The One And Only Centaur Weaver (Jillian)

[Mamono Assault Force]

Re: Corruption (Jillian)

Beatrice laughs, waving back at Jillian, "Don't you worry none, I ain't gonna get carried away by the wind anytime soon. And I'll make a tent if things look ready to get wet. You have a good night's sleep, Jill." she told her, before eventually vanishing behind the trees with the pot in hand.

Once Jillian reached the tower, and made her way through the doors, she would be greeted with nothing but silence, asides from the sounds of her own hooves clicking against the ground. However, if she listened carefully, she would hear the faint sounds of the end of a feather scribbling against paper. The source of which was Cynthia, who seemed quite deeply involved with her writing. She wore a pair of small reading glasses on her face, such a small accessory making Cynthia appear much more a scholar, rather than a cute bird in a nice dress. Her red eyes peered at the words she wrote, constantly checking back, and reading it over to ensure no mistakes were made. She flipped the page every few minutes, when it could hold no more words, continuing on the next, writing down even more information...

 

[DeMatt]

Re: Corruption (Jillian)

Reading glasses, huh? She looks a lot more scholarly with them on... come to think of it, I hadn't noticed any of those great big bookshelves Beatrice said she owns... maybe they're upstairs or something.

As Cynthia looks deeply involved in her writing, Jillian waits patiently. Then impatiently. Then she sighs, clears her throat, and says "Um... Cynthia?", stepping around to put herself in Cynthia's sight.

 

[Mamono Assault Force]

Re: Corruption (Jillian)

After finishing the sentence she was in the middle of writing, Cynthia dipped her quill in the ink jar, before pushing her wings together in front of her, as one would clasp their hands, and looking up at Jillian, past her glasses, "Yes? Do you require something of me?" she asked Cynthia in her typical, tiny whisper of a voice.

 

[DeMatt]

Re: Corruption (Jillian)

"I wanted to peek in on Eilsah, and then get settled in for the night. Beatrice said she'd be camping outside, but I'd like to stay near Eilsah, if it's not a bother." Jillian shuffles her hooves around a little, a slight pink tinge tinting her cheeks. Her hands, carrying her pack from the doorway, clench a little before relaxing once more.

 

[Mamono Assault Force]

Re: Corruption (Jillian)

Cynthia blinked, as if noticing something, before lifting her feathers to remove her glasses, setting them beside the unfinished book. "I have already prepared a room for you both to stay together, and Beatrice will be under my constant observation. Although, I suspect you wish to ask me something." She told her, noting the small concern she had about Beatrice, and even addressing the way she was acting. "Do so, and I will answer accordingly."

 

[DeMatt]

Re: Corruption (Jillian)

Jillian gets a little pinker, and looks down at the floor for a moment. "No, no... I-I'm just... a little nervous... about Eilsah... that's all..."

Then she looks up. "I'm sure I'm just fussing... so if you could, um, lead the way... I am feeling kinda tired."

 

[Mamono Assault Force]

Re: Corruption (Jillian)

Without saying a word, Cynthia takes a deep breath, before blowing on all of the ink on the pages, helping to dry them, before she closed the book altogether. She stood from her chair, her talons clicking on the ground with each step, as she walked past Jillian, towards the staircase the binds around the whole tower, and walking down the steps, to the lower level.

 

[DeMatt]

Re: Corruption (Jillian)

Realizing Cynthia's goal, Jillian hastily slung her pack on her back, freeing up her arms for the ordeal to come.

Stairs. Stupid human inventions... almost as bad as ladders...

With a hill, at least, you could dig your hooves in whenever you needed to. But with stairs, you had to put 'em down on the individual steps. And the idiot humans never got them at the right spacing for centaurs...

Grumbling to herself, Jillian cautiously followed Cynthia down the stairs, hands gripping both handrails as she concentrated on placing each hoof just so.

 

[Mamono Assault Force]

Re: Corruption (Jillian)

Fortunately for Jillian, Cynthia, or the ones who built this place, must have had the same idea, as the individual steps were quite long, making the task considerably easier. Looking at the size of Cynthia's talons, larger than a human foot, she'd likely complain about the same thing.

Reaching the bottom, the materials used to construct the 'dungeon' of the tower was no different than the kind used for the upper floor. The darkness from the underground was lit by strange gems that casted a pure white light onto the tan colored marble. And upon reaching the bottom of the stairs, the sight was quite magnificent. Underneath the tower, was a large library, likely containing over a thousand books. In the middle of the room, amidst the shelves housing the many written works, were several tables, accompanied by comfortable looking chairs.

"Please take care when moving about my family's library..." she said in her usual whisper.

 

[DeMatt]

Re: Corruption (Jillian)

Letting out a huff of relief when they reach their chosen floor, Jillian takes a moment to look at the shelves before answering. She's never seen so many books before... and with them spaced out, presumably to accomodate Cynthia's wingspan, there wouldn't be any problem walking between them.

"Sure, sure... I don't think me and Eilsah will be looking around much, but we'll be careful."

Then a thought strikes her. Sure, the passages were wide enough... but what if there wasn't any light? Jillian had a couple torches in her pack, but waving a flaming torch around all that paper...

"Those crystal lamps... do they stay on all the time, or when people are in the room?"

 

[Mamono Assault Force]

Re: Corruption (Jillian)

Without looking back, Cynthia spoke in answer to Jillian's desire for an explanation, "Those crystals are artifacts that respond to the glow of any nearby souls... They are powered by the aura of the power your soul produces..." she told Jillian, simply saying that being 'near' them causes them to light...

Ahead, where an arch in the wall awaited them, was a large room that seemed meant to house over a dozen people. The beds in the room seemed quite articulate, much like futons, although quite thick, enough to seem as a real bed. And among the smaller beds, one of them was quite long, more than long enough to support Jillian's size. And on the end of that bed, lay Eilsah, quietly sleeping alone...

Cynthia stood off to the side silently, bringing up a wing to invite Jillian inside.

 

[DeMatt]

Re: Corruption (Jillian)

"Huh, I wonder if that means different people make 'em glow different colours..." Reassured that she won't have to risk burning the library down, Jillian follows Cynthia through the arch.

Upon seeing Eilsah, sleeping on her side, Jillian stops dead. The elf's head rests on a pillow, her hands tucked underneath. A simple shift - from the stuff I packed for her? - covers her bust, but leaves her shoulders bare, and her pink wings lie atop the covers behind her, her golden hair spilling down between them. Jillian sucks in a nervous breath, and she quietly steps over to softly, hesitantly, lay a hand on Eilsah's shoulder, trying not to wake the sleeper.

 

[Mamono Assault Force]

Re: Corruption (Jillian)

Leaving Jillian and Eilsah alone, Cynthia departs with a simple, quiet, "Goodnight," before departing the room.

Then, as Jillian quietly approaches Eilsah, and places her hand on the elf's shoulder, Eilsah moans a little, adjusting in place...

Before suddenly springing upright, screaming at the top of her lungs!

She held her arms folded over her breasts, fists pointing upwards as she slowly turns to Jillian with a frown, 'gulping' as she stared at her, before saying the oddest thing,

"A... An exploding egg..."

 

[DeMatt]

Re: Corruption (Jillian)

Cynthia's farewell goes mostly unheeded, as Jillian only has eyes for Eilsah. Her touch gets more relaxed as she grows more confident that she's welcome...

...and then she skips backwards as Eilsah springs upright. Jillian stands, staring, as the elf yells and shields her chest. Her words as she turns to Jillian are puzzling. A nightmare? Or... some kind of foresight?

Then she steps forwards, closing the distance between the two, reaching out to hug Eilsah comfortingly, murmuring reassurance as she does so.

"Shh... shh, Eilsah... it's Jillian... it's all right... I'm here..."

 

[Mamono Assault Force]

Re: Corruption (Jillian)

Eilsah tries pushing Jillian away, while shaking her head profusely, "No-it wasn't like that!" she insisted, "It was just an egg... I mean, that obviously didn't scare me, but then it suddenly exploded! Why would an egg like that just explode!? Eggs aren't supposed to explode!" she told Jillian, as if trying to convince her.

 

[DeMatt]

Re: Corruption (Jillian)

(Never heard of grenades here, I gather? )

Jillian continues to try calming Eilsah down. Since she's obviously fully alert, then simple caresses and soothing noises aren't enough... maybe reason would work?

"Was there anything else there, in your dream? Other people, the ground, trees? What did the egg look like before it exploded? White and round, like a harpy's eggs?"

She continues massaging her shoulders.

"Maybe there was some magic making it explode... or maybe it wasn't really an egg, but something that just looked like an egg..."

 

[Mamono Assault Force]

Re: Corruption (Jillian)

Eilsah sighs, looking off to the side, "I don't know... But, it was like a harpy's egg, yeah... Kinda like the kind Cynthia would trade to the town..." she explained, reminding Jillian of the rather delicious eggs Cynthia would bring, the unfertilized oval treats being something the town couldn't wait to devour. And with the right seasonings, both Jillian and Eilsah found themselves among those who would rush to Cynthia in order to buy them.

 

[DeMatt]

Re: Corruption (Jillian)

(Hee... thinking of that "Living With Harpy" comic too? )

Or at least, Jillian and Eilsah would find themselves waiting on Beatrice or one of the other good chefs to make something really tasty out of Cynthia's eggs. No sense letting an unskilled cook scorch such a rare treat.

Jillian pulls Eilsah back into a close hug, then loosens up a bit so they can look each other in the face. "So... probably what you dreamed, was there was a harpy jealous of what we trade to Cynthia for her eggs, and she made up an egg that could explode and snuck it into Cynthia's basket, and then it exploded."

She grins. "Kinda silly, but dreams are like that, aren't they? Are you... hungry? It seems to me, you haven't eaten anything all day..." Letting Eilsah go, Jillian starts rooting around in her pack for some apples or somesuch.

 

[Mamono Assault Force]

Re: Corruption (Jillian)

Eilsah blinks at Jillian's explanation, her red eyes watching her curiously, and her small tail curling with perplexion. "Do you really think Cynthia would miss a trick like that?" Eilsah idly brought a finger up to scratch her cheek, while her eyes shifted downwards, "She always seems to be aware of everything going on around her... Even Club couldn't prank her."

She looks up when Jillian speaks of food, glancing off at the thought of it, "I'm fine..." she says in a slightly depressed whisper, "I was so overcome with a hunger for sex to fill me... Before you saved me... I don't really have much of an appetite after that..."

 

[DeMatt]

Re: Corruption (Jillian)

Jillian pauses, partway through pulling a carrot out. "Well, if you're sure... maybe in the morning, you'll be ready for breakfast."

Putting her pack down, she gently nudges Eilsah back to the bed. "Maybe Cynthia didn't miss it. She let the jealous harpy sneak it into her basket, and then she put it somewhere where people could see it explode, but not get hurt by it. I mean, if you know it's happening, then an exploding egg is probably pretty neat to see, right?"

Shifting over to sit on the bed, Jillian continues trying to reassure Eilsah. "Don't the humans have some kind of burning powder that makes campfires turn different colours? That would be pretty eerie if you didn't know about the powder."