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Water And Vinegar (Blink)

Started by Eckhart_Von_Musel, May 23, 2017, 04:52:25 AM

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Eckhart_Von_Musel

As Eckhart watched the girls demeanor change, the color flooded from his face. "Your-your sister?" he asked nervously. "B-but she was a human. My powers work funny on non-humans, I can't clot their blood- and I was able to clot hers."

Giving her a gentle smile, Eckhart would attempt to calm the girl down- as funny as it was for him to admit, he liked the snarky Kaida better than the mopey Kaida. "Maybe it was just somebody who looked like her?"

Blink

"Human?" the very idea so absurd that perhaps Cranberry had a point. There was no way this woman was her sister, despite the evidence pointing out that it was. Aiezith had confirmed Emelia was alive, and she was in the region no less. Then to top it all off a sighting not that far away from her with Eckhart.

Shaking her head she dismissed the thought. Never would Emelia allow herself to become such a thing, probably would have killed herself if it ever happened.

"Maybe I am wrong" she breathed sitting up straighter.

Taking a moment to gather herself Kaida stared at the boy as everything continued to play behind her eyes. This was going to take some time to sort through and clearly, Jaela was needed right here in Serendipity rather than the citadel watching it. If anyone could find out the truth it would be her.

"A deal is a deal. Although you never gave me a name your information was useful enough I guess."

Her eyes then trailed towards Eckhart's leg. "How long until you are no longer a useless gimp? A few hours? A day? If you are going to bake me a shepherd's pie then I assume we will need ingredients."

Eckhart_Von_Musel

To Eckhart's surprise, it worked- Kaida's mood seemed to lighten up a bit. When she asked how long it would take for his leg to heal, his eyes widened. "Does... she actually want to spend time with me?"

"What are the chances that she'll kill me if I refuse?"

"Um, well..." Eckhart began, using the tree to help him stand up. "Could you get me a stick I could use to prop myself up? We could leave after that, I guess. Pinemill isn't that far off..."

"This is going to get really weird, I can tell."

Blink

When Cranberry mentioned a stick Kaida almost fell into a fit of laughter. Seriously? A Stick!? Who did he think Kaida was? Like she would ever resort to slowly trudging beside some cripple. No, Kaida had her own definition of class and stick hobbling was not in it.

Without a word she started off towards the road, walking straight up to the carriage that had paused to look at the bodies. "Easy enough..." she thought as she made her way around it. Two commoners were standing outside it, talking as they looked over the bodies strewn to the side.

As she walked Kaida began to shift, transforming into her true form from the small girl to a snarling beast. By the time she was visible to them she was the vision of perfection in her eyes. Pointed scales, bore teeth and a whipping tail. It was no surprise the two took off running as they screamed on in horror. The horses strangely enough barely even reacting, animals always having a knack for picking up on her lack of ill intent in this case.

As soon as the two were out of sight Kaida shifted back, her face bearing a smirk. "Fucking humans... should have bowed down to my beauty."

Eckhart_Von_Musel

Eckhart watched on in horror as Kaida approached the two women who had gotten out of the carriage. "Oh Ansgar, she's going to kill them too!" he thought, trembling. As Kaida began to shift back into her dragon form, Eckhart would attempt to rush over to her in order to stop the attack he was sure was coming.

He of course stumbled and fell as pain shot through his leg. "Shit! Ow... ow, fucking damn it!" he muttered as he slowly crawled to the carriage. He was about to call out to Kaida, demand that she stop, but her following actions surprised him into silence. Instead of killing the two as he expected, she merely... scared them away. They ran away in a panic, and Kaida returned to her human form with a satisfied expression on her face.

Finally reaching the road, Eckhart looked up at what he supposed was his new traveling companion. "Um... are we just... stealing this?" he asked, a look of deep concern on his face. "This is really bad, I don't like it at all." he thought worriedly. "But I really don't see a way I can get out of it, not yet. Maybe I can lose her in Pinemill..."

"O-okay..." Eckhart said timidly as he managed to pull himself into the carriage. "Um, lets go before they come back."

Blink

Hopping onto the carriage Kaida waited for Cranberry to follow, of course offering no help in him climbing in. If anything she almost seemed irritated that she had to wait. Once the two were ready to go Kaida stared ahead at the stallion as it awaited command, and so she gave it.

"Onwards!" she shouted, the only reaction being a flick of the horses tail.

"Move on!" she tried again, with nothing more than an ear flick in response.

Almost growling she turned to Eckhart clearly irritated that the stupid beast refused to listen. "The horse is clearly broken. We must kill it so that it may at least die with a little honor. Shall I do the deed or do you want a go at it?"

Eckhart_Von_Musel

Upon pulling himself up into the carriage, Eckhart sat down next to his new "friend". The wooden seat wasn't exactly comfortable, but it was much better than walking. The dragon then commanded the horse to move.

Eckhart looked at Kaida in utter disbelief. "Um, that's not how horses work. You need to uh..." In truth. Eckhart had no experience dealing with horses- he was just as useless as she was. "Um, grab the reins?" he finished, a confused look on his face.

"This is going to be a long trip to the market, isn't it?'

Blink

"Reins?" Kaida asked herself as she looked at the two leather straps attached to the horse. "OF COURSE!" Now she was feeling a bit silly, the horse clearly not as 'broken' as she had initially thought.

It was obvious these two divine straps of leather were meant to in some way channel her inner thoughts to the steed. I mean... what else could they possibly be for? Taking hold Kaida then tensed her face, clearly pouring as much will as she could into them to get the horse to move. And of course... nothing happened.

Throwing down the reins she returned to her first initial reaction. "Yep. it's broken."

"I'm going to kill it."

Hopping off the carriage Kaida then strolled up to the horse and without notice lifted a hand to smack the beast. "USELESS!" she screamed as her palm slapped down onto its hide, causing the horse to buck before charging forwards.


Of course, Kaida's initial reaction wasn't to worry for Eckhart. No, instead she was smiling as she had finally figured out how to make it move.

"Nailed it."

Eckhart_Von_Musel

Eckhart watched in disbelief as the dragon held the reins momentarily and promptly give up. "Okay, nobody is this clueless. Who raised her?" Before Eckhart could say anything, Kaida proceeded to get out of the carriage and strike the horse in anger, causing it to break into a full gallop. The sudden speed nearly caused Eckhart to fall out of the carriage in shock. "Gah! What the hell did you do!" he screamed in a panic.

Eckhart reached for the reins, only to find they had fallen out of place- they were now being dragged through the dirt under the horses feet. "Shit, now what do I do?" Looking behind him, he could see Kaida in the distance doing nothing. Even from this far it was easy to make out the smug expression on her face. "Oh, I get it!" Eckhart thought with a grim smile. "This is her idea of a practical joke! Except the punchline is that I die!"

Eckhart slumped back into his seat, half laughing, half crying. "Why is this happening? Does fate have something against me or what?"

Blink

It seemed as though Cranberry was enjoying himself as well, or at least Kaida thought he was. She could hear him laughing as the carriage was whisked away and was happy the two had finally found some common ground on the definition of fun.

"Fun" she thought, her face suddenly turning serious.

"No time for that" she muttered to herself while pushing off her heal, slowly walking in the direction of the now runaway carriage. Of course, she was in no real hurry to save Eckhart, and if anything the worst possible scenario would be the contraption crashes and he is gravely wounded.

While others would see this as a problem Kaida saw the opportunity behind it. Maybe, just maybe he would then realize what it is he could actually do. "No time for that either", her pace suddenly quickening as she began to transform again. It was the only practical way to reach him in time, flying clearly the faster form of travel.

Now airborne Kaida flew above the carriage and then past it, landing in the path the horse would surely take. Just as quickly as she had turned into a beast she turned back, confidently standing in the path of destruction with one arm outstretched in front of her, palm flat as she commanded for the horse to stop.

Most others would probably even show a flicker of fear in their eye but not Kaida. Even as the stallion barrelled forwards towards her she did not even flinch, still holding her hand up for the beast to stop. Her eyes though were locked on the horse and a small flicker of life played behind them.

Suddenly the horse halted, completely calm as it acted it was never in fear, to begin with. Again Kaida displayed her triumph with nothing more than a smirk on her face. "Cranberry? You still alive?"

Making her way around the carriage she stood on her toes to look inside, seeing Eckhart laying back within. "Shall I try to make it go again or do you want to give it a try?"

Eckhart_Von_Musel

With a sudden jolt, the carriage came to a halt. The sudden stop caused Eckhart to fall out of his seat and onto the carriage floor. "Ow! Ansgar damn it!" Slowly pushing himself back into his seat, Eckhart turned to look at the dragon, who was now peering into the carriage to stare at him.

"No. I'm dead. You killed me." he told her flatly. "I'll handle the carriage, just get in and try not to break anything else." Grabbing the reins, Eckhart would wait for Kaida to enter the carriage. When she had, he would pull gently on the reigns, causing the horse to break into a steady trot. Surprising himself with how easy driving the carriage was, he turned to look at Kaida in shock.

"Wow. I'm having a lot of trouble here Kaida, maybe we should try it your way again."

Blink

Despite his arrogance, Kaida complied, climbing back into the carriage without another word. It wasn't until he picked up the reigns and made the horse move forwards at a steed pace Kaida felt she had been duped. Did he know how to make it go the entire time? "Asshole"

At his remark of trying things her way again, Kaida smirked, trying not to show how much his comment had hit a nerve. "Well, my way would have gotten us there faster... even if you were dead by then."

The way she spoke of Eckhart's death was as if it would not even bother her. As if he would be nothing more than a name to add to the long list of casualties she had caused in her lifetime. Leaning back Kaida relaxed, almost enjoying the slow pace they were now moving at.

"So Cranberry tell me something. What did you think of Jaela?" It was visually evident that Kaida was entertained at the very mention of her former death guard soldier. "She is quite entertaining is she not?"

Eckhart_Von_Musel

"Jaela."

Eckhart's eye twitched. "I really liked her. She was really nice to me, and she was funny too." His eyes focused on the road ahead of him, and Eckhart's voice grew noticeably bitter. "That's why I was disappointed to find out that our friendship had been built on false pretenses."

Eckhart went quiet for a few moments, then continued. "Y'know, it takes a certain kind of person to do that. Just... pretend to like somebody like that." He turned to look Kaida in the eyes, a stoic expression etched onto his face. "Next time you want to spy on me, do it yourself. I don't like feeling used."

With that, Eckhart would turn back to the road and continue driving.

Blink

Kaida scoffed at his accusation. "Well if you really knew her you would know I only sent her to keep an eye on you. Whatever conversation transpired beyond her watching you was completely on her."

Pausing to recall Jaela's report a sly smile appeared on her face. "But I wouldn't put anything past her. She is the best at what she does because honestly..." Kaida finally turned to meet his gaze only to find that Eckhart was now looking ahead.

"... Who is going to suspect a dimwit like her of anything?"

Eckhart_Von_Musel

Eckhart let out a small huff. "So she's a bitch all on her own then? That's lovely." He wished Kaida hadn't brought her up- just thinking about Jaela made Eckhart mad. "I don't wanna talk about this, okay? Look, we're just about there."

After another few minutes of travel, they had arrived. As he brought the carriage to a stop, Eckhart looked around in awe. The town of Pinemill was bustling with activity. Colorful flags and banners lined the main street, and in the distance Eckhart could hear festive music being played. "I guess there's some kind of event going on today." he said quietly. "I wonder what the occasion is?"

Stepping out of the carriage, Eckhart noticed that his leg felt a bit better- he could walk on it now, albeit with a limp. He turned to Kaida. "Shall we? The market can't be too far from here."

Blink

Even Kaida was almost taken with the sight of Pinemill so alive. "Clearly it is a celebration in my honor." Kaida joked, knowing full well that even she wasn't respected enough to receive such a fanfare.

Following behind Cranberry, the young dragon took note of his ability to now walk, however, crippled it may have been. "Progress" she thought as he turned to her, clearly more intent on getting to the market than she thought.

"Just follow all the noise, I am sure we can find it." Kaida then pulled her coin pouch from a pocket inside of her tunic, the small ornate bag plump with coins. "Spare no expense as my pallet is extremely sensitive." Her eyes then darted towards him, letting on that he best not feed her horse shit or something like that.

Narrowing her eyes she then began to convince herself that he would do such a thing. "I'm watching you" a hiss within her mind.

Eckhart_Von_Musel

Eckhart's eyes widened as he took the coin purse from Kaida. "It's so heavy! There's gotta be a few thousands bits in here, at least!" He flashed a goofy smile at the young dragon. "Sure! I've never had expensive food before! This should be fun!"  As Eckhart began to walk in the direction he assumed the market was in, he daydreamed about cooking. "It's really been too long since I was able to make something good." he thought wistfully. "Man, I cant wait!"

"Oh, there you are. I was wondering where you'd run off to."

Looking down, Eckhart saw his familiar approaching him. "Oh, hey Belladonna. I, uh, got sidetracked."

Belladonna gave him a funny look before jumping up onto his shoulders and making herself comfortable on top of his backpack. Eckhart slowed down his pace so she wouldn't fall off. "I see." she said dismissively. "So, who's the porcelain girl? She looks kinda pissed."

Eckhart grimaced. "That's Kaida. I told you about her, remember?"

"The dragon who wants to kill you? I thought you made that up." Belladonna turned to look at Kaida and purred in amusement. "You should see the look she's giving you right now."

Eckhart went red in the face. "Shit, that's right- only I can understand what Bella's saying." Turning around to face his new traveling companion, he gave her a sheepish grin. "Haha, sorry! I forgot to tell you about Belladonna..."

Blink


"Never had expensive food before? What in the hell has he been eating then!?" the very thought of Cranberry sneaking horse manure in her food blurring into Eckhart eating manure himself. "Poor kid"

As she was lost in her own thoughts Kaida missed the entrance of the black feline now sitting on Eckhart's shoulder. "Kill it" the first thought to cross her mind as she stared down the feline. However, her complete hatred towards the rodent shifted to confused as Eckhart began talking to it.

"What in the ever living..." Her head even twisted a bit as she tried to process what was happening. He was speaking to this feline as if it were a person and pointing out Kaida to it like it had asked.

Her eys then narrowed on the beast, Kaida almost jumping back when the cat caught her staring at it. Clearly, she was embarrassed she had been caught studying it. Immediately she looked over her shoulder as if the cat may be looking at someone else, but no... it was her.

Finally, Eckhart began speaking to her, telling her the cat was named Belladonna. "Listen, Eckhart..." Kaida took a step towards him, making sure to situate herself on the side of him that the cat was not. Leaning in she then whispered, looking like an idiot trying to keep something secret from the feline.

"I know you think me to be an animal but..." her eyes flicked towards the black thing and then back to Cranberry. "... I do not eat cats. Can't you find something else to put in the pie."

Eckhart_Von_Musel

Kaida appeared dumbfounded, just as Belladonna had said. She slowly walked in front of him and leaned in to whisper into his ear.

"I know you think me to be an animal but... I do not eat cats. Can't you find something else to put in the pie?"

Eckhart's eyes widened, but Belladonna's purring got louder. "She knows I can hear her, right? Let me talk to her, she's funny."

"Oh, um, right." Eckhart said. "I forgot about the permission thing. Ah, you may talk to her."

"Thank you." Belladonna purred. She jumped off of Eckhart's backpack and onto the dragon's shoulder. "How's it going, China Doll?"

Anxiety shot through Eckhart like a knife. "Sweet Ansgar, don't antagonize her! You'll get us killed!"

Blink

Acting as if she had not just spoken Cranberry began talking to the... thing.... again.. "No it may not!" she thought as he gave the feline permission to speak to her. "What the hell does he think I am? An animal whisperer!?" The entire time her face reacted to her most inner thoughts, presumably making her seem a bit senile at this point.

Her crazy expression was only worsened when the cat purred again, except this time she heard words behind it. "What!?" Her exclamation not only from suddenly being able to understand a creature as foul as this, but also because it had just so rudely jumped onto her shoulder.

Swatting the cat off of her shoulder Kaida's eyes shifted, looking less human and more reptilian than they normally appeared in this form. Something about this creature repulsed her deep from within.

Clearly agitated Kaida stood with one fist clenched as she swept some cat hair off her shoulder with the other. Completely ignoring the name she was called her gaze then found Eckhart and it was very clear that she was not happy.

"If that beast jumps on me again I will kill it. Do you understand?" Her eyes then trailed towards the cat. "I am not a tree! You do not climb on me!" A low growl then escaped her throat, almost as fierce as if she were in her dragon form at this moment.

"I retract my previous statement. You may put the cat in the pie."

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