 GMT
Roman did feel guilty. That much was certain. Honestly, he had killed wild animals. Hunting and fishing were something his dad had taught him, but it was different when you realize that it was an unnecessary killing. At least when you killed fir hunting, you did it to feed yourself, and the prey didn't talk.
Hearing King decide to cut it short meant that this was more tactile than a trick. If the King gave an order, that was it. Of course, the punishment was not simply swept under the rug, and the Aide's words rung true. In all honesty, Roman realized that King's words did not absolve him, nor did it settle the no doubt feud between himself and the Aide. Roman would have sighed if it wasn't for the fact he needed to answer.
"Yes King! Thank you for giving me a chance to correct myself. I shall not disappoint!" Roman proclaimed as he sighed in relief. "Thank you for this Honor King. I shall get to work posthaste!". Roman said, as he stood and awaited further instruction from King, Aide, or anyone else.
|
|
|
|
Post by swapgo on Aug 28, 2023 11:48:08 GMT
"Is 'posthaste' the opposite of haste?", King looked at him quizzically, seeing that Roman made such flattering claims while remaining flatfooted, his aide waved his wrist around as if to urge Roman to leave while the dragon reached in to resume his reading.
Once Roman let the court and returned to pitch darkness, he would be awaited by a group of three pairs of eyes. "King wants you to see this, follow", they urged him, and moved to their left, hopefully he remembered the etiquete around using his grand dominion over the sun. The walk was somewhat lengthy, and while there were many glinting sights and sounds in the dark, it would be quite dangerous to try and avert his gaze from the path, for the carved rock still presented irregularities, as it blended from soft soil to hard stone to rough obsidian, perhaps the critters would entertain questions at least.
|
|
Time
Moderator
THE ONE PIECE! THE ONE PIECE IS REAL!!
Posts: 449
|
Post by Time on Aug 28, 2023 17:51:49 GMT
"I... I presume is means after haste." , Roman clarified. He said it more to sound fancy, but decided that perhaps not making a fool of himself is better than trying to sound elaborate or eloquent. Quickly before King could call him out on his words, Roman followed the Aide's gesture before stopping before the three. Nodding his head, Roman pulled out his phone again, pointing the screen down as he turned it on, being particular to avoid shining the light on anything more than their clawed feet at most in order to illuminate his path.
Following, Roman realized that outside of the occasional glint, or the sounds of work; Roman had no honest idea about what to think of these things. Do they even have genders if they are born from gemstones? Deciding to break the silence, Roman asked, "You three have names?" deciding to go with small talk and short sentences.
|
|
|
|
Post by swapgo on Aug 28, 2023 21:49:51 GMT
"Name? What's a name? You have name? No, you have name? No, you have name? Midday food is not name", they bounced off of each other, each of their voices being eerily similar, their proximity making it able to tell which was which even more difficult. "You have name?", one of them barked again, and Roman could see one of them had craned their head all the way back, staring at him with crimson eyes and walking perfectly in a straight line, their hands held by their comrades. "Is name a bright thing? We have bright thing, but sun too bright", another one asked, they all glinted of different colors, of opal, tourmaline, and amber, but it didn't seem to be an identifying feature. King insisted that they used nuanced sounds to distinguish each other, perhaps it would pay to listen in when they use pronouns of some description.
The group of three stepped aside, apparently they had made it to their destination. "Go in. None of us there, King allows your Sun", from what he could see at first glance, there was a wide entry to this place, it was strangely familiar.
|
|
Time
Moderator
THE ONE PIECE! THE ONE PIECE IS REAL!!
Posts: 449
|
Post by Time on Aug 29, 2023 0:23:34 GMT
Roman listened to the Quarrel about what Name was, before he remembered that King had mentioned they identified individuals by the tones of their voices. They all sounded eerily similar to each other. Maybe it was a tone he couldn't audibly hear. Soon, they asked if he had name, and then asked if name was bright thing.
Roman suddenly realized that name wasn't the right word for them. "Name is sound.", Roman started, before thinking how to explain. Name is used to give meaning. Like King is sound for King. Him is sound for me. Roman is also sound for me. What name is you?". Roman asked again, after trying his best to explain. Perhaps what King said was part of the point. Without a concept for names and their purpose..... Roman's mind clicked at that last part. You call me Him, and I answer. You call me Roman, and I answer. What I call you?"
After an answer was given, and they made it to the vault, Roman would look at the wide entrance, and wonder why it seemed familiar. Once he was ahead of the Stone Kins, he would rotate his phone after blackening the screen, shaking it once more to use the flashlight to see a bit farther in.
|
|
|
|
Post by swapgo on Aug 29, 2023 1:57:21 GMT
The creatures muttered among each other, at the very least sound is something like they can grasp. "King is King and you are you and he is he and he is he and me is me", one of them rolled out as if it was perfectly normal, "Name is you? He? Him? Me?", another one interjected, while the third one complained and attempted to lead them away "Sun is strange".
Once Roman illuminated the inside, he would be met with an alien environment, yet a familiar layout. Rooms and comparments had been carved out of stone and congealed magma, in perfect mimicry of the mall's own layout. The former store signs were embedded on the stone, at least most of them, some of them were arranged incorrectly, but they were there in their entirety. There was a lot of empty space, on account of none of the space actually being used as a commodity, instead, one could see boxes in the corners of each of the 'vault''s compartments, where every piece of merchandise was perfectly preserved and stored. There were no escalators, instead there was a helix-like slant with grooves for easier grip that led to the second floor. The replacement for the food court was illuminated, but not by sunlight, but by a faint cleam coming from white bioluminescent plants growing from the roof. Everything was there, awaiting someone to put it to use.
|
|
Time
Moderator
THE ONE PIECE! THE ONE PIECE IS REAL!!
Posts: 449
|
Post by Time on Aug 29, 2023 2:42:27 GMT
Roman wanted to sigh in frustration, but decided better against it. "Ignore me. Sun Kin things.". Roman stated, before moving into the vault. It was a surprisingly good replica of the mall. Seeing the signs, and boxes, he smiled but then became a bit confused. King had mentioned that there was stuff that had been taken. The only things thrown out were the dead smelling things. That indicated that it was likely only food and maybe plants, but then why had all of this merchandise been left behind? Usually, Liquidation was a common thing, but even if it wasn't, then there was the problem of why the banks or loan office didn't take the merchandise?
How long had that cave entrance existed?
Roman's mind wandered at the thought, as he looked up, noticing now that the ceiling had some sort of glowing moss. If the Stone Kin were capable of handling only this amount of light, then Roman now had a solid idea of what he could possibly use. The problem was how intolerant they were to exposure. Moving along, Roman browsed the shops, before seeing two that he considered to be useful for his immediate situation. First, Party Town, a store that was prevalent in malls and had survived enough to make their own stores stand out. Any of your party needs found here. Then there was Radio Shed, a electronic store which was not nearly as fortunate in it's survival. These two stores could allow him to sell collector items if he was lucky. At least a HAM radio or some cameras could be made use of. The other store, Party Town, could help him by supplying him glowsticks if they weren't dead already. That, and flimsy sunglasses. Something that could help reduce the glare from lights for them.
Heading into the two stores, he inspected the boxes.
|
|
|
|
Post by swapgo on Aug 29, 2023 16:49:31 GMT
Party Town was on the first floor, a relatively small corner, perhaps it hadn't fully hit its stride back then. The items had a strange texture when touched, as if they reacted to being disturbed in their perfectly still corner, but after a moment of doubt, they behaved all the same. Sifting through all the colorful confetti, noisy knicknacks, and the odd candy boxes that should be long expired by now, he would find a box of glowsticks. Cracking one would confirm that they were still working, which should not be a thing. Trying to scour for something to give the stonelings some semblance of protection was a less fruitful endeavor, not only were there specifically very few of the thing he was looking for, but party items like this were very loose, it would be hard for him to wear them with any degree of tightness, let alone skittering critters that climb and dig through walls and also didn't share a human skull, perhaps a different type of protective eyewear was in order.
Radio Shed was on the second floor and was given quite a bit of space. There were fewer boxes and a lot of items just on display, all completely bereft of dust, despite the fact that they were on a surprisingly well ventilated underground cave, the anteane didn't budge with the breeze, nor was the plastic caked in dirt. Should he hold onto them, he would notice this stillness would slowly fade, and the object would behave less like a very thick carbon cutout. The equipment had no batteries, of course, sold separately, surely he could find some of those in a hardware store.
|
|
Time
Moderator
THE ONE PIECE! THE ONE PIECE IS REAL!!
Posts: 449
|
Post by Time on Aug 29, 2023 20:52:23 GMT
Roman smiled as he looked at the glowing yellow stick of chemicals. At least they were fine, but most of the sunglasses were flimsy at best, and definitely not optimal for modification, nor would they be effective against light as he tested one out. Looking at the boxes, Roman suddenly realized something as he closed them, but figured it was simply what king had ordered, having clean boxes.
That was what Roman assumed until he entered Radio Shed and noticed the stillness of it. How everything looked.... Off. Eerie even. As he witnessed the strange phenomenon, Roman couldn't help but wonder why everything was in pristine condition. No sign of rust, mold, dry rot or even signs of agin-
Roman looked up in realization. Aging.... King had mentioned that this world was in stasis, frozen in time! This essentially meant that anything that had been brought here was in perfect condition as the day it had been brought in. A vintage storage freezer in a sense! But what did that mean for everything else? His thoughts wandered. King would likely explain what other effects there were. For now, Roman collected the box of radio sets, and moved them to the door. He explored a bit more. Looking for hardware and collector shops. Hell, he even checked for a shoe store and with a bit of hesitation the jewelry shop.
|
|
