Mallside 9: Waaagh!

[Gullara]

[Mallside Parking Lot]

Sakura looks slightly more at ease, but she still holds Lucy protectively. The baby is uneasy because her mom is uneasy, but Sakura coos to her and kisses her head and she quiets. "Everything is fine." The dryad says first of all. "I love a lot of things. I love being with my precious babies. Caring for them and making sure they're happy. I love carrying a child inside of me and giving birth." She touches her very large belly. "And making love to my husband." She adds some light detail to that, being very bold with what she tells a complete stranger. "I love taking care of my garden and watching it grow."

[Shadowcaller]

[Mallside Parking Lot]

Ambrosia stays quiet and listens carefully to what Sakura is saying, tallying each thing she mentions in her mind. She loves being with her children and care for them, she loved being pregnant and giving birth, she loved having sexual intercourse and working in a garden. She couldn't recall any woman who mentioning 'giving birth' as being one of the things they loved more than anything else so this little mystery started getting clearer.

It was most likely a fertility kami which explained the children and the obvious pregnancy. Not the most dangerous kami short-term, but long-term was more concerning. "That sounds nice Sakura." Ambrosia replies to reassure the kami. "But what if you had too many children to be able to take care of them all properly? Won't that be a concern?" The stronger kami were, the more intelligent, thus they could be easier to reason with than lower kami.

[Gullara]

[Mallside Parking Lot]

Sakura shakes her head dismissively. "I could never not be able to care for my babies. I know I can handle them all, especially with a little help." She couldn't be less concerned about that! Not be able to take care of her babies? How could that even be possible!

[Shadowcaller]

[Mallside Parking Lot]

So it wasn't quite that reasonable. Kami of this level were always difficult to communicate with. She could keep arguing but it would likely not lead anywhere. What was more concerning was the fact that she had just woken it up and that might make it more active than it had been in the past. "I see. I'd like to discuss this with your husband, do you know how I could get in touch with him?" She might be able to reason with him at least.

[Gullara]

[Mallside Parking Lot]

Sakura's eyes narrow ever so slightly and she shakes her head. "I don't think you need to talk to him at all. I already told you I'm fine. Everything's great and I don't really need your help with anything." She insists. Lucy gets replaced in her seat and Sakura looks ready to leave. She doesn't see why she should be here much longer.

[Shadowcaller]

[Mallside Parking Lot]

So it was already suspicions of her and acting slightly aggressive. Better approach this in another way, she was sure she could find information about the husband and Sakura some other way. Perhaps through the book she now had or through some other mean.

But she decides to go for a gamble and suddenly increases her presence, causing her skin to turn darker and smaller scales to appear. "I'm sorry, did I offend you somehow? I just wanted to tell him that you have very beautiful children and that you should consider having more of them." This kami might be smarter than your average kami but it was still a kami and that made it want to believe certain things tied to it's concept.

[Gullara]

[Mallside Parking Lot]

Sakura's hackles are already up, but at least she doesn't just walk away. She looks at Ambrosia suspiciously. "They are beautiful." She agrees, but she doesn't seem satisfied. "I know I can take care of my babies, okay? If seven isn't too many then we'll have more. I don't need you telling me what I can handle."

[Cyber Punk]

[Blast It! Shooting Range]

Linda is quite deflated now, and takes the chuckling personally though she tries to not show it.

Whatever you like. It's back this way.

And she heads out to the

[Mallside Bus Stop]

for lack of any better way to get home. She checks the sign, and sighs as it's twenty three minutes until the next bus to the HALO station.

Holly follows her until they get to HALO!

[Shadowcaller]

[Mallside Parking Lot]

"Yeah, I see now that I spoke out of ignorance. You're obviously the expert here, having so many children, while I have none. Seven just seemed like too many to me." Ambrosia attempts to explain. "I didn't mean to sound like I was lecturing you, I don't know anything about raising children."

[Gullara]

[Mallside Parking Lot]

"Okay... Then we agree there isn't a problem, right?" Sakura feel a little bit better now. She really didn't like Ambrosia questioning her like that. "I really need to get some diapers now." She glances toward the entrance to the mall. That's what she came here for after all. Somehow they always run out of those...

[Shadowcaller]

[Mallside Parking Lot]

"Wait one moment, if I decide to get children, is there any way I could reach you? You're the baby expert after all." Amborsia asks.

[Gullara]

[Mallside Parking Lot]

Sakura pauses and looks at Ambrosia uncertainty. "Um, I mean maybe I could give you some advice? I guess you could have my phone number just in case." She offers.

[Shadowcaller]

[Mallside Parking Lot]

Ambrosia bows curtly before the dryad. "I would very much appreciate that, Sakura. Thank you." She is starting to slowlt rein in her aspect again, returning to her human appearance.

[Terumitsu]

[Erin's Emporium]

Sizewell's eyes dim slightly.

"I Believe It Will Be Best If I Call My Creator Here. I Do Not Believe I Can Satisfactorily Answer Your Questions."

Riss simply nodded and began idly browse the shelves and displays to pass the time until Sizewell's creator could be present. Sure, she could ask more questions but that might just end up falling into the pile of answers she couldn't quite get yet.

Of course, she could always just do a little passive examination of the golem but that might be considered rude depending on just what senses were available to the construct.

Regardless, there wasn't much she could really do other than hope that her questions would be relayed to the golem's maker so she wouldn't have to bother with having to ask them all again.

[Gullara]

[Mallside Parking Lot]

"Sure." Sakura gives her her cellphone number. "Okay, bye then." Sakura feels pretty put off by the whole encounter, so it's about time she got going. Besides, she needs to be home in not too long after all. If Ambrosia has nothing more to add, the dryad will be on her way.

[Morty]

[Erin's Emporium]

Sizewell returns shortly, followed by a slim and tall young woman with long, blonde hair.



However, she is currently wearing a labcoat, which is in places covered by a very fine metallic dust, her hair is tied back in a ponytail and there's a pair of goggles on her forehead. She hastily fishes her normal glasses from a pocket and puts them on.

"Hello. Sizewell said you had some questions about alchemy?"

[Terumitsu]

[Erin's Emporium]

"Oh, yes." the muse said, repeating her questions of both concoctions and components as well as her allusions towards wanting to study both mixtures and materials in more detail. "Anyway, as I mentioned to your employee, I'm mostly interested at the moment in the sort of applications that would be focused towards physical enhancement of both nerves and muscles." she concluded. At the very least Riss was fairly comfortable with speaking as equals on terms of scientific interest if not much else when it came to meeting new people... Though actually being on the receiving end of her voice might be another matter given it's almost hypnotic qualities.

"Also.. Being a novice in this area, I am curious as to what different delivery vectors there are and what is the most effective kind in your experience. Actually, on that note, anything you could tell me on the potential contained within a given mixture and if it is either more chemical or related closer to thaumic craft or some mixture of both." she added, a glint in her golden eyes giving away her interest in the topic at hand.

[Morty]

[Erin's Emporium]

Dorota is silent for a moment. She's not a people person, and she rarely has to deal with customers who display this kind of knowledge and interest.

"Enhancing muscles and nerves isn't as easy as it sounds," she says once she gets a grip. "If you want quicker results, you can deliver a mixture intravenously, but it's an invasive procedure. It's safer and more comfortable to slowly build them up by regular consumption of a different sort of substance. But it takes more time. You can speed up either of those by adding more magically active ingredients, but it makes it inherently less stable. I wouldn't do it, myself."

[Terumitsu]

[Erin's Emporium]

"I think I neglected to indicate that I was more speaking about enhancements of a temporary nature rather than permanent effects." she said, knowing full well the troubles involved in permanent augmentation. Certainly she had tools to make it easy from a mechanical standpoint but that wasn't to say she was ignorant of the process and time it took for technology to reach that point.

"When you say that it would become less stable, however.. How so do you mean? What do you know about the effects this would have on an imbiber?" she asked, more as a note of curiosity than anything. She did make a note of the alchemist's remarks on intravenous application but held on to her thoughts on that for the time being. "Also, what did you mean specifically when you said that other substances would be better? Do you mean basically proteins coupled with physical exertion or was there something else that you had in mind?" she added, more out of the desire to sate her curiosity though she wouldn't turn away any potentially useful information if given the chance.

[Morty]

[Erin's Emporium]

"Magic builds up and interacts with other sources of magic in an unpredictable manner," Dorota says. "So it's best used sparingly as means of kickstarting more natural processes. Now, if you're talking about temporary enhancements, it's simpler. In those cases, magic is safer to use, since it will eventually dissipate. What sort of enhancement do you want and for what period?"

[Halae]

[Concourse]

Trick is here. Looking a bit... awkward. She's wearing a nice silk button-up and jeans, but her tail is swishing from side to side agitatedly, as she scans the crowd, evidently waiting for someone. Her hands are tucked behind her back as she leans against a well, taking in the sights around her.

[Morty]

[Concourse]

And the someone Trick has been waiting for shows herself. Sophie, wearing a rainbow-coloured t-shirt and a pair of denim shorts reaching to her knees waves to the tiefling from a distance before quickly approaching.

[Terumitsu]

[Erin's Emporium]

Ah, it was always nice to hear someone speak about granularity when it came to.. Well, just about anything but certainly more with matters such as this. ”I was thinking of durations that could be measured in hours, if possible, minutes and perhaps one that could be measured in a duration of seconds if that is something that exists.” the muse replied.”As for the effects, something that can enhance physical muscular strength and then a separate mix that can be applied to fine motor control. Same durations on both.. As well as a set of matching potencies, across both division of type and time” she concluded.

”One thing I want to ask about is that buildup you mentioned, however.” she said, adjusting the tail around her waist to where it would rest more comfortably with how it was coiled. ”Wouldn’t it be possible to siphon off the excess to prevent deleterious effects from accruing if one had the proper setup?" she asked. In theory it was just moving it from one place to another rather than trying to nullify it which usually just caused more trouble than it prevented.

[Lex-Kat]

Katrina enters Mallside on her own, for the first time. She walks through the doors with pride, her head held high as she tries not to look as scared as she feels.

Not knowing exactly what Albert wanted her to come here for, she decides to just wander for a bit and window shop.

[Morty]

[Erin's Emporium]

"That should not be a problem." Dorota turns to Sizewell. "Bring me a crate of Type 3B strength potions and Type 17C aptitude elixirs, Sizewell," she tells the golem, who walks off into the storage area.

"As for the buildup, it might be possible, but I've never found a way to safely test it," she says. "There are many variables involved, and the results are unpredictable. I've done some tests on animal body parts, and some of the end results were, shall we say, volatile."

[Terumitsu]

[Erin's Emporium]

"Volatile..How?" the muse asked. Usually that tended to mean 'explosive' from what she had learned about the Nexus but perhaps this was a usage that wasn't so combustively related.

"I ask as, well.. I cannot actually gather the necessary energies to utilize thaumaturgy normally so I've had to find a work around involving channeling from one source to another. If the potential of the buildup is high enough, I have a method that could potentially be useful." she offered.

"Would you be willing to share your notes in exchange for mine on the respective subjects?" she asked. A little collaboration on the subject certainly seemed like an interesting prospect to her although she would be understanding if the alchemist was less inclined to share her data. Sometimes, personal projects became a matter of pride, after all. She had learned that quite well over time.

[Lex-Kat]

Katrina will wander into Small Wonders. She looks around, trying to decide if this is a place she'd like to work in.

((No description of the place in the OP. What does this store sell?))

[ThirdEmperor]

[Small Wonders]

The shop is quiet today. The strings of Christmas lights along the edges of the window are still, the manequins reaching out of the shadows in fashionable poses. The big neon sign, and it's promise - we have what you need - is gray and dull. Only the little one in the door still buzzes, "Open."

Inside, the bell tinkling faintly as the door swings shut behind, the store is equally dark. There is a smell of patchouli lingering in the shadows. Long and low shelves line the interior, wooden racks full of bottles in fanciful colors and bubbling shapes. The labels are things like "For Love" and "For Heartbreak". A stuffed alligator looms above her, dangling from among clay pots spilling over with cascades of flowered ivy.

In the back, beyond the glass counter, a door hangs slightly ajar. A strange light pours from beyond.

A strange, fascinating sort of light.

[Morty]

[Erin's Emporium]

"Effects included rapid decay, transmutations, or falling into pieces," Dorota says. "An exchange of notes could be useful for us both. But I don't think I got your name," she adds, looking at Riss above her glasses.

[Lex-Kat]

{Small Wonders}

"Hello?" Katrina calls into the empty shop. She reaches up and caresses the stuffed gator's underbelly. "Hmph. Genuine imitation."