(no subject)
Pumpkin Pie #1. Ghost and Blueberry Yogurt #20. Observation
with Hot Fudge, Whipped Cream, and Gummies
Story : knights & necromancers
Rating : PG (with much nasty gross stuff)
Timeframe : 1251
Word Count : 998
Gummy Prompt : 500themes #176. Tempting enigma
Hey, I think I'm back...maybe. Life is nuts right now. But I managed almost 1k today, so yay! I am hoping I can hang in there through this challenge. Warning upfront, pumpkin pie just asks for lots of necromancy, so expect these not to be pretty ;)
“So this is the infamous Mabel, huh? The ghost in the attic herself.”
Reida was planted a few feet into the room, with her hands on her hips, frowning at the skeletal heap in the shadowy corner across the way. Curled around the plate on the floor, Mabel was tearing into their offering of bloody steak with withered teeth and bony fingers.
“Yeah,” said Kairn, watching nervously from just inside the door, the key still ready in his hand. “Satisfied? C-can we, can we go now?”
Reida took a step closer and cocked her head to watch the construct scarfing down ragged hunks of meat. “There’s not a mark on her. You’d think to keep something alive for that long, you’d have to put at least a few forms on the body.”
“They’re on the walls,” said Kairn, with a nod to the figures on the wall with their soft green glow. “She can’t leave this room. He had the hardest time moving her here from the old manor. Sethan says they had to build her a special box-” He stopped short when Reida turned her scowl on him. “What? You were new then. It’s not like they asked me to help either.”
She choked on a laugh. “Well, of course they didn’t.”
“Hey.” He raked a hand through his hair, more embarrassed than indignant. Reida was already too absorbed in the forms along the nearest wall to see his blush. “Anyway, where would you put any marks on her? She’s bare bones.”
“Some of these are really interesting,” she said, her nose all but pressed to the wood.
“Sethan has most of them copied down. You don’t have to hang out here to see them.”
“I’ll have to ask him for those sometime.”
“Why didn’t you just have him bring you here?” Mabel was still noisily devouring her steak. Blood rolled down her cheeks, leaving fresh stains among the old. Kairn decided to look at the key in his hand instead. “He’s been up here more times than I have. He actually knows what half this stuff is.”
“I tried,” said Reida, still fixated on the sigils.
“Oh?”
“He wasn’t scared.” Without so much as turning, she lifted a hand over her shoulder and pinched the air.
“Oh. That. Right.”
“What is this?” She scooped up a jar from the table in front of her and Kairn grimaced.
“It, uh… it looks like, like an eyeball, actually.” An eyeball suspended in something viscous that caught the eerie green light from the wall all too well.
“So it does.” She turned it one way and then the other, watching thoughtfully as the eye drifted back and forth inside. “Hers, you think?”
“I-I’d rather not, if it’s alright with you,” said Kairn. “A-and I’d rather you put it back now too.”
She rolled her eyes, but set the jar back on the table, where Kairn noticed a row of them, all with dark shapes inside he’d rather not look at closely enough to identify. “You know,” said Reida, fingering the lids of a few of them, “Ephram thinks it just might be possible to fabricate an entire body from nothing but a few base elements and a lot of magic.”
“D-does he, now?” Mabel let out a nasty belch, and Kairn cast a nervous glance at her now empty plate. “You know, Reida, I think we should maybe throw her another steak and then maybe leave.”
“Hmm?” Reida followed his gaze. “Oh.” She fished about in her sack and chucked something at Mabel. As it sailed across the room, Kairn swore he saw a tail.
“Was that just- You fed her a rat?” he sputtered as Mabel snatched from the floor where it landed.
“And?” said Reida, as the demon tore the head from the thing with her teeth.
“Berwyk’s not going to like that.”
“You know that’s why he brought him here?”
“Huh?” Kairn had to tear himself from the spectacle of the half dead woman devouring a very dead rat, to find Reida’s attention back on the wall.
“Ephram,” she said, as if it should be obvious. “Berwyk buys his body swapping shit. He thinks maybe he can help him build her a new one from scratch.” She nodded at Mabel and Kairn made the mistake of looking back, only to see her with a tail hanging from her jaw.
“Oh,” he said, almost reflexively, then, “Wait, body swapping?”
“I think she’s done with her rat.”
“So throw her another. Did you really just say body swapping?”
“Yeah.” Reida shrugged, reached back into her bag, and threw another rat Mabel’s way. The demon all but pounced on it. “Ephram figures energy isn’t the only thing we can stick in a construct.”
“Just what does he do to you in his lab? Don’t look at me like that. I know you go there every week.”
“That was my last rat. We should probably get going.” She swept past him, headed for the door.
Kairn caught her shoulder. “Reida?”
She turned to face him with another shrug. “Nothing half as exciting as whatever you’re thinking, I’m sure. The whole body swapping thing is just theory. It’s not like he’s tried it. And it’s not like I’m going to let him try it on me.”
“And what if you did?” said Kairn, still holding onto her.
“Hmm?”
“What if you did let him…” He groped the air with a hand, as if he might find a palatable way to say it floating in front of him. “What if you weren’t you?”
Reida shook her head. There was a loud gulp and a grumble as Mabel swallowed the last of the second rat. “I think you should be more concerned with whether you’re about to become dessert.” She peeled his hand from her shoulder before reaching for the door. “Don’t be such a little girl about it; I can take care of myself,” she said, as he followed her out.
with Hot Fudge, Whipped Cream, and Gummies
Story : knights & necromancers
Rating : PG (with much nasty gross stuff)
Timeframe : 1251
Word Count : 998
Gummy Prompt : 500themes #176. Tempting enigma
Hey, I think I'm back...maybe. Life is nuts right now. But I managed almost 1k today, so yay! I am hoping I can hang in there through this challenge. Warning upfront, pumpkin pie just asks for lots of necromancy, so expect these not to be pretty ;)
“So this is the infamous Mabel, huh? The ghost in the attic herself.”
Reida was planted a few feet into the room, with her hands on her hips, frowning at the skeletal heap in the shadowy corner across the way. Curled around the plate on the floor, Mabel was tearing into their offering of bloody steak with withered teeth and bony fingers.
“Yeah,” said Kairn, watching nervously from just inside the door, the key still ready in his hand. “Satisfied? C-can we, can we go now?”
Reida took a step closer and cocked her head to watch the construct scarfing down ragged hunks of meat. “There’s not a mark on her. You’d think to keep something alive for that long, you’d have to put at least a few forms on the body.”
“They’re on the walls,” said Kairn, with a nod to the figures on the wall with their soft green glow. “She can’t leave this room. He had the hardest time moving her here from the old manor. Sethan says they had to build her a special box-” He stopped short when Reida turned her scowl on him. “What? You were new then. It’s not like they asked me to help either.”
She choked on a laugh. “Well, of course they didn’t.”
“Hey.” He raked a hand through his hair, more embarrassed than indignant. Reida was already too absorbed in the forms along the nearest wall to see his blush. “Anyway, where would you put any marks on her? She’s bare bones.”
“Some of these are really interesting,” she said, her nose all but pressed to the wood.
“Sethan has most of them copied down. You don’t have to hang out here to see them.”
“I’ll have to ask him for those sometime.”
“Why didn’t you just have him bring you here?” Mabel was still noisily devouring her steak. Blood rolled down her cheeks, leaving fresh stains among the old. Kairn decided to look at the key in his hand instead. “He’s been up here more times than I have. He actually knows what half this stuff is.”
“I tried,” said Reida, still fixated on the sigils.
“Oh?”
“He wasn’t scared.” Without so much as turning, she lifted a hand over her shoulder and pinched the air.
“Oh. That. Right.”
“What is this?” She scooped up a jar from the table in front of her and Kairn grimaced.
“It, uh… it looks like, like an eyeball, actually.” An eyeball suspended in something viscous that caught the eerie green light from the wall all too well.
“So it does.” She turned it one way and then the other, watching thoughtfully as the eye drifted back and forth inside. “Hers, you think?”
“I-I’d rather not, if it’s alright with you,” said Kairn. “A-and I’d rather you put it back now too.”
She rolled her eyes, but set the jar back on the table, where Kairn noticed a row of them, all with dark shapes inside he’d rather not look at closely enough to identify. “You know,” said Reida, fingering the lids of a few of them, “Ephram thinks it just might be possible to fabricate an entire body from nothing but a few base elements and a lot of magic.”
“D-does he, now?” Mabel let out a nasty belch, and Kairn cast a nervous glance at her now empty plate. “You know, Reida, I think we should maybe throw her another steak and then maybe leave.”
“Hmm?” Reida followed his gaze. “Oh.” She fished about in her sack and chucked something at Mabel. As it sailed across the room, Kairn swore he saw a tail.
“Was that just- You fed her a rat?” he sputtered as Mabel snatched from the floor where it landed.
“And?” said Reida, as the demon tore the head from the thing with her teeth.
“Berwyk’s not going to like that.”
“You know that’s why he brought him here?”
“Huh?” Kairn had to tear himself from the spectacle of the half dead woman devouring a very dead rat, to find Reida’s attention back on the wall.
“Ephram,” she said, as if it should be obvious. “Berwyk buys his body swapping shit. He thinks maybe he can help him build her a new one from scratch.” She nodded at Mabel and Kairn made the mistake of looking back, only to see her with a tail hanging from her jaw.
“Oh,” he said, almost reflexively, then, “Wait, body swapping?”
“I think she’s done with her rat.”
“So throw her another. Did you really just say body swapping?”
“Yeah.” Reida shrugged, reached back into her bag, and threw another rat Mabel’s way. The demon all but pounced on it. “Ephram figures energy isn’t the only thing we can stick in a construct.”
“Just what does he do to you in his lab? Don’t look at me like that. I know you go there every week.”
“That was my last rat. We should probably get going.” She swept past him, headed for the door.
Kairn caught her shoulder. “Reida?”
She turned to face him with another shrug. “Nothing half as exciting as whatever you’re thinking, I’m sure. The whole body swapping thing is just theory. It’s not like he’s tried it. And it’s not like I’m going to let him try it on me.”
“And what if you did?” said Kairn, still holding onto her.
“Hmm?”
“What if you did let him…” He groped the air with a hand, as if he might find a palatable way to say it floating in front of him. “What if you weren’t you?”
Reida shook her head. There was a loud gulp and a grumble as Mabel swallowed the last of the second rat. “I think you should be more concerned with whether you’re about to become dessert.” She peeled his hand from her shoulder before reaching for the door. “Don’t be such a little girl about it; I can take care of myself,” she said, as he followed her out.