2018-03-08: Seraphic Influence
- Log: Seraphic Influence
- Cast: Bethany Liston, Seraph Nimue
- Where: Lastonbell - Market District
- Date: 8/03/2018
- Summary: Down on her luck and fresh to Lunar, Bethany finds herself encountering her first seraph in the form of Seraph Nimue.
<Pose Tracker> Bethany Liston has posed.
In the market district of Lastonbell, it is a day like any other. Caravans come through with goods to trade, merchants haggle over prices, and bargains are freely struck. Merchantry carries on, as it always does.
By comparison, it has been a rough and confusing few days for Bethany Liston, as it has for many of the Filgaians who were in the area of Lost July. Trying to get her head around the new world of Lunar has been rough. Determining what's safe and what isn't, and what might at all be useful for her trade has been a headache that makes her almost wish she had taken that apothecary selling 'Lunarian Medicine' more seriously.
For the moment, the doctor grumbles as she hands over some silver for what she hopes is a fair price for some antidotal herbs, which she places into her black medicine bag. A habit that might be an oddity. "Now I just need patients, I 'spose." She says, looking around the market district. "Well, patients and a place to work, at any rate."
<Pose Tracker> Seraph Nimue has posed.
There's nothing quite like a fish out of water -- even if, honestly, Nimue feels something like a fish out of water on Lunar herself, after her time on Filgaia. It hasn't even been a week and already she's feeling something resembling separation anxiety.
On the other hand... home is still home. Lastonbell is a little on the 'smoggy' side for a Seraph -- or more accurately the Evil Purple Smoggy side -- though hardly as oppressive as Pendrago... a nice place to get used to the 'background radiation' of home again.
Nimue hops up -- an unusual, perhaps even inhuman distance -- onto one of the market stalls, sitting on the fabric-covered wooden top and kicking her feet. When she sees someone decidedly not dressed in the local finery, she gives a big, enthusiastic wave. "Ten silver says you're lost!" she calls, brightly.
<Pose Tracker> Bethany Liston has posed.
"...and maybe I shouldn't forget I stick out like a sore thumb." Bethany mumbles. She can't really pretend she didn't see or hear Nimue, and she's been called out. Fine. May as well engage with one of the locals.
"I'm afraid you'd win that bet, Miss. Unfortunately I ain't the gambling type." Bethany starts to walk toward the strange woman sitting on top of a merchant stall, before she stops to consider the absurdity of the situation. For all she knows, most Lunarians can do this sort of thing. "Betting aside, anything I can help you with?"
<Pose Tracker> Seraph Nimue has posed.
The young man at the stall gives Bethany a slightly quizzical look. "There's no one there, ma'am."
Nimue laughs uproariously. "I was about to say 'and twenty says you look stupid!' but SOMEONE had to ruin my fun." She pulls one leg up to stomp on the roof of the stall once. That does issue a sound, which seems to startle the shopkeep -- but Nimue rapidly becomes bored with that flavor of being a little turd.
She hops back down, though it's really more of a flop; she lands face-down, then kips right back up like a damn cat. "Hm? Depends, my Blue Star friend, what do you do? What do you know?" The Seraph's grin is just slightly too wide as she says, "I wanna get to know all the weirdos who came home with me! So I guess you can help me, either wa~ay..."
<Pose Tracker> Bethany Liston has posed.
Now THAT catches Bethany obviously off guard. "The hell?" An eloquent response is outside of her remit at the exact second. Before she can make any more of a response, the combination of the Seraph jumping down and the shopkeep's startled reaction causes Bethany to stumble back, as she pulls her medicine bag in front of her. Not that there's a lot she can do in front of the shopkeep to NOT look crazy at this point.
"All the weirdos, huh?" Bethany hisses through clenched teeth, trying not to be seen to be speaking. Or heard, ideally, but there are limits. She's hesitant to take her eyes off the Seraph, but not doing so will just make her look stranger. On the numbers, it's probably better to let people think she's a weirdo. Hopefully news won't spread to other towns too quickly.
"Miss, what I know is how to dig out a bullet or saw off a leg. If'n you have someone needing either of those, maybe I'm useful. Otherwise, I ain't a whole lot of interest." She whispers, turning her head away from the shopkeep to get the words out, side eyeing Nimue the whole time. Maybe just giving her what she wants will make her go away.
<Pose Tracker> Seraph Nimue has posed.
The shopkeep looks up at the stall's top again, then takes a few steps back, popping up on his stool to look at the top. "... Must've been a cat... or a mirage." Now he feels a little crazy and feels singularly unqualified to talk about Beth being crazy. Small blessings!
Nimue, meanwhile, forms up with Bethany, getting right to her side, making it easier to talk unmolested. "Yep! Eaaaaach and every one!" She reaches into her bag a moment, absently running her hand along something. She seems a little more energized (unfortunately) afterward.
"Oh! A doctor. Cool! You're gonna be in big demand here -- there's a war on. Head out to Glaivend Basin -- that's out east a little ways, through the forest -- and you'll probably be able to, you know, do whatever. Looks like Rolance is getting super thumped so they could probably use it. Like, screw Rolance, but you can probably make a killing! Ever treat arrow wounds? Landslide wounds? Swords? Other, different swords?"
She pauses, as an earlier thought catches up. "Huh. Is it still making a killing if you're a doctor?"
"So c'mon! What's your name? What's your deal. Your deal. What is it." She trots around Bethany, moving with remarkable agility as she flits from one side of the surgeon's back to the other. "You miss the Blue Star yet? It's way greener here. But a lot of stuff isn't the same, either. And it's all... ugly purple. Weird how the Blue Star is so spiritually functional but dying all the time, and here isn't dying all the time but is a spiritual disaster zone, huh?"
<Pose Tracker> Bethany Liston has posed.
The movement of the Seraph keeps Bethany on her toes, shifting to try and give herself some personal space. But the surgeon's expression darkens at the talk of 'making a killing'. The thought of being a doctor in a warzone, still, occupies her mind briefly. "Sure... a lot of people in need. But it sounds like they aren't gonna take too kindly to someone treating both sides." Not to mention civilians caught in the middle. "A sword ain't too different to a knife, and I've stitched up my fair share of those."
She pauses, but does give her name when prompted. "It's Bethany." She says, if a little tersely. "Now you'll give me yours, or are you as light on manners as you act?"
Bethany starts walking, making the assumption that Nimue will either follow, or stand well back to make her feel more the fool. She starts looking for somewhere she can talk more freely, be it a side alley or even just a crowd where no one else is looking around. "...Miss. I am somewhere where I've got no idea of left from right, I don't know what plants I can trust, I barely know if I can treat anyone. And I got patients back home and I don't know how they're doing, and some of those towns don't see anyone coming through apart from me. So the fact that I can keep my wits about me at all makes me either a professional or a cold hearted bitch. So you'll excuse me if'n I ain't feeling too good about getting questioned by an invisible woman who seems to think this is a game."
<Pose Tracker> Seraph Nimue has posed.
"Well, yeah. Like, surgeons usually get the right of way everywhere? But just sayin', wouldn't be thaaaat surprised if one of these guys decided you'd be better off working exclusive." Nimue lets Bethany get about ten steps ahead of her, then sprints up.
Bethany's venting... actually gets a raised eyebrow. "Wow. You actually give a shit?" She taps her lips thoughtfully with her index finger, then admits, "Color me impressed! Most humans are, you know. Angry. Cowards. In despair. Obsessive. ... well maybe there's a little of that last one in you. But still! Caring like that is pret-ty rare!"
She jogs ahead a little, then turns to face Bethany. "Okay -- here's the deal. If you find something the merchants are just calling 'herb,' with no qualifiers -- that's a basic restorative. Any fruit-flavored gel is also pretty okay -- that stuff you can just eat, too, so if you're treating someone with it they don't gotta eat."
She seems like she's thinking really hard for a few moments -- or at least thinking enough for it to be painful. "Apple and lemon are better for cuts and bruises and stuff, orange and pineapple are for... I think concussions or exhaustion. There's also some nut that's good I guess. If you say you're looking for that for surgical purposes anyone'll know what you're talking about."
<Pose Tracker> Bethany Liston has posed.
"I'm glad you approve." Bethany responds, a little indignantly. "The folks I treat don't tend to have a whole lot, and I ain't gonna make someone sell the farm just cause they have the misfortune to have a sick kid."
And then the Seraph gets into the medical talk, and Bethany's eyes widen. "Whoa, hold on a second." In a flash, her bag is on the ground and her notebook and pencil are out, and she is quickly scribbling Nimue's advice down. She may not be able to trust it, but she can at least corroborate it later if she has it recorded. The notebook is obviously filled with hastily scribbled shorthand for patients, the towns she visits, the medical knowledge she's learned, or puzzled out herself. Reminders for efficiency. A veritable treasure trove of practical knowledge.
It's only after she catches up with the sudden barrage of information. "You're feeling real generous all of a sudden. And you still haven't told me your name." Really, it's a bit hard to get a read on her mysterious new conversation partner, latent invisibility aside.
<Pose Tracker> Seraph Nimue has posed.
"That's ... proooobably the kind of thing that's basically unique to you, so have fun with it," Nimue replies, with an easy grin. "The not making people sell the farm thing. Most humans are total dickheads." She shrugs. "I dunno what y'all's deal is. I guess sometimes being a dickhead is easier!"
She cants her head a little, then grins too-wide again. "Nimue." She points to herself with both thumbs, saying, "I'm like. The biggest deal. Ever. One hundred percent a big deal." There's a pause, before she appends, "That's another lie! Or maybe it's the first one."
She paces around Bethany a little, continuing, "Oh! Ask about herb preparations, too. I think there's one for snakebite." She shrugs. "That one I don't know much about. Poison isn't always a huge deal for people like me."
<Pose Tracker> Bethany Liston has posed.
"Easier, maybe. That doesn't mean it's how folk should live." The surgeon's response feels a little muted, compared to her earlier fire. "It ain't the way I want to live, that's for damn sure. Filgaia's already a mess, it doesn't make sense to make it worse." Then she pauses. "I guess I ain't there anymore, but that ain't gonna change how I do things."
Bethany smirks. "A big deal that most folk can't see, huh? If it weren't for all the crazy stuff that's happened already, I'd say I was going completely nuts just talking to you. Hell, maybe I am." That last note about herb preparation still goes in. It isn't going about unconfirmed, but anything is better than nothing.
Bethany Liston(#792PenACck)
Bethany Liston is a wiry woman in her mid 20s, standing at 5'6". Her skin is tanned from years in the harsh Filgaian sun, and a small mole is visible on her neck. She has dark brown eyes, and her brown hair is tied in a tight low bun. There's a small scar beneath her thin lips. Her small nose is slightly bent, evidence of a break earlier in life.
She wears a sensible beige long sleeved blouse, and a dark brown ankle length skirt. On her feet are a pair of practical brown leather shoes, with a hint of black stockings just visible. At her side is a large, heavy looking black medicine bag, filled with all manner of necessary tools.
<Pose Tracker> Seraph Nimue has posed.
"Psshhh no. If you were going nuts, you wouldn't get anything new out of talking to me! I'd just be making fun of you for all the crap you don't know or. Whatever. I mean you might be going nuts independently of talking to me, but, you know. That happens all the time!" She sticks out her tongue and throws a big ol' victory sign. "Can't be held responsible for that."
She hops up onto a nearby wall, now, and takes a seat again. "Anyway, this is probably the best place to resupply for a while. City of Artisans or whatever. There's other places around Rolance but, you know. All of them suck so it's whatever. Oh, try the wine, it owns."
Now she's... sprawling out like a cat. "Hey, got any grenades? Trade you for any Filgaian medicine I got." It's a long shot, but, you know. Why not?
<Pose Tracker> Bethany Liston has posed.
Bethany shrugs, putting her notebook away. "Either way, nothing to do for it but deal with it." The surgeon lets out a sigh. "You sure don't got no love to lose for Rolance, huh? I ain't been here long enough to understand why that might be." She's not outright asking 'what's your beef', but certainly opening the door to Nimue's talkativeness.
Then, a pause. "Wh-why would I have grenades? What in the hell do you even want grenades for!?" That was probably a bit louder than necessary.
<Pose Tracker> Seraph Nimue has posed.
As a passing curiosity at best, grenades seem to draw no weird eyes. "I got stuff to do," Nimue says, absently picking at one fingernail with another. "Grenade stuff. Look, humans are supposed to give Seraphim stuff so we feel all nice and appreciated so you don't melt into puddles of purple goop that kill people." A pause. "I skipped like ten steps there but it's whatever."
The question about Rolance gets a shrug, and a, "You know, like. Pretty much all forms of government are illegitimate! Tear down all kings and masters! Communal agrarian..." She pauses. "... actually I thought November City was really cool so uh. Hm."
Stretching her legs into the sky, she says, "No handouts! If you wanna figure out why someone might not like Rolance, read a book! Read a bunch of books! Tell people you're a scholar from some other continent! I hear Meribus is great for that."
<Pose Tracker> Bethany Liston has posed.
The fact that no one is shocked by people- well, person- shouting about grenades is, in itself, a little disturbing. A strangely dressed person yelling about grenades back on Filgaia got people nervous. "So, you're one of these Seraphim, then?" Okay, that would probably get odd looks wherever you are.
Bethany shakes her head. "Kings and that are a bit higher up than I tend to deal with. Hell, I'm lucky to see a mayor. Didn't seem like any of my business." And then another tangent. "Guess I'll have to find out for myself the hard way, huh? Fair enough."
Still, though, Bethany leans down and picks up her bag. "Well, Miss Nimue, thank you kindly for your information. Anything you were after that's in my expertise?" She pauses. "And no, other forms of explosive ain't in my expertise."
<Pose Tracker> Seraph Nimue has posed.
"Yep! Tha~aat's me! Not gonna give you the Seraphim primer either, though. Read a book! They're fun." Stretching out a little more, Nimue manages nearly the exact affect of a cat. "But yeah. Have fun! Don't die! Maybe fix up some soldiers! Figure out why anyone is even fighting or who the bad guy is! Sometimes there isn't one."
The question of whether she wants anything, though... that is an interesting one. "... Nah, I'm good for now, unless you've got something super durable that's never been used for anything more than, like. Slightly evil."
<Pose Tracker> Bethany Liston has posed.
That, unfortunately, gets a shake of Bethany's head. "'fraid not. Most of my things get replaced pretty frequently. About the only constant is my bag, and I kind of need that for everything else. And I can't say it ain't been used in anger. How about I let you know if I find anything."
Bethany gives a small wave. "I figure if I stick around here, I'll run into you again soon enough. Sounds like I ought to be heading out towards that Glaiveland place regardless. Even if I don't pick a side, there's all the folks caught in the middle." It's with that that the surgeon starts heading back into the markets.
<Pose Tracker> Seraph Nimue has posed.
Nimue decides to just let Beth go rather than get after her. She's done her part -- a nice, even amount of 'give her the tools to help herself' and 'throw her into something actually challenging.' She stretches out a little further, letting her legs dangle.
"Maybe I should check out Pendrago. See if it's still a total dump. ... huh, bet they'd like to know if it's a total dump, too..." She's talking pretty well to herself as Bethany heads out of earshot.