Welcome to Gaia! ::

Kel raised an eyebrow at Maryl's second remark. Before he could think more to inquire on it he was interrupted.

"We were accosted by a weak necromancer." Seth blurted out flatly.

"Really? How weak?" Kel scratched his head.

Seth folded her arms and looked down at the coffee table in a mix of mostly disgust. "Her skeletons could barely hold themselves together." She shrugged shaking her head. "Anyhow she and the other gray person were supposedly nobles going use their authority to help rebuild Terra Tanta and the ruined Earth nation."

"Sounds like good news." Kel said somewhat confused at Seth's disposition and tone. "What's wrong with that? I mean other than her being a necromancer."

"Well, she knew our names right off the bat some how. I mean Maryl is an orphan, and I didn't even use my real name in the Tinkers' Union. Yet she didn't know where the refuge was and seemed unaware of what's been happening in the region. And she stank like death."

Kel chuckled at the 'stank like death' part. "Well people who hang out with the dead, smell like them. Did she at least tell you her name or just follow you to the refuge and disappear?"

"She said her name was Stel Chanticleer. The other chick was duchess of something..." Seth shrugged. "Anyway we showed them to the camp leader. He groveled and cowered like a court jester so I figured he knew who they were."

Kel looked up and back remembering that name somewhat vaguely. "I think that was the first princess of the earth nation, if she didn't die... She probably should have, that was well over a century ago."

"Does being a zombie count?", Seth chimed in.

"Why yes, yes it does. Everything adds up now." Kel nodded somewhat sarcastically. Though the facts put forth at the moment did add up. Putting that thought aside, Kel opted to change the subject. "And what else did you do?"

"I see. I'll start dinner then." Kel sighed as he stood up from his chair. He cracked his fingers one by one as he began to walk toward the kitchen. As he rounded the coffee table he paused and looked back to the two children. "By the way, I've come to learn that social status doesn't necessarily mean someone has the best of intentions for his or her nation. Perhaps you should go check on the camp tomorrow briefly. It's just what I have learned but princess or no, people who tend toward cruelty with the dead, tend toward cruelty with the living." Having said that so calmly, Kel continued around the other side of the stair well and into the hall to the kitchen.

...and slavering over living flesh too. It's a good thing she didn't try anything. I'd have lost it if harm had come to Maryl. Seth thought to herself looking down at her hands. It felt like Kel was questioning her judgment again but at least it did seem hasty. Leading a zombie necromancer to a refuge full of unarmed and undefended people would have been an absurd and vile thing to do. It might have been a bad idea to take them on their word at the time. Seth looked to Maryl still thinking that if something so bad were to happen Maryl would have sensed the panic. Feeling a sense of defeat, Seth sat up. "Well, we can sit and chat a bit longer if you want Maryl. If not, I have some designs to finish up."

Seth sat up somewhat surprised by the request. "Oh, well okay. I mean I don't use as much of the equipment as dad does but I could show you around." She didn't imagine Maryl would be particularly interested in the workings of a smithy but since she asked; Seth hopped off the couch and started around the coffee table. "I guess this means dad is going to have to get some protective gear for you too.", she chuckled as she made her way to the hall, past the kitchen door and to the forge doorway. As she stopped there she remembered something important. "Heh, uh wait here. I should go get changed into my work clothing."

About to run back toward the stairwell, Seth found herself cut off by Maryl's question and paused in mid stride. Taking a moment to remember foundry attire rules from the TU base, Seth thought out loud looking up, "Lets see. Hard toed shoes, to protect your feet from dropped tools and such, no loose clothing that might get caught on something. Tie your hair off or cut it short. Aprons, mittens, and masks are mandatory for all pours and smelting." She looked at Maryl before continuing, "As long as you keep away from the furnace and forges you should be fine. I don't know how long it's been since Dad stopped using them so they may still have hot materials inside." She resumed pace and hurried on down the hall before rounding the banister and heading up stairs to her room.

After a few minutes, Seth came walking down the stairs and rounded the banister to rejoin with Maryl at the forge door. She had switched from her tunic and other non-formal wear to her work attire and a set of goggles, all but the union cape. "Okay, I'm going to get started now." She noted to Maryl as she nudged the door open and entered the smithy. She made her way to a small red toolbox and a burlap sack by the near wall and picked up both before moving over to a work table. She popped open the latches on the toolbox and untied the sack, unfolding it and revealing a pile of parts. Most were just metal bits and pieces but there was a faintly glowing light orange crystal sphere amongst the pieces.

"I'm going to finish this one first. It might piss off the arcanists though. I had this idea that I could create a device that can neutralize magic around it. It should provide ample defense for people who can't counterspell."

Seth sighed and turned to Maryl, "Well it's mostly by insistence of the tinkmaster. Though we did come up with other things. As a collaborative project we designed and constructed the pump system in the aqueducts beneath capital city. About half the tech in this house actually was designed by us. Lately though, it's been weapons and magic counteractive technology. It's like we're trying to build a militia or something." Now with a sour look, Seth began to put together the machine before her. She had only arranged the parts before turning to something on the table. "By the way. I don't know if it will come up, but I've been trying to calibrate a scope for detecting things that would otherwise be unseen." She picked up a collapsed telescope and held it out to Maryl. The scope was a fairly small black tube with translucent violet lenses and an adjustable knob where the tube tapered in the center. "For some odd reason Dad and I can already see things that would be invisible like ghosts and spirits so I can't test the scope with my own vision."

Seth was content to continue constructing the device without speaking again. She paused here and there to collect extra necessary attachments but otherwise construction was fairly smooth. To complete the project, Seth had to snap one last piece in place which appeared to be a small shallow dome shape onto the top of what was now a metal sphere with some faint seams and a button on the top. Seth took a deep breath and sighed but before she could say anything else she heard a shout from the door to the house hallway.

"Dinner!" Kel called from the opposite side of the door. In his focus on meal preparation he actually wasn't entirely sure where the kids were in the house but ironically the door to the smithy was about center within the compound. His voice would have carried to anywhere in the house save possibly for the attic. Figuring his simple but direct message got through, Kel turned and walked back toward the kitchen.