Winter is now at it's peak in Haven and the surrounding hills and mountains. It's very dry, and the winds are cool and biting during the day, and it sometimes gets cold enough to freeze water at nights, nothing more than you would expect for a semi-tropical region. On this particular sunny day, three ladies are trekking through the woods towards the city of Haven.
Acera squeezes Nalae's hand, "Whatcha gonna get in Haven ma?" as she pads along, happy to be doing something different.
Nalae smiles over at Acera, also glad at the change of pace, though still a bit apprehensive about the return to the town. She always gets anxious when she's there.. too much going on for her to keep track of.
Samantha is visible mostly as a moving bundle of coats that leaves tracks behind. The old bones are a lot less forgiving of the cold than they used to be, and she keeps herself warm. Her two 'daughters' are a little less layered up, being better able to handle the current temperatures.
Acera keeps giggling at her mother the walking coat pile. Her fur has thickened up a lot, but that's all she needs to wear.
Samantha hmmphs. "You won't find it so funny when you get to be my age."
Nalae grins over at Acera and Samantha, but restrains herself from giggling.
Acera smiles and chitters, "But ma, you keep saying that they way I get into trouble, I'll never get old enough to court. ;)"
Samantha smirks. "All right, then. I'll fix what I said. You won't find it so funny _IF_ you get to be my age."
Acera gives Nalae's arm a playful tug, "No one gets THAT old ma. ;) So what are you getting in Haven?"
Nalae giggles softly, keeping pace with the other two.
Samantha shakes her head. "Ah, the innocence of youth. In any case, I'm getting some herbs that are coming in on a ship to the harbor today. There's rarely more than a couple of shipments of this a year, and they're quite rare. If I'm not there the day the ship arrives, it will all be bought out before I get there."
Acera's short whiskers twitch a bit, "So we're gonna go to the docks and see the ships? Cool. Some neat stuff ya can buy there Nalae."
Samantha says, "Yes, we are. And I hope you two will at least _try_ to be cautious this time."
Nalae wrinkles her nosepad a bit. 'Cautious'. Bleh.
Acera smiles, "Sure ma. I promise."
Samantha just eyes Acera for a moment, then sighs and shakes her head again.
As the group gets closer to Haven, they can see the oceans on either side of the peninsula in the distance. On one of them a small trail of smoke or steam seems to be coming from the pointed hill at one end of the island there.
Samantha places her hand over her eyes to ward off the sun, and stares at the trail rising into the air. "Looks like we're right on time."
Copernicus pads along the beach of "Nimby's Refuge", sighing as he looks at the vent of steam from the volcano. Oh well, they'll get that vent contained soon enough. He chuckles as he sees Chastity apparently sleeping on the beach in some blankets. . o O (I guess this IS one of the few ways to get some quiet around here till we get the building done. ;)
Nalae peers towards the rising plumes of smoke somewhat nervously, then glances back to Acera and Samantha.
For Samantha and her brood, the outer walls of the city come into view, and the bustle of a small city becomes apparent with all the heavily dressed furs walking around.
Samantha turns, and notes Nalae's discomfiture. "Don't worry, that will just be the ship. It burns fuel to make it move."
Chastity snores quietly under the noonday sun. One of the strange
little local birds, looking like nothing more than a rock at rest, has
been flapping closer and closer over the past hour. Finally, with a
quick, nervous flutter of soft wings, it alights on her belly. It peeks
out and around with a tiny, beady-eyed head nervously, before once again
becoming a rock.
Acera hmms, "How can a fire make something move?
Samantha hmmms. "You know the way the steam rushes out of the kettle when I boil the water?"
Acera looks at Nalae and seems impressed, "And they make a whole boat move that way? Like making their own wind to sail by?"
Copernicus chuckles and pads up towards Chastity, doing his best
to be quiet as he notes the occasional "rock" fly away as he walks.
Nalae looks back towards the smoke, mostly ignoring the explanation. As long as it's tended by someone, and isn't the start of a brushfire or something.. And she relaxes a little, deciding that the smoke isn't plentiful enough to be anything that serious.
Samantha shakes her head. "Not quite, but close. It's more like putting a little wheel near where the steam comes out and letting the steam spin that wheel, then using the wheel to push the boat." She smirks. "It takes a really big kettle."
Acera giggles and whispers to Nalae, "Considering how ma likes tea, I bet she wants to buy one of those boat kettles. :)"
Samantha ignores this comment.
Chastity continues sleeping, but the "rock" senses the felitaur's
approach. It blinks it's barely-noticeable black eyes, and silently flaps
away in alarm. Th movement wakes Chastity, and she blinks and slowly
sits up, yawning.
The felitaur stretches his wings a bit, then leans forward and
stretches
on all sixes as it were, bending his torso down so his hands touch
the ground too. He purrrrrrrrrrs as he works the kinks out. And only
winces a bit at the distant report of another small explosion.
Nalae glances back over at Acera and grins.
Chastity's ears perk at the explosion, and suddenly she's awake,
looking around. "What? Where?"
As they work towards the docks along the Big Serpent river, the number of people around increases. It gets a little crowded, but also more interesting. The winter garb is far from drab, and a few booths have been set up along the way, hawking clothes, jewelry, and hot foods.
Samantha threads her way through the crowds fairly easily, despite the bulk of the coats. She moves like she knows exactly where she's going.
Copernicus chuckles as he gets up from his stretch, "Sorry to disturb
your friend or your sleep m'lady."
Nalae hurries to stay close behind Samantha, gripping Acera's hand tightly.
Acera is already looking around and tending to slow Nalae's efforts to keep up.
Chastity closes her eyes and yawns softly again, rubbing her neck.
"Oh, no problem, Gideon. What friend." She looks up, and blinks,
glancing around again. "I mean... Copernicus. What friend?"
Samantha is actually paying more attention to her daughters than it looks like she is, and she slows up slightly so they don't get separated.
A twitch of his ears and tail is all that betrays Copernicus's curiosity
as he purrs, "The rock bug that had curled up on you flew off
when I approached."
Nalae spares a glance to try to follow Acera's gaze, to see what the mink is looking at...
Acera's little nose twitches and sniffs at a stall tended by a wolf, who's selling her favorite. Spiced meat on a stick.
She chuckles softly. "Oh, my! I suppose they're getting more and
more at ease with us." She grimaces as she sits up all the way, gathering
up the blankets.
>Copernicus offers a hand to Chastity, "Well, when you sleep soundly,
they come close for the body heat. They'll curl up next to campfires
too."
Acera chitters, "Ma, can I have some?"
As the little mink slows the group down, the paddle-wheel steamer can be seen just now tieing down and putting up a gangplank.
Chastity takes the preferred hand, pulling herself up. she straightens
her tunic. "Thanks.... What was that explosion I heard?"
Samantha looks at Acera, and decides that letting her have this will keep her occupied for now. "Certainly. Be quick about it, though; the ship is just coming into the dock."
Acera grins and tugs Nalae, "C'mon sis. ;)"
Samantha says, "I'll see you over by the ship."
Nalae grins, and bounds after Acera. She loves spiced meat almost as much as Acera does. ;)
Copernicus ahems, "Oh, just some more destruction work by our construction
crews."
Acera nods absentmindedly to her mother as she races over to the booth with some copper coins in her hands.
Samantha sighs, shaking her head again, then chuckles as she starts working her way through the crowds towards the dock again.
Nalae grins at Acera, racing her sister to the food stand!
The paddle-wheel boat shows many signs of having seen a lot of years on the high seas, but it's still pretty solid. The crew is just now starting to unload the cargo, under the directions of a tough looking mustelid, maybe a wolverine?
Chastity frowns. "Construction crews? You didn't waste any time."
Acera buys four skewers and hands Nalae two of them as she chows down.
With a look towards the steam plume coming from the volcano, Copernicus
shrugs, "Well, we need a solid land base, and who knows if we'll
be attacked again. I want to be prepared. That, and it will solidify
our presence here. We don't want to interfere with the locals, but we don't
want them trying to annex the gate or my mates' mining station up
in orbit."
Nalae grins, quickly devouring her share of the food.
Chastity makes a wry face. "I know that feeling well." She coughs
slightly and asks quickly, "Just what are they.. uhm, building?"
Copernicus hmms, "Well, you've already seen the landing field. Some
are digging out more of the underground repair and storage areas. The
crew on the volcano is trying to patch up a vent they opened on accident.
When they get that done, the geothermal plant can be hooked up."
"And of course some of them are working on some housing. Once in
a while even we Chirr'T'Thar like to be inside. Oh, I need to go to Haven
for a few things, want to ride along?"
Chas nods, stretching, finally starting to feel properly awake.
"Sure! I don't think I've really seen Haven yet."
Copernicus chuckles, "It's not that awfully large, but it sure is
crowded. I'm not sure I like having that high a density of folks in one
area. Hard on the ecology. So, need anything before we take off?"
She grins softly, holding up her cane. "This is all I came with,
I'm afraid."
With a flex of his wings, the felitaur nods, "Not a problem. Let
me help you on and we can get going."
Samantha spots the cargo foreman, and walks up towards him, keeping well out of the way of the rest of the cargo crew.
The wolverine turns to look at Samantha and nods, tipping his cap to the squirrel, "You look like you need something m'lady?"
Chas blinks and gulps. "Uhm... flying, yeah...." She takes in
a breath and hauls herself up onto Copernicus's back with his help.
Copernicus chuckles, "Oh c'mon. Flying with me isn't that bad, is
it? ;)"
Samantha nods to the wolverine, brushing her hood back so she can see him properly. "Yes. I was led to understand that there was some charbo root brought in on this ship, and I am interested in arranging a purchase."
Chastity chuckles softly. "Well... it does beat a frontier cruiser
making a nosedive into an atmosphere." She frowns a little. "Where
did that image come from?" She shrugs. "Well... whenever you're ready...."
The wolverine bows, "Captain Raston Windtamer at your service m'lady. And yes, we do have some charbo root. The northerners don't let us harvest too much of it, but we can sell some to you. You are an herbalist?"
Copernicus shakes his head and purrs, "Hold on." and leaps into
the air, taking off in a smooth course towards the docks of Haven.
Chastity's loud YELP quickly fades into the distance.
Acera finishes her meat and licks her paw pads, "Done Nalae? C'mon, lets find ma. Though not too soon, K? ;)"
Samantha nods. "Samantha Beiter. I consider myself some small practitioner of the art, yes."
Captain Raston nods, "How much would you like Samantha?"
Nalae grins at Acera, nodding.
Nalae says, "Is there neat stuff to look at between here and there?"
Acera nodnods, "Lotsa booths. Some with toys, food. Even some really silly looking clothes and stuff. C'mon. :)"
Samantha says, "That depends on how much is not taken by other consignees, of course; but three fingers would be useful."
Nalae grins and bounds off after Acera, in search of treasures. ;)
Acera stops at a booth full of figures carved in stone, most of them quite small. She looks around for one of her or Nalae or one like her mom.
The flight over the ocean is uneventful, at least as far as Copernicus
is concerned. He turns down towards the far edge of the docks, where
he has permission to land.
Nalae pads along after Acera, peering at the statues curiously, but not daring to touch them (much to the relief of the shopkeeper).
Chas has had her arms tightly around Copernicus's neck the whole
trip. She's gotten more and more used to felitaur-back flying. Sort
of.
Captain Raston nods, "I can spare as much as 5 fingers if you'd like? Say for a silver ring?"
Acera hmmms, "Shopkeep? You have anything for a squirrel?"
Samantha smiles. "I am grateful for your generosity. Though perhaps if you have need of my services as an herbalist we could arrange some of that in trade?"
The wolverine grins, "Well, maybe you can give me some advice on the most sought after herbs to ship. For that, we can go to half a silver ring and 20 copper bits."
Samantha smiles. "I don't live within the city itself, so I don't hear all the gossip, but I shop here enough. There was an early frost on the ground just north of here this year, which has damaged one of the usual sites for catmint. You may find a higher call for that than usual."
Copernicus purrs, "Well, here we are Chastity. So, what will you
be doing today. I need to eventually find you again."
The shopkeeper blinks, "Something for a squirrel? Are you sure that's what you want?"
Acera blinks at Nalae, "What's up with him?"
Nalae blinks right back at Acera, just as confused as she is.
Chas slips off of Copernicus's back, stretching. "I'm not sure,
really. Probably just look around. Though, someday, I imagine I'll want
to, you know, settle down and do something."
The shopkeeper hmms and looks to somebody who is sitting in the shadows behind him, and then asks, "Why would two little girls like you know any squirrels?"
Copernicus looks around then hmms, "Such as? In return for dealing
with a bit of paperwork for us, I bet we could help you get set up if
you wish."
Samantha hmmms, and adds, "And there's still a lot of dried cilantro leaves from the last shipment, so that won't be needed at all for months. On the other hand, the powdered megnuts should be in demand by the time you come around next."
The Captain nods, "A fair trade indeed. Shall we call it a deal?"
Samantha holds her hand out. "Certainly."
Chastity chuckles softly. "I'm not sure yet. I'm... remembering
a lot of what I used to do." She looks around, smiling quietly at the
bustle. "I think I've had my fill of generalship."
Nalae looks from the shopkeeper to Acera and back again, confused. "Our ma's a squirrel..."
Copernicus nods, "So have I m'lady. Though I fear it's not over.
Oh my. That looks like a steam powered ship in dock. Mind going over to
take a look?"
Chastity blinks, perking her ears as she turns to look. Her
smile
widens. "A steam-ship! Oh, glory be, I never thought I'd see one of
them again! Yes, let's!"
Acera nodnods, "My brother Ankhl is too." And at this statement, both the shopkeeper and his hidden friend start a bit, and then the shopkeeper chuckles, "Ingenious. Who would suspect two little girls. Sure, I have a wonderful gift for a squirrel. Give me a moment."
Captain Raston shakes Samantha's hand as Copernicus and Chastity move up to examine the paddle-wheel steamer.
Copernicus hmms at the boat, "It's seen a lot of use. They did make it sturdy at least."
Acera blinks at Nalae, "This guy is weird."
Nalae glances at Acera, shrugging slightly as the shopkeeper goes to collect whatever he has in mind.
Samantha smiles at the shake, and then reaches into one of her pockets and pulls out the agreed-upon sum.
The shopkeeper comes back with a softball sized stone that has been carved into the shape of an acorn. Acera chuckles, "I'm not sure ma will like it, but I think we should get it, huh Nalae? ;)"
Chastity nods slowly, looking over the vessel. "I wish I knew more about maritime ships."
The captain walks over and gets a small box and brings it over to the elderly squirrel, "Here are your five fingers m'lady. And thank you for the coins. I hope to do business with you again...oh my? Is that one of those...Chirpy'taurs I've been hearing about?"
Copernicus hmms, "They seem to be using a manual governor on the boiler. That's risky."
Nalae peers at the stone dubiously. "I dunno.. But if you want to."
Chastity blinks, looking at Copernicus. "All I know about boilers is that our ships were accused of running off of them sometimes...."
Samantha takes a look over at what the captain is looking at, then nods. "Yes, it is. They've recently set up shop at the island out in the harbor, so they're not in town as much anymore."
The captain hmmms, "They seem to be checking out the ship. Have you ever dealt with them before?"
Samantha nods. "A couple of them. I believe that's their leader, though I've never seen the vixen beside him."
Acera nods and buys the large paperweight for a couple copper coins and stuffs it in the leather pouch at her side, "C'mon, let's find ma. I'll show this to her later, K Nalae? ;)"
Raston nods, "Well then, can you introduce me? I understand they sail space. And I can't help but chat with another sailor."
Nalae nodnods. "Okay!"
Samantha chuckles. "I think that could be arranged, yes."
Acera zips off with Nalae in tow as the shopkeeper looks worried. The figure in the darkened corner chuckles, "Oh, don't worry. It's safe. It'd take something like my beam rifle to set it off. And what a cover too. That squirrel isn't as stupid as I thought." The shopkeeper nods, "You can leave for your ship when it gets dark tonight. I hope that squirrel keeps that thing safe till your buyer arrives."
Captain Raston Windtamer offers his arm to Samantha, "Then lead on m'lady. I'm curious as to what he's looking at."
Samantha pushes her hood back again so that hopefully Copernicus can recognize her, then slips her arm in with the Captain's.
Nalae oohs, and points over at a booth displaying various toys.. "C'mon!"
Copernicus offers Chastity a seat on his back as he looks at the paddle wheel, noting the barnacles, and the rough areas where the little critters have been scraped off over the years. "What an intriguing life."
Chastity smiles softly, pulling herself up on Copernicus's back. "It's no wonder spacers love taking on so many elements of the maritime life."
Samantha waves to Copernicus as she and her new friend approach.
Acera nods and goes with Nalae, checking out the toys, and really gets into the spinning tops. She hmmms, "Let's see if Nipper's tent is up in Tu'Ktars circle first, K? He always gives me a deal cause of our ma. ;)"
Nalae looks away from a couple of loosely stuffed plush dolls and nods to Acera. "Okay!"
Copernicus turns his head and torso around while his taur body stays facing away, "Oh, hello Samantha. Chastity, this is one of the natives here who met us when we first landed. I haven't met her friend before though."
Samantha says, "Copernicus, this is Captain Raston Windtamer of the vessel you've been looking over; Captain, this is Copernicus... Skygazer, wasn't it? Of the felitaurs."
Chastity smiles, inclining her head. "Pleased to meet you, Samantha."
Acera gets to the circle where Tu'Ktars needle is located and hmmfs, "I don't see Nipper today. Shoot."
Nalae sighs and shrugs. "Oh well. D'you think Ma's done yet?"
Samantha nods back to Chastity. "And I you."
Copernicus bows, "I am Copernicus Skygazer Talorn. Skygazer is my father's clan, and Talorn is the clan of one of my mates', Melora Starlight. You have a fine vessel here Captain, though one that's been around a bit I see."
Captain Raston nods, more interested in this odd looking winged creature than the conversation. He's amazed that they can fly, "The Wave Darter is a good ship, and has kept us all alive for many a voyage. Maybe someday I can inspect one of your ships?"
Acera hmms, "Well, let's look around here first. Ma likes to talk a lot."
Nalae nods a bit, peering about the nearby shops.
A shadow passes briefly over the two girls, and then passes again a few seconds later.
Acera starts a bit, some vestige of race memory of hawk predators from above kicking in, but then she just thinks it's some Chirpy'taurs and turns to look, tugging at Nalae's shoulder.
Nalae has already been peering up at the skies, trying to locate the source of that sudden shadow...
Copernicus nods, "You'll have to take a trip to Nimby's Refuge, the island that the council gave us to set up shop. ;) How have you been Samantha? And your two daughters?"
Not too high up, something dark and with a very large wingspan appears to be spiraling down towards the Circle.
Acera looks confused, "That's not a Chirpy'taur, I don't think?"
Samantha smiles. "They're both well, and somewhere back in that throng on the causeway. Acera got the munchies as we were walking through."
The sparse crowd starts to get thicker as a few bystanders turn to see what the two little mustelids are looking at, and more folks crowd in to point and stare.
Acera nods to Jenora and gives the Captains hand a shake as he states he has to finish unloading his ship. Copernicus then hmms at Samantha's package, "So, what are you in town for?"
Samantha turns to look at the crowd as she motions towards it, frowns, and tilts her head to see what they're all looking at.
Copernicus blinks and follows the tilt of Samantha's head and blinks, "Kai? She's back somehow?"
Chastity glances back at the bazaar when Samantha indicates it, then looks again, craning her neck to get a bit of a better look at them.
The shape resolves as it comes lower.. and it's not a felitaur. With a sudden beating of pinions, a large blue dragon comes to perch on the top of Tu'Ktar's Needle.
Chastity yelps! and almost falls of of Copernicus.
Samantha turns to look at Copernicus. "You know this... person?"
Copernicus chuckles, "She always knew how to make an entrance." and blinks as the crowd seems a bit intimidated, and yet some talk about how much the she dragon must be worth in gold. He hmmmms, "Yes, I do. And as usual, she's about to start some trouble and blame me for it. And your daughters are quite close, shall we get over there quickly?", making it more a statement than a question.
Kainudy's muzzle swings about as she scans the crowd, then freezes as she spots the Chirr'T'Thar. "Copernicus!" she bellows.
Nalae's eyes widen at the sight of the dragon. Her grip on Acera's hand tightens as she begins to back a bit away from the huge creature.
Copernicus rolls his eyes a bit and chuckles, "There's my cue. C'mon. Folks here still tend to open a path for someone my size."
Chastity winces at the roar, then glances at Copernicus. "Uhm... are you sure she'll be glad to see you?"
Copernicus shrugs, "Depends on what you mean by "happy". Let's go. ;)"
Acera oohs and looks up, "How did you get your wings?", once again not noticing how everyone else is acting towards a potentially dangerous unknown.
Samantha shakes her head. "You realize this is only going to reinforce the image that whenever anything odd happens around here you're involved."
The dragon begins to climb down from the Needle as Copernicus approaches.
Copernicus smirks a bit as he wades through the parting crowd, "So? It keeps life from getting boring Samantha. ;)"
Nalae tugs at Acera's hand. "Acera!"
Chastity murmurs as they near the dragon, "'May you live in interesting times' is a -curse- in some cultures...."
Samantha sighs, and shakes her head. She glances back to see if the Captain is coming this way as well before heading in to see how her daughters are doing.
Kainudy sits back on her haunches at the base of the Needle, and folds her arms across her chest with a stern expression.
Copernicus pads up next to Kainudy, using himself to separate the dragon from the crowd. He waves to Acera then purrs, "Hello Kai. Good to see you again."
Chastity discretely slips off of Copernicus' back, watching the interchange as she leans upon her cane.
Kainudy snorts, and says, "Of course it is! But the next time you invite me anywhere, I'll fly myself, okay?"
Acera hmms? and then ohs as she sees Samantha, "Oh, thanks for telling me Nalae. Hey ma, isn't she pretty? I like that color of blue."
Samantha comes up behind Copernicus, and waves Acera over.
Acera pouts, but heads over to her mother's side.
Samantha looks up. "Yes, she is quite impressive, I must admit."
Copernicus purrs, "Well, I'm sorry you got grabbed by the gate. But it looks like you made it ok.""
Nalae hurries to Samantha's side, moving in close.
Copernicus hmms at the milling crowd, which the town guard is also watching, "You do know that they view dragons as rare commodities here, don't you Kai?"
Kainudy takes another look around, then asks, "Commodities? I'm not made of flour or hog bellies!"
Copernicus purrs, "No, but they seem to believe dragon parts have various properties. :)"
Kainudy waves a claw, "Well, if they were naive enough to let your lot land, they'll probably believe anything."
A bolt from a crossbow thunks off of Coper's quickly raised wing, followed by a cry of pain as the shooter's bow get's sliced apart by a feather from the felitaur's wing. "Sure Kai." Copernicus turns to make sure the city guard got the would be dragon poacher. Or maybe broiler, he doesn't know how you're supposed to serve dragon.
Kainudy says, "And what's all this I've heard about a war and invaders?"
Copernicus purrs, "But maybe we should go someplace a tad less crowded?"
Kainudy nods, "Fine. Do they have pizza on this world?"
Copernicus frowns, "Well, if they have the geothermal station up on the island, we can probably cook you one. I don't think it's a native dish though. Oh, where are my manners. Kainudy, this is Chastity, a recent arrival to Nexus, and Samantha and her daughters Nalae and Acera. Folks, this is Kainudy, the grumpy dragon."
Chastity glances at Copernicus, then looks up at Kainudy, smiling and giving a nervous wave.
Samantha manages to keep a straight face as she bows to Kainudy.
Acera snugs Nalae, "See, nothing to worry about. She and Coppernickles are friends."
Nalae looks up at Kainudy rather apprehensively, eyes wide.
Kainudy grumps, "I am not grumpy."
Copernicus grins, his point proven, and turns to Samantha, "Know of a quiet place nearby, hopefully with few archers or dragon sized cooking grills?"
Samantha just _looks_ at Copernicus. "I haven't seen any of the latter, but I agree moving away from town would be a good idea for everyone's peace of mind right now. Probably south towards the edge of the woods.
The guards also seem to appreciate the idea of moving this crowd away. Copernicus nods, "So Kai, want to fly over to that section of woods just past the fields to south of us? It's only a mile or two, we'll be there shortly."
Kainudy sighs and nods, then spreads her wings and starts her take-off.
Copernicus hmms and mutters, "My mother's always warned me I should be pickier about choosing my friends. ;)" He's not sure if it's loud enough for Kai to hear or not.
Acera chitters, "Wow. I wonder how she got her wings ma?"
Chastity shakes her head slowly. "I... haven't seen a dragon in a great long time."
Samantha says, "I expect she was born with them."
Copernicus chuckles, "You'll have to meet Shiran sometime. I kind of set him up with a female of my race. In fact, their cub should be born soon. Well Chastity, you want to follow along, or stay in town for a bit?"
Chastity thinks for a moment, then smiles a little. "Well, lead the way. I'm in no rush, I guess."
The blue dragon finally vanishes into the woods.
Copernicus offers his back and a hand up to Chastity, and turns to look at Samantha, "Believe me Samantha, your cubs were never in any danger. Well, maybe of being grumped at, but that's about it."
Acera is still pouting a little, "Everyone's born with em but me."
Nalae gives Acera a little snug.
Chastity tilts her head to Acera, then smiles softly. "I never had any wings, hon."
Samantha nods. "I trust you on that."
Copernicus purrs, "Well, I'm going to walk over and see what's on my friends mind. It was good to see you again Samantha. Acera and Nalae too. Oh, my sister mentioned something about Acera being interested in becoming a shuttle pilot someday. I'll have to talk to you about that when we have more time."
Samantha nods. "Right. She might have also mentioned I was interested in trying to get a location figured out from a star map. I'm not quite ready for that yet."
Copernicus nods and purrs, "Good hunting, and may the first mother keep you safe and warm at night." and then leaps off into the air with the mildly protesting Chastity on his back.
Samantha bows to Copernicus, then finds something to lean against.
Acera snugs Samantha and Nalae, "You ok ma?"
Samantha nods. "Just this trip was a little more exciting than I had expected."
Nalae smiles up at Samantha hesitantly.
Acera ohs, "I thought it was fun. Sorry it wore you out ma. I want to get a couple of tops and I think Nalae wants a doll, then we'll head home, K ma?"
Samantha smiles back to Nalae, then nods. "That sounds fine with me."
Copernicus hmms and then sets down by the edge of the woods, "You going to be ok Chastity? Kainudy should be around here somewhere, grumping again."
Nalae abruptly flushes lightly, and clasps Acera's hand a bit tighter.
Chastity nods, trying to catch her breath. "I'll.. be fine. Just have to get used to being surprised at every turn here."
Acera nods and waits till her mother catches her breath a bit, then drags her and Nalae back to the tent with the toys in it, having totally forgotten about the acorn shaped rock in her pouch.
Copernicus hmmms, "If you find a way to get used to it, let me know. It seems I'm destined to be a chaos magnet. So, Kai? You around?"
Samantha chuckles quietly again, and allows herself to be dragged along.
Nalae tags along with Acera, casting a hesitant smile up at Samantha.
Kainudy looks up from where she's stretched out in a bit of sunshine that makes it through the trees. "Over here, Copernicus."
Copernicus chuckles and pads over, "It is good to see you again, you old grump. ;)"
Chastity chuckles softly, and sighs. "I never got used to it before...."
Kainudy hrmphs. "So, what've I missed while on my unexpected trip?"
Copernicus purrs, "Oh, a fair bit. We moved the gate into orbit here after it misfired. I've since seen Shiran and Zilvar too. I haven't seen Delachiel in a while. We had a nasty battle here with some single minded invaders. That was nothing to the battle we had at Tharhome recently. We took a lot of damage, but we stopped them."
Chastity blinks, at what's been going on. Clearly, it's a lot more than she had thought.
Kainudy sighs. "Well, Delachiel is all right. She's resting up not too far from here, with a friend. These invaders didn't approach my wormhole, did they?"
Copernicus purrs, "No, they were only interested in planets and ships. Near as we can guess, they're one of those expansionist empires. And a definite pack behavior canid type to boot."
Kainudy nods. "How bad were the losses at Tharhome?"
Acera finally gets a couple tops and a leather ball stuffed with rags to throw around. An assortment of dolls can be found. Some more crude than others. A couple seem squirrel like, and some even look a bit like a mustelid, if you squint a little.
Copernicus sighs, "Not too bad considering the size of the invasion. They had a huge mobile station that came in with dozens of carriers and battle cruisers. They never got in range of Tharhome itself, but we lost nearly a thousand in its defense."
Kainudy closes her eyes and rests her head on her forepaws, looking very old for a moment. "I'm sorry to hear that. I know you haven't had to fight a war in a long time."
Chastity bites her lip, remaining quiet.
Copernicus nods, and for a moment his face looks rather old too, "We had no choice. They didn't bother with any negotiations, just went straight for the kill. If we hadn't been a bit paranoid after the move about our defenses, we might not have been ready. And, we were able to keep them from hurting other systems as badly."
Nalae looks at all the different dolls.. and though she lingers over some of the more expensive, finely crafted ones, she finally lifts a fairly simple stuffed doll. It's simple enough, in fact, that it's not at all easy to tell what species it's supposed to be. But its sturdily sewn fabric is about the same color as Acera's fur, so in a pinch, it can be considered to be a mustelid. Sort of. She holds the doll up towards Samantha for approval. "Um.. is this one okay?"
Samantha looks over at it, and nods. "Certainly, if that's what you want."
Acera is giving some serious looks at a child size crossbow as she pockets her toys.
Nalae smiles and nods at Samantha.
Kainudy says, "Did you leave any survivors?"
Copernicus looks down at his toes, "Well, we tried to capture some alive, but they wouldn't allow it. And one or two we did capture fought against their restraints till they died. They die in captivity it seems. Course, a few small ships and a badly damaged carrier did jump away when the battle in Tharhome system was nearly done.
Chastity says softly, "Many cultures like that can 'dish it out,' but they can't take it. Captivity, I mean..."
"Where you able to trace them back to their base?" Kainudy asks.
Copernicus nods, "Well, considering how all out they went for Tharhome, and how we did beat them back, it should be a while before we see them again. No, we haven't. We'd need to get the gate working more smoothly before we can attempt to trace them."
Kainudy hmms, and nods.
Acera decides not to ask for a weapon yet and chitters, "Let's get something to eat and head home ma."
Samantha nods. "Sounds like a good idea. I got what I came for."
Chastity says, "Er,,I'm sorry for interrupting, but... what is this 'gate?'"
Kainudy says, "One of Copernicus' silly contraptions that causes trouble.."
Nalae smiles and nods a few times.
Copernicus hmmfs, "Only trouble it caused was sending you on a trip. It's a dimensional gate. It allows us to travel back where our solar system used to be. Restore some of our trade, and retrieve any stranded Chirr'T'Thar. It has a couple glitches still."
Chastity frowns slightly. "So it's not... er, some form of jumpgate, then."
Kainudy mumbles something about 'glitches'..
Samantha walks down through the crowd again, stopping at a few different stalls to get food for both herself and her daughters. "Shall we be off, then?"
Copernicus purrs, "Well, in a way yes. It's range and speed are much greater, and it also can do dimensional coordinates. I've never designed one before, and all in all, I think it works rather well, despite a couple of minor oddities.""
Acera nods and snugs Nalae after she's down some more spiced meat on a stick, "Let's get home."
Nalae smiles and nods, taking Acera's hand with one hand, and hugging her new doll in the other.
Kainudy says, "Minor oddities? You've been spending too much time with bureaucrats, Copernicus."
Samantha nods, and leads her daughters back home through the forest, leaving the 'interesting' city behind her for now.
Copernicus shakes his head, "No Kai, compared to what's been going on lately, they are minor oddities. Since we moved it here, it's much more stable. It hasn't grabbed anyone since you at all. It does still...er...spit the ships out, but that seems to be a feature and not a bug."
Copernicus shrugs embarrassedly.
Chastity sighs a little. "I don't suppose it would have anything to do with why I'm here, then."
Copernicus hmmms, "Well, the reason the gate works better here is that space is less stable. It follows from why the planet is called "Nexus"."
Copernicus purrs, "If we can figure out where you came from, we can send you back. But the number of small portals that open and close on this planet is scary. Most don't let anything pass through, but there's almost no way to figure out which one you came through Chastity. I'm sorry."
Chastity smiles quietly, and ruffs Copernicus's ears a little. "That's all right. I know it would be a lot to ask. 'Sides... I don't think I'm here by accident."
Copernicus purrrs softly, "Thank you Chastity. And you're right, it's probably not an accident. So Kai, want to head to "Nimby's Refuge" and see if we can get the volcano to cook you a pizza? ;)"
Kainudy smirks at the name of the Chirr'T'Thar base. "Yeah, pizza sounds good."
Copernicus nods and looks back at Chastity, "Well, we'll have to do our business in Haven tomorrow m'lady. Shall we head back? We probably should have some living quarters ready by now."
Chastity nods quietly. "Sure." She grins softly. "Is that what the island's called?"
Copernicus purrs, "Yep. Jenora thought it up. It stands for "Not In My Back Yard". And considering WHY we are moving there, it's appropriate. C'mon Kai, get your wings moving again. Oh, and hold on Chastity. ;)"
Chastity laughs softly. "Oh, my. Uhm, hold on...? YIPE--!"
Kainudy stretches her spine as she gets up, and then spreads her wings to follow after Copernicus and his passenger.
Despite her protests, Chastity one again makes it safely on "Felitaur Air" to the base. And after a bit of coaxing from Kainudy and Copernicus, they make something that tastes almost, but not quite, entirely UNLIKE ham and pineapple pizza.