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B, M We always help our friends, especially when someone is playing pranks on them. And helping mom make friends couldn't hurt. As for what we do: We get hurt to much. We know that as we get bigger, we draw more Madra into ourselves. What if we try and do this now to make ourselves stronger? We have some knowledge of our body from our healer training, so lets see if we can infuse our flesh and muscles (and maybe bones) with metal madra to make ourselves harder to hurt! I mean, what could go wrong?
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Sep 13, 2019 00:41
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Sep 13, 2019 01:10
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A - It's clearly an illusion, but we're too tired and feeling too much love to laugh at them. Maybe a smile and an exhausted, "it's a trick guys, come on, you're fine." M - They probably want to pump our mom for information, but that's ok. We should invite Enlacio too, ostensibly he's here to further trade relations between the bears and butterflies. Trade can only help our clan, and better relations will make us more of an asset and less of an outsider. V - This is the biggest new thing. I can imagine what working in a smithy is like, even a magic one, and we've had scenes of the other things happening so a quick check in or progress montage would work together. I have no idea what our dream powers are about, so let's see that. Could we invest in Tunica? It's a bit risky obviously since her sifu died on that route, but by giving her some seed resources we could get some of those good Chamois potions and herbs at a discount. I edited this in to my last post because I didn't want to double-post, but I think it might be missed with the update going up right as I posted it. Observations from the early chapters: 1. Wotjeo at least is definitely the Matriarch's son. The Silver Bear family tree is very broad but flat and he has brothers and sisters and nieces and nephews but no aunts or uncles. It seems that silver bears can make other silver bears, but many have the same mother. The Matriarch says " I can see no signs of lasting damage done to either of our children." 2. When we cycle madra after exercise the madra is incorporated into our muscles as we heal the microtears. When we heal people, we cycle madra through them to aid the healing. There's a good chance that getting your poo poo kicked in (which is not just exercise but also causes larger tears in the muscles, broken bones, etc) and then having someone older and stronger cycle their madra through us is an even faster path to physical strength. I.e. the Saiyan Trick. 3. Our father was noticeably proud of us in our early, fighty years and was very excited about teaching us how to fight. He is noticeably disappointed in us now. Our mom probably used to feel the opposite, but she's better at hiding her feelings. 4. The Matriarch knew about our dream powers and shut them off for a while, but it seems she didn't tell anyone. Mr. Prokosch fucked around with this message at 01:45 on Sep 13, 2019 |
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Sep 13, 2019 01:33
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BMS
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Sep 13, 2019 01:34
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DMS The adults cued it was a joke, no sense making a bigger scene of it.
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Sep 13, 2019 02:13
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C. M. V.
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Sep 13, 2019 02:16
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1. A Don't laugh at our friends, those guys are the best  2. M Always Be Cultivating (Friendships and business contacts) 3. R We're going through a lot for this Smith apprenticeship, let's see what we got for it.
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Sep 13, 2019 02:46
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DMV
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Sep 13, 2019 03:34
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AMR
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Sep 13, 2019 03:42
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D It's funny, but it would be mean to make a big deal out if it. M Mama can totally work this to her advantage somehow. V Lets look at the new shiny.
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Sep 13, 2019 04:08
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1. D. 2. M. 3. R.
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Sep 13, 2019 04:31
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JT Jag posted:1. D.
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Sep 13, 2019 05:37
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DMS
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Sep 13, 2019 09:35
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1: B 2: M 3: T
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Sep 13, 2019 10:50
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Cheeky giggles more than D Of course it's a joke, but we laugh and grin at the joke, not at them. Okay, maybe their reactions too. M Meeting new people is nice, and Mama being friendly with more of the clan could help her too. Even if it is more of a "gosh it's more we could be helped" thing. What I mean to say is, is we pass it on and Mama obviously has final say. R Embrace Shiny New Activity/Social Link.
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Sep 13, 2019 12:51
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D. N. R. Not that meeting new people isn't cool, but we've got a pretty big cast of characters already, and adding another to occupy update space seems like overkill. I guess I'd be down with a 'yes, but offscreen/have it be done with GM's discretion' or something?
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Sep 13, 2019 20:14
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Zodiac5000 posted:Not that meeting new people isn't cool, but we've got a pretty big cast of characters already, and adding another to occupy update space seems like overkill. I guess I'd be down with a 'yes, but offscreen/have it be done with GM's discretion' or something? I feel similarly to this, but I kind of feel like I can just forget about most of these kids who Pumie has decided to help because I largely don't care about them. That's not to say that they're written in poorly, but that they were introduced quite suddenly and I feel like their future prominence depends upon future interactions which we may or may not decide to do. LLSix has given pretty much every character a name, but it doesn't mean that they're going to be or are important.  DMU It was obviously a prank! This contact could lead to an adventure where we can go on a trip outside the caverns which sounds exciting. chin up everything sucks posted:As for what we do: We get hurt to much. We know that as we get bigger, we draw more Madra into ourselves. What if we try and do this now to make ourselves stronger? We have some knowledge of our body from our healer training, so lets see if we can infuse our flesh and muscles (and maybe bones) with metal madra to make ourselves harder to hurt! I mean, what could go wrong? This sounds fun too, let's do this! Chatrapati fucked around with this message at 20:49 on Sep 13, 2019 |
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Sep 13, 2019 20:45
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1) You... D. Smile like Suena but don't laugh, your friends look pretty funny, and you're sure it is just another of Curada's pranks but you don't want to embarrass your friends 2) Do you want to pursue this contact? M. yes 3) What would you like the next update to be about most? Free time on Day 8 afternoon JosephWongKS posted:Proposed minor action during our free time this year: Resume practising the metal manipulation technique during our free time this year (the remaining half-day of free per week, after spending the first half-day teaching cultivation to Silvia and our other friends), because (a) we should be able to make much faster and more efficient progress now that we are two whole tiers higher than last time round, (b) this metal manipulation technique will also be handy for our current Smith apprenticeship, and (c) to fulfill the completionist urges in Pumie, we should be wanting to obtain the additional lessons which Minaro had promised us and finish this side-quest.
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Sep 14, 2019 02:33
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QUESTION TIME 1. The Mystery of Wotjeo's Papa Ask Wotjeo: "We've met your Mama in our dreams. Could you introduce me to your Papa as well? 2. The Mystery of the Second Recommending Elder Ask Curada: "Who do you think was the second Elder (in addition to Herejo) who recommended us for advancement to Lead?" 3. The Mystery of the Shortage of Healers Ask Curada: "There are many Farmers, Hunters, Guards, Miners and Fishers. We've also met multiple Smiths, and Elder Herejo said there's more than enough Dreamkeepers when Papa and Mama and I visited him for dinner. But there's only two Healers in the whole clan. Why are there so few Healers? Do kids not want Healer apprenticeships? Don't they know how great and wonderful a teacher you are?" 4. The Mystery of Enlacio and Fianza's Continued Presence Ask Mama (when Papa is not around): "Enlacio and Fianza have been here since after the Luchamadra Festival, two years ago. The Matriarch said they "will be staying in our territory as guests as part of Elder Ximena’s efforts to secure better trade terms with the Crystal Butterfly clan". I like that they are still here so I can continue to learn how to use the Topaz Hilt, but does it usually take so long to negotiate trade terms? Is Enlacio here as a clan hostage? Did we also send a hostage over to the Crystal Butterflies as part of the deal?" 5. Marriage Ask Papa and Mama: (a) "At the winter ceremony where I was advanced to Lead, Elder Curada said that Felero and I were not yet of marriageable age. When is marriageable age among the Silver Bears? Is it the same for all the clans?" (b) "Papa and Mama needed the Elders' approval to get married. Will I also need the Elders' approval if I want to get married in the future?" (c) "What if I really like two or three people at the same time? Can I marry all of them?" (d) "What if I stop liking my husband or wife after I get married? Can I move to a different cave or ask him or her to leave our cave? If I start liking someone else more, can I move to that person's cave instead?" JosephWongKS fucked around with this message at 02:54 on Sep 14, 2019 |
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Sep 14, 2019 02:47
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JosephWongKS posted:Ask Wotjeo: "We've met your Mama in our dreams. Could you introduce me to your Papa as well? You tell Wotjeo that's your papa. Wotjeo looks sad. "He's the only papa I have." JosephWongKS posted:Ask Curada: "Who do you think was the second Elder (in addition to Herejo) who recommended us for advancement to Lead?" JosephWongKS posted:Ask Curada: "There are many Farmers, Hunters, Guards, Miners and Fishers. We've also met multiple Smiths, and Elder Herejo said there's more than enough Dreamkeepers when Papa and Mama and I visited him for dinner. But there's only two Healers in the whole clan. Why are there so few Healers? Do kids not want Healer apprenticeships? Don't they know how great and wonderful a teacher you are?" Curada laughs. "Of course they do. I'm swarmed day in and day out by young children eager to spend their whole lives in one or two caves taking care of people on the worst days of their lives. They're all incredibly talented too. I'm only teaching you to fatten you up so I can eat you!" You know that your clan has a very strong taboo against cannabalism, which makes Curada's joke very risque. JosephWongKS posted:Ask Mama (when Papa is not around): "Enlacio and Fianza have been here since after the Luchamadra Festival, two years ago. The Matriarch said they "will be staying in our territory as guests as part of Elder Ximena’s efforts to secure better trade terms with the Crystal Butterfly clan". I like that they are still here so I can continue to learn how to use the Topaz Hilt, but does it usually take so long to negotiate trade terms? Is Enlacio here as a clan hostage? Did we also send a hostage over to the Crystal Butterflies as part of the deal?" Mama looks shocked and confused. "What? No! He's here to help you. I don't know how much longer he can stay, so you should try to learn everything you can while you have a chance." JosephWongKS posted:(a) "At the winter ceremony where I was advanced to Lead, Elder Curada said that Felero and I were not yet of marriageable age. When is marriageable age among the Silver Bears? Is it the same for all the clans?" Author's note. I've written some pretty grim stories before and I'm unwilling to sugarcoat violence, but I'm trying to keep other kinds of icky things away from this one. Not that I'm saying you are trying to do so, but please don't try to introduce icky themes. b) Papa tells you. "No. Not unless you want to marry someone from another clan." c) Mama tells you. "No." d) Papa tells you. "It's complicated. Ask me again when you're older." LLSix fucked around with this message at 03:43 on Sep 14, 2019 |
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Sep 14, 2019 03:29
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LLSix posted:Your brother, a young silver bear cub, points one furry paw at the giant humongous man currently benchpressing you with one hand and cooking dinner. Apologies, I hadn't intended to cause any unease or introduce any ickiness. I just wanted to find out more about how marriage (and divorce) works in this society (and phasing it in a way that I think Pumie would phrase as a child), cos the topic had come up when Curada mentioned it at the Lead ceremony and also Papa's decision to marry an outsider is such a source of ongoing drama in our story. JosephWongKS fucked around with this message at 04:28 on Sep 14, 2019 |
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Sep 14, 2019 04:23
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JosephWongKS posted:Apologies, I hadn't intended to cause any unease or introduce any ickiness. I just wanted to find out more about how marriage (and divorce) works in this society (and phasing it in a way that I think Pumie would phrase as a child), cos the topic had come up when Curada mentioned it at the Lead ceremony and also Papa's decision to marry an outsider is such a source of ongoing drama in our story. Entirely understandable. I am not upset. You did not cross any lines. I just know goons and wanted to make it clear there are lines.
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Sep 14, 2019 05:14
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To help smooth over any last wrinkles, and also because I've been wanting to float my thoughts out there while things are just kind of coasting, I think that Wotjeo is almost for certain going to become a physical powerhouse because of what we're doing now. Namely, I believe that the reason our brother is so rapidly catching up to and even outpacing other bears that are so much older is because we're not limited to just the one type of madra. Part of our cultivation goes through and relies on Wotjeo, like it does for all Silver Bears, its part of how the whole animal half of the various clans in the valley work. I believe its even been said to be a critical part of the animal half's development. With that in mind, I think that our ability to take in and use Light madra for our Topaz Hilt is also empowering and giving a boost to our bear brother's growth because he's getting more than just Metal madra. Following that, I think that the more types of madra we learn to cultivate, the more strength Wotjeo will directly gain. Basically, Pumie and Wotjeo have always been two halves of a whole, and we need to start acting like it. Wotjeo needs Pumie's help to grow as the physical half just as he has been helping her grow in madra power. Thoughts?
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Sep 14, 2019 06:41
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ShootaBoy posted:To help smooth over any last wrinkles, and also because I've been wanting to float my thoughts out there while things are just kind of coasting, I think that Wotjeo is almost for certain going to become a physical powerhouse because of what we're doing now. Namely, I believe that the reason our brother is so rapidly catching up to and even outpacing other bears that are so much older is because we're not limited to just the one type of madra. I think this is incorrect. We can gather light vital essence and the Topaz converts that to Light Madra, bypassing Wotjeo. We tried to give him a little light vital essence and it made him sick, just like we were warned giving him too much metal but not enough dream would make him sick. The reason he's so big is that we've been working with high status people who get us high quality essence and we've been taught how to give it to him very efficiently, we're stuffing him with more Madra than average. Once we master the forehead trick we can stuff him with even more while he gathers in his own.
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Sep 14, 2019 07:07
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Wotjeo couldn't directly take in the Light madra, yes, but as has been stated, he is literally the other half of Pumie, the clan sees them as one individual whole. On top of that, there's how unique the connection between them seems to be (no one else believes that Pumie and Wotjeo are talking in plain words) I can't help but think that he's getting some benefit off of Pumie being able to cultivate more than one type of madra.
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Sep 14, 2019 07:21
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If you look at our stats, our Physical rating is 12 and our Spiritual rating is 30. Wotjeo's outsized physical growth is basically an outgrowth of our outsized spiritual ability. That, and he's a prodigy, so if there's any degree of skill that can be employed in making good use of the resources we give him, he's definitely doing that. I agree though, he is going to be a powerhouse.
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Sep 14, 2019 12:27
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I hope so, I want our bear brother to be the best there is! I just looked at our stats as well and noticed how stupid we are. Clearly we should somehow channel some of our spirit energy into cultivating Wotjeo's intellect so that he can be a smart muscle bear to help balance us out.
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Sep 14, 2019 12:36
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DMT. 
Cannon_Fodder fucked around with this message at 12:45 on Sep 14, 2019 |
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Sep 14, 2019 12:38
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Chatrapati posted:I hope so, I want our bear brother to be the best there is! We're incredibly stupid, which is a bit disappointing since it seems like medicine is half mental & half spiritual. Our weak brain might be why we're having a hard time concentrating to make light weapons and focusing on our throwing.
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Sep 14, 2019 12:49
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Chatrapati posted:I hope so, I want our bear brother to be the best there is! The bearst there is. quote:
Don't need to know maths ourselves when we can charm maths people into working for us.
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Sep 14, 2019 12:51
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Oh poo poo our mental stats are so anemic I didn't even see them lol. Yeah that's probably why we suck at using the topaz hilt. I think learning that concentration exercise is maybe a good idea after all.
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Sep 14, 2019 12:53
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Our society has no need for intellect and frankly, while there may have been situations it helped, our survival hasn't relied on it. Something to solve when our physical safety is less threatened, consider the hierarchy of needs.
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Sep 14, 2019 15:07
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Dr Subterfuge posted:D It's funny, but it would be mean to make a big deal out of it. You don't know how Healer Curada did that, but the silvery sheen of the insects makes you sure that she created them. Somehow. Your lips curve up in a broad smile, and you are thankful again to Carmenia because the muscles used to smile aren't bruised today like they were the last time you fought Lead teenagers. As amusing as the sight of even a few older kids scrambling to get fake insects off is, you resist the urge to laugh. These are your friends and you don't want to embarrass them. *** Shogeton posted:2: M As Mama told you ever since you were too small to clearly remember, Papa has an important job. As you now know, there are two entrances to the cave complex where every Silver Bear sleeps. The cave mouth you live in is one of these two entrances. It is hidden away from the cleared fields and up a difficult to cross slope of loose stones. Even so, it must be guarded day and night. This was Papa’s job alone when you were young and that was why either he or Arely always stayed in the cave. Papa is so skilled and respected that on the three nights a season when he took you to gather in an Iron cave, two Guards replaced him. Mama joined the Guards after the Luchamadra festival. You’ve always thought of her as gorgeous or beautiful or nice rather than a powerful warrior, but she too is trusted to protect the clan on her own, so she must be as strong as Papa. You feel really lucky to be the daughter of two such amazing and kind warriors. When you tell Mama about the invitation from Trader Garido she claps her hands in excitement and immediately agrees. “This is a fantastic opportunity, and the timing is very good for us.” She hugs you tightly and kisses your forehead. “You are a wonderful daughter, Pūmič.” Papa sighs. “I’ll ask Mora and Nieto to stand Guard that evening. Half of my next meat portion each, do you think?” Papa directs his question to Mama who nods decisively. “More than fair.” You recognize the names as belonging to the two orangish-brown-haired adult Guards, both older than Papa, who stand guard when he leaves to gather iron vital essence three times a season. *** Mama insists that you all wash and wear your nicest clothes before going to dinner. You haven’t worn the nice snow fox fur dress since having dinner with Elder Herejo. It feels super nice in addition to looking good on you. You hug Papa for doing such a great job on it. Mama is wearing the same beautiful dress made of the odd not-leather that the Corazon Chamois make that she wore for the Luchamadra tournament. It sparkles like dew reflecting the first rays of the sun at daybreak as night slides East to reveal the sun once more. This time, Mama buries her face in her hands when she sees how ragged even Papa’s nice clothes are and agrees that he should wear his armor. Papa’s armor consists of a skirt made from overlapping strips of dull gray metal. His chest is covered in a shirt made of overlapping strips of dull gray metal. His arms, feet, and face are all bare, but his body hair is so thick that someone less familiar with him than his daughter might think they were covered. His head is framed by long flowing hair styled by Mama to look like some of the helmets you saw at the Luchamadra. His face is mostly hidden behind the sharp-tipped hairs of his big bushy beard which even Mama hasn’t convinced him to tame. On his hands, he has leather gloves studded with more bits of the dull gray metal, especially over the knuckles. All of his armor practically screams with madra, and you have to dial your madra hearing back just to stand near him. Trader Garido and his family greet you with polite hugs when you arrive. In addition to his son, Yeso, who has shiny brown hair and is so tall he must be a nearly adult teenager you also meet Garido’s wife and younger daughter. Garido’s wife, Reyna, has orangish-brown hair and you recognize her as one of the Guards! Reyna compliments you on your endurance, but the rest of the family are polite enough not to bring up the subject of your spars against the other Lead children who have all survived many more winters than you, after seeing you wince in response to Reyna’s compliment. Garido’s daughter is named Fabiana. Fabiana has survived three more winters than you and has soft black hair. Trader Garido’s cave is nicer than Tunica’s and has much more furniture than Tunica’s, but it still falls far short of Elder Herejo’s. Most of the furniture is made of copper, and more copper boxes crowd the walls. Leaning up against one wall of the cave, are silver and copper plates used to form one of the Silver Bear Trader stalls that you saw at the Luchamadra festival. It looks like there are too many plates for one stall, maybe they make portable caves out of the extra plates and sleep in them? The meal is a difficult trial for you. The main course is a hearty rabbit stew which you politely decline, following Mama’s lead. There are a few pomegranates and Mama nibbles on one while you and Wotjeo hungrily devour the rest. Mama looks pleased despite Trader Garido not thinking to provide a vegetarian option the way Elder Herejo did. After dinner everyone, Reyna pours everyone a cup of a bitter pale brown liquid. Even you and Garida get cups, although yours are half full. You don’t like it very much and push it away after only a few sips. Trader Gariso says “Thank you for accepting my invitation. You have been delightful guests. Now that your stomachs are full, its time to get down to business. Yeso, get the sample box.” Garido’s nearly adult son, Yeso says “Yes, pop” and leaps up. He sets a large metal chest on the table. Garido lifts a cut sapphire, a metal knife, and several other trade goods out of the chest and places them on the table. “We’ve been making a small profit trading with your old clan, Rica Ironheart. We can never get a straight answer out of them about what our goods are really worth though. We’re hoping you can help by telling us what you think these items are worth to a typical Crystal Butterfly.” Mama’s eyes brighten but she leans back as if she’s not very interested. “I could do that, but I do not believe you’d be willing to meet my price for such valuable information. Even if you could, my siblings and parents are all traders. They would be upset if I sold information that cut into their profits.” Mama looks at Papa and he smiles encouragingly at her. Mama takes a deep breath and continues. “I suggest instead that you allow me to accompany you on your trading trips until next winter. I will bring my own trade goods and allow you to watch me negotiate trades. If you happen to pick up a better understanding of the real value of your trade goods, well, that would be no-one's fault.” Garido tries to negotiate for a portion of Mama’s profits but instead finds himself agreeing to let her trade his goods for him and keep a third of the profits as well as helping her trade with the Silver Bears. There are many other details that you find boring to work out, but in a surprisingly short time, Mama has an even better agreement than what she asked for. You’ve seen her convince several people this way several times now and even spent enough time with her to be able to recognize the masterful way she controls the pitch of her voice and the flow of conversation but are nowhere near being able to do the same thing yourself. Yeso and Reyna look like they can’t believe what just happened but Trader Gariso himself hugs you all as warmly as if you were family when you depart. On the way back to your cave mouth home Mama asks if you’ll trust her with your cultivation resources so she can buy trade goods. You, a young girl with only seven winters to her name, readily agree to your mama’s request. Other than continuing to offer cultivation lessons, you don't have any plans for them anyway. *** If you’re interested in knowing more about how ancient metal smelting worked, this is an excellent video that covers every step of the process: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RuCnZClWwpQ . It is not an exact match for the Silver Bear approach, but it is pretty close. The first thing Carmenia teaches you is how to smelt copper or iron. The process is almost identical for both ores. Built into the back wall of her, and every other Silver Bear, smithy is a bloomery. A bloomery is a special kind of furnace or fireplace used to smelt ores and separate the metal from the waste, also known as the slag. You have never seen either a furnace or a fireplace, as Silver Bears do all their cooking over metal braziers. Carmenia’s bloomery is made from stone blocks sealed together and smoothed over with a layer of dried mud. It is anything but airtight. If it was airtight, no air could get in, the fire wouldn’t burn, and the ores would not be melted. The bloomery is flush with the cave ceiling but continues up and outside through a hole mined in the roof, with the top being covered over by a miniature metal stall with a gap just under the roof for the air to blow through and carry the noxious fumes released by the melting ores away. There’s another hole in the bloomery that is connected to a slanted channel. Every day you pour crates of charcoal and ore down the channel and into the bloomery; a pail-full of each at a time, spaced throughout the long, grueling days. When you are not pouring something down the channel, it is covered by a rock with a thick metal coating on the bottom. The rock doesn’t fit very snugly in the channel, and noxious fumes escape into the cave whenever you forget to use the technique Carmenia taught you to cause the metal on the bottom of the rock to seal the channel. It was not easy to learn how to do that and until the middle of fall Carmenia had to help you with creating a tight seal. One day while you are replacing the plug for the sixteenth time that day you ask Carmenia, “Why don’t you use a plug of all metal for the channel?” Your sifu looks up from where she is shaping a lump of cold iron into an ax-head with her bare hands and patiently replies, “Because then it would be too hot to touch.” You consider her answer while you merge the madra Wotjeo cultivated for you with the metal cap on the rock. Under the influence of your madra, the metal flows like honey and spreads out until it seals against the sides of the channel. After stepping down from the copper stool you have to stand on to reach the channel you ask “Why don’t we just use tongs then?” Carmenia puts down her work and patiently replies, “Because I do not want my apprentices to fall over and crack open their skulls while trying to play with tongs on top of a stool. Also, it is good metal shaping practice for you.” The bottom of the bloomery has two more holes. The first hole in the bottom of the bloomery is attached to a pair of ceramic (dried mud) pipes that connects the bloomery to two large copper pots sealed against the cave floor with more dried mud. The tops of the copper pots are covered with antelope skins. The ends of the antelope skin on each pot overlap in one place and there is enough slack for the skins to be pushed all the way to the bottom of the pot or lifted a similar distance, about a quarter of your height, above the top of the pot. Because of the way the antelope skins are overlapped, they part when the skins are lifted on the upstroke and air enters the pots. On the downstroke, the flap by the ends of the skin overlaps creating a seal of sorts and air is forced out of the pot, through the ceramic (dried mud) pipes and into the bloomery. Carmenia took them apart on your first day so you could see how they worked. The animal skins are held in place on the tops of the copper pots by an iron band. Carmenia is strong enough and skilled enough that she was able to open the band and then re-secure it with only a brief grunt to indicate it took any effort at all. Carmenia told you the pots are called pot bellows. You’ve never heard of any other kind of bellows, so you don’t see why they need to be called pot bellows, but that’s what Carmenia calls them, and she patiently corrects you any time you call them just bellows. The last hole in the bloomery is the largest of them all. It is big enough that you could crawl into it if you were determined to do so and it’s arched shape almost looks like the opening to a cave. When in use, this hole is usually covered up by a very large boulder that you are thoroughly sick of rolling in and out of place. The boulder is so large it takes both you and Wotjeo working together to move it, and you have to do so several times a day. To get raw metal, you melt special rocks called ores in the bloomery. The rocks melt, but the iron or copper inside them doesn’t. However, this just makes it possible to separate the two, not easy, as you discover. The concept is simple enough. Step one, heat up the ores until the rock melts by setting the charcoal you pour in through the top on fire. Continue pouring in charcoal until the rock is completely melted. Step two, roll the boulder out of the way. Step three, poke the molten rock with a stick. Preferably a long stick because, as you discover when you singed your eyebrows off using a short stick, it gets pretty hot inside the bloomery and you don’t want to stay close to it for very long. The molten rock, because it is a liquid, will pour out of the bloomery like water, but the raw metal, being mostly a solid doesn’t, even if it is on fire. Step four, roll the boulder back in place; but scrape the molten rock, called slag, out of the way first because it’s much harder to deal with once it cools. Learning that lesson cost you an entire day basically mining out the cooled slag from in front of the furnace while a very unhappy but still patient Carmenia supervised you. Step five, pour more ore and charcoal in through the slanted channel connected to the hole near the ceiling of the cave. Don’t skip step four and go straight to step five unless you want pieces of burning rock ores and lumps of flaming charcoal to roll out of the bottom and catch your bear brother’s fur on fire. Sorry, Wotjeo. You asked Carmenia “Why don’t we just pour the ores and charcoal in through the top of the bloomery.” Carmenia took a break from carefully shaping a small piece of copper into a cup to patiently reply. “Partly because it is a long walk. The main reason is that the cap on top doesn’t come off because no one except maybe the Marbled Polecats wants snake guts mixed in with their bronze weapons.” The last step, step six is the worst. Step six involves walking over to the pot bellows and pumping the antelope skins up and down. Up and down. Up and down. Up and down. Up and down. Up and down. Up and down. Up and down. Up and down. Up and down. Up and down. Up and down. Up and down. Up and down. Up and down. Up and down. Up and down. Up and down. Up and down. Up and down. Up and down. Up and down. Up and down. Up and down. Up and down. Up and down. Up and down. Up and down. Up and down. Up and down. Up and down. Up and down. Up and down. Endlessly. You’d thought it was fun the first time you tried it, but it is harder than it looks and after a twenty count you were starting to notice the strain. Smith Carmenia keeps you at it until sweat is streaming from every pore in your body and your muscles are screaming at you to stop. Sometimes you think your muscles are literally screaming. You can’t even swap out with Wotjeo because it takes all your strength just to operate one of the pot bellows, and Wotjeo is right there next to you working the other one. Wotjeo, being a bear cub, sometimes accidentally punctures the skins with his claws. You have complete confidence in your brother and are sure that wouldn’t happen if he was allowed to rest more often. When the punctures get too bad, Carmenia takes off the metal band holding the skin and has you replace the skin. The work is so exhausting that you actually come to look forward to the other, non-pot-bellow-pumping, steps as a chance to take a break. Carmenia allows you to take the damaged skins home. Papa uses them to repair the cuts your clothes take in the spars, and only replaces your clothes when they are more repairs than original leather. Sometimes, while counting your scars, you wish you could replace your skin as easily. Wotjeo grew a lot bigger than you did the past two winters, where once you could carry him, the top of your head now barely comes up to his shoulders. He can continue pumping air from the pot bellows into the bloomery much longer than you can, despite not having the right frame for the motions. Carmenia keeps him pumping his pot bellow until he’s at the edge of exhaustion too. Up and down. Up and down. Up and down. Up and down. Up and down. Up and down. Up and down. Up and down. Up and down. Up and down. Up and down. Up and down. Up and down. Up and down. Up and down. Up and down. Up and down. Up and down. Up and down. Up and down. It’s not sadism on Carmenia’s part. Or at least not solely delight in your pain you think in your darker moments. Whenever one of you needs a break, Carmenia’s spirit companion, a large silver bear named Fierro, takes over. On the rare occasion when Wotjeo needs a break at the same time you do, Fierro takes over both pot bellows and works them stoically. Even his massive frame clearly requires effort to maintain the pace of pumping needed to stoke a fire hot enough to melt rocks, but he stoically pumps the pot bellows however long you need to recover. Up and down. Up and down. Up and down. Up and down. During your all too rare breaks, you cycle madra through your exhausted body in the way that Papa taught you to do after exercising. You do not mean to, but you find yourself cycling to the steady, relentless rhythm of the Fierro pumping the bellows. There is a whooshing noise as Fierro lifts the antelope skin top and air flows into the pot. You breathe in. Fierro pushes the antelope skin top down to the bottom of the pot, forcing air out of the pot bellow and into the bloomery with a whoomping sound. You breathe out. Up, Whoosh, breath in. Down, whoomp, breath out. Up, Whoosh, breath in. Down, whoomp, breath out. Up, Whoosh, breath in. Down, whoomp, breath out. The simple repetitive motions are far more grueling than anything you’ve done before. Papa’s exercise lessons seem like child’s play in comparison, and indeed, that may very well be what they were. You remember Amiya exercised harder than you and Felero put together. Silver Bears have usually survived twice as many winters as you have before they face the level of opposition you do now. You think Papa probably planned on stepping up the exercise intensity gradually as your body naturally developed, but Carmenia obviously has a different approach in mind. After pumping the pot bellows from daybreak until night covers up the sun, you no longer think of air as being weightless. Air, you discover, has a weight and a power all of its own. It can feel heavier than a pail of copper ore. It can push back and fight you with the strength of a raging torrent. Forcing your hands down just one more time to force air into the bloomery can be as agonizing as a punch to the gut, another thing that you are becoming all too familiar with. You discovered many different ways to pump the pot bellows, giving different parts of your body a break. Carmenia will sometimes show you new ways you haven’t thought of yet when you feel like you are going to fall over, but more often she waits for you to figure one out yourself and then shows you how to refine your movements to focus on a specific muscle group or be efficient. She is endlessly patient. She never yells or even raises her voice, but her patience is the patience of a grindstone. Carmenia's patience slowly wears you down until you are doing exactly what she wants. By lunchtime, you already feel like you are nearing the breaking point, and your muscles complain constantly every time you move, even just lifting food to your mouth results in a symphony of complaints from your tired body. Lunch is a surprisingly communal affair. All the Lead-tier Smith apprentices share a single cultivation cave, and also usually eat lunch there as well so they can gather vital essence for their spirit companions as well. You recognize Lela and her bear brother Joveno from your spar. She beat you soundly, but was nice about it. You recognize a few of the other apprentices from your spars too. They were standing with the group of teenagers waiting their chance to fight you. Less than half were in that group, how much you are not sure. You are not good with fractions, you are in fact, only vaguely aware of the concept of division. 1) During lunch you... A. focus on gathering while Wotjeo cultivates, cycling madra during your breaks has greatly reduced your madra B. socialize with the other Lead-tier apprentices, all of whom are older than you and have been Smith apprentices for many winters write in LLSix fucked around with this message at 23:31 on Sep 14, 2019 |
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Sep 14, 2019 19:05
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B What's the point of being the best if we never make any friends?
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Sep 14, 2019 19:24
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B
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Sep 14, 2019 20:02
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I'm convinced by malbogio's reasoning. Changing my vote to A. JosephWongKS fucked around with this message at 00:12 on Sep 15, 2019 |
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Sep 14, 2019 20:32
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A Carmenia brought us on because she viewed us as weak but worth forging into something stronger (with literal hammers). If we focus on socializing we're going to continue underperforming as an apprentice and likely disappoint her. Our socializing is less likely to be seen as effective maneuvering than as goofing off. Even Mama told us not to spread ourselves too thin on friendships as they require ongoing upkeep to maintain. We don't just need to cycle madra through our muscles to be strong enough to perform smith work but also to be strong enough to win any fights. We will continue to be beaten regularly by bullies whether in this apprenticeship or after unless we focus on improving our body. malbogio fucked around with this message at 20:54 on Sep 14, 2019 |
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Sep 14, 2019 20:51
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malbogio posted:A Sounds good to me. A
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Sep 14, 2019 21:22
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A. Like others have said, we have tons of friends/allies we're working on already, and Carmenia sifu definitely seems like the type to see excess socializing as goofing off. On top of that, all these kids here are committed Smith apprentices, the best way to win them over into at least not hating us is very likely to be well, putting our effort into Smithing. If we slack off, it'll make them think we don't really care or respect the path they're dedicating themselves to.
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Sep 14, 2019 21:33
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A I'm convinced.
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Sep 14, 2019 21:36
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