Creative Corner

Day Three: In Her image


Amber looked between the box in her hands and the table, scanning its contents and the dragons gathered around it. “So I’m thinking it wasn’t you who ordered the dozen healing potions, huh”, she said.

The pelt on the table, barely contained on it, towered above her like the beast it came from. Next to it, the knife and sandstone looked positively tiny. Lightweaver’s bust was managing to give a regal gleam, even if in this darkness. It was very well preserved, Amber caught herself thinking. Too well preserved. Even after so many years, the residual magic it was giving was intense.

“It’s a rare sight”, Amber whispered, not daring to raise her voice in the presence of something this holy. “To see an Idol of the Eleven, openly dedicated. This must have been part of a temple, or…” She squinted down at the other objects on the table, and then perked up fast enough to scare one of Cora’s assistants, who grumbled at her.

“…or a religious ceremony! Oh, sorry, sorry, I’ll keep my voice down. But look! It’s a genuine totem, ready for action!”

The assistant blinked at her once, clearly not impressed with the suggestion. Amber beamed back at him:

“You know, totems? Not the ones you keep on poles, but kinda... check this out: the Featherback is light, and, I’m told, back in the day dragons believed it was one of Lightweaver’s creations, like Imperials and Pearlcatchers. Some went as far as to even worship it as an extension of Her, believing that by honouring it, they honoured her, too! I mean, that’s what I’m told. I’m not the best at religion.

Still, if you take a well-preserved pelt, and you cut in it thin slits in it with a wicked-sharp knife – around the neck, to be precise, you can pass the torc through them. It will look quite natural, but also it would be much sturdier… which you want, because next you will need to attach the torc around the base of Lightweaver’s bust. It’s round and ridged in circles for that purpose, see? To keep it extra stable. You’ll end up with a God’s head seemingly coming out of the body of its chosen beast.”

Amber lifted the box she was holding upwards, trying to demonstrate something out. “And then you get a dragon to go into the pelt, holding the bust over their head, you apply that knife trick a few more times with some smaller rings, to bind the pelt to the dragon and thus hide it more convincingly… and you have a totem walking amongst you, just in time for a ceremony! Neat.”

Amber peeked at Cora and her assistants behind her box and then, self-consciously, took a step backwards. “Thanks for listening to my rant but I, um – I gotta go. D-delivery business and all.”

[center][font=Georgia][size=7][color=#613F3D]Wi[/color][color=#57372D]nne[/color][color=#2F1F1B]rs[/color][/font][/center] [center][b]June 17[/b] My continued thanks to everyone whose participated so far, and has continued to participate! Its the highlight of my day sitting down to consume and enjoy your writing and art. I look forward to everything you'll come up with! @Snek is our merit winner today! @nostalgicGalaxy and @lilystar6 are our daily raffle winners for today! Congratulations everybody![/center] [quote][center] View lilystar6's entry [url=http://www1.flightrising.com/forums/cc/2703809/4#post_39445707]here![/url] [img]http://flightrising.com/rendern/350/136979/13697861_350.png[/img][/center] Cora seems to experience a rollercoaster of emotions in just a few seconds; Abhorrence for Vriesea's pomp, curiosity towards her explanation, and then stunned. Her laugh is airy and disbelieving. "By the Eleven," She laughs, "I think you're right." She pulls the materials towards her and holds the venom up to one of the torch lights by her between two sharp claws. She tips the vial, watching the liquid slosh. "There was an ancient beautician - " She looks up at Vriesea and cocks her head. "I'm certain you've heard of her; Aphrodite. Many of her ideas create the basis for the industry of beauty in Sornieth today...it's not at all far-fetched to believe Athena and her acolytes may have been attempting to improve her recipes." "To what end, I've no idea, but..." She jots down Vriesea's suggestion eagerly. "That must be it. Here, for your contribution-" Cora begins placing the chest on the table, but pauses as some dragon screams in the distance. She turns her head. An archeologist near the wall is slumped to the ground, defeated. "I broke my shovel." He yells. Cora looks back to Vriesea and smiles, rolling her eyes. "Archeologists." [center][item=Gilded Decorative Chest][/center][/quote] [size=2]@Arkanjel @BlackwatchGenji @Juri01 @quietgal @Alastriona1 @Saraceaser @Pufferheart @Starsoul @rainenchanter @Harana @ghostlyplants @HelianthusNox @RemanLT[/size]

[url=http://flightrising.com/main.php?dragon=29234964][img]http://flightrising.com/rendern/avatars/292350/29234964.png[/img][/url] [url=http://flightrising.com/main.php?dragon=38090909][img]http://flightrising.com/rendern/avatars/380910/38090909.png[/img][/url] The lighter colored nocturne took one look at the collection before making her proclamation. "These are clearly the possessions of a well to do dragon fond of their own looks. End of story. Any actually interesting puzzles for me?" Her mate shook his head. "You're being too hasty Libera." "Then you try. Tell me, what was special about this?" "Well the first thing I noticed - can you think of any breed of dragon that would wear that brass torc?" "No, it's too large for a fae, and too small for anyone else- they're found on manticores after all." "And stone knives were fazed out of use, after the beastclans started fighting dragons - but before that they were a tool of the beastclans. And the torcs found on the manticores are often made by harpy artisans from the nearby harpy clans. But if these were the belongings of a harpy craftsman, why the statue of the Lightweaver ..." He trailed off, before shaking his head. "No it still dosn't make sense." "And now you're the one being too hasty, Veritas. Doesn't one of the stories about the first beastclan war feature a harpy prince captured by a dragon clan, before the resulting web of alliances nearly managed to drag all of Sorineth into the war? It's an apocryphal story of course, but stories like that are often based on something - the practice of taking 'familiars' isn't new after all. This may be the evidence then of a harpy craftsman that was recruited into a dragon clan and made to carve art for draconic tastes." She sighed. "It still isn't all that interesting a find, but it would help give a new date for earliest recorded familiar practice if that's the case." She then turned to the imperial. "Is there any evidence in the place these were found that would support or refute this theory?"

[center][b]Day 3[/b] [url=http://flightrising.com/main.php?dragon=52684779] [img]http://flightrising.com/rendern/avatars/526848/52684779.png[/img] [/url] "Well, it's obviously a ritual thing," Huo, who was definitely not qualified to be even 20 feet within the grounds, told her confidently, "They kill weird furry things on the rock for Light-what's-their-face. I can see it clear as day." He quickly slips around to set up the scene, but the statue is too heavy for him to move. Instead, he just leaves it as is. "There ya go! I hope my genius has helped shed some light for you guys," He grins and steps back to show off the complete work.[/center] [img]https://media.discordapp.net/attachments/479126797364101134/590637387411881985/invention_day_3.png[/img]

This is the prompt for June 19th. Note that [b]submissions for the June 18th prompt are still open[/b] until rollover in 3 hours! This posting however, also opens up the June 19th prompt to anyone who is interested in participating in it. [quote][img]https://66.media.tumblr.com/f5ccb032736d73ae8df37af82ab161d1/tumblr_inline_nswmwe0q2G1qiwi8o_500.gif[/img][color=transparent]--[/color][b]Day Four[/b] [center]Today, the workshop is difficult to enter. Guards block your path and almost refuse you entry until a wave from Cora gets you through. As you were walking through the encampment, you noticed that the archeologists seemed to have move back into the modern world rather than the ancient one. Within the workshop, guards are on the prowl in every possible corner. Only a few archeologists - old, serious, stern - are inside. You suppose these must be the most senior of the operation. Cora moves rapidly to intercept you before you can go far inside. [img]http://flightrising.com/rendern/350/136979/13697861_350.png[/img] "We lost an archeologist in the tunnels yesterday, along with his guards." She explains in a hushed tone. "The workshop is mostly closed off; You're only allowed in right now if you have reason to be in here." Cora closes her wings tight to herself, head dropping. "Lucky for me, I have a reason - I have to record the whole dreadful business of whether or not he comes back alive." Evidently, her premonition had been right the previous day. She takes a deep breath, and then forces a smile onto her features. "Well, down an archeologist or not, we can still try and figure things out, yeah? How about you take a look at these items over here?" Her forced joviality is a stark contrast to the obvious dread in the air. Still, with the guards glaring, she leads you to a table nearby. [item=High-voltage almonds][item=Reinforced glass beaker][item=vial of river muck][item=poltergeist pile][item=mirror][/center][/quote] [size=2]@Arkanjel @BlackwatchGenji @lilystar6 @Juri01 @Snek @mewCoyote @quietgal @Alastriona1 @Saraceaser @Pufferheart @Starsoul @rainenchanter @MandragoraAutumn @nostalgicgalaxy @Tempter @Harana @ghostlyplants @HelianthusNox @RemanLT[/size]

[center][b][ Day Three ][/b] [url=http://flightrising.com/main.php?dragon=46111459] [img]http://flightrising.com/rendern/avatars/461115/46111459.png[/img] [/url] [sub]Asca looked down a hallway, where another light faded in the distance until it disappeared. It was hard to red in his face and he didn't say a word, then turned to the objects, nodding. Silently & with care he ran his claws through the giant beast's pelt - amazing how soft it still was, after all those decades! That tanner knew his craft. He had seen most of those items more than once in his life, even though he was rather young - including the pelt. He knew dragon't these days liked to pad their dens with them, but maybe it wasn't what this specific one was used for. Sandstone though surely had been already used to sharpen claws in the youngest days, and that a knife was made to cut [i]something [/i]was a given. (Unless it was a symbolic relic that only stood for the act of cuttng something, so to say.) The brass torc... His interest peaked up at the sight of the shining item. "Oh, this is not a dragon's craft, right?", he murmured, taking it in his claws and inspecting it up close. "Manticores produce and were jewelry like this a lot, it is a trophy from a fight, just like the pelt." His thoughts almost got lost to the beastclans - some of them had fascinating similar culture to their own and yet... Anyway - he shook his head lightly. Then smiled at the Lighweaver bust. Those were familiar to him, though most were probably replicas of the true ancient one's like this - right in front of him. He didn't dare to touch it, but he didn't need to to admire the craftmanship. "I don't know if the bust was carried into fight by larger dragon breeds or was just thought to grant the Lightweaver's blessings onto the objects & the Sandstone was surely used for sharpening claws like today. But the rest I think was carried into fights with beasclans - a cruel dress up to show who was killed before... They may have worn the hide above face and back and carried pieces of beastclan jewelry and weapons - though the knife could have been used by a small dragon species, as well. Maybe both." It would add to the cruelty. [item=Featherback Pelt][item=Brilliant Brass Torc][item=Stone Knife][item=Sandstone][item=Lightweaver Marble Bust]

[center][b][u]Day Four[/u][/b] [url=http://flightrising.com/main.php?dragon=22203819] [img]http://flightrising.com/rendern/350/222039/22203819_350.png[/img] [/url][/center] Roxolani wasn't really aware of what had happened yesterday- she and the rest of Clan Twinstar were still getting settled in to the festival grounds after their hasty arrival. It wasn't normal for them to come to a festival so early, but Treble, the clan's archaeologist, had insisted they come after hearing about the newly uncovered ruins. Unsurprisingly, she'd gone off to explore on her own as soon as they'd arrived, and no one had seen her since. That left the rest of the clan to check out the ruins on their own, and Roxolani's curiosity had been drawn to the workshop. If there really was ancient Light technology to be found there, it would be something to see. Which made it a shame that the Guardian was unable to get very far inside on this day. What exactly had been going on down in those tunnels? "Archaeology's a dangerous job," Roxolani said to Cora, shaking her head. "I wish some members of my clan were more aware of that." Not like mad science, she thought to herself. That was perfectly safe! Most of the time. While Roxolani was unable to get very far into the workshop, it seemed this visit wouldn't be completely wasted, as Cora led the Guardian over to a table where several items had been laid out. The Guardian started studying them for a few minutes, and her eyes were drawn towards the High Voltage Almonds. "Strange," Roxolani muttered to herself. "I didn't know these had been around so long ago." [item=High-Voltage Almonds][item=Reinforced Glass Beaker][item=Vial of River Muck][item=Poltergeist Pile][item=Mirror] It wasn't long before an idea came to the Guardian. Acting on a hunch, she started to dump the almonds, the river muck, and some ghostly dust from inside the old chest into the beaker, crushing and shaking the contents up. The guards would surely be horrified at how reckless Roxolani was being with these ancient artifacts, but there was science to be done! "Aha! I think I've got it!" Roxolani finally called out, waving Cora over to see what she'd come up with. "This looks like an ordinary mirror. But if I take this electrically-charged mixture and pour it over its surface like this... I think this could be used to reveal hidden auras and presences that we can't normally see!" She poured the thick, sticky liquid over the mirror, and for an instant, it jumped and crackled with electricity. But when the sparks had faded, there didn't seem to be much of a change in how the mirror reflected things. Maybe if one were to squint, they could make out faint, ghostly shapes moving about in the reflection, but it was hard to tell. "Ah... these materials are ancient, I'm afraid," Roxolani said, handing the mirror back to Cora. "They must have lost most of their potency over the ages. But the theory is sound, at least."

[center][i]Day Four: Reflection[/i][/center] [center][item=Mirror][/center] Having come for the excitement of what today’s set of objects could be, Amber had not expected to be greeted with this. Dragons, missing? The Nocturne wasn’t sure what exactly she was feeling. She settled on “worry”. But then Cora forced a smile out, trying to combat the mood, the worry swiftly turned to pity, and then to determination. Amber took a breath in, puffed her chest a little, and then tried to summon enthusiasm back into her voice: “Oh boy! What do we have here, then?” she chirped, turning to stare at the items on the table with the intensity Hainu saved for their owner’s portion at dinner. From the table, the bowl of high-voltage almonds continued glowing, with a blue light and a low buzz. Whatever that glow ended on, it tinted in a blight hue; only the half-full vial of liquid sadness next to it seemed to grow more and more dull, darkening instead. Amber looked between them, then at the reinforced beaker, then at the box that clearly once contained a Mimic of some sort – a Mimic that was, clearly, no longer. Finally, she looked at the mirror, and pulled herself away in a shock, coming to again peak over it after a moment. She spend a while presumably studying what her own reflection must be – to her, it looked nothing like what she appeared like in a puddle, or on the surface of a polished shield. “Curious things, those”, she said to Cora, nodding towards the mirror. By now her fake enthusiasm had melted into genuine interest. She went to look at the objects again. “I think…”, she drawled out in the end. “I think I have an idea what this could be: camouflage paint!” The Imperial, who had turned to look at the darkened depths of the workshop, blinked and fixated Amber with her eyes. The Nocturne took it as a question, and cleared her throat for the answer: “Well, you have the supercharged almonds, right? The type that makes those cute squirrels glow when they eat them? My dad – he makes potions – once told me it’s because they collect a charge inside, and he showed me almond paste made from them. It glowed, too! But he said it loses its charge much quicker that way. Anyway, he needed the paste and not the almonds, because he needed to disperse the charge into one of his potions. I’m thinking it was the same here. They were making a concoction, and all of these – all but the mirror and the beaker, obviously – were ingredients!” Amber pulled the beaker in question to herself, sniffing it once before continuing. “This was what the concoction was mixed in. I’m saying it, because it’s reinforced, and they were clearly working with high-voltage almonds. Those pack a punch. River muck, on the other hand, is one of the few known substances to react erratically to light. It’s also soothing, and cooling, in contrast with the irritation that a charged almond would bring, were you to touch it. Therefore, mixing these two opposites would either make them cancel each other or bring something very odd indeed, as it may shift and change opacity or hue in different conditions. And if I’m right in thinking they were trying out camouflage paint formulas…” She pointed at the chest with the Mimic’s remains. “Then this used to make the last ingredient. When it was still alive, that is.” Amber smiled at Cora. “Mimics are nasty, slobbery creatures, but they do produce something other than saliva and bitemarks – mimic powder. It smells terrible and it disorients everyone around you. I’m thinking this creature, whatever it was, used to be kept as a pet for that reason - to make powder.” “And the mirror?” Cora asked. “The mirror is for you to check out the results on yourself”, replied Amber. “If this had worked out, maybe finally all of the non-Nocturne breeds would have gotten our fascination with mirrors.” (edit: typos again. Why.)

[center][font=Georgia][size=7][color=#613F3D]Wi[/color][color=#57372D]nne[/color][color=#2F1F1B]rs[/color][/font][/center] [center][b]June 18[/b] By now, I'm sure you know the spiel. Thanks for participating and I appreciate you guys c: @lilystar6 is our merit winner today! @rainenchanter and @HelianthusNox are our daily raffle winners for today! Congratulations everybody![/center] [quote][center] View lilystar6's entry [url=http://www1.flightrising.com/forums/cc/2703809/4#post_39445707]here![/url] [img]http://flightrising.com/rendern/350/136979/13697861_350.png[/img][/center] Cora hesitates for a moment, then sighs. "That's the tricky thing; We don't know what was found in the Hewn City by Athena and her acolytes, and what they created." She drums her claws on the table nearest her. "Still, it's a valid theory, and probably the most likely. While there's no exact records of the acolytes having Beastclan assistants, we do know Beastclans oft go ignored in the history textbooks." Cora pauses, then smiles - somewhat embarrassed - and adds "And often by archivists, too." Cora rakes her eyes over the workshop with a newfound consideration. "In fact, there's possibly some stonework in here that is indicative of Beastclans. We'll have to take a closer look with this in mind." She breezes past the couple, then returns carrying a gilded chest. 'For your help. Thank you." [center][item=Gilded Decorative Chest][/center][/quote] [size=2]@Arkanjel @BlackwatchGenji @Juri01 @quietgal @Alastriona1 @Saraceaser @Pufferheart @Starsoul @rainenchanter @Harana @ghostlyplants @HelianthusNox @RemanLT[/size] I'd like to issue a soft reminder that you do not have to use all five objects. If you can come up with something just based off of 2 of them, go for it! [b]You are not faulted[/b] for not using all the objects.