westfallcorndog | Agents of Sheildcraft

Entry tags:

naugus,
steve

Agents of Sheildcraft

Harrow wanders the roads from the Residential district toward the Parklands with his head low, his worgen nose close to the ground sniffing and snuffling as he goes. He isn't above walking on all fours in his worgen form, at least so long as his hands are bound to his wrists.

Naugus's tower is such a unique landmark that it would be impossible to miss it even if he didn't have the familiar smell of his new pal Verity to follow. The sight of green crystal on a wizard's castle undeniably points to this being the work of a certain Ixis. Harrow approaches on all fours and doesn't stand like a civilized Mobian should until he's just at the entrance.

He pounds his fist against the green crystal door and hollers upwards, "Ixiiiiis! It's Harrowheart! I want to ask about your skills!"

Once he's loudly made himself known he steps back and gazes up towards one of the windows, as if he expects to see that bat-eared beast looking down on him.

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"Gold is near useless to me anyhow. Were it coin, I always prefer silver. A great deal more uses when it comes to magicks."

Naugus hums and thinks, running his claw down his beard as he ponders. Then there's a half of a grin creeping across one side of his face.

"I don't suppose you'd care to just...make an agreement? Offer me a service in the future that I can call in when I am in need?"

The look of relief on Harrowheart's face! His ears swivel backwards for a half-second before perking up in Naugus's direction again. He restrains his smile and keeps it as casual as he can.

"A favor's perfect! I'll agree to that! Any old favor, really, don't matter to me."

Oh, Harrowheart, how little you know. Or... How little you care?

He wiggles around on the couch until he's sitting up straight with his arms spread out over the back of the couch.

"I wanted to ask if you could conjure up your crystals from pure air, or if you had to have a real object to turn into crystal. I was hopin' you might be open to the idea of makin' me a weapon outta your gems, and I needed to know if I had to talk to a blacksmith first."

Edited 2015-12-22 13:57 (UTC)

"Oh, I do need an inanimate object to start with, but it can be anything. Give me something inorganic, regardless of shape or size and I will transform it into crystal and shape it into what you desire. But what manner of weapon? A blade? A bludgeon? I happen to have a keen talent for constructing weaponry! I used to do it regularly for our warlord."

"A shield," Harrow says. "But not for me. It's for my buddy, Steve. Steve Rogers. You ever met him? He's a little guy, big heart and big ideals, but less muscle than a chicken wing and no magic to boot. I tried to train him in some ice castin' but it ain't for him. Gave him a little shield and he started usin' it like a natural, though.

"He wants to be a soldier real bad. I figured it'd be a good way for him to stay safe when he goes back to fight the war on his world."

"A shield? Easily done. But what sort? If he's a small one, a buckler may be best. Hardly fit to give someone scrawny the likes of a scutum or heater." Guess someone really does know his shit when it comes to weapons and armour.

"When does this have to be constructed? Immediately? Soon?"

"Soon might be nice. I wanted to give it to him for Earth's 'Christmas' holiday, but I kinda hemmed and hawed and now it's almost the date. Maybe by New Year's, maybe a little after? I was thinkin' you and I could think up some plans that I take to an artist to make a porcelain model of it. Then I'd come back here and you could crystalize it. Does it take a real long time to crystalize? I only ever saw you make that leaf, and that was a real small little thing."

A moment passes before he laughs quietly. "I still got it. The leaf, I mean." What a sentimental dog.

His ears twitch with the last minute memory that Naugus asked him one last important question. "As for what kind, I was sorta thinkin' a kite shield? But the trainin' shield I gave him was a buckler. He handled it well, and the round shape was nice and smooth for easy maneuverin'. I think I like the idea of a buckler, more I think about it. Kite shields're probably off the table, not mobile enough.

"How heavy is the crystal you make? Can you decide how much it weighs? Since it's unbreakable, I figure in theory that means it could be real thin and light but still be real, real strong. That right?"

Guess who's home from her own present-related trek around the Nexus? This chick! There is much stomping of boots and rustling of layers of clothes being removed before she comes into view. And what a view.

"Oh, sorry, didn't know you had company. Hey, Harrowheart." She's obviously curious about what's going on, but she's got things to put away so she'll head into the kitchen to sort that out. Do please keep talking, it's not like she can hear you from just over there.

Naugus glances over when Verity arrives, watching the process of her stomping snow from her boots before a twitch of a finger causes those lumps of slush to vapour. Why bother cleaning when you've got elemental magic!

"Welcome home, Verity." It's officially home now for her. Not a squat or a crash pad; home. It feels natural to say at this point, just like having her around feels right.

His hello done, Naugus turns his attention back to Harrowheart, picking up the line of inquiry and answer once again. "That all sounds fine. And the process is instant; I have built barricades the size of castle walls in moments and transformed entire landscapes to my tastes. What is a little shield?" He scoffs, twirling his staff once more.

"And certainly, it can be quite thin before it resembles anything brittle. There are always...slight weaknesses to the craft, of course. Magic is not always absolute." He glances towards Verity, then Harrowheart, then hopes that didn't look shifty. It absolutely did. Someone just doesn't feel right admitting there could be weaknesses to what he does. "But I'm sure that won't factor in, given the sort your friend will likely fight with it."

Harrow beams at Verity, smiling broadly with his massive fangs. He waves one hand in a casual little greeting, and then she's gone.

"Verity!" he calls, loud and deep. "You ain't allowed to be here! I'm makin'a present for Steve and since you got the truth curse you're gonna go blabbin' to him!" Because that's how that curse works, right?

He leans in closer to Naugus and attempts to whisper, but his voice is deep and large and his throat not exactly made for whispering. He's not at all stealthy.

"So there's a counter-magic? Makes sense. Every magic's got a counter-magic. Whatever's good against yours is bad against somethin' else I'm sure. I almost wanna ask, just so Steve knows what to watch out for, but... Firstly I don't wanna make you spill your beans. I wouldn't want folks knowin' what kills me, after all. And second, Steve's world ain't really got magic. I think he'll be safe no matter what."

'Home' is a nice word, and has her smiling. Home, where someone magics away the slush so she doesn't have to mop, has her downright grinning.

Can they hear her eyes rolling from over there? "It doesn't work that way, Harrow." But she's totally not eavesdropping! Really. You can tell by the fact she's staying out of the conversation until she can't anymore. "Steve's world has magic, he just hasn't seen it. I'm making hot chocolate, anyone want some?"

Edited 2015-12-25 18:33 (UTC)

"I'm fine. And...can you even drink that, Harrowheart? You are a canine, after all." And we know how well those go with chocolate goodies. The mage would have possibly not said anything and gleefully watched the misery that would ensue, but this is in his tower. No dogbarf in the tower, please.

He mulls over for a moment this matter of weaknesses and counter-magic. He can't lie about it because Verity's back now. It was all that kept him honest about there being potential flaws or a breaking point in the make at all.

"...Just be careful with light magic," he finally admits. Verity's seen his aversion to a degree in the past, might as well own up. "It isn't inferior to such magicks, but it has a way of undoing the spellcraft that formed the crystals in the first place."

"I can eat and drink whatever I want," Harrow says a little proudly as he crosses one doggy leg over the other. "I'm dead, only thing that'd do me bad is if I drank some Holy water."

He winks at Naugus. "Crystals ain't the only thing that come undone around it. Remember how I told you I'm kind of a reverse paladin? They were made to kill folks like me, and I was made to turn folks like them undead. I think I can teach Steve how to dodge a couple'a exorcisms. I've fought my fair share of paladins. In the end I'm here and they... Well, I'd say they ain't, but I get the feelin' some of their bodies're still wanderin' around Northrend."

He hollers foe Verity, "I'd love to have a hot chocolate! And to hear about magic on Steve's Earth. Any paladins there?"

Edited 2015-12-25 19:35 (UTC)

"It's complicated." Truly, a cop-out not just for Facebook.

She's going to be busy for a few minutes. Her hot chocolate is the Parisian style, not the powdered sadness most people pretend is good enough.

"Not the way you're thinking, no, probably not. In worlds like the ones we're from, magic is mostly secret and gods are a little more hands-on."

Naugus snorts and gives Harrowheart a conspiratorial, sneering smile. "Paladins. All that pomp and holier-than-thou. Truly a scourge on the earth. Any and all earths." Does that count as a lie, Verity? It's certainly an opinion that's bound to have some disagreements. "Last one I saw, he vapourized himself to put a stop to what he perceived as dark tidings. Good riddance."

This is now the Paladin-Hating Power Hour. Starring a dog and some weirdo with a horn.

Harrow huff-laughs at Naugus's short story.

"Have you met any of those kinds 'round here, either of y'all? Only one I know who comes close is Shade-seeker, but he's more a mage in general who knows a little Light magic. He's a Mobian like us, a lizard fella."

One of his ears swivels toward Verity's direction while the other points toward Naugus. "Between you and me," he says quietly, "I think Steve would be a paladin if he knew how. He's a good guy in a lotta different ways. But I figure so long as he hangs out with folks like me he won't turn too much into a shadow-hatin' racist. Don't think he's got it in him anyhow."

Opinions are not her favorite things, let's leave it at that.

"People who fight for a god? No. Not around here. Not except Shade-Seeker." He's probably the holiest person anyone's ever going to meet in the Nexus, and that includes the gods. And that sentence works both ways.

She will decline to join them in the paladin-hating. Not because she expects to like them; she's probably going to hate most of the ones she may possibly meet. She's just got better things to do than worry about that in advance.

"Thankfully not. I couldn't bear it. And yes, I've met Shade-Seeker. He seems a decent fellow. He was very appreciative and curious of what I could do with fire magicks." And Naugus loves anyone who admires what he does!

Although Harrowheart's description of this Steve makes him frown gradually. "...You're not making a very compelling case as to why I should help arm this young man."

Harrowheart shrugs casually. "What can I say? I offered you one favor, no strings attached. I ain't sure I can sweeten the pot much better, unless you want a whole lotta weed on the side. Steve is who Steve is, and if you ain't comfortable with makin' a shield for him, then that's the how the bones fall. When it comes down to it it's your call how you use your magic. All I can say is that if you won't do it, I'll sniff out some other caster who can. I'm sure there are mages out there lookin' to prove just how crafty they are that'd like a favor from a guy like me."

Oh, look who finished making the hot chocolate at a terribly convenient time. She's coming into the living room with two cups of liquid awesome just in time to hear this talk about favors.

"Taking payment in favors now?" Oh yes, Naugus, you're getting a look. You might be getting teased if there weren't company over.

He gives Harrowheart a questioning look, one ear twitching questioningly. "...What would I want with weeds?"

Thankfully(?), Verity's arrival interrupts further questions of this nature, Naugus moving to sit up properly in his seat/throne now that everyone else is gathered. He waves her off with a dismissive claw. "This is not a matter of portals, it is a rendering of physical goods! I would certainly require something in exchange so why not something I determine at a later time? I certainly can't think of anything at this moment in time."

Then he looks at Harrowheart again. "...But seriously, weeds?"

Harrowheart laughs, then laughs again.

"Not weedsssss. Weed! It's slang, man! For a plant you smoke! It chills you out, dude. It kinda slows down time. Now and then it gives me some great ideas." Yeah, definitely great and not at all stupid and incomprehensible. "Only downside is you wanna eat a lotta food. I think you might like it, Naug. Pinchin' a lil' roach in your claw..."

He forces himself not to smile and waves Verity over to the couch. "Just two drinks? Who ain't gettin' one?"

"It's a plant with mind-altering properties," she explains quietly. "It improves the mood, but impairs the memory and fine-motor skills." She may not like it for herself, but she can be fair about it. "It has medicinal properties as well."

Ver will sit next to Harrow and hand him a cup. "Naugus said he didn't want any, but there's more in the kitchen if he changes his mind." Far be it from her to think racist grandpa's going to hold out when he sees what she made. And if he doesn't want it, that means more for her as a preemptive reward for cleaning all that fur off the couch.

"Nothing wrong with wanting to get paid for your time and effort. So long as it's a payment everyone finds agreeable."

"Oh. Well, what would I want with that? Medicine? Hampering perception of time? Bah. And I'm already full of good ideas!" Clearly, Harrowheart has to smoke this fool out sometime. Maybe when Verity's not in the house. Can these stone walls absorb the smell of weed?

"But back to the matter at hand! Yes, I can certainly make this shield for you. And I trust your judgement about how the boy handles it, since it's clear neither of us really care for crusaders tromping about. And you agree that we will simply have an agreement in place that I can call in a favour? I can assure you now, it will likely have to do with more physical demands. Given that I can handle most anything magical on my own."

Harrow takes his hot chocolate and whispers, "Thank you, Ver-bear," with a little smile. The mug is so small that he struggles to hold it in his large paws, and when he lifts it to his snout... Oh, there's no way he'll be able to do anything but dump its entire contents into his maw. He sets his drink down on the ground, stands, and shifts his form. A swirl of grey smoke surrounds him as he transforms back into a man too quickly for anyone to appreciate the details. Now he's just your average shirtless dead dude in a pair of jersey shorts drinking hot chocolate on a couch. What a let down.

"Verity, this is so good! I ain't ever had it like this! It's so creamy!" +250 Reputation with the Westfall Corndog. He loops his arm around Verity's shoulder and gives her a little half-hug before releasing her with a smile.

But then there's Naugus's troubling question to attend to! Harrow returns to drinking his hot chocolate to hide his concern. Because NOW he has concerns. His fingers drum against the side of the mug and his eyes roam around, and after one last sip he finally sets his drink down between his legs.

"N-now, Naugus..." He clears his throat. "When you say you got... physical demands, y-you don't mean..."

His hands slowly float in front of him. One forms a loop and the other pistons his index finger into it. In the background he frowns shamefully.

Verity is so relieved Naugus isn't going to become a stoner. You have no idea, guys.

Sorry, Harrow, she just doesn't have the appropriate dishes for a werebeast yet. Rest assured, that's been added to her mental list of things to look for when she's out window shopping. He could have lapped it up, that wouldn't have bothered her half as much as where this conversation is going.

Also: this nickname thing is out of control. She blames Jim. (It's kind of adorable, though.)

"You're welcome. Glad you like it. I can teach you how to make it later if you'd like."

And then. That. No, just no. Verity turns beet red and jumps up again. "I am not adult enough for this conversation. I'm going to go to my room now." And then she does exactly that.

Because no. She's not going to think about her grandpa like that and you can't make her!

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I dislike how much 'scutum' looks like 'scrotum' and sounds like a type of mucous

/crashes into you like an overhyped 90s band

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Phone tagging and cooking Brussels sprouts. Enjoy any bizarre typos

Anything to avoid the Brussels sprouts, right? :P

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Are you trying to kill me? Because I am dead.