Mallside 9: Waaagh!

[Rebonack]

[Concourse]

Ah the Nexus...

Where else are you going to find a store that will casually sell you radioactive isotopes for tracking purposes?

Suffice to say, the giant sapient ant that runs the store is more than happy to sell Geneva what she needs for her project. The store itself is nicely cleaned and well organized, with lots of other smaller ants moving goods around. One has to be careful not to step on the employees, though. And it smells of formic acid. But hey, nothing's perfect right?

With her prize in tow, Geneva begins fiddling with her wrist computer!

Said computer begins clicking enthusiastically at the radioactive material because what's a wrist computer without a radiation detector?

A pretty lousy computer, that's what.

"I think this will actually work!" Geneva says, more than a little hope creeping into her tone. "I'm not sure if I should be relieved or terrified that Fortuna's chaos magic is having an effect this wide-ranging."

Hopefully the draconequus isn't doing anything too chaos-y.

[Deathkeeper]

Concourse

Nick bobs his head in approval.
"Just make sure that thing's not too dangerous. Radiation in small doses isn't too bad and there's medicine for it, but I'd prefer not to expose too many people to that. Either way, let's go when you're ready." he suggests, resolute. Sure, he might want to gear up, but he refuses to believe he'd need weapons to deal with one-half of his fiancee. She's chaotic, not evil. At least, she didn't seem to be falling down that way just yet.

[The Bushranger]

[Erin's Emporium]

"I don't know how she is, really," Dorota admits. "It had been years since I'd last seen her. I know she's no more familiar with the concept of two women being married than I was when I started living here. But... yes, I think I need to do it. Being cagey about it just wouldn't feel right. It's my life, and she can take it or leave it." She pauses. "I've always wondered... now that she's here by herself, maybe I can get answers about a few things."

Crissy smiled, squeezing Dorota's hand. "Well then, I'll be there to help you however I can," she promised, leaning in to kiss the alchemist's cheek softly. "Like, no matter what. Where do we start?"

[Morty]

[Erin's Emporium]

"I need to work on the cure," Dorota says. "Once I've got some progress, we'll go there so I can tell her about it all. And we'll just see what happens."

[The Bushranger]

[Erin's Emporium]

"Alright." Crissy nodded, then remembered something, and giggled softly, holding up a bag. "Oh! And I brought lunch! Fried chicken."

Or Hyrule Fried Chocobo, as the label actually says.

[Morty]

[Erin's Emporium]

"...thanks, dear. I forgot about it myself. I don't dare think what my eating habits would be if it weren't for you," Dorota says. Her mood has noticeably improved. "And I wonder... when should we tell my mother she has a golem grandson?"

[The Bushranger]

[Erin's Emporium]

"That might be something to, like, wonder about later," Crissy observes with a bit of a giggle, as she starts for the back of the shop with the food.

[Morty]

[Erin's Emporium]

"We don't want to overload her," Dorota agrees as she follows her wife. "If she manages to wrap her head around us, maybe. Remember when I first came here, and was so confused that Mrs. Erin was in a relationship with a woman? Hard to believe now."

[The Bushranger]

[Erin's Emporium]

That gets a cheerful giggle from Crissy, and she nods as she looks back at Dorota with a smile. "I know, right? That was, like, SO totally ancient history. We've all come a long way now, I think."

[Morty]

[Erin's Emporium]

"We sure have, haven't we? When I walked through that door years ago, I'd never have thought I was meeting my future wife," Dorota says, wrapping her arms around Crissy's waist.

[Ashen Lilies]

[Azik's Enchantments]

Grace approaches the enchanting store. Somewhere at some point she's managed to scrounge up a new set of armor to replace the one she buried, though it's even scrappier than the last, seeming to be assembled from partial pieces of at least three separate full suits. The cloak she's wrapped around it seems to be in not much better condition, though thankfully this but a temporary guise, thanks to the box that she's dragging with her. It's a different box from the one taken from Mithar Keep - an opaque plastic crate with clasps, rather than the iron-bound wooden chest she took from the keep.

[Halae]

[Azik's Enchantments]

As always, the warforged owner of the shop is standing passively behind the counter. Upon Grace's entrance, he says, "Greetings. Is there something I can do for you?"

He's... not really dressed in anything but the plates attached to his body right now, and intelligent green eyes look out at his newest customer.

[Ashen Lilies]

[Azik's Enchantments]

"Yes, actually." Says Grace, reaching into a gauntlet in order to pull out a rolled up piece of blue paper. "I have something I wish constructed."

The blueprints detail a finely articulated doll-like feminine construct exactly two meters in height. The design calls for an inner skeleton constructed out of adamantine and some other metals encased by an intricate adamantine shell, but more uniquely includes an inner reservoir for mercury that can flow flow freely between the inner structures and the shell, providing the means by which the doll will be able to move and cast magic. To the sides of the detailed sketch, cramped, neatly penned notes in simplified draconic text explain some of the finer parts of the design, as well as the animating magic.

[Nova_Eclipse]

Erin's Emporium

A woman wearing what seems to be high-tech armor enters the shop cautiously, blinking her deep blue eyes as she casts about at the myriad wares on display. Her platinum blonde braid sways slightly as she turns her head this way and that. What seem to be a pair of directed energy weapons of some sort or another are folded in their holstered forms at her hips, but her armor seems incomplete, as the plating present on her right thigh is missing from her left, and a tear through the black bodysuit underneath reveals a bit of skin on that side, though no sign of injury is present. She's carrying the missing bits of her armor in the crook of her right arm. After a few minutes of browsing, Electra makes her way up to the counter, hoping the person she talked to at MERC is right about them being able to help her.

[Teqie]

Electronic Asylum

A small gnome walks in with a spring to his step, smiling amicably. His bright green eyes stare at all the tech hanging from the walls, and almost starts to drool at the vast selection. Gathering himself, he steps up to the counter and knocks thrice, waiting for an employee to respond. He starts twirling a screwdriver through his tiny fingers, looking distinctly towards the steampunk section, with which he is the most familiar.

[Morty]

((Since the other two people with characters in the store aren't available, it falls to me.))

[Erin's Emporium]

Electra will see a slim, young human woman with light blonde hair behind the counter. She's wearing glasses and a covering brown-and-green jacket. There's a curious, multi-coloured ring on her right hand. It seems to change its hue from moment to moment.

"Welcome to Erin's Emporium. How may we help you?"

[Nova_Eclipse]

[Erin's Emporium]

"I was told by someone at MERC that you might be able to help me. I need to get my armor fixed, and I'm also in need of a few supplies." Electra takes the plates from under her arms and gently lays them on the counter for the woman to see. There's a rather large gash blown through them. "The armor material is litanium alloy. Not as strong as Titanium X alloy, but it's still lighter and stronger than titanium. There's some microcircuitry in there as well, mostly for the smart padding and latches. Is this something you can fix here? I must admit, I'm a bit out of my element when it comes to metalwork. I'm also in the market for some class A multi-modal micro-missiles, and I could use a Variable Weapon datachip or two if you've got any on hand, though the weapons are all secondary to the question on the armor." Electra knows the Variable Weapons data is probably a long shot, but it never hurts to ask, and she's hopeful that even if they can't fix her armor here, they might know of someone who can.

((Thanks for picking this up, Morty.))

[Morty]

[Erin's Emporium]

"The missiles and chips won't be a problem, but the armour... hmm." The woman purses her lips, then turns towards the back of the store. "Sizewell, bring me my extra-large lens, please!" She calls out.

A while afterwards, a humanoid clay figure dressed in a white t-shirt and jeans, around two metres in height, wheels in a table on which a complicated array of lenses and mirrors is mounted. They're all covered in runs and markings. The young woman puts the plates under them and starts an examination.

- - - Updated - - -

[Erin's Emporium]

"The missiles and chips won't be a problem, but the armour... hmm." The woman purses her lips, then turns towards the back of the store. "Sizewell, bring me my extra-large lens, please!" She calls out.

A while afterwards, a humanoid clay figure dressed in a white t-shirt and jeans, around two metres in height, wheels in a table on which a complicated array of lenses and mirrors is mounted. They're all covered in runs and markings. The young woman puts the plates under them and starts an examination.

[Nova_Eclipse]

[Erin's Emporium]


Electra blinks as the clay figure appears, but quickly turns her attention back to the woman as she examines the plates, hoping for some good news. She also makes a mental note that the weaponry and supplies she needs can be found here as well, and her expression brightens some at the thought.

The plates ares as Electra described them, at least in basic properties. Obviously a product of a highly advanced world, they're an alloy of titanium, but its crystalline structure is markedly different from other, more commonly known titanium alloys. It also contains trace amounts of synthesized elements that don't occur in nature (except possibly in the Nexus, where just about anything is possible). Closer inspection with increased magnification of what would be the "inside" of the plates reveals etched channels that are most likely the micro-circuitry Electra mentioned earlier. The gash in the plates cuts several lines of it, but the most complex bits seem to have escaped unscathed. The civilization Electra comes from probably fixes things like this with nanomachines or matter synthesizers or some other form of high-tech wizardry, but unless the shop has access to such things, they may not be able to do much. There's no magic present in the armor, but its composition and complexity means that a simple mending spell most likely won't fix it. A repair damage spell of some sort is probably a better option, but even then, it's dubious as to whether the spell will restore the armor to its full strength. The most sure option will be to re-forge the pieces, and repair the circuitry afterwards, though it's the most cumbersome and time-consuming, and will require an expert armorsmith. Still, the shop may be able to help if it either has an expert armorsmith on hand, or access to the technological wizardry that went into making such a piece of armor in the first place...

[Morty]

[Erin's Emporium]

The woman examines the plates closely, the lenses shifting and rearranging themselves. The golem stands by, impassively.

"Well, I can't fix it," she finally says. "It's not really my speciality. We could send it to one of our suppliers, but that'd take a while. You said you're from MERC, didn't you?"

[Nova_Eclipse]

[Erin's Emporium]

Electra's expression saddens slightly, but her voice remains even.

"I'm a license holder, and I've done some work through them. I'm still relatively new in the Nexus, so when I took some damage on a job, I asked if they knew of someone who could fix my armor and the person I talked to on the phone directed me here. I'm not sure if that qualifies me as being from MERC per se, but that's how things are." She shrugs almost imperceptibly. "If you know of someone who might be able to fix it more quickly, I'm all ears."

[Morty]

[Erin's Emporium]

"I've heard MERC contracted the services of a large team of smiths and craftsmen recently," the woman says. "Maybe they'd be able to help you. I'm not so much a craftsman as an alchemist, so this is a bit beyond me."

[Nova_Eclipse]

[Erin's Emporium]

Electra nods, and her expression brightens once more.

"I see. I haven't been to the local branch for awhile, but I suppose I should check in and see if there's anything new posted on the boards as well." She seems to consider for a moment, then shrugs again and gets a curious expression on her face. "How much for the missiles and the Variable Weapons chips? I'm looking for two specific chips if you happen to have them, Lightning Web and Storm Tornado, but I'll take a look at whatever you've got on hand."

[Morty]

[Erin's Emporium]

The woman names the price for the missiles - which isn't low, but shouldn't ruin Electra's budget - and checks the computer for the chips.

"Looks like we've got those. Buried deep in the storage. Go dig them out, will you, Sizewell?"

Her tone when she speaks to the golem is hardly the sort you'd expect of someone speaking to an automaton.

[Nova_Eclipse]

[Erin's Emporium]

Electra does some quick mental calculations, and nods slightly to herself, then smiles at the woman, noting how she interacts with Sizewell.

"Well, that certainly makes my day. I'll take 5 missiles, and, er, sorry, what did you say your price was for the chips?"

[Morty]

[Erin's Emporium]

"Checking it now... well, they're fairly expensive, but here you go."

The golem brings in two somewhat dusty-looking boxes and sets them on the counter.

[Artemis97]

[Food Court]

Wandering through the central hub of Mallside is Raril Xar'Cha. The drow had a bag slung over one shoulder, and held a half eaten sandwich in his free hand. Beside him walked his eldest daughter, Erelae, happily chatting away. The older drow chewed and listened, glad for a less structured moment with a member of his family who probably didn't have designs to kill him.

[Nova_Eclipse]

[Erin's Emporium]

"Hmmm...not much demand for these, I take it?" Electra intones neutrally, noting the dust on the boxes. She was hoping they would be a bit more affordable, but beggars can't be choosers after all, and while in the long run, she really does need both of them, she probably could go without either for awhile longer if she has to, especially if the amount of dust is indeed indicative of the amount of demand for such things...

[Lost_Deep]

Electronic Asylum

A small gnome walks in with a spring to his step, smiling amicably. His bright green eyes stare at all the tech hanging from the walls, and almost starts to drool at the vast selection. Gathering himself, he steps up to the counter and knocks thrice, waiting for an employee to respond. He starts twirling a screwdriver through his tiny fingers, looking distinctly towards the steampunk section, with which he is the most familiar.

((Sorry it took me so long to get around to this!))

Immediately, a woman steps out of the back room. Petite in build with long brown hair and wearing a burgundy long-sleeved shirt, the Electronics Asylum's owner, manager, and sole employee is most noticeable for the large, heavy glasses she wears.

"Hello!" she says, almost obnoxiously chipper, "Welcome to the Electronics Asylum! I'm Eliza Hexadecimal, and I'm not a robot! How can I help you today?"

[Recaiden]

Wandering through the central hub of Mallside is Raril Xar'Cha. The drow had a bag slung over one shoulder, and held a half eaten sandwich in his free hand. Beside him walked his eldest daughter, Erelae, happily chatting away. The older drow chewed and listened, glad for a less structured moment with a member of his family who probably didn't have designs to kill him.

"Uncle Raril!?"
"Hey, you guys go on ahead. I'll meet you back at the dorm."
One of a group of three young folk laden down with bags of clothing and cones of ice cream peels away from the others and heads towards the drow.
Anima Drake-Nerei is a high-school aged human with the traditional witch's hat on her head, and it's likely she's never seen Raril in her life. But something remembers. Her hair is a short bright golden-brown and her chosen ice cream flavor is some caramel-swirled thing.
"I thought you'd left for the underdark! Or are you back now? And who's this?"