GREEN
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2143 11.95 KB 141
2143 11.95 KB 141
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“It’s a little too warm for this coat”
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>Noire laughs and nudges you with a wing. “Then take it off!”
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“It’s a little too cold to go without one.”
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>Noire turns to face you, angling her wings while she spins in place as a little flourish that cuts through the warm spring breeze you’re half-jokingly complaining about.
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>She then fixes you with a grin. “You are ridiculous.”
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“I’m a featherless biped; it come with the territory.”
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>She steps close to you, her chest practically against yours, tilting her head to follow up with what must be a killer line, before confusion steals her grin away and she looks off to the side. “Did we make any featherless bipeds?”
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“There’s the minotaurs.”
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>She laughs, “They are also ridiculous, yes.”
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“And those upright cats.”
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>”Your fascination with ‘catgirls’ was more ridiculous than the cats themselves.”
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“They’re not even the right kind of catgirl.”
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>”We made feathered bipeds too.”
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“I have a thing for feathers, what can I say?”
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>Noire’s grin returns, and she wraps her wings around you. “That I can provide aplenty.”
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“You’re too much.”
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>She cocks her head in the opposite direction. “But not too much feathers?”
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“Never.”
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>You raise your arms to grab her wings, but as soon as you lift them, she shoves the final joint of both her wings under your coat, pressed against your shoulders, and in one fluid extension of those limbs, takes that coat right off you.
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“Hey, now wait a second!”
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>But she’s already galloping away from you, wings still half-outstretched, filling the air between you with her laughter.
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>She stops a short distance away to pivot back towards you. “Come on! The weather has turned, the shoots are sprouting, the trees are in bloom. Join the rest of our island in casting off the burdens of winter!”
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>You really do feel the slightest chill, but her enthusiasm is infectious, and you feel a smile break on your face as you stride over to her.
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“You’re getting really into the season, for your first time experiencing it.”
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>”There is an energy in the air, and it is catching.”
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“Getting high on your own creation?”
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>”And why should I not?”
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>She spreads her wings again, as if expecting a hug, but your continued advance – accelerating, even – wipes that smug grin off her face just in time for you to tackle her.
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>You let inertia spin you as the two of you fall, placing you between her and the ground.
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>You manage to avoid knocking the wind out of yourself, and squeeze her in a bear hug as you lie on the soft grass that has returned from snowy exile.
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“If you’re gonna deny me my warmth, I’ll just steal yours.”
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>She’s back to smiling, and with a twinkle in her eyes, “I can provide that aplenty too.”
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>You stay just like this for a few minutes, enjoying each other’s warmth, the fresh spring air, the feeling of sun on your bare arms over her coat.
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>”Fine,” she eventually mumbles.
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“Fine?”
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>”I suppose I can make for you a lighter jacket.
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“I appreciate it.”
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>Nonetheless, neither of you make any move to get up.
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>Not for several more minutes.
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>”We do need to prepare.”
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“You’re just upset I’m stopping you from releasing all this newfound energy.”
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>She squirms in your arms. “It is a time of vitality!”
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“Yeah, well… Only because we do need to get ready, if we’re to see it all.”
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>You release the antsy alicorn, and she springs to her hooves beside you.
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>You lever yourself up more deliberately, brushing some dirt and blades of grass from your clothes.
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“Okay so, basics.”
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>Standing and brushing the last detritus from your clothes, you look around.
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“First were gonna need a tent. Over there, we can-”
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>As soon as you lift an arm to indicate a nearby fairly flat spot, a jacket materializes around your body.
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“-hah. Very funny.”
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>Noire’s wearing that smug grin again.
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>The jacket is very comfy, though.
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>And much better suited to current conditions.
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“Anyway, as I was saying, we can do a little mock-up of a campsite.”
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>The two of you make your way over, and you stand about where you think a tent could be.
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“We’ll need a tent big enough for a bed for both of us, space enough to hold the rest of our clothing and packs and such, and maybe just a little more besides. Back home we had some pretty rugged artificial materials for shells – uh, a sort of fabric exterior, not like – why am I bothering to explain, you probably already have it.”
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>Noire nods vigorously.
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“Alright, show me what you had in mind… from what I had in mind.”
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>A dome-ish tent appears beside you, made from some sort of shiny blue artificial fabric.
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>Not just shiny, it downright twinkles.
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>Rather than a silky sheen or luster, it appears to be speckled with little motes of high reflectivity, like the mica-shot rocks nearby, or stars peeking through a too-bright sky.
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“Going all out on the aesthetic, huh?”
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>”Why not?”
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>The tent is propped up by aluminum struts that – once you take a look inside – appear able to fold down and alongside one another for easy transport.
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>The interior is nothing fancy, spacious enough for what you requested.
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>No point in getting more than you need, that would just be extra load.
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>Ah, load.
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“We’re gonna need packs to carry all our stuff, as well. A backpack is the obvious choice for me, but you’ll need some sort of, I don’t know, saddlebags?”
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>”What else will we need to carry in them? I need to know a good size.”
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“I’ll need to take enough clothes to last between whenever we’ll be able to clean them…”
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>”I could do that with magic.”
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“Yeah, and you could probably handle food and water. Which is good, considering how long we’ll be out.”
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>You squint at her.
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“How long WILL we be out?”
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>She cocks her head. “How fast can you move?”
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“Well I think experienced hikers could do like twenty miles a day, but I’m not exactly in peak condition. Maybe half that.”
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>Her eyes lose focus, which you know means she’s looking places they can’t see. “If we keep moving, and hit all the places our creations have settled down… eight weeks.”
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“Holy fuck.”
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>”Plan for ten to twelve, so we can rest ourselves.”
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“How big is this place?”
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>”Large enough for the first couple generations of everything we have made, Anon. We made a great deal.”
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“Yeah, I guess it’s different when you realize just how much space that requires.”
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>”What other supplies might we need?”
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“Well I’ll have the maul for some brush clearing and stuff. It’s not a machete but would also be useful for building fires. We probably don’t need a firestarter, because you can just do that yourself, though I’d like one anyway in case you’re asleep or something. Don’t need a signaling device because we’ll have nobody to signal, nor any need to with you’re here…”
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>You look at her and chuckle.
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“Honestly, you negate the need for a lot of this stuff, Ms. Magic.”
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>”It will make our progress steadier, with less load to carry.”
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“Yeah, definitely a help. So tent, clothes, some basic survival stuff, and we’ll let you handle the food and water and other consumables.”
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>Noire nods, then furrows her brow. “Perhaps…”
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>A backpack appears beside the tent.
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>Saddlebags also appeared, this time on Noire’s back.
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>Like the backpack she made you, they’re grey, as much lighter than her coat as her primary feathers are darker, each one closed with an orange gem for a clasp.
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“Hey, those look pretty good on you.”
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>She beams. “Thank you.”
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>You shoulder the backpack, finding it to be an easy carry. Some loops on the side for, you assume, your maul, and a water bottle.
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“Who’s carrying the tent?”
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>”It can go on my back.”
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>Sure enough, the fabric harness for her saddlebags has an extra set of loops on top.
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>You turn to the tent, duck inside, and look around its skeleton.
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>Figuring out how to fold it takes less time than you expect, and you quickly can collapse it down.
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>There’s nothing really holding it up besides a natural inclination of its geometry, when deployed, but poking and prodding reveals that despite this fact it is fairly sturdy from forces you’d expect from wind or rain.
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>Elegant, really.
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>As long as a bomb doesn’t go off inside or something, it’ll stay standing.
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>Once you’ve broken it down, it folds into a rough cylinder shape.
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>Carrying it over to Noire, you carefully slip it through the loops atop her saddlebag harness.
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>The fit is snug; it wouldn’t go anywhere even if she had to fly.
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>Can she?
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“Is that all gonna be too heavy for you to take off, if you have to?”
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>”I lifted you, Anon, remember? I am sure that whatever I am carrying is not as heavy as you.”
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“Is that a fat joke?”
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>You’re unable to hide the corners of a smile.
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>She replies with equally mock indignation. “I am insulted you believe I would insult you.”
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>You laugh, and pat her shoulder.
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“Alright, thanks to you being a walking multi-tool, this was less painful than I expected. What’s our route?”
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>”Many of the creatures either stick to this side of the island, or are otherwise on the coast. Interior areas are occupied mostly by nonsapient herbivores, of which we made many. Sapients tend to stick around the Garden, if they’re not the types to eat fish ad live on the coastline, or are carnivorous and live more inland across the expanses the animals occupy.”
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“So the Garden isn’t in the center of the island anymore. I guess it couldn’t have been, if the island is as big as you say.”
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>”I increased the size of this landmass as required, the more life we created.”
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“Sensible. So, what, do we play around in the forest for a bit before cutting across?”
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>”Forest first, yes, but it may be best to just follow the coastline ourselves, dipping inland where necessary.”
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“How similar is everything going to be?”
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>Noire smiles, but it’s an embarrassed one. “I intend to create further geological diversity as we progress, some by your recommendation or request. Right now this island is very functional, but plain. I hope, with your help, I can make the land itself as beautiful as you have made its occupants.”
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“So I should bring the slate too, so I can make some sketches.”
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>”Indeed. It will also mean you could leave some writings for those we encounter.”
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“Still not sure I want to open that box, but yeah, can’t hurt to at least keep in mind.”
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>”I hope you will indulge my curiosity as to what landscapes you may come up with; beyond just here, there is the entire rest of the world. It is quite varied from fast-tracking many geological processes I could not perform here, due to their disruptive nature, but I am sure there are peculiarities that we could add to spice things up a bit.”
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“You’re turning this fun trip into a working vacation.”
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>She smiles “I know you’re up for it.”
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“As long as I’m with you, I think I’ll manage. Now how about we do some test packing, to see how everything comes together. A dry run.”
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>”In case we are missing something obvious, yes.”
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>You wrap an arm around her, and steer her back to the house, carrying your new supplies.
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“You know something?”
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>”Hmm?”
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“I really love this house, but the idea of striking out away from it for some time is exciting. I think your spring madness is infecting me too.”
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>She laughs. “Intoxicating. Like the whole world is renewed.”
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“The house will be fine while we’re gone, right? I don’t want to lose our only home.”
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>”It is supernaturally protected against decay and the elements. As long as we close it up so nothing can enter, it will be fine.”
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“Alright, good. As fun as this trip is going to be, I don’t want to live out of a backpack in a tent forever.”
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>”Anon, I made all this before, I could make it again if I have to.”
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“Nah, there’s already so many memories invested in this place. Memories we made the real way, rather than something simply conjured.”
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>You pat her side.
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“That is irreplaceable.”
by E4-NG
by E4-NG
by E4-NG
by E4-NG
by E4-NG