>>698779
Okay sure. Ask how she knows Scarlet.

Uh, sure.

Hey free food is free food.

I think she wants to talk, and so we shall.

Sports Drink with Electrolytes 2016/02/05(Fri)12:10 No. 699242 ID: 0fff38
File 145470300012.png - (30.79KB , 1000x1000 , 0042.png )

"uh... sure." Sakura follows the mother, while Ysmir takes Ritz to one of the guest rooms.

"you're Crawlers, right?" she asks.

Sakura nods, "just finished a job, actually. the kid did pretty well, for a rookie."

she smiles warmly.

"can I ask how you know her?" Sakura asks, as the Gargoyle hands her a steaming cup of tea.

"she's my daughter." she takes a long sip from the cup, "I used to be a Crawler, myself, you know."

"so she's sort of following in your footsteps, I suppose?" Sakura replies.

she sighs sadly, and keeps drinking, "how many Crawlers have you seen die on a job?"

Sakura doesn't answer.

"I don't want to bury my daughter." she sighs, "I'm tired of burying people I love."

Sakura awkwardly fidgets in her chair. neither of them speak for a while.

"I'm asking, one crawler to an other, please don't lead Scarlet into this life."

She's been doing that since she first met Ritz, actually. I guess we could start out with additional berating instead of thanks when she wakes up.

>I'm asking, one crawler to an other, please don't lead Scarlet into this life.
Truth be told I tried. Saw her green as grass looking for a job on the town's job board and tried to talk some since into her then and there. Her response, grab the job out of my hand and run before I could even say anything important. We just kinda bumped into each other during the job since we did take the same one after all. Now I could tell her to stop, try to tell her to look for something else but like most youths she's dumb as hell and stubborn as a rock... doubly so since she also a Zenling. She'd probably try and find another job as soon as I open my mouth just to prove me wrong. But if you want, maybe I could give her a few stories about jobs that didn't go so well... maybe you could to and tell her why you don't want her to be a crawler. Even if it doesn't work you'll at least give her an idea of what not to do.

>>699242
Ma'am, I tried to talk her out of taking the job and she snatched the posting out of my hand and took off running. We were lucky to catch up.

Sometimes you can't stop the headstrong going down their path. If she won't be lead, well, someone to pull her behind out of the fire is the next best thing.

Sports Drink with Electrolytes 2016/02/07(Sun)01:30 No. 699661 ID: 0fff38
File 145483742935.png - (50.46KB , 1000x1000 , 0043.png )

Ritz wakes up slowly as the warm morning sun glows upon her face.

she looks beside herself, to the sleeping Ludeling. if not for her softly sleeping presence, Ritz would scarcely believe that last night had even happened.

>>699661
Did someone leave you a note?

Pet the Ludeling.

Oh, I think I see a note. Also since you've got time now just how fucked is your shirt? I'm noticing that the little bastard actually tore a good size hole in it when he scrambled your insides.

Pretty big bed for a church orphan. I mean, that thing is wide enough to comfortably take two people!

>just how fucked is your shirt? I'm noticing that the little bastard actually tore a good size hole in it when he scrambled your insides
Realize you've been showing off a nice big boob window ever since you drank that potion.

You came home to church with your chest out!

>what do
Sneak out of bed, change shirt, read note.

>>699662
>>699664
These.

Sports Drink with Electrolytes 2016/02/08(Mon)01:19 No. 700003 ID: 0fff38
File 145492317441.png - (43.59KB , 1000x1000 , 0044.png )

>Pretty big bed for a church orphan.
Mother Opal let Ritz sleep in her bed for a few nights when she was younger, and after that, she just let Ritz have the master bedroom.

>just how fucked is your shirt?
it's pretty fucked. Ritz realizes that she's been showing off her underaged cleavage all night. it's fine. the sisters have seen all of that mess before, she thinks.

the Ludeling looks pretty cute asleep, so Ritz scratches her behind the ear, and she perks up immediately, her tail wagging happily.

"good morning, miss Zenling!" she says.

"hello." Ritz replies, "my name is Ritz."

"good morning, Miss Ritz!"

Sports Drink with Electrolytes 2016/02/08(Mon)01:20 No. 700004 ID: 0fff38
File 145492320606.png - (84.86KB , 1000x1000 , 0045.png )

Ritz picks up the note and reads.

hey kid, left the headdress, and the dog. don't worry, she's house trained.

"aw shit. I just got dumped."

Ysmir tilts her head curiously, "what do you mean?"

"I think the Murderscrub took off in the night."

"no way." she beams, "she probably just went out for some breakfast!"

Ritz shrugs, not convinced.

"come on, let's go turn in that quest!" she smiles, "we can get some money for food, and then we can look for miss Kusaragi."

what should Ritz do next? she could turn in the quest, or she can look for the Murderscrub, or she could do something else. whatever she does, it seems like Ysmir will tag along.

>>700004
Murderscrub left the headdress. That's like outright telling you to hand in the quest.

Hmm. Maybe you should ask the clergy how much power they have here. If you summoned the Fury necromancer, could they defeat him? If he's got a bounty on his head...

well you're flat broke so you should probably get some cash before you do anything, then we can look for people. Oh and you should probably say bye to your mom at least.

Find homicide noob.

How does an entire race get named *murder*scrub, anyway?

Maybe you should actually ask your parent about adventuring while you're here? Or at least sorcery. Not the church dogma- the practical side of things ie, how you deal with it / how dangerous it is. (Presented as how to deal with sorcerous baddies after your run in with the necromancer, hopefully hiding that you're trying to evaluate how crazy getting yourself involved would be).

Then yeah, we should hand in the job. If you see the scrub later you can split payment, since she saved your ass.

Sports Drink with Electrolytes 2016/02/10(Wed)02:10 No. 700666 ID: 0fff38
File 145509900028.png - (43.49KB , 1000x1000 , 0046.png )

Ritz looks for Mother Opal and almost collides with the Gargoyle from the tavern yesterday.

"my apologies, miss..."

"Scarlet." Ritz finishes, "just call me Ritz."

"yes. my apologies." the Gargoyle replies.

"did you finish that business?"

"er... yes I did." she replies, "excuse me, I must be going. I suppose we'll be seeing each other in town."

"ok." Ritz beams, "have a good day!"

the Gargoyle moves past Ritz.

"who was that?" Ysmir whispers, her hair is standing on end, "she smells like corpse ash."

"Ruby." Ritz replies, "I met her yesterday."

Sports Drink with Electrolytes 2016/02/10(Wed)02:10 No. 700667 ID: 0fff38
File 145509905721.png - (42.85KB , 1000x1000 , 0047.png )

Ritz finds Mother Opal in the garden, tending to the flowers.

"good morning, Mother Opal." Ritz approaches.

"good morning, Scarlet." she replies, "did you sleep well?"

"yeah." Ritz nods, then she coughs nervously, "so last night I uh... I met a sorceror. could you tell me anything about sorcery? you did say you used to travel and I was wondering if you knew anything about it..."

"Sorcery is the catch all term for multiple sciences devoted to using leylines in order to alter the material plane. there are Daemonologists, Necromancers, Elementalists, Enchanters, and Abjurers, among a few others."

"what about.. uhm... Necromancy?"

she looks back at Ritz for a moment, then goes back to the flowers, "Necromancy is... an unsavory science. they control life force, but not like a healer would. they steal life force from others and redistribute it."

she stands up, dusting off her smock, "if... if you're interested in learning more about the different sciences of magic, I can teach you a bit of healing magic. it would be very helpful if you decide to... erm... travel."

>>700666
did she lose an eye? maybe I just didn't notice last time since she had the brim of her hat down.

>>700667
>I can teach you a bit of healing magic.
That would be very helpful actually, and cheaper then have to keep buying health potions. Also offer to help with the garden, I mean it's been over a month since you last saw you mom, may as well spend some time with her and see what she's been up too.

>introduced yourself
Didn't we give Ruby your name when you first met?

>she smells like corpse ash.
I wonder if she's mixed up with this Pyre business too.

>Sorcery is the catch all term for multiple sciences devoted to using leylines in order to alter the material plane. there are Daemonologists, Necromancers, Elementalists, Enchanters, and Abjurers, among a few others.
A lot less negative sounding than I expected. And there might be non-terrible things to learn, if you can trust that dude at all.

Is healing magic the same kind of a thing?

>I can teach you a bit of healing magic. it would be very helpful if you decide to... erm... travel.
Is it that easy to just pick up?

It's undeniably useful, and if you want a safe way to feel out if you really have a preference or knack for spellcasting, this is pretty much it.

Depending on time involved, we might want to cash in your bounty first and get lessons later.

Mother knows best! Definitely accept her offer.

A combination of healing magic and necromancy.

So yeah, take your mom's offer. Also, ask her about stuff.

Sports Drink with Electrolytes 2016/02/21(Sun)11:02 No. 704185 ID: 0fff38
File 145608137037.png - (59.66KB , 1000x1000 , 0048.png )

"that sounds great." Ritz replies, "would it be that easy to learn?"

"well, learning how to sing prayers is not so difficult, but the prayers themselves may take some practice."

"crap... I have to sing?"

she smiles happily, "you would make an excellent singer, Scarlet."

Ysmir grins, while Ritz tries to regain her composure, "would you like some help in the garden?"

"oh no, miss Ritz," Ysmir interjects, "that's not work for a master race! I can do it for you!"

"it's fine." Opal beams, "these old bones need some sunlight, anyway. I'm just happy to see you home again."

"yeah... I need to get going, then. I need to get my payment from Beefwax before it gets too late."

"oh... ok." she nods, "I understand... well, take care, Scarlet, and be careful."

Mother Opal hugs Ritz tightly, and Ysmir giggles lowly to herself. Ritz tries to hide her embarrassment from the Ludeling.

Sports Drink with Electrolytes 2016/02/21(Sun)11:03 No. 704186 ID: 0fff38
File 145608139654.png - (86.81KB , 1000x1000 , 049.png )

"oh! I have something for you before you go." Mother Opal produces a package, wrapped in cloth, "it's from back when I used to... travel."

inside the package is a pair of wickedly curved blades. these don't look like something a nun would be carrying around.

"it's bluesteel." Opal says, "the blades are really sharp, so you need to be careful."

Where did you find those?

These should help...

>>704186
Oh, wow. Thank you, I'll take care of them. And be careful.

Try an experimental swing with one- aimed away from the others. (If you want to test the sharpness you could use a piece of paper. You have a note or two you're not gonna need again).

>>704186
...ok that is just cool as hell. Thanks, I mean it. But uh, since I'm going to be coming back here to learn to sing... think you could give me some pointers to how to use this in something more then just "swing like crazy and hope you hit the other guy"?

Sports Drink with Electrolytes 2016/02/26(Fri)02:33 No. 705585 ID: 0fff38
File 145648280974.png - (55.81KB , 1000x1000 , 0050.png )

"thank you!" Ritz stares at the brightly shining blue metal daggers, "would you be able to teach me how to use these?"

"yes!" she beams, excitedly, "I can teach you how to- to... defend yourself, if the need arises... while you're traveling."

Ritz waves goodbye to the Mother superior and the two of them start walking toward town.

"those blades smell like bitterbell." Ysmir remarks, "why does your mom have daggers that were poisoned?"

"I don't know." Ritz replies, "maybe bitterbell poison is common for traveling priests?"

"traveling assassins, more like." she sticks her tongue out.

"...hey! Mother Opal isn't my mom, that just means she's the highest ranking nun in the convent."

Ysmir nods, "I know what Mother superior means, but she's also your mom."

"no, she's not." Ritz repeats, more firmly, "my mom and dad are..."

she sighs, "well I don't know where my mom and dad are."

"are you sure they're even alive?" Ysmir asks.

"they have to be." Ritz furrows her brow. Ysmir notices Ritz's mood turns, so she doesn't push the subject. instead she notices a noise in front of them, small at first, but growing. it's the rumbling of an engine.

Ysmir instinctively pushes Ritz behind herself and awaits the unknown vehicle.

Sports Drink with Electrolytes 2016/02/26(Fri)02:34 No. 705586 ID: 0fff38
File 145648287741.png - (50.92KB , 1000x1000 , 0051.png )

A fury riding a shining metal contraption rolls up, slowing down and stopping beside the Ludeling.

"we-he-hell, the scenery is looking miiiiiighty fine this time of year." the Fury grins, looking Ysmir up and down. he looks young, really young. maybe 18. Ritz has never seen a machine like what he's riding. this boy must be ludicrously rich, or from a different continent. maybe both. Ritz can't help but think he's pretty good looking.

"have either of you chickadees seen an Armada around?" he grins, "pale skin, black hair, smokin' figure? goes by the name of Harvess?"

"no." Ysmir barks shortly, "we haven't."

"woah, kitty cat!" he says cooly, "push those claws back in."

Ysmir relaxes a bit, and Ritz walks around from behind her, "an Armada? one of those weird pale people from the south? I thought Armada never travel north?"

"yeah, weird, isn't it?" he grins.

should Ritz and Ysmir keep talking to this guy, or continue to town?

>>705585
>poisoned
Hooo boy, do not use those without training, and definitely carry antidote. If you cut yourself, that's a problem.

>>705586
Oh THERE's the Fury player character. Talk a bit more, it'll hasten his eventual insertion into the party. Ask why he's looking for Harvess.

talk, might as well see what he's doing around here. I mean this place isn't really a tourist attraction and from what I saw from the job board their's not much work outside of sorry sad sacks hoping some girl will wonder by and strip for them for free... maybe that's why he's here.

Talk with him, feign interest in his contraption.

Kill him for your master!

...No wait wrong quest.

>why does your mom have daggers that were poisoned?
Cause she wasn't always a nun.

Pertinent question is if they're still poisoned. That rather changes how deadly they are, and the risk to yourself using them while still unskilled.

>Ritz can't help but think he's pretty good looking.
Ritz, honey, no. Ignore the siren call of motorcycle riding trashy rebellion.

>what do
Might as well ask what his interest is.

Fuck off Nic Cage!

Keep talking, You might read something useful between the pickup lines. Keyword "might."

Sports Drink with Electrolytes 2016/03/08(Tue)03:24 No. 707779 ID: 0fff38
File 145743625143.png - (57.77KB , 1000x1000 , 0052.png )

>Pertinent question is if they're still poisoned.
it doesn't seem like it. the scent is very faint.

>Ignore the siren call of motorcycle riding trashy rebellion.
Ritz is 15. she can't.

"why are you looking for this girl?" Ritz asks.

"a wildfire like her?" he grins, "who wouldn't?"

"he's a snipe." Ysmir growls, "they go around snatching up bounties before the Crawlers have a chance to."

"woah, hairy momma. let's not go saying 'snipe' like it's a bad word."

"it is a bad word." she retorts, "it was literally invented as a word so we can insult you."

he shrugs, "well that's just your opinion."

he mounts his vehicle again, "well, mister and missus 'card carrying crawler', I guess poor unwashed Ash Rathracked will get back to his peasant affairs."

Sports Drink with Electrolytes 2016/03/08(Tue)03:24 No. 707781 ID: 0fff38
File 145743627744.png - (47.16KB , 1000x1000 , 0053.png )

"g-goodbye!" Ritz calls as he speeds off, then she turns to Ysmir.

"what do you have against that guy?" Ritz asks.

"wh- did you see him?" Ysmir barks, "he's a trashbag!"

"he seemed nice until you started with your guard dog routine."

"yeah he seemed reeeeal nice." Ysmir sticks her tongue out, "you know he's stealing your job, right?"

"he's not stealing my job!" Rits fires back, "he's just collecting a bounty on some Armada. if the Crawlers weren't so slow to post jobs in the first place you wouldn't have people sniping the good bounties."

Ysmir scoffs, "you can wipe the drool off your chin now, I don't think he was impressed with you."

her face softens and she starts to whine, "I'm sorry! I didn't mean it!"

"it's okay, I-"

Sports Drink with Electrolytes 2016/03/08(Tue)03:25 No. 707783 ID: 0fff38
File 145743631131.png - (41.70KB , 1000x1000 , 0054.png )

"OOF!"

"no really I didn't mean it! I'm sorry!"

Ritz rubs Ysmir's head and the Ludeling sighs contentedly. Ritz decides to start heading to town again, as soon as she manages to pry Ymsir off of her.

Sports Drink with Electrolytes 2016/03/08(Tue)03:25 No. 707784 ID: 0fff38
File 145743634419.png - (44.95KB , 1000x1000 , 0055.png )

Elsewhere, an Armada walks into town. she looks around at the small village. there are children playing, birds chirping, men and women go about their business. the sun is shining and bathed the town in a warm light.

she winces. she hates the light. she wants to get back to Armistice as soon as she can, but first she needs to find someone. a Zenling.

where should Harvess start looking?

>>707784
start at the bar/tavern and ask around. If anyone has been through here lately they've probably passed through there at least once or at the very least someone who's seen whoever you're looking for has pasted by at least once.

>"you know he's stealing your job, right?"
Hey, it's not like we'd gotten the notice, even.

>she needs to find someone. a Zenling.
Any one in particular?

I would start looking in the bar, which she is definitely old enough to drink at.

Be smart about this. Ask around for the closest botspots, then cross off anywhere that your target isn't likely to go, apartments and whorehouses included.

Sports Drink with Electrolytes 2016/03/10(Thu)12:36 No. 708171 ID: 0fff38
File 145764218185.png - (28.02KB , 1000x1000 , 0056.png )

Harvess trudges through the sleepy hamlet, blind to all the dumbfounded looks of the locals.

she enters the Tavern and trudges to the counter.

the Bartender doesn't look up from his glass, "Crawler, huh?"

"no." Harvess replies, "I'm looking for someone."

"looking for a friend, or..."

she grins, "no."

"I'd like to help you out, but I'd rather not have you killing anybody on my doorstep, miss..."

"Harvess." she replies, "and I won't be killing anybody today. I need to find a girl and bring her back with me to Armistice."

"ech." he grimaces, "she might be better off if you just kill her now."

"not my concern." she snaps back. "the sins of the parent are the sins of the child. it is the law of Armistice."

Sports Drink with Electrolytes 2016/03/10(Thu)12:36 No. 708172 ID: 0fff38
File 145764220437.png - (71.16KB , 1000x1000 , 0057.png )

"just tell me all you know about 'Rose Quartz'."

[end of chapter]

Well, all I know is she's Steven Universe's mother, she led the Crystal Gem rebellion on Earth for thousands of years, and was kinda-sorta reincarnated as her own son? Don't know why that's relevant, though.