Memory Closed To make a tome

[Caelum]

Fall 50 123

Caelum found that he did not particularly like carrying multiple people when he flew. He'd done it in the past, much to his displeasure, but those had been fairly urgent affairs. Though nowadays he was beginning to dislike it more and more. Perhaps it was because the experience had gotten stale, or perhaps it was because he felt like he was being treated like a horse. He was overreacting, of course, because he was still in charge of those that rode upon him… but it still annoyed him. The worst part was he was stuck in dragon form for at least a day so he had nothing to do while the humans did their thing.

"I'm not making many more of these trips," he boomed as he landed outside a human city. It was Abraia's home town so he'd been here multiple times. In the saddle on his back sat multiple women, including Flora and the twins. The lot of them were pregnant and by all rights should not have come, but they needed to buy supplies and recruit more people to live in Paradise. Caelum couldn't be made to do everything. Plus, the last time he'd come here alone all he'd managed to accomplish was knocking up Abraia.

Even in his full dragon form and with a proper saddle to fit multiple people his back was somewhat sore. It'd been a long flight and he was not a particularly strong dragon or one who was particularly good at flying in bad weather. It'd been the roughest ride he'd had in a long while.

Flora carefully made her way down her body, then turned to help the other women that had come. She cleared her throat and said, "all right ladies. I'll go recruiting, twins – you go find more people to join our cause."

The twins had been abducted from their village but they'd quickly found their life in Paradise was better than life in their village. They'd been slated to be married off to terrible people and supposedly their father was a massive prick. They'd been more than happy to tag along and share their experience. Caelum didn't even know their names because everyone always referred to them as 'the twins.'

AEngie hadn't come as she'd needed to stay and look after the baby. Caelum was worried for them because there had been more creatures attacking as of late, but he had finally built a housing structure on the sequoia itself which let them stay in a safe place. Worst case, they would both die but it was unlikely so long as they stayed up there until he got back. It would likely be extremely boring for them, however.

"Alright, you lot. Have fun." He gave a snort of smoke and narrowed his eyes, wondering whether he should give them any orders, but he decided against it. Flora knew more about what needed to be done than he did and he was in a rather grumpy mood. Best to keep quiet than start some drama. He lifted back into the air and tried to find something to do. Maybe there was something worth hunting, or maybe he would run into a familiar face.

Meanwhile. Flora and the twins made their way into town. It was odd for the lot of them. Flora had lived with Caelum for most of her life in the basin and the twins had never so much as been to a city. "Alright, I'll meet you back here at sundown," she told the twins.

Flora would make her way around the market, buying bags of seed to be delivered to the outskirts of the town while the twins made their way to a brothel to see if they could garner any interest from workers there who might want a better life.

 

[Abraia]

"Don't wander too far dragon" she said to Cae before he left. She wanted him to sleep to save his energy for the return trip.

Abraia had come with them because she wanted to get more tools from her house. She did not think it was possible to bring her important things like her anvil and her forge so she was going to have to build those from scratch in paradise.

"I will meet you at sundown" she told Flora after guiding her to the market. She thought it was funny how out of touch she was with city life. She hoped the lady got lost and had a terrible day.

Abraia thought the plan was silly. She knew people from her childhood who might be interested so after packing a bag of tools which she carried on her back, she went to go find them. She was not good at socializing though.

 

[Caelum]

Flora didn't take long to make all her necessary purchases, surprisingly. The market had a good layout and she hadn't bothered to negotiate much. There was no point – she knew not how humans bartered and she felt out of place after living around aelves for so many years. It was odd for her to see humans out and about without basically being attached to an aelf or having looks that only personal slaves might sport.

She had hours to kill so she tried to find a nice quiet spot to relax. A tavern came into view and it was her natural choice. But even after sitting down and ordering a drink she didn't feel quite right. She felt lonely without her master there. When there was nothing for her to do, she often felt her mind go blank. It was in moments like these that she felt despair fill the pit of her stomach. What would she do if she failed her master, or if something happened to him? All she knew was how to please him. And he treated her right, in her opinion. Serving an aelf would be torture and trying to live among humans would be a humiliating downgrade.

She wiped a tear that she hadn't realized had formed – it was trickling down her cheek and threatening to drop into her mug. She downed it and looked outside. She'd been ruminating for hours, it seemed. She turned her head to look at the rest of the patrons. It wasn't exactly the best looking establishment. People with scars, gamblers, and seedy looking types filled every corner, but there were still some open tables at the center where she sat.

Flora was content to sit there until it was time to meet up with the others, but a man walked up to her. He was drunk and not the least bit easy on the eyes. He looked Flora up and down and said, "you don't look like you're from around here." He snatched the caettle wreath tiara off her head and examined it. "this looks like it's in pretty good condition." He tossed it in the air and caught it absent mindedly as he looked down at the woman.

"Give it back," Flora demanded. "That was a gift from my master. A dragon."

The man laughed. "And I'm an aelf. Here, you can have it back but I don't believe for a second that your master is a dragon. You take me for a fool?"

Flora fumed. "My master is a dragon. His name is Caelum and if he were here he would incinerate you in a heartbeat."

"Sure, sure," he said, lifting his foot and placing it on a chair so that he could put an elbow on his knee and lean on it. "But around here we like to ask for something called proof. You don't have anything on you that might back up your claim, do you? Hell, I'd settle for a scale."

Flora felt herself get somehow even hotter. "No, why would I carry around something silly like that? Fine, don't believe me. What do I care? Just go bother someone else."

The man laughed. "See the problem is, you're clearly from out of town. You're all alone and the only one you seem to have on your side is a dragon who may or may not even exist. If he does, then he's definitely not here, now is he? Unless your master is a hatchling hiding in your pocket."

"So?" Flora asked.

"So, who's going to stop me if I signal my fellas over there to come escort you to the back? You're creating quite a commotion over here, it's really best for rowdy guests to be dealt with. The bartender likes to charge a fee to the ones who cause trouble, seek, a steep fee, far greater than whatever's in your pocket. But don't worry. You should be able to work off your debt in a few months after we're done with you."

Flora got up and tried to make a run for it but she was grabbed by her shoulder and thrust back into her chair. "Help!" she shouted, but the tavern goers barely glanced over.

 

[Abraia]

Abraia walked in with the twins and some of her friends behind her. It was not a great tavern but it was cheap and was in an okay location. By the brothel so it attracted that sort.

"Hello Flora" she said. "was wondering where you went off to. How did you end up here?"

"Samael are you bothering that poor woman?"

Abraia's friend also did not like elves. She lived the life of a common criminal because she had no useful skill. She was friends with Samael, it seemed.

The ladies took seats by Abraia and pulled up some more chairs. Abraia waved over the employee and ordered some drinks for their group.

"You should not be in this sort of place alone," she told the fool of a pet. "that's how you get abducted and sold. While you were acting a fool I found some people to join us. The twins found some too and they will meet us in an hour after their shift. Speaking of leaving, I cannot leave yet. I wish to make a spellcasting book, a Grimoire. If I get started tonight I can probably be done by the end of tomorrow."

 

[Caelum]

Flora was about to start swinging fists when the doors suddenly opened. In strode Abraia of all people with a group of people behind her. Flora had never been happier to see the woman, despite hating her intensely. She felt her tension ease immediately, even if the man encroaching on her personal space didn't seem bothered.

"Abraia, this man just threatened to do unspeakable things to me. It's quite fortunate that you showed up," Flora said with a weary glance at him.

"Huh? No, I was just offering to buy her a pint, wasn't I boys?" he called behind his shoulders. They gave him a thumbs up to back up his claim.

"That's not how I remember it," Flora pressed. "Something about making me pay off some debt. That I'd only be free to go when you were done with me."

Samael glowered. "You little…" he started, but he decided not to bother. He took a seat, refusing to be scared away though.

"I figured," Flora said to Abraia when she sat down. "I suppose I'm not used to being in a city. They don't have these kinds of seedy places where I've been living. Hmm… it looks like you've found quite a few people. I picked this place because it was nearby the brothel but I'd no idea we'd all end up drinking here. And a spellcasting book? I wasn't aware that was one of your talents."

For the first time, Flora seemed actually impressed with the crafter. "That means you can do things like create bolts of fire, or push people with wind, no? I don't know much about it aside from that it's incredibly expensive. Anyways, I suppose there's no harm in staying another day… but Master must be informed. He will worry if we do not arrive on time."

"Alright ladies, please clarify. Does this bitch actually work for a dragon?" Samael slammed his palm on the table, annoyed that he was being ignored.

The twins nodded and giggled at his response. "Of course."

Samael blushed out of embarrassment then sighed. "Oh brother."

 

[Abraia]

Abraia's friend said "this is nothing new. Preying on the weak is how things work around here. I do not blame him and your friend is indeed an idiot. Samael, we are considering joining this dragon. It sounds like a nice change of pace. No crime, hunger, work. The only condition is we must bear children which checks multiple boxes for me."

Abraia nodded at the pet. "I'm glad you were close. Yes I think the twins should go. You should come with me so I can keep you out of trouble. The rest of you can sleep in my house tonight or go back to your homes to prepare. I have to make some last minute shopping for my spell book. I am quite advanced so I can do a lot more than simple spells but with how much we are spending on construction I think I will have to keep things simple."

Abraia did not like Samael. She had only met him a few times but he was also staunchly against elves so she never said anything.

 

[Caelum]

Samael did not seem the least bit happy. He threw his hands in the air and said, "so these pregnant women come around telling you whatever tale they've told, and you're just going to go? Just like that? This dragon might eat you for fucks sake!" He groaned, clearly unsure of what to make of the situation. It sounded too good to be true, but it wasn't like he was attached to any of these people, aside from Abraia's friend.

Flora inclined her head and stood up when they'd done drinking. "If we've got shopping to do we might as well get going. Twins, make sure to tell Master where we're staying. Please stress that he should not change forms, we really need him to stay as he is so we can keep a tight schedule."

Far away, Caelum soared above the forest. He slept most of the day in the shade of a massive willow tree. He hadn't been bothered at all except by some humans who had wandered by. He'd nearly scared them shitless when he'd opened his eyes. He hadn't meant to, but it was hard to stay calm when a fully grown adult dragon was staring you down. He'd told them to wait and that he wanted to chat but… they'd high tailed it out of there.

He was awake now and hungry. It'd been a while since he'd had to properly feed himself like this and with his size it took quite a lot to fill his belly. He'd found an unsuspecting boar that he'd set alight and eaten in a single bite. Then, there was a deer. That one was a little more difficult to catch, requiring him to fire off shards of hardlight at it from a distance because it'd chosen to hide in some dense foliage. It'd been enough to force it out of its position after which he'd landed on it, crushing it to death instantly.

He made his way back to the meeting spot hours later and was confused as to why only the twins were there. They were accompanying people with goods, assumedly the stuff Flora had bought. He examined it with a carefree glance, noting that it was mostly seed for crops. He inclined his head and the men loaded it into the saddle.

"Where are the others?" he asked the twins.

"We need to stay another day," one said. Then the other piped up, "At Abraia's request. Flora said it was okay and to update you… Please don't be mad."

Caelum cocked his head to the side. "You mean I'm to stay in this form for another day? Fuck that."

"Please," said one twin, "Flora said to stay in this form. It's the only way we can stay on schedule."

"Hmph," Caelum said, none to happy. "Okay, one more day then." He sighed. He listened to the twins explain the plan and though it made sense it did nothing to help his mood.

 

[Abraia]

Abraia was glad that Flora agreed to the plan. She had little choice. She doubted the dragon would leave without her and that was her only leverage. Part of her only wanted to delay the trip to get on his nerves. Absence making him fonder or however that phrase went.

She made her way with Flora to a nearby shop. Lots of paper was bought. Same with leather and some nice wood. She knew the basics so the book would be nothing extraordinary. It did not need to be since she was only doing simple things. If it got destroyed she would not be that upset.

She brought her things to her house. She saw some of the others from before had decided to stay there for the night so they were waiting outside.

"Come in," she said while hauling the supplies she got. She put them down. She wanted to get right to work but she had to help her guests. She had lots of sleeping cloth in the attic so she brought that down.

Once everyone had a spot to sleep, Abraia went to the basement and started working on the book. It was not so simple to make a grimoire. Anyone could bind a book but there had to be a slot on the cover. The binding had to be able to perform specific duties.

In the cellar's hush, Abraia weaved,
With nimble hands, the grimoire she retrieved,
Each page a canvas for spells untold,
Each stitch a whisper, secrets to unfold.

Parchment pure, folded tight,
Bound with threads of might,
Cover etched with runes of old,
A gateway to realms yet untold.

 

[Caelum]

The twins did eventually make it to Abraia's home and Flora had stayed up to let them in, despite her fatigue. It was relatively quiet night with the only sounds coming from people snoring or the rustling of blankets. There was the occasional noise that came from the basement, but none that were enough to wake anyone.

Flora couldn't sleep, despite wanting to. She ended up venturing into the basement to see Abraia hard at work. She didn't see what was so complicated about it. After all, wasn't book binding simply taking some pages and sticking them together? How hard could that be? She had seen the woman do good work as a smith but she hadn't really had a chance to shine yet.

"Hey, did you need any help?" she asked Abraia. "if you'd prefer to work alone, I can go back upstairs… I couldn't sleep and I didn't want to pace around the house and wake anyone up." She let out a tired yawn and stepped closer to see exactly what the woman was doing. It would likely be completely foreign to her, regardless.

"You think you'll finish by sunrise?" she asked. "it would be better to not keep Master waiting. Or perhaps if you're not done then you could finish when we land in town? I'm worried about those we left behind so getting back as soon as possible would be preferable."

 

[Abraia]

Araia had just made the slot in the cover when Flora came in. She had arranged the paper and set out all the tools and materials. She was nowhere near done.

"It is not a simple thing to do. Maybe I misspoke. It can be simple, but it still takes a long time. This is no simple book. It requires an ensorceller's touch. Beyond that I am applying my magic to make it look spectacular."

She could already see her magic's effect on the cover. It glowed golden with symbols on the color lighting up. It was very beautiful. The leather was nothing special but now it looked like it was from the rarest of beasts. A beauty that would have sold for a small fortune.

She changed more than the appearance. It felt comfortable to hold like it was meant for her hands, smelled aromatic and ancient in a good way, and when she looked at it she thought it was quite an amazing piece of work.

"I do not require help but if you want to speed things up you can fetch my tools as I need them."

With the next dusk's last light, her task complete,
The grimoire crafted, magic replete,
A tome of power, bound with care,
Ready to wield, to enchant, to dare.

 

[Caelum]

Flora's jaw dropped when she saw the masterpiece of a cover that Abraia had managed to fashion. She'd noticed the woman had gotten more beautiful and her metal work was impressive but… this was on another level entirely.

"What are you doing helping us out? You could make a fortune with your gift… the aelves would shower you with riches if you made things for them." She recalled hearing that she and Caelum were going to open up some kind of business in town, so perhaps the crafter was planning on making money off of her gift. But still, Flora felt like she was in the presence of a diety with the way the cover glowed with an ominous looking power.

She stayed silent after that, allowing Abraia to work. Flora would quickly learn the names of the tools and fetch them as needed. They must have worked the whole night and even into the next day. At some point Flora simply couldn't stay up anymore and had to head upstairs to sleep… but as soon as she woke up she was back downstairs trying to help as best as she could. She was continually awestruck by the beauty of what was taking place. It was a different kind of magic than Caelum wielded. Druidism could be beautiful but… it was limited by nature. This tome, however, seemed to be limited only by the crafter's imagination.

 

[Abraia]

"I do what I do because I have come to like that oaf of a dragon. He has my heart but I'll kill you if you tell him I said that."

She wanted him to abandon his paradise dream and come live with her. To be her husband and help her raise their future kids. It was hard to admit this to herself. She often cried about it. She put on a strong exterior but she was vulnerable inside.

"He is the one who gave me this magic. It came to me when we were together for the first time. It is my gift but I owe it to him. Sex so good it made my mind pact with a godhead. You have been with him, you know, I'm sure."

She worked diligently and was happy that the pet decided to be useful. A useful pet she was, fetching tools like a dog. It made things faster for sure.

The book was complete by the next afternoon. Even the pages glowed golden by the time she was done. Some finishing touches needed to be made. It still needed to be filled with spells too. That could wait till later. She grabbed some alkahest to put in her pack as well.

"I am done. Let us go."

 

[Caelum]

It hurt Flora to hear that Abraia liked her Master that much. She was kind of hoping the crafter would eventually split with the dragon so that Caelum would be all hers. But… if the dragon had her heart then it was unlikely to happen anytime soon. It would be an interesting dynamic if they ever became together in an official capacity. Then Flora would no longer be Caelum's pet but their pet. It made Flora think that maybe she should start treating Abraia a little nicer.

As if to add insult to injury, the crafter brought up the time they'd fucked. Of course she'd known it happened given the woman's pregnancy… but it didn't make it hurt less. "Alright, alright I get it. Don't need to tell me all the details," Flora said sheepishly.

She did not mind the work, after the conversation died down. They were large gaps of silence that seemed to stretch forever where her mind went blank and she started to wonder how much longer it was all going to take.

Then, suddenly, the crafter announced her completion and it was time to go. Flora hurried upstairs to gather everyone together and to send word to the few that had stayed at home the previous night. There was a lot of chaos involved in managing so many people at once. Everyone had something else they needed, something they'd forgotten. A parent that needed to be told goodbye. It was enough to make Flora wish she had it in her to be a little stricter. She was about ready to tear someone's eyes out by the time they actually started towards the edge of town.

Caelum hadn't done much since the twins updated him on their status. He'd lazed around at the edge of town near the meetup spot. Mostly out of boredom, but also because he wanted to be there in case they were done early. They hadn't been early, as it so happened, but he was still happy to see that there were quite a few people he would be transporting.

"Alright, get on in, I won't bite. Get ready for a looooong ride."

 

[Caelum]

Thread Title: To make a tome

Thread Summary: Caelum flies to town with women on his back. Some of his CNPCs go off to recruit more people to their cause and buy some supplies. Abraia goes to fetch supplies and does her own recruiting. The women all meet in a tavern, end up spending the night at Abraia's home. Abraia extends their trip by a day so she can make a Grimoire.

Expected Rewards:
Abraia: + 12 XP, + 1 Grimoire (Made with Apprentice Leatherworking and Grandmaster Ensorcelling). It was made with generic leather and paper but the book appears to be crafted from one of the finest hides and paper. It is black and gold with glyphs on the cover that glow. The pages also have a golden glow to them. The book itself feels unnaturally comfortable to hold and it smells floral / ancient.

Caelum: + 30xp

Thread Link: https://antarok.net/threads/to-make-a-tome.137/#post-688
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[Vicissitude]

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Requested rewards granted. Abraia's lil poems are so cute :3c​

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