Closed A Question of Craftsmanship

[Vicissitude]

winter 32, year 125 of the third age​

Some time in the early evening, a knock would come at Kage's door– though the visitor would not be somebody there for the home's actual owner. The Ælven woman, sporting a long, green braid and skin pale wine hue, had arrived 'dressed' in nothing but elaborate growths of plum tree flowers and leaves of varied size that budded from numerous places all over her body for sake of modesty. Aside from that, not a single shred of cloth, metal, or leather was worn. She wasn't sure who would answer, but to whomever it was, she'd say she was there for Abraia. She had, however, come here by Kage's glowing recommendation regarding his pet's talents, and though she was skeptical, she was quite curious if the end product would live up to the expectations that he'd set.

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[Raya]

Abraia was made aware that she was all alone in the house. Everyone else was going on grand adventures and she was stuck at home. Promises to travel abroad were unkept but she was not going to complain about it when her quality of life was so much better than it had ever been. She lived in a great area and had started to not fear so much for her life.

The knock came so she went to the door. She wore the wreath of cattle on her head that kept her in a good mood most of the time.

"Hello, there are no elfs home right now but I can take a message if you would like" She told the woman who arrived. She was dressed in flora which would normally make Abraia want to dazzle her own appearance but life was easier when she stopped competing with elves.

 

[Vicissitude]

winter 32, year 125 of the third age​

The Ælven woman wasn't sure what to expect in terms of Abraia's appearance– the Fælnir could be quite…homely by comparison to her own people, as for the Æld'Norai, 'ugliness' was a choice. When Abraia emerged, her relative beauty was actually an odd sort of relief– a Crested sorceress who chose to remain bland would've indicated poor taste.

"No, I'm here for you, silly," she'd say with a short giggle at the end. "Your Ælven masters spoke highly enough of your craftsmanship to have piqued my curiosity, as a Crested Fælnir is quite the novelty!" she'd continue in a smooth, friendly voice.

"I've a large sum of Alkahest to offer in exchange for modifications done to a work of art. A few different types, actually...Aetherite, Saolite, Fabulite– whichever suits you."

To the ears of a Fælnir, the value of this trade would sound quite off, but for an Æld'Norai? Not really– Alkahest as payment for nigh anything was not uncommon if the buyer lacked another skill or product to offer in return.

"I've a grand marble sculpture, and while I adore it as-is, I'd love to see its beauty enhanced with Crest. Does that sound feasible?" The woman didn't see much reason in waiting to deliver her request.

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[Raya]

Abraia broke out into a grin when she was complimented. The pleasure mixed with the effects of the flora that kept her in a permanent state of euphoria and happiness.

"Yes this sounds very feasible. I will make it the best looking statue that you have ever seen!!!" It is an honor to work on a project of this magnitude for you" She said as her imagination went wild with possibilities. She did not even care for payment because she had no expenses. Her anathemite stores had grown considerably once she started working for Engill. She felt like a dragon growing a treasure trove for no reason other than to look at the pretty sparkles.

"I think saolite would make a beautiful addition to my collection of alkahest" She said "If it pleases you."

"Where is this statue? I can get started immediately for such an intriguing project of this nature."

 

[Vicissitude]

winter 32, year 125 of the third age​

Alkahest traded hands in Ælheim much like coins or banknotes in other nations, and beyond that, simply collecting it was also far from unheard of– Abraia's small hoard of Anathemite would only be seen as abnormal because it was created directly by a Fælnir.

To Abraia's enthusiasm, the ælf clasped her hands together with excitement. "Wonderful! The statue is at my home– if you're not busy, I can take you there; it's not a long walk."

If Abraia acquiesced, the woman would lead her from Kage's abode to the nearest portal shrine. These circular structures were architectural works of art with numerous curved portals limning the walls– there always seemed to be a handful of people traveling to and fro at any given time during the night and structures like this were always guarded. The woman would guide Abraia through one and then to her home; a respectable sized structure of beautiful white marble woven into the trunk of a sequoia.

There was a garden out front that contained several statues, some of which already appeared to be Crested. Abraia might notice that many of the works appeared to be done by the hands of different artists. This woman was, in all likelihood, some sort of collector. It was also possible she had made a couple of them herself, even, but one could not say for certain.

She would lead Abraia to a statue of a lounging man nestled in the shade of a willow tree near the garden's outskirts. "This one bears the likeness of my beloved," she said with a smile. "Make him look beautiful!"

While her cheery sort of excitement appeared to be sincere, the admission that the figure in the statue was a loved one to the ælf might come across as vaguely threatening. If she perceived that Abraia had defaced it, who knows how she might respond– but that didn't matter, did it? In the hands of a consummate Crested, surely the end result would be grand.

"I will pay you and return you home once you've completed it; if you need any breaks I've refreshments in the foyer," she added, gesturing towards the front door of her home.

If Abraia indicated a readiness to begin, she'd leave to go mind her own business within her home.

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The statue is based off the Barberini Faun pictured below.

There is mild nudity in this statue, though it is of the tiny pp sort you'd find in classic Roman & Hellenistic artworks.

: statue

 

[Raya]

Abraia took a minute to take in the lounging figure before her. The statue had a certain lazy elegance to it with its posture almost casual despite being frozen in stone. The elf's words lingered in her mind. Her beloved, she had said. A clear warning disguised as affectionate admiration.

No pressure. None at all.

Abraia put her bag down. From within her bag she withdrew a chisel and a hammer. Basic tools, nothing extravagant but enough to get the job done but there was just one problem. She didn't actually know how to sculpt.

She had seen sculptors at work before, seen the way they chipped away at marble. It had looked easy at the time.

"Alright, let's see..."

She started tapping the chisel against the statue's shoulder experimentally. It made a sharp clink sound, but nothing else.

With more determination than actual skill, she adjusted her grip and swung the hammer.

The chisel bit into the stone with an unpleasant crack, and a small chunk of marble splintered off. That probably wasn't supposed to happen.

She insepected the damage. The chip wasn't too noticeable, but it certainly wasn't an improvement. She tried again, this time aiming for a smoother stroke. The result was another uneven groove, this one making the shoulder look almost jagged. This was not going well.

Abraia sighed stepping back and rubbing her nose. Maybe she could just smooth it out later. If she kept going like this it would look like a rockslide.

She began to work again but now she used her magic to make it look better. She made more deformations but the statue appeared to be getting better instead of worse. The statue looked more muscular and veiny. The veins pulsed like they had blood pumping through them. The skin changed to look like it was more lifelike without being creepy. The statue moved through several preset motions. Sometimes he yawned, stretched, whistled, scratched, winked or flexed. Most of the time it looked like he was taking a nap.

She worked on the hair too so that it would look like it was moving in a breeze. The same effect carried to the clothing.

The statue would probably not survive being moved but it looked gorgeous to Abraia.

Abraia waited for the elf to pass by to show her what she had accomplished.


Crest ~~
1.00 Reserves
-1.00 Artisan's Touch

 

[Vicissitude]

winter 32, year 125 of the third age​

When the Ælven woman was fetched by Abraia to examine the finished work, she would silently watch him for a time in order to observe as the different motions cycled through– during this time, Abraia would be able to see that she looked quite chuffed at the result.

"What a wonderful job," she said, clasping her hands together up just below her jaw in a gesture of delight. "And don't worry about any issues with the stone; your purpose was to apply Crest and Crest only."

The Æld'Norai was not delusional; she was aware that simply having Crest did not grant one the skills of a sculptor– but that was fine. She was, herself, a Terrari with plenty of sculptural experience and a bind to marble; any defects from the process of applying Abraia's Crest could be repaired and smoothed away by her with ease. The only real way to upset her would have been to 'deface' the statue in the sense that the applied Arcana looked bad, made a mockery of the figure in some way, provided an underwhelming result, or if Abraia had somehow managed to destroy the entire thing.

Upon her hip was a large, magenta-petaled flower bulb glowing a dim emerald from within. The Ælf would reach down to touch it, at which point it would bloom and a shimmering Globe of Saolite emerged to then fall into her palm. The flower itself looked like little more than a standard tulip– there were several more of these large tulip bulbs mixed in with the plum blossoms on her 'clothing.' One wouldn't be amiss to assume that these functioned as 'pockets' for her.

"Here you are," she'd say as she extended the Globe to Abraia.

Should Abraia have nothing else to say after accepting her payment, she would be escorted home in much the same fashion as she had been brought here.

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[Raya]

What a relief Abraia thought when she wasn't reprimanded for damaging the statue beyond normal means of repair. She usually got positive feedback but there were a few times where people had been upset with her work. She liked to leave evidence of her mistakes instead of trying to cover them up by hiding all the chunks of marble.

"Thank you for the opportunity to please" Abraia said graciously when she accepted the Globe. It was so pretty and would do nicely next to her stockpile of other globes.

When she got home she put it next to the others. She needed some rest afterwards to recover from using so much aeris. Before she slept she prayed and thanked the elves for the wonderful life they had given her as well as the chance to serve them. She had become such a good pet and nothing could possibly go wrong.

 

[Vicissitude]

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❀ Rewards ❀

Abraia (Raya)

+9 XP (850wc)
+1 Globe Saolite

Vicissitude

+11 XP (1073 wc)

❀ Comments ❀

Haha...poor Abraia!
At least Raya should be reunited with her Alkahest hoard eventually.

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