[Eureka] Bringing In

[Dandelion]

12 Vhalar 721
Continues from here

OOC Note

Fourth in a series dealing with this settlement challenge/plotline

As the sun dropped to the horizon, threading streaks of red and gold into the handful of clouds, Dan threaded his way through the settlement at a moderate pace, retracing his steps to the shelter where he had found Lily. He also kept one eye on Faith and her bodyguard, ostensibly so that he could see what they were saying, but in actual fact, mainly in case Faith proved what she had told him was true and got lost on the way.

"Does that herb rub you mentioned work with soups and stews?" he asked politely, though he wasn't entirely sure either of them would fully recognise what the angle of his head indicated. "That's mostly what I make, because then I can set it to cook and attend to other things in the meantime." He paid as much attention to the answer as he could, but a large proportion of his mind was on the alert for any signs that might indicate trouble on the way.

He slowed his steps as he drew close to the shelter, settling into the steady pace he used for gathering, slow enough that he had time to look at everything around him and assess it for - for whatever he needed to know about what he saw. He turned to Faith and nodded at Lily's shelter. "There. That's the one."

A man and a woman approached the shelter from the direction of the mountain, carrying open bags full of a white powder and talking quietly. Dan guessed from their workworn outfits that these were Lily's parents, back from 'mining salt' on the mountain. He glanced over at Faith, pointed discreetly at the couple, and made a fairly universal 'after you' gesture. Because frankly, in his opinion, she was far more likely to uncover information in this situation than he was.

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"Signed words" Spoken words

[Faith Augustin]

Faith didn't get lost on the way - but Dan would notice why. She was never in front. Her bodyguard Alyssa stepped forward, and Faith kept up with her and Dan, but she never did more than follow them. He asked about the herb rub and Faith nodded. "Yes. On the meat if you have it. I make cubes, too, I'll show you. Flavour." She was also focused on looking around, though, and although they were both engaged in doing the same thing, what they were looking for would likely be different. Dan was looking at the environment in terms of what was natural. Faith was looking at it in terms of what was different. She had a perfect memory and so she was able to compare it with what she had seen here, previously. But, there was no indication of anything, really.

But what that meant was that she heard the parents coming. Faith had excellent hearing and she was able to make out the conversation clearly. It worried her - quite a lot - what she heard and she glanced at Dan with a slight frown. Her bodyguard signed to him, as Faith did. "She'll tell you later, but you were right,". How the woman knew was not clear, but there was no doubting that, if Faith had known it, she'd have agreed completely.

They had little time before the parents, presumably, arrived and she nodded to Dan when he gestured that she should go first. Faith moved and stood, for a moment, next to him. She waved at the parents. "Hello," she called. "I was wondering if we could have a word?" She did that for a reason and that was, simply, that she wanted to see how they reacted. It was interesting to her how they did. The couple looked at each other, nervously. "This is Dan, and I'm Faith. How are you both?" She smiled slightly and watched. The father handed his bag off to his wife, the mother, and then walked up to the two of them.

"Hello," Faith said softly to the father. "I'm just wondering exactly what it is that is in those bags? If it's salt, specifically the salt that you've been mining, then it's really rather dangerous and I wouldn't want to have any issues." Silver eyes regarded the man and she looked at him unwaveringly. "So, how about we don't bother with the hiding things, and instead, you tell us what's happening?"

Alyssa, meanwhile, looked at Dandelion and motioned with her head towards the mother who was currently scurrying towards their home and trying to look as small and inconspicuous as possible.

[Dandelion]

Dan absorbed the information that he had been right, and that Faith would explain later, without much outward change of expression. Faith herself stepped forward to talk to the man, presumably the father, her voice soft but immovable. The man folded his arms in response and spouted what, from his body language, was a stream of excuses to avoid blame.

Dan left Faith to it, and moved to intercept the woman, his steps quiet but audible, as if he was dealing with a skittish, scared, pony. As he got there, she set the bags down just inside the shelter and opened her arms. Lily leapt into them, and they both turned to look at Dan with fearful expressions, clinging to each other.

Dan turned empty hands palm up. "I mean no harm," he told them, then shifted his position so that only they could see his hands and asked in small, discreet gestures, "Who are you afraid of?"

Two sets of eyes darted to the man and then back to Dan, and his mouth tightened. He signed equally discreetly for Alyssa to stay with Faith and then turned back to the woman and child and told them bluntly, "The salt's hurting things. She," He tipped his head in Faith's direction. "wants it - stopped. What do you need in order to stop and be safe?"

They looked at each other, and then Lily slid down and clung to her mother's leg instead so that the woman's hands were free to sign a response. "First..." she began.

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"Signed words" Spoken words

[Pig Boy]

"First... at first," The woman began to sign, and then looked to the father, her eyes stern. "He paid well." She started to move her hands in a rhythm. "But then he involved our daughter in his work. Asked her to bring dead animals to him to experiment on."

Lily frowned as she watched what her mother was signing, and choked back a little sob. She signed for Dandelion, "He tried to wake up fluffy. But she wouldn't stop sleeping."

The mother didn't notice what her daughter had signed, but continued to sign directly to Dandelion, "The salt, he said, was important to his work."

Here, the father interjected, "It's good money. We haven't hurt anyone, and neither has Doctor Somnia." His brow creased with a frown, as his signs came more forcefully, directed at Faith and Dandelion, "Why should we let so much coin be, when we're barely scraping by. Doctor Somnia is kind, and he tried to revive my daughter's pet."

Lily watched what her father signed as well, and added to the signing, "Fluffy got bitten by a badger. He tried to bring her back, but said that the skies weren't right." She shrugged, obviously confused and perhaps not entirely sure what Doctor Somnia had meant or actually said. "Anyway, Fluffy is gone."

The mother signed, between her husband and her daughter underfoot, signing without her being able to see, she signed to Dandelion, "What are you going to do?"

[Faith Augustin]

Things unfolded quickly and Faith kept half an eye on Dan to make sure that he was managing fine there. He seemed like a very capable individual, but Faith had a strong sense of personal responsibility. It was Alissa who spoke the words which had been signed to her, and Faith raised an eyebrow. The conversation happened, and the father spoke of them barely being able to get by and Doctor Somnia offering money. Money. It so often came to this and Faith didn't fully understand just what it was that people found so difficult to grasp.

Breathing in, she looked at Dan and gave a slight smile then, she turned her attention to the family. "Why should you let so much coin be when you're barely scraping by? Let me be clear in answering that. Experimenting on the dead and attempting to revive them in the manner you are describing is, at best, misinformed and morally dubious. At best. The question is more why someone would pay so much coin if the actions weren't nefarious. I believe you know that, and have chosen to ignore it." Looking between them then, she continued. "And if you are scraping by, why not speak with me? This settlement is everyone's and if there is anything you need, you know you can come to me. That this Doctor Somnia has chosen not to let me know what the experiments he's doing are, also speaks of his underground nature, yes?"

Silver eyes met the father's gaze. "You knew exactly what you were doing. You knew that it was dubious at best and you did it anyway because it paid well. Even though the fact that it paid so well added to the knowledge that it was wrong, you did it. Didn't you?" He couldn't hold her gaze and he looked away. Faith nodded. It was all she needed to know.

Then, she turned to the girl. She spoke, Alissa signed for her. "When did Fluffy die?"

It had been three trials ago, apparently, and Faith nodded her head. Then, she crouched down on to her haunches and looked at the little girl, eye to eye. "I worship an Immortal called Famula and she knows that special animals like Fluffy are very important and they can make us very happy. She gives me the ability to bring them back. May I try to do that with Fluffy, please?" The girls' eyes widened and she looked to her mother. The mother looked at Faith and Dan for a moment and then nodded.

"Thank you," Faith said softly. "I'm going to try and bring Fluffy back. Like I would have if you'd come to me first. We're going to help, like we would have if you'd come to me first. While I do that, will you please give Dan all the information you have on this Doctor Somnia, please?" Her gaze swept the three of them. "Unless something comes to light which changes it, he will not be part of this settlement or welcome here from this point on. So I suggest you make a decision. Be here, be part of this community, or do not. Please give Dan everything he asks for. Thank you." Either of those was fine by her, but a choice needed to be made.

So saying she allowed the child to lead her - it wasn't far, there was a small grave just to the side of their home. It was freshly dug and had some flowers on it. Faith grabbed a shovel and dug up the body of a beautiful - and very fluffy - white cat. She saw the bite, saw what had happened and she looked at the child. "I'll do my best, alright? Famula is a very kind Immortal, and I think she'll help." And, indeed, kneeling there next to the cat, as Faith prayed it first sneezed, then spluttered and, finally, stood up rather shakily. The young girl grabbed it and started to sob in delight - a sound which was drowned out by the very loud purring. As it stood, it coughed up what seemed to be a sugar cube and, although they both moved to get it, Faith took advantage of the girl being mainly focused on the cat and she grabbed it, carefully, in a cotton bag.

OOC

Pigs told me the resurrection would work. It's a zuuda granted ability called "resurrected companion"

[Dandelion]

The man gripped the woman's arm tightly, half-pinning it in place. "This is my wife and my child. Where I go, they go. Family sticks together."

Dan, who, as far as he knew, had been abandoned (he didn't remember his parents at all, and he'd certainly been alone when he was caught digging up roots, or he wouldn't have been dumped in the orphanage) snorted. "Family is those that consider themselves family."

The man glared threateningly at Dan, but Dan, who had stood his ground against lunging boars and charging deer and hungry wolves remained apparently unmoved and unimpressed. He gave a flat look in response and said only, "Tell me about Dr Somnia. Tell me about the salt."

He got another glare, but the man also had to let go of the woman in order to sign with full detail. "He found the salt first, he says it removes the need for sleep, and what is death but a deeper kind of sleep? But he couldn't both mine it himself and run his experiments, that's why he hired us."

Dan read the inflections as well as the words, picking up the extra information that this 'Dr Somnia' was controlling and demanding/commanding - and that the man looked up to him and wanted to be more like him.

The woman moved out of reach before she replied, glancing over at Faith and Lily as the cat began to purr. "It wasn't that different from supplying any other material at first, we have - I mean had, before we came here - a small business doing just that. But then he...got worse." There was wariness in the hunch of her shoulders, and outright fear in the stiffness of her fingers, and that told a story of its own.

Dan nodded slowly and told the man, "Perhaps you would be so good as to take Faith to Dr Somnia so that he can explain to her what he does as one scientist to another." He waited until the man turned away and then signed discreetly to the woman, "I will advise that you and the child be allowed to stay. And that your husband only stay if you want him to - do you?"

The woman closed her eyes and shook her head very slightly. "He will be angry."

"Understood." Dan risked a glance at Alissa to see how much the bodyguard had understood of that. He added, "Also, I will give lessons in Sign to anyone who wants to take them, so that your child is not so much an outsider." A full settlement where everyone could sign would be the ideal, of course, but it was too much of a daydream to expect in reality. This, however, he could manage.

Returning to Faith, he stepped aside from the family, and summerised what he had learned, concluding, "They have a small business sourcing and gathering ingredients for scientists and hoped to set up a branch of it here. The salt was just another ingredient to start with and then things went bad. He did it because he wanted to, she did it because she was afraid of him. She and Lily would be fine here if he isn't here to intimidate them, but he'll try to take it out on them before he leaves so they'll need protection."

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"Signed words" Spoken words

[Faith Augustin]

The more Faith saw of Dandelion, the more impressed she was. He wasn't prone to bluff or bluster, he was not arrogant or self important. Yet, he had a backbone and he stood his ground. Faith had to admit, that was exactly the kind of personality she liked. Alissa was very much paying attention to what was going on and she met Dan's gaze with a very calm expression, and a slight nod.

Faith watched the newly resurrected cat and girl reunited and she glanced between the man, his wife and their child. This was not a happy or healthy relationship. When she returned to them, having dug up a dead cat (and briefly she considered that her life was never normal), Dan gave her the information she needed. "Thank you," she said to him, copying the sign that he and Alissa had both used for "thank you". "Alright, so this is what we're going to do then," she said, wiping off the last of the dry earth from her hands. "Alissa, will you take this gentleman to my office, please? He and I are going to discuss Doctor Somnia, and I'm going to put a stop to this, now."

She turned her attention to the mother and daughter, then. "This business of yours is exactly what we need, so lets get working together on it? We can offer support, along with practical and financial help. We'll need all the ingredients we can get our hands on, as long as they're ethically sourced." The mother looked rather surprised and Faith wondered when people were going to start believing that she was what her reputation said she was. Why did people feel the need to try and circumvent things, Faith really didn't know. But now was not the time to find out.

"Come on then," Alissa said, and she took the man away. He started to struggle slightly, but the biqaj woman had a firm resolve and a harder grip. "And remember. I'm not as forgiving as her." He stopped struggling at that point. When they were out of earshot, Faith turned back to Dandelion, the mother and the daughter. "Ok, so we're going to get you settled. Can I suggest that you come and stay at the Inn for a few trials. Lets get this Doctor Somnia situation dealt with. Or there's some housing that is currently empty, whatever you prefer." She smiled.

Then, she looked at Dan. "I'm going to ask you a favour, if you would. Of course, we'll pay you in nel or whatever way you prefer. But we need to be able to communicate, as a settlement. Could you teach sign to the settlers? Maybe in groups of ten?" She smiled at him. It was a big ask, she knew, but Faith wouldn't be happy with any settler not having a voice. It wasn't her way.

When that was all sorted, she would show the mother and daughter to where they chose to go - the mother liked the idea of staying somewhere more communal for a while, so they chose the Inn - and Faith got that sorted. Then, they could catch up with Alissa and find out what had been learned. Doctor Somnia - and the father - were quite obviously breaking the law and so Faith did what she would always do. She gave the information to the authorities and they kept the father in Eureka until the Lightning Knights picked him up.

[Jackalope]

]

Experience: +15 xp
Magic: No.
Collaboration: Yes
Wealth Points No.
Renown: +15.

General comments

A Doctor “Somnia”, a protagonist named Dan, a pet brought back to life…I’m getting definite Stephen King vibes here. I am interested to see what sort of antagonist the “Good Doctor” turns out to be. A driven misguided nerd, or a psychopath? Definitely not a psychopomp. Just the opposite, in fact.

I appreciate that one of the themes here is isolation and exclusion, and how it can make people feel helpless and drive them to do desperate things, rather than turn to help from the community. This settlement challenge is actually a challenge for the settlement itself, and it’s cohesion as a community, rather than just a call to adventure for the PCs in the thread.

And speaking of those PCs…

Dan

Skillplay: Appropriate to level.

Knowledge:


Cooking: using a herb rub on meat
Caregiving: soothing a parent's fears
Caregiving: some questions should be asked discreetly
Caregiving: making sure someone doesn't get lost
Socialisation: navigating family dynamics
Socialisation: making small talk
Socialisation: creating a solution to communication difficulties
Socialisation: knowing when to let the more experienced person take the lead

Loot None.
Injuries None.

Comments

Dan really seems to be coming into his own in this story. Eureka seems like a good place for him. His use of sign language comes into major play here. I like how you describe the nuances of body language and expression, and how Dan uses these to pick up additional meanings and information.

Faith

Skillplay: Appropriate to level.



Knowledge:

5 x linguistics
3 x science.

Comments

I didn’t know that Zuuda had an ability especially for bringing back animal companions. Maybe it should be called Zooda. I’ll show myself out.

Faith pulls no punches when it comes to those who dabble in necromancy. And even though she recognizes that the family acted out of financial need and are at least partly victims, she also doesn’t let them off the hook for their responsibilities for what they did. Especially the dad.