It was inspiring to see Nashira and Do'Sakhar willing to labor on the defenses. I can easily imagine the warriors working beside the villagers from the descriptions you’ve provided. I love dialog, and this episode was a delight. Even with all of the talk I could vividly picture the surroundings from the details you included. Wow!

Aela’s words and the memory of the dusty mat brought the point home. If I started quoting lines I’d end up including all of them. She certainly knows about sacrifice.

"Perhaps we can kill two cliffracers with one spell while we are at it." -- I’m certainly going to have to consider borrowing this line should the occasion arise!

"Good," Valens nodded. "That will give us a start. Once we have those I can start drilling the villagers.” -- I'm not going anywhere near where friend Foxy might go with 'drilling the villagers'. Nope. Not me. Not going there. (Just teasin' ya!)

“So long as there are people who believe in Agrigento, it can never be destroyed." -- * Stands up and cheers while remembering Kvatch. *

I join Grits in saluting your dialogue. You deftly use it to not only ‘show’ what is physically happening, but to ‘display’ what each of the Seven are made of – and why they are so likely to prevail. The examples herein were numerous, most of them implying the experience and skill of the group. One that particularly stuck with me, however, is when the normally unflappably smooth-talking Ungarion displayed his hackles in defense of Aela.

You did a great job of building this scene to its conclusion: The Seven will not only do what it takes to rid the Naga menace, but remain long enough to rebuild and help the village recover from the attendant collateral damage.


Couple teeny nits:
- "And unless we want charcoal, I'll have to drain it's magicka as well." Ungarion said.’ - - I’m sure you meant the possessive (its) here rather than the conjunction (it’s).
- "This one has an idea?" Do'Sakhar asked to obvious question.’ - - I suspect you meant ‘the’ instead of ‘to’?

Dee Foxy is sorely missed when "drilling the villagers" goes by without a comment from the Master of Dhertee Innu Endo! My mind did go there, but it's not appropriate for this forum!

I'm with Grits there, it is so refreshing to see the warriors agree to work on the aftermath. In the two movies, as I recall it, only the Chico character stayed behind, the others left once the fighting was done. In the Magnificent Seven, I believe it was Chris who said there is no place for old fighters/warriors/gunslingers to settle. The implication there was that Chico was never really a gunslinger, though he wanted to be one.

The growing spirit of teamwork here was fun to watch, especially as it was laid out through dialogue. Here we see the hard work Valens put into drilling his fellow fighters (okay, here I go meself!) begin to pay off as each offers his/her own contribution. I really liked the way Seridwe anticipated Valen's thinking and strategy at a few points in the discussion.

Poor Rullianus! He’s going to cram several moody warriors and a chatty mage into his home! We’ll see how long the Seven lasts!

Wonder who the second mat belongs to and where they are now? Rejoined the Hist at the hands of the Naga?

Nice distillery, at least when this is over they will have the means to generate some money.

I wondered if the unfamiliar land would prevent Aela from using her summoned helpers. Glad it isn’t an issue, else this will be much more difficult.

They aren’t only general defense now; they are a construction crew too! Hopefully the brewery equipment can take the heat of the flames because that stuff isn’t going to be easy to replace!

I'm trying to avoid re-viewing the source material, but you're doing a great job of translating it all to the Black Marsh context. It all fits together so well in its new incarnation, just as well as the conversion from Japan to the Americas. But then, the strategy and tactics are the same in each of those contexts.

The worry I have is that Tamriel gives us fire resistance, which is a potential hole in the plan here only.

Grits: Thanks. That was a really long episode, and I was keenly aware of the discussions on the Writing Mechanics topic about post length, and splitting up a scene vs. keeping it together even if it is longer. Especially concerning the last part. I was tempted to leave that for another post. But it is too small to be its own episode, and would seem out of place if it were posted with today's episode.

It will not be just Do'Sakhar and Nashira who toil away. As we will see this episode, everyone will get involved in the toilage.

The dusty mat was indeed meant to be a subtle reminder of the suffering the villagers have endured under the yoke of the Naga bandits. Likewise, when it came to talking about sacrifice, I needed look no further than Aela. She has lost everything to be who she is.


Acadian: I did have fun with that cliffracer line. Sometimes that is one of the most enjoyable parts of writing in the ES universe: thinking up colloquialisms and other sorts of slang.

I never really thought about it as I was writing, but that was a really 'talky' episode, due to there being so many people involved, and that it was in essence a planning session.

Now we see what it takes to get Ungarion's dander up. He can keep his cool even in the Argonian heat, but not when someone messes with his best friend!


haute ecole rider: Oi, you folks and your drills! Next you'll be remarking on Valens licking them into shape! Or teaching them to firmly grip the shafts of their spears. (which reminds me, Vincent over at the Bravil FG has a haft that could use some gripping... )

These next few episodes, really the rest of chapter 2 come to think of it, will showcase the Seven all coming together and pitching in for the village's defense. We will get a chance to see the unique nature of each as they all do their part. Ungarion the smooth-talking front man, Valens the soldier, Aela the summoner, etc...

Seridwe's anticipation of Valens was a way that I wanted to show that the two of them had been a team for a while, just like Aela and Ungarion. They each know one another well enough to know what the other is going to do at any given moment.


King Coin: Well, in all fairness only Valens is really moody. The rest are either taciturn (Nashira), or at least friendly (Ungarion). Though seven is a lot for one house! I would hate to put that many in my apartment.

We will be seeing a little more about the owner of the second mat in Rullianus' house here and there, and there have been some hints in the previous episodes as well.

I did think about whether or not Aela would be able to summon elementals in Argonian, due to it being such an alien land. But in end I decided that it still has water, dirt, air, fire, etc... It is just that it also has the Hist, and I think that is where the real weirdness is. So she can still summon her normal helpers. It is just the Hist that want no part of her.

I did think about the vats being ruined in a fire, so I looked it up. Copper melts at about 1,000 degrees C, and soju would burn at about 26 degrees C. So as long as they don't make too big of an inferno in there, the distillery ought to hold up.


ghastley: I am actually tempted to rewatch both Seven Samurai and Magnificent Seven again, even though I watched both before I began writing. It has been a lot of fun putting the story into a fantasy setting. It is one of the ways that I can try to make this version of the tale unique.

Resist Fire is always there. Though I have been thinking that fire is probably the worst enemy of the Nagas. They are water-borne creatures, like crocs or frogs, so it is probably what they are most afraid of. So naturally their mages would use it, since it is what the other Naga's fear most. Aela will be providing some fire resist potions in the future. We will see with the Nagas.


Previously On Seven: In our last episode the Seven took a tour of the large stone building in the village, which turned out to be their distillery for producing soju. From its roof they got a good look at the environs, and laid down an basic strategy to defend the village. They will clear away the nearby bamboo forest in the hills behind the village, and use it to make spears and fortifications, cut down trees to make shields, and dig a ditch and parapet to surround the village. Valens intends to force the Nagas to commit their mages to storming the walls, allowing the ranged fighters of the Seven to identify and kill them from a distance. Then they will fight the mundane Nagas in the narrows streets by using shield walls. If worse comes to worse, they will retreat to the distillery and use it to trap the Nagas in an inferno of burning soju.


Chapter 2.4

Aela and her summoned spirit went to work digging the moat. The archaean easily moved the turf and loose stones aside, shifting more than a hundred of pounds of soil with each scoop of his massive paws. The spirit piled all of this dirt up on the inner side of the ditch. But rather than covering the bamboo fence and timber wall there, the dirt moved under those objects, actually pushing them up so they stood atop the tall rampart being constructed.

In the meantime Ungarion set to work draining the power from Nashira's scimitar and Do'Sakhar's axe. Aela noted that he transferred the stolen energy into several magicka gems, and silently congratulated the high elf for his forethought. Those gems might prove invaluable during the coming battle.

Then the others split up and went about their own tasks. Nashira and Seridwe went to the bamboo forest on the far side of the village, while Do'Sakhar, Stalks-The-Marshes, Valens, and Talun-Lei ventured into the forest they had all traveled through to reach the Agrigento. Aela noted the latter three now carried wood axes as well, and imagined that Stalks had supplied them from the village.

Ungarion vanished soon after, and Aela expected that the wizard would continue preparing magicka gems, or perhaps scribe scrolls to aid in the defense. The latter struck her as a good idea for herself as well. She could create scrolls to summon undines and pass them out to the villagers. They would go a long way to putting out fires during the battle. Perhaps there might even be time to brew healing potions?

Soon Meen-Sa appeared, and the mikumari summoned an undine to stop the water from the nearby paddies from prematurely filling the ditch Aela and her own spirit were digging. The water priestess said nothing, but Aela could feel the Argonian's yellow eyes boring holes into her back as they slowly moved around the edge of the village.

"So are you going to spill those beans," Aela finally asked, "or are you saving them for dinner?"

"This one is strange to Meen-Sa," the Argonian finally rasped. "Even for the unscaled folk, its energy makes no sense."

"Well that is one I have not heard yet," Aela sighed. No matter where she went, there was always someone who felt the need to tell her how wrong they felt it was for her to exist. They all seemed to think that she had been waiting with baited breath for her entire life for them to share their opinions. Aela wondered how the water-priestess would feel if everyone around her constantly forced her to justify having a tail?

"How pray tell, does my energy disturb you?" the Breton said in as neutral a tone as she could muster.

"It is backwards!" the Argonian spat out. "This one's body is male, yet somehow it is not. Its water is female, it runs against its body. This one's spirit is upside down, like its tail is on its head and its feathers on its feet."

"You have no two-spirit people in your village then?" Aela asked, "no hijra?"

"Hijra?" The orange feathers atop the Argonian's head bunched in concentration. "Only the Hist can make hijra, and this one does not look like it has licked the bark."

Aela laughed. "Well not in that sense no! We don't have Hist trees in High Rock. But we do have people who live between worlds, just as everywhere else."

"But did this one's gods not make it a man?"

"No," Aela's eyes narrowed. "I was, and have always been, a woman. I was just not as lucky as you to be born with a perfect body."

"But why cannot this one just be what it was born as?"

Aela was not certain if Meen-Sa was genuinely puzzled, or if the Argonian was baiting her, as so many did when they used those very same words.

"If a child is born with a cleft lip, should it live out its entire life that way?" Aela fought the anger that was welling up within her, and tried to play nice with the Argonian. "Or if it is born lame? Or with under-developed lungs? Or with an infection? Shouldn't we use our magic to heal them?"

"But this one was not born with a sickness, or a split mouth," Meen-Sa continued. "This one was simply born a man. It should remain a man. It is unnat-."

The Argonian was cut short when a cascade of mud splattered across the front of her body. Meen-Sa sputtered, and wiped the grime from her features. Aela turned to see that her archaean had stopped digging, and stood with a fist packed full of oozing slime.

"You had better go," Aela said, "you're making him angry."

"There was no call for that!" the water priestess cried. The archaean raised his mud-filled hand, and it took every ounce of Aela's will to contain the anger that welled up within her. She knew that the spirit was merely reacting to her own feelings. If she could not control herself, it might do more than just sling mud…

"There is far more to Aetherius and Nirn than what you dream of Meen-Sa," Aela carefully answered. "If you cannot accept the fact that there are things in this world different from you, and don't follow your ideas of how the universe was meant to be, then a little mud is going to be the least of your worries in life. If I were you I'd take a long walk and think that over."

The Breton Witch purposely turned her back to the water priestess, and concentrated upon her archaean instead. She willed the Nirn spirit to ignore the Argonian, and return to his work of clearing the ditch. Aela heard the squishing of wet feet in the dirt fading away behind her, and was thankful that the priestess had taken her advice.

A moment later water came flowing down into the ditch. Aela reached out for the undine that Meen-Sa had just released. Gently entreating the spirit, the Witch found that the undine was more than happy to help her. The water stopped flowing into the ditch, and instead flowed up its sides and back into the nearby rice paddy.

In the meantime her archaean dissolved into the dirt beneath her feet. Aela sighed. No one could control more than one spirit at a time. At least that is what they had said at the University, and she had never met anyone who could do otherwise. Given that summoning created a mild telepathic link between spirit and mage, she was not sure how anyone could keep their commands between more than one straight. Her own near loss of control over the archaean just moments before showed how difficult it could be to direct even a single conjured being.

Climbing to the top of the ditch on her hands and knees, Aela emerged to stand upon the dike of the neighboring rice paddy. The field was denuded of rice, and filled with ankle-deep brown water. She imagined the undine moving the water into the next paddy, and a moment later she watched it rise up on the opposite banks and flow over the dikes into the other paddies beyond.

She would just have to alternate between summoning the archaean to dig the ditch, and then the undine to empty out all of the paddies adjacent to it, and back and forth again until she was finished. It would take longer, and require twice the energy. But she had always known that being an ardhanari was not easy.

This post has been edited by SubRosa: Oct 6 2013, 06:03 PM

I have this delightful image now of Aela wearing a bright yellow hard hat as she controls her heavy Nirn-moving equipment! Who knew that mages make the best construction workers?

Wonderful study of how one controls a summon along with some of the potential challenges.

"Hijra?" The orange feathers atop the Argonian's head bunched in concentration. "Only the Hist can make hijra, and this one does not look like it has licked the bark." - - I love this passage for so many reasons! Gosh, it’s hard to keep straight: Bark lickers are Argonians; not to be confused with bark-biting, leaf-licking Bosmers. Not to mention what Khajiit are reputed to lick according to the rumors in Leyawiin!

Meen-Sa was hard to read as to whether she was being curious or judgmental. A combination of the two, I should imagine, but Aela has no doubt had a gut full of the judgmental stuff. I think Aela’s helper had exactly the right idea – a mud wrestling contest would have not only provided a wonderful respite from the day of hard labor, but perhaps helped relieve some of the tension between the ladies as well.


Nit? - - "There is far more to Aetherius and Nirn that what you dream of Meen-Sa," - - Did you mean ‘than’ vs ‘that’?

As long as the vats hold up, I think anything else that gets wrecked in the fire would be relatively easy to replace. It’s the shaped metal that is valuable!

While they are making this moat and rampart, I hope that Aela’s powers can prevent them from being leveled when the Naja attack. I’m assuming this is going to be her primary responsibility during the fight, keeping the defenses safe from the Naja magicka.

Meen-Sa is an observant Argonian. I would somewhat expect all humans to look alike to them.

The elemental feels defensive for Aela. She really needs to get used to this sort of thing though. She is unique enough that she will puzzle many people, and not everyone’s questions are going to be full of barbs like she expects. I’m not saying Aela is being totally unreasonable in her defensiveness either.

Wow...Properly loved the defence discussion...Excellent stuff in there...I actually didn't notice that it was longer, only that it was amazing...*Shrug*...If it's good enough to stand as one piece it should be...

Sadly, it seems that lack of acceptance and understanding isn't just a human thing...Loved that last chapter, excellently done...

Loved both the posts...Brilliant stuff, as ever...

Oh, old news...



McWife was the fan of this one...I just caught a few of the episodes...Loved the original film, and quite liked what I saw of the series...The one set in the past where Roger Daltry had to pretend to be dead and Duncan investigate was priceless!...But I didn't see all that many of them, just sit through the wife's explainations of what happened...I did like that Amanda when she had the long hair though...Wasn't a fan of the cropped blonde, personally speaking...*Thinks*...Not that I'm against the cropped blonde look at all, just not on her...*Thinks again*...And I mean her as in Amanda...not H.E.R...I'm sure she'd be beautiful with cropped blonde...

...

Aw dang...

Nice one!!...

*Applauds heartily*...

Well, I am! Too many dumb blonds running around here! I have yet to write a blonde character who isn't a tall, gun-totin' butch Norwegian (and she is awesome!!). And yes, Sorensen is a cropped blonde . . . Me, I was once a cropped red . . .

Anymyhoo, as McB would say Rather enjoyed the conversation/discussion between Aela and Meen-Sa. Like Aela and Acadian, I too found Meen-Sa's comments difficult to read. This is not meant as a critique of your writing, but rather quite the opposite. As in RL, it's wonderful that characters are sometimes difficult to pin down. One of the biggest pitfalls of writing is getting inside a non-protagonist's head when the scene is being written from a different POV. Howinthehell am I supposed to know what you are thinking?? I only have your body language, your tone of voice, your words, and what I know of your past actions to judge your intentions by. This just adds to the flavor that is Meen-Sa the character.

With road construction season finally drawing to a close around here, I regret that Aela and her archon were not employed by the road crews on my commuting route this past summer! Maybe things might have gotten done faster if that big earth mover was present!

Hmmm... I wonder if this tension between Aela and Meen-Sa is going to be an issue later. And if taking over her Undine wasn't an impolitic thing to do? I like the way she reveres the Hist a little too much, for her own good.

I always like the way your characters use magic in ways that make sense. Although I can't ever figure out whether they're using it to the best advantage. I think I remember you discussing whether it made more sense to fortify your own strength, or summon a minion to carry for you, and having two characters make opposite choices.

Acadian: Some people might say that mages make the best of everything... You can bet Ungarion is at the top of that list too!

The Khajiit only lick that area to get the taste of their cooking out of their mouths. Well, that's what I heard anyway!

That was meant to show that conjuring is not easy, and requires more than just the ability to cast the spell to begin with. One needs discipline to keep the spirit under control, and that includes keeping your own thoughts and feelings in order.

If you are uncertain about Meen-Sa, consider this. Does she ever state that Aela has the right to determine her own identity? Or does she insist that Aela must be what she was born as? I think that cuts right down to it.


King Coin: I also think the vats would be the biggest problem to replace. That would take the work of an actual foundry, and would be beyond the villagers. Though you never know, Ungarion might be able to do something with a summoned salamander...

I figure that most Argonians do think that humans tend to look alike. Just like the opposite. But Meen-Sa is a magician, and can read Aela's aura. So that is how she could quickly clue into Aela being two-spirited. She starts out making a statement about Aela's energy making no sense.

Aela is used to prejudice. But that does not make it any easier to deal with. She's no Dali Lama. Like most people, it just makes her angry. She tried to play nice, but in the end that did not work. That scene was just an example of everyday life for Aela.


McBadgere: People everywhere have their biases and prejudices. It just changes with the scenery. Meen-Sa was one way I wanted to show that.

I was never a big fan of Awomanda either, especially not with the short white hair. If she had kept it long it probably would have looked alot better. But even hair aside, she's a pretty useless character. The only time she ever kills anyone in Highlander is after Duncan had beaten the guy, and she sneaked in to behead him when he was down. She is pretty much there to be a helpless female for the big strong manly hero to rescue.


haute ecole rider: As I said to Acadian about Meen-Sa, if you are really uncertain, think back to Aela's discussion with Seridwe about people who believe that birth pre-determines their future vs. those who believe that it is the individual's right and ability to choose their own fate. Compare that to Meen-Sa's insistence that Aela be what she was born to be.

The rest was meant to be a little unclear. Bigots do not always shout and level accusatory fingers. Many can be very calm and cogent in the presentation of their views. Though often it comes down to "you were born this way, you must be this way, because X said so." X of course being their religion, their government, their parents, etc... Meen-Sa is just an example of the kind of people Aela has to deal with on a regular basis.


ghastley: Aela is wondering if she is going to have to worry about Meen-Sa in the future as well. That will be brought up in a few more episodes. Like you said, Meen-Sa can be a bit too close-minded for her own good. I am not sure if fanatical is the right word. Perhaps intractable. She is not very flexible in her thinking, or one to try to look at situations from another point of view. Rather she tends to be very conservative, and do and think and feel what she has been told to all of her life.

I do not think there always is a best advantage to using magic. I think it is like the magic items in the game, some people like this thing over that. It all just depends on what suits the individual's likes and talents.


Previously On Seven: In our last episode Aela and her summoned archaean went to work digging a moat around Agrigento, and using the excavated dirt to build up a rampart. Meen-Sa briefly came to assist, but the two soon had a discussion about Aela's gender identity that turned into an argument, as Meen-Sa could not accept that Aela was living as a woman when her body had been born male. In the end Aela's spirit took matters into his own hands, slinging a handful of mud at the water-priestess. That was the end of the discussion, and Aela continued on with the work alone.


Chapter 2.5


Magnus hung low over the western horizon when Ungarion appeared over the rim of the ditch that Aela and her archaean were digging in.

"I don't suppose you found any gold down there?" the Altmer called out, "or precious stones?"

"None as precious as you my friend." Aela looked up with a smile. She wiped the sweat from her brow with the back of her hand. A glance down revealed that not only were her hands stained with dirt and mud, but her clothing as well. She could only imagine how dirty her face must be. Part of her thought of pulling out her hand-mirror to look. But another part was too afraid to see.

"Well, that goes without saying of course…" the Altmer beamed. He waved at her to come up. "Come on out of there. It's time for dinner."

Aela clambered up the steep slopes of the ditch, and in no time at all slipped and fell face-first into the dirt. She closed her eyes, and thought of the archaean below her. A pair of massive hands gently wrapped around her waist, and she felt herself lifted into the air. A moment later she found herself just as softly set down upon the embankment where Ungarion stood. A glance back found her conjured spirit dutifully waiting behind her. Without having to say a word, she gave the spirit her thanks, and bid the archaean a quiet evening. A moment later he faded into dust.

"Oh my, you really are quite a mess," Ungarion said. "All of this hot, sweaty work is simply unconscionable for mages of our stature."

"I notice that you avoided getting dirty," Aela observed.

"That is because I know how to take care of myself." The Altmer mage made a grandiose flourish with his hands, and Aela could feel the energy grow within his slender fingers. A moment later he set his hands upon her shoulders and gave her a little shake. With that the dirt and grime all fell from her clothing, leaving them looking as if they had just come from the laundry tub.

"You always were better at Alteration," the Breton Witch murmured. Raising her hand, she channeled her magicka into her Bloom spell. A moment later the sweat and grunge vanished from her skin and hair as well, and she felt completely refreshed.

"So what have you been up to?" the Breton asked as they headed into the village. Aela noted that now a few villagers had dared to leave their homes. Most were gawking at the high palisade that she and her spirit had been building around the edge of the settlement. A few simply walked to and fro through the village however. All of those nearby stopped to stare and her and Ungarion.

"I assisted our trusty axemen in the forest," Ungarion practically boasted.

"You, swinging an axe?" Aela's eyes goggled. "Now that I wish I had seen."

"Oh Magnus forbid!" the high elf proclaimed. "I would never debase myself with manual labor. No, I was there to cast feather spells upon the lumber. I am sure it made things much easier for those sweaty, muscle-bound fellows. Speaking of easier, I thought that the water priestess was going to be helping you with the moat?"

"If by helping, you mean lecturing me in how unnatural it is to be a two-spirit person then yes, she was of great assistance," Aela frowned.

"Oh my," Ungarion sighed. "I should have thought that a society that openly accepts two-spirits like hijra would not have such people. Especially not a priestess!"

"Apparently only Argonians are allowed to be two-spirits," Aela breathed. "The rest of us are supposed to be the way our gods made us."

"We are all born not capable of holding in our wastes," Ungarion murmured. "That is how the gods made us as well. I suppose she thinks it's blasphemy to potty train children then?"

Aela could not restrain a smile. "I'll have to remember that for the next time," she said dryly.

"My wisdom is a light to the world." Ungarion raised his nose high and affected his most dignified prince-of-parchment pose. That brought a real chuckle from Aela, and in no time at all one from the Altmer as well.

Dinner turned out to be tempura with rice, and was waiting for them when Ungarion and Aela arrived at Rullianus' home. The Breton noted that the hearth was cold and the cooking ware was clean. So clearly the meal had been prepared elsewhere and brought in. She wondered who they had to thank for their meal? But she soon forgot as she dove into the tasty dish.

Naturally the entire thing was washed down with soju, which Talun-Lei poured for them in small cups. The Argonian explained to them that one never poured their own soju, and that a glass could never be refilled until it was completely empty. He went on to explain that when pouring for others, one must hold the bottle by the right hand, with your arm supported by your left hand at the elbow. Then there came a host of other rules, such as how to hold your cup, who could drink before others, and more that Aela simply could not be bothered to remember.

"When do these ones find time to drink with all of these rules!" Do'Sakhar laughed.

The others seemed to like the soju however. Aela found the clear liquid to be slightly sweet in taste, which she enjoyed, but it had a kick like a mule. For someone who was used to drinking nothing stronger than wine, Aela knew that it was something she had best only take in moderation. A great deal of moderation. She vowed to see if Ulpia had any Argonian White Tea the next morning…

Rullianus himself was nowhere to be found, and Aela noted that one of the sleeping mats that she had seen rolled up against the back wall earlier was now missing. Only the dusty one remained. Do'Sakhar said that the Agrigentan was sleeping in another home. Given how crowded it was with the seven mercenaries, Aela was actually thankful there was not an eighth person competing for space.

This post has been edited by SubRosa: Oct 14 2013, 06:25 PM

Old news: Forgive me, my friend, if I didn’t fully capture your intent. I count the fault as my own, for I have not walked in Aela’s boots. I guess my wishful hope was that the comic image of Aela’s helper slinging a fistful of mud would provide a tension-dispelling and mirthful opening of understanding that the ladies might step through. Friendships often start from butting heads (Sir Mazoga, I’m lookin’ at you! ). I must also confess a deep affection for Argonian women (like Kud-Ei and Tar-Meena) that is likely shading my objectivity. Thank you for your words of explanation.

The interchange between Aela and her prince of parchment with precious stones continues to be delightfully fun!

Great progress in the construction of Fort Agrigento!

The help getting up that slippery slope from Aela's summon was wonderfully natural, and I loved how she gently dismissed him with her thanks. I very much enjoy how you portray summons with such respect. In game, I find it very easy to become attached and loyal to them, and even protective - sometimes even to the counterproductive point of a reluctance to expose them to harm.

Tempura, rice and soju – thanks for this delicious meal!

Do’Sakhar’s sleeping in another home? Not to be outdone by Valens drilling the villagers, I wonder if Do’Sakhar’s found someone to lick into shape?

Hmm, and another teasing breadcrumb about that mysterious dusty bedroll?

"Well, that goes without saying of course…" the Altmer beamed.

Oh my, Ungarion and his precious stones! The interplay between the two friends was delightful as always.

The Breton noted that the hearth was cold and the cooking ware was clean. So clearly the meal had been prepared elsewhere and brought in. She wondered who they had to thank for their meal? But she soon forgot as she dove into the tasty dish.

I’d like to thank you for the meal! Now I’m going to make chicken katsu this weekend. Perhaps it’s time for an entry in our recipe thread. Anyway I enjoyed the logistics of hosting the seven in one of the huts.

Argonian White Tea! Memories of Morcant.

Now our Magical Seven get to sample the soju that is the village's main source of income. Is that how they will be paid?

I enjoyed the same things Acadian and Grits did. In addition, I especially loved Talun-Lei's instruction on how to drink appropriately! I recognized these rules from the Korean culture - the pouring with the right hand while supporting the elbow with the left actually came from the old days when they would have long, drapey sleeves - the left hand was to hold the right sleeve out of the way so it wouldn't soak up the soju, or tea, or whatever they were pouring. Of course, with Asian culture being the way it is, what started out as a practical solution became a stylized mannerism that remains to this day. Oh yeah, and you couldn't drink while facing your superior - you had to turn away to drink your soju.

I think I much prefer the Nord style - fill 'em to the brim and toss 'em down the hatch. Loud belch afterward optional, but much preferred!

As always, I like the contrast in styles between Aela and Ungarion in their use of magic. As well as his looking for profit in everything.

Drinking always attracts ritual. It's probably a sub-conscious defensive mechanism just to slow ourselves down a bit. And then we go and invent games to speed it up again!

Sorry it took me so long to get to this update, I've been dealing with computer issues since last week. About the last update, Aela just needs to learn to be less hostile to those that would ask questions.

The talk of gold and precious stones, I would think that Aela would be a very good prospector with a little help from her elementals. I was hoping that she would pull Ungarion into the ditch with her!

Acadian: Actually, there will be a mudfight happening later in the chapter, but not directly tied to Meen-Sa's issues with Aela.

You described Aela's relationship with her summonings very well. To her they are people, not just objects. Though thankfully they are beings that transcend physicality, so that even if their 'bodies' are killed, they are still just fine.

It was not Do'Sakhar who is sleeping elsewhere, but Rullianus. I went back and edited to make that more clear.

We will be seeing more about the dusty bedroll in the future, in a mini-episode from Nashira's pov.


Grits: I guess you could say that Ungarion has the stones for this kind of work. Even though he is not in the Fighters Guild.

I looked up Chicken Katsu online, it looks like the American kind, except for the panko breadcrumbs. I love the idea of bread that does not have a crust! I guess you could use a shock spell to make panko bread in Tamriel. Now I am hungry!

I could not resist falling back on the Argonian White Tea, since we are actually in Argonia!


haute ecole rider: The soju is half of their payment. The tempura the other half!

I was tempted to go into more details about all the rules for drinking soju. But it started to make me dizzy! I did not know the part about holding your pouring elbow was because of the flowing sleeves though. Brilliant!


ghastley: Aela and Ungy are very different when it comes to their magic, which makes it easier to write them, since they are not just carbon copies of one another.

Thank goodness for all those drinking rituals! Otherwise we'd all be wasted and puking before it is even 10 o'clock!


King Coin: Well, Aela (or her spirit) did not become hostile until Meen-Sa decided to say that she was unnatural. Until then she played nice. She even laughed to start with. It is just a case of you have to be prepared to take it if you are going to dish it out.

Aela probably would make a good prospector, if she had a mind to go digging around underground. I never thought of that. But she probably would not either.


Previously on Seven: In our last episode Ungarion came to fetch Aela for dinner, and she learned that he had been helping to fell trees in the forest. Not using an axe of course, but rather by casting feather spells on the lumber. Dinner itself was a delicious meal of tempura, and while eating Talun-Lei tried to teach the other Seven the intricate etiquette involved in drinking soju. Finally, Aela noted that even though they were sleeping in his house, Rullianus himself was not present, but was rather sleeping in someone else's abode. A fact she was thankful of given how crowded it already was with the seven mercenaries.


Chapter 2.6

The next day the mercenaries returned to their previous tasks, leaving Aela alone on her ditch-digging enterprise. Except for the spirits of course. She had to admit that she did prefer their company to that of most mortals. Nirn spirits did not judge her, or constantly force her to justify her existence. Instead they accepted her without reservation or question.

She did nor remain alone for long however, for in no time at all a few of the village children came to watch. They thought that they were being clever, hiding above the embankment and peeking down at her from over its rim, only to lower their heads whenever she turned to look. But she could easily hear their poorly-hushed voices from down in the ditch.

Eventually Aela could not resist prevailing upon her archaean to do something about the spies. At her behest, he stopped his digging and turned to face the children. Then he began to jump back and forth from one foot to another, while rubbing his hands under his armpits in a pantomime of an ape. That brought a loud chorus of giggles from above the embankment, and Aela had the spirit continue his show by sticking out a great pebbly tongue at the children. Then he pretended to moon them by turning and bending over to reveal the rocks in his rear. In no time at all the children were standing in the open and laughing as the spirit continued his amusing antics.

"Take a bow for the audience," Aela eventually said, loud enough that her voice would carry to the onlookers above. The archaean complied with a deep bow to the youngsters. Then he turned to go back to the work of digging out the deep trench.

"Perhaps later we'll give another show," Aela called out as the children let out a collective sigh of disappointment. She turned back to the work at hand herself, and when a trickle of water began to spill down into the ditch she scrambled up its outer edge. As she had the day before, she dispelled the archaean and summoned an undine to turn the water out of the nearest rice paddy. Once it was drained, she returned to the ditch, and reconjured her archaean to continue digging and building.

By now more than children were watching her with rapt attention. Human and Argonian adults also clustered along the already-built embankment behind Aela. They pointed and spoke in low tones, clearly amazed at not only the spirit, but the massive amount of soil it was able to move and reshape.

By midday Aela had worked her way behind the village, and the digging picked up speed. There were no rice paddies on that side of the settlement, so she did not have to split her time between resummoning spirits. She saw Seridwe and Nashira working on the hills above, chopping down the forest of bamboo that grew there. Already the lowest slopes had been cleared, leaving nothing but sharpened stumps behind.

Aela took a few moments to watch, and saw that the Redguard swordmaster chopped down each stalk of bamboo with a single, diagonal slice from her scimitar. After felling several of the stalks, she and Seridwe would gather them up and drag them down the hill, where a waiting group of villagers would take them into the village.

Soon Aela found herself coming across their path, and was obliged to leave a break in the ditch so that the transport of bamboo could continue. She vowed to remember to come back when they were finished, so that she could dig out that section of the village perimeter. Still, she had no doubt that Valens would remind her if she did forget. When it came to military matters, the Nibenean seemed to miss nothing.

The Seven took a break at mid-morning, and Aela had to once more use her Bloom spell to make herself presentable. None of them wore their armor for the back-breaking labor under the hot sun. Seridwe was clad in nothing but a crop top and a loose, short skirt that left much of her golden skin on display. Aela could see that the high elf knew the Bloom spell as well, for not only was her hair still perfect, but her skin was clean, dry, and smelled faintly of flowers.

Even Valens had finally discarded his usual all-black attire for a simple breech cloth, albeit of a characteristic ebony shade. His hard, muscled body gleamed under a layer of sweat. But Aela's eyes were drawn to a curious pair of birthmarks over his heart. One mark was a circle with numerous small lines radiating out from it, like a sunburst. The other was a crescent whose horns pointed in toward the first mark.

That is when Aela realized the first mark was not a sunburst, but a star. The crescent could only be one of the moons. A moon and star. Azura could not have marked her territory more plainly…

Meen-Sa was waiting for them with a jug of cool water and cups for all. Aela made an effort to remain upon her best behavior, and just to be extra careful dispelled her archaean before approaching the priestess. That way there would be no further mud-slinging incidents. For her own part, the Argonian was not especially antagonistic. Though she was hardly friendly either. Rather her face seemed to be set in stone, and she said nothing to the Breton.

Many of the villagers joined them, including those who had aided in the labors. Aela noted that the original four Agrigentans who had journeyed to Bravil to hire them - Ulpia, Rullianus, Stalks-The-Marshes, and Hathei - were representative of the community. It was all Imperials and Argonians, with nary a member of another race.

Because of that lack of racial diversity, Aela found that for once she was not the one being constantly stared at. Instead the Agrigentans seemed fascinated with Do'Sakhar for his fur, Nashira for her reddish brown skin, and finally Ungarion and Seridwe for their tall frames and creamy golden flesh.

Ungarion ate up the attention of course. There was nothing he loved better than to show off. In no time at all he had his deck of cards out and was performing tricks for the villagers, adult and child alike. He followed with other sleight-of-hand tricks, such as drawing copper coins from behind the ears of children, and even producing a live chicken from beneath a startled Hathei's tail.

"Your friend certainly knows how to win people over," Ulpia smiled as she watched the impromptu show beside Aela.

"It is one of the things he is best at," Aela admitted. "I wish I had even half of his charm."

"Oh, I think you do just fine," the Imperial woman said softly.

For a moment, Aela wondered if she detected a look of longing in the other woman's voice. But then it was gone, and Ulpia burst out into laughter at Ungarion's latest antic.

The wizard had tried on a villager's conical reed hat, and was having some trouble taking it off again. No matter how hard he pulled, pushed, twisted, or turned the hat, it seemed glued to his head. It was only after enlisting help from the audience that the combined effort was able to pry the headgear loose. Then after wiping the sweat from his brow with a hand cloth, the high elf ran into the same difficulty, as it too refused to budge from his fingers afterward.

"Your water priestess might disagree," Aela could not help but mutter under her breath.

"You mean the mud-slinging incident?" Ulpia smiled and turned to look at Aela once more. "I heard about that. Knowing her, I'm sure she had it coming."

"Knowing her?" Aela raised an eyebrow.

"She's rather… hidebound," Ulpia replied. "Her mother was very traditional, and Meen-Sa's a twig off the same branch. She hides behind religion like a warrior does a shield. Anything that doesn't fit into her narrow view of how the world is supposed to be is 'unnatural'."

"That is exactly what she called me," Aela frowned.

"I am not surprised," Ulpia said. "We have never had a two-spirit person here in Agrigento. Not one that admitted to it at least. I doubt anyone who was would come out with it. The truth is, people are very conservative here. They aren't used to change, or anything different at all."

"So people are talking about it then?" Aela sighed. That was just what she needed. Now the entire village would be gossiping about her - and her being a two-spirit - behind her back.

"Not that much really," the Imperial explained. "Only a few people saw Meen-Sa before she cleaned herself up. She is a water-priestess after all. Besides, with everything else going on, there is no shortage of things to talk about. Especially after that performance of Talun-Lei's in the square the day we arrived."

A wave of relief washed over Aela. As a priestess, Meen-Sa was an important member of the community. She could make life very hard for her indeed. But if she was not trumpeting what had happened - even if just to avoid her own embarrassment - then things might work out after all. Only time would tell.

After the momentary break had stretched out for at least an hour, Valens finally put an end to the frivolities. Like the drill instructor he appeared to have once been, he put all of their noses back to the grindstone. At least now however, villager and mercenary alike returned to their chores with a smile.

This post has been edited by SubRosa: Oct 18 2013, 10:13 PM

Well, I am finally caught up (again), and I'm going to see how long this endeavor of regular commenting will last. Start placing bets.

Anyways, I'm impressed with your descriptive level of detail, as always. The progress being made to the village's defense seems to be going quite smoothly, and I know that because you've drawn it out so well. Between the importance of leaving a small pathway through the ditch for the bamboo-clearing and the fact that the ditch-digging is progressing more quickly now that Aela's away from the rice paddies, you've managed to de-monotonize the rather monotonous work of digging said ditch. Entertaining the kids was a fun pause as well.


Well, not necessarily. Azura could have perma-conjured a big, glowing, rotating sign that said "Azura's Chosen" above Valens's head with a set of illuminated arrows that all point down in a funnel-shaped fashion from the sign to his head.

Still, a nice touch that the Champion of a Daedric Prince would be so marked. I'd say more, but my home has been oddly quiet for a few minutes now, so I think Sethyas is somewhere hereabouts.

Nit:

Eh, may want to check with your archaean, I think he buried a "said" somewhere during the morning's ditch-digging.

‘Except for the spirits of course. She had to admit that she did prefer their company to that of most mortals. Nirn spirits did not judge her, or constantly force her to justify her existence. Instead they accepted her without reservation or question.’ - - Ya gotta love critters, spirits and summons, in large part, for exactly the reasons Aela outlines.

And the man of mystery (Valens) shows off his Moon and Starbucks tat by Azura!

It sounds like progress regarding the village defenses is coming along swimmingly, with even some showmanship by Rocky the Spirit and Ungarion the Magician.

Seridwe is fully blessed with the understanding of just how important is is that one’s wardrobe be crafted with the robust flexibility to fully support any task at hand. After all, what good is doing something if one can’t look good while doing it? And clearly that extends to being impeccably coiffed for a work break. Yay Seridwe!

It will be fun to see if anything develops in the truce between Two Spirit and Water Priestess.