7 Midsummer, 6107 RTR (Dec 28, 2005) Back at the underground apartment, Zahn talks Amelia down from her adrenaline rush.
(Amelia) (Stonebarrow) (Sylvania) (Zahnrad)
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After returning to the residential cavern (and giving it a thorough security sweep) the group of explorers take some time to relax. And nobody seems to need it more than Amy, who heads for the room she shares with Zahn and fairly twitches with pent up anxiety.

Zahnrad follows Amy into the bedroom and sets down the bag of tools they brought back. Slowly, he unpacks then and sets them neatly on the floor so he can better examine then. "What's on your mind?" he asks her, all the while looking at the tools. "We're out of there and you still look like you want to clobber something."

"Sorry," Amy apologizes, and works to smooth out her ruffled tail fur. "I just don't like being in a situation where… where I feel like I have to back off, you know?"

"Yeah. You feel like you were defeated in a way. I've felt similar about other things," Zahnrad says, then actually pushes the collected tools to the side and motions on the floor in front of him. "Sit down, please?"

Amelia sits down where requested, first kneeling and then sitting sideways and finally crossing her legs as she tries to get comfortable.

Zahnrad leans over and takes her hand with a light squeeze. "Sorry I didn't make it much easier. Now, what exactly were you expecting, feeling, or worried about when crazy Axel came back up?" Zahn asks.

Tail still twitching, Amy says, "The lamp-ball-thing."

"What scared you about it? What were you thinking about?" Zahn inquires.

"I was thinking that an animal or a monster shouldn't know how to use devices," Amy says. "It could be something we haven't encountered at all yet."

"Well, if an animal or monster shouldn't use them … why should you consider what was using it one of those? Whatever it was, was intelligent. And, it helped Axel. That was more an act of friendship, in a way," Zahnrad says, keeping his eyes fixed on Amy.

"We don't know that," Amelia points out, nearly chittering. "It didn't show itself, or try to communicate. It could just have wanted him out of there so that more of us didn't try to come down and get him."

"Think of it this way … would you show yourself to a bunch of strange looking creatures roaming around, or would you try to lure them away from where you possibly live because they might be dangerous?" Zahn asks. "Plus, we didn't try to communicate with it, either."

"I wish we knew what Dr. Pike's great uncle or whatever had really found out about the inhabitants of this place," Amy says, frowning. "I can't protect you and the others against an unknown intelligent force. It's not like with the Gorts."

"We should check with Dr. Pike on what else may have been on the recording scrolls," Zahnrad notes. "But, remember with how he treated it, whatever he may have learned could be very skewed. Contaminated data. For example, how would you react towards someone who chained you to a wall?"

"That's just it, I'd take revenge on my captor," Amelia says. "Which means that if we were attacked, I couldn't defend without risking an even bigger attack later on if I killed something."

"Well, so far we've got no reason to expect an attack," Zahnrad points out. "What we need to do, I think, is what you've suggested. Communicate."

Amelia frowns again, and her tail slumps as well. "How? I'm not any good at that. I'm not of any use at all!"

"You're good at keeping us more alert. Look at Axel, he wanders off. Heh, look at me. I didn't even notice what was going on," Zahnrad points out reassuringly. "Now, I have a few ideas on how to try and communicate. There are two things we can infer as theories from what we've observed so far. One, light, and perhaps flashes of light could be used. Two, sound. Remember that thumping sound before those mole things came up? Perhaps they communicate via sound. In either case, using a controlled progressive pattern of either could indicate that we're both intelligent and want their attention."

Amy looks up at Zahn, and asks, "Sound? We didn't bring any drums. How do we make a thump-thump sound?"

Zahnrad grins. "That's easy. Put your ear to the floor and cover the other one," Zahn says.

The girl furrows her brow at this suggestion, but lays on her side and covers one ear. "Okay… I hear it! It's a little different, and I don't feel it through the floor, but it's there."

"Heh, must be large to travel this far. Now, do you hear this?" Zahnrad says. He picks up one of his tools and wraps a cloth around the end. He then brings it down against the floor with a soft thud a few times.

Amy blinks, and says, "Okay, I hear that, sorta. I just realized the thumping is my heartbeat though."

Zahnrad smirks. "Well, that's how you can make sound. Vibration. Hitting something hard on the ground. Something I learned a long time ago building stuff; vibrations in the machine which produce noise and also cause problems by shaking things loose," Zahn notes. "Anyway, that's one way. We'd need to be fairly close for that to work, though. We don't have any large machines to pound hard enough for it to travel far."

"We've got the boat and an oar," Amy offers. "Maybe Djivan's skull… "

Zahnrad laughs and shakes his head. "Now, while I might approve of that, Olivia won't," Zahnrad points out. "Aside from the unknown aspects, what would make you feel better about going back in there?"

"Uh, well… having a plan sort of does, and not being passive does too," Amelia admits. "And we'll have a Skeek and a Skreek with us. Maybe the natives will think they're gods or something."

"Or food. Don't forget the skull we found," Zahn says with a shrug. "What I suspect is down there, is the old inhabitants of these rooms, mutated."

"Food!" Amy yelps. "I've got the jerky. If they eat old meat, then maybe they'll like the jerky too."

"Well, it might be a good idea have more food as a distraction, just in case," Zahnrad muses. He then taps his ear and says, "Oh, hold out your hand for me."

Amy holds out her left hand, and only then thinks to ask, "Why?"

Zahnrad pulls out a measure and proceeds to measure her hand. "I need to know the size of your hand to know how large of a handle to put on that knife blade we found," Zahn explains.

"You're making a handle… wait, for me?" she asks, eyes lighting up.

"Well, yes. You'll get more use out if it than I ever would," Zahn notes and then scribbles down some measurements. "Besides, it just seemed more appropriate than, oh, flowers or something."

Amy covers her muzzle with her right hand, and her eyes are getting moist. "But still… it's a tool… and you're giving it to me… "

"Uh, yes," Zahnrad says, looking basically befuddled. "You mean a lot to me. Tools are just, well, things in the end. You're not exactly replaceable and I really don't want to lose you. I guess, er, I … it … " And it's at this point Zahnrad just looks flustered.

Amelia lunges forward to hug Zahn! "Thank you, Zahn! It means a lot to me!"

Zahnrad oofs and hugs Amelia back all the while falling backwards and ending up with Amelia on top of him. After a moment of shock, he says, "You're welcome. I'm trying to find ways to be more, well, romantic. In ways you would like, that is."

"Wow, really?" Amy asks, smiling wide and whipping her tail around. "That's so sweet! See, you weren't thinking of just tools and stuff all the time after all!"

"Well, no, not totally. I didn't stay in there, after all," Zahnrad admits. "It's hard to think of just tools around you. Especially when you're doing that dance … stuff."

Amy gives Zahn a kiss on his nose, then sits up and rolls off of him. "It's even better when I have the spangly stuff to wear for it," she says, then picks up one of the tools Zahn recovered from the workshop. It's a long handle with a ring at one end, and five flat peg-like 'teeth' within the ring. "So what was this stuff used for?"

Zahnrad sits up and peers at it for a moment. "My guess? It fits over something and is used to turn it. Those teeth slot into whatever it fits over and would give it really good grip," he says then finally gets back to looking at the tools gathered.

Peering through the ring like it were a magnifying glass, Amy asks, "You mean a nut right? Not the kind you eat, the other kind?"

"Yes. It's basically a single-sized wrench, probably to turn a nut, or perhaps a bolt. They hold better than nails, after all," Zahnrad replies and picks up another tool and taps it with a claw. "What I'm most interested in, really, is the material it's made out of."

"It looks shiny," Amelia points out. "Like the stuff in the kitchen and bathroom, and those claws. You want to learn how to make it, I bet."

"You're correct. One of the major problems I'm faced with in all my engine designs and even with the plans the Titanian gave me is a material that can withstand the stresses put on it. This stuff can, most likely," Zahnrad says with a nod. He then grins at Amelia and notes, "Maybe we could coat your claws in it. Instant weapons!"

Amy looks at her claws for a moment. "I don't know about that… I have to scratch every so often, you know."

Zahn grins and teases, "Isn't that why you keep me around?"

Laughing, Amy puts down the tool. "I keep you around for lots of things! But I won't even paint my claws, so I think I'll stick to weapons that can be put away when you don't need them."

"Just imagine how good of a sword this stuff would make," Zahnrad notes, then considers something. "And how much I'll have to keep the stuff away from Gunther. Yow."

"Well, it's like metal, right, and that means you'd need a forge to melt it or something," Amelia notes. "I know you want to bring back everything you find down here, but even that old 'game' thing in Pike's basement wouldn't fit through the stair passage to outside."

"There has to be an alternate exit. You saw the size of those machines," Zahn notes and reaches over to tap Amelia's nose. "I wonder if that room we were in is actually under the barrow and … naw, couldn't be that."

"I think we'd see more moisture if we were under the swamp already," Amelia points out. "Remember how flooded the other ruins were."

"Depends on how well sealed it is," Zahnrad notes. "I was just thinking … that maybe the reason we can't find a door on the barrow is that the whole barrow is the door."

"Huh?" Amy asks, tilting her head. "You mean like a door in a roof?"

"Right. I was just thinking with the size of that engine … maybe it launches straight up. And if that's the case, it would need a huge door to go through. A sphere is strong, as is a half-sphere, and would make a really good door. It just rotates," Zahnrad muses and rubs his chin in thought.

"But, that stuff we saw was all torn up," Amelia points out. "How do you know it ever worked?"

"Why would you build something that never worked?" Zahnrad counters. "That had to take a lot of effort and planning. Hm. Did you notice any scorching or the like on that end you were looking in?"

"Like it was burnt? I don't think so," Amelia says. "And you must have built things that didn't work… I mean, all of your airships crashed. I figured you took all the bits and looked at them to see why they didn't work."

"Well, yes. But, that still doesn't defeat my theory. To test it they had to take it somewhere outside," Zahn says. "Running an engine inside is dangerous."

"Well, I suppose. And they couldn't have brought it in there through the door we came through," Amy admits.

Zahnrad says, "Yep. So, there has to be a large exit somewhere. We just have to find it," Zahnrad says with a grin. "Of course, there's no way to move that sucker, not without getting help and that might get us in trouble of the town knew what we were up to.""

Amelia blinks and nods! "They can't find out what's down here… there'd be a panic!"

"Honestly, the person who would scare me the most about finding out would be your father," Zahnrad says and shivers.

"Well, he'd be really upset with me, that's for sure," Amy says. "He'd want all the entrances sealed up."

"Which would be pointless considering the denizens can dig through solid stone," Zahnrad points out. "Anyway. I presume you want to gather more supplies from above before we go back in again? Maybe we should try and communicate with those mole things that come up in your ruins."

"That might be best," Amy says. "If we meet them, I'd rather it be someplace we can escape from fairly quickly."

"So, all of us again or just you and me? What would you like the ambassador party to look like?" Zahnrad inquires next and shifts to sit sideways.

Amelia actually takes some time to think about this. "Just you and me to start," she finally says. "They weren't alarmed by us last time, but a larger group with a Skeek in it might upset them. Plus, Olivia can't climb like a Kadie if we have to make an escape through the giant trees."

Zahnrad nods his head. "Sounds good. But, hmm, what about Morgan? Should we involve him as a town representative? Or better off not involving the witches quite yet?" Zahn asks.

"I don't trust the witches on this," Amelia says, frowning. "They'll try to take over or otherwise make us stop."

Zahnrad nods. "All right, just us then," Zahn notes, then grins. "You know, I never figured you much for a town rule breaker. At least, not on this level of breaking."

"There aren't any rules for this," Amelia says, shrugging.

"I mean, we haven't found a threat to the town yet, that we're keeping secret," she points out.

Zahnrad skews his muzzle and huffs teasingly. "And here I thought I was dating a daring rule breaker," he teases briefly. He then just nods and hmms. "You know, if we go further down that shaft, we'll need a lot of lights. Or a way to get the lower lights working."

Amelia nods. "Maybe Doctor Pike has something, or we can take some of the lighting rods from the workshop." After a moment, she notes, "And I am daring to break… tradition at least! I'm seeing a Wingnut."

"Much to the horror of your family, probably," Zahn says with a grin. He then hmms and considers the lights, "Well, those may or may not work once detached. Remember the glass ball and tube."

"You think they work like the tower in the forest and the lights in the underground road?" Amy asks.

"Maybe. I'm not sure quite how they work. I could try pulling one from one of the apartments and seeing if its attached?" Zahn suggests.

Amy looks up at the light panel in the ceiling. "That should be safe enough. Just do it from one of the other apartments, in case it breaks or something."

"Right. I'd rather not break our room," Zahnrad notes and stands up to get a good look at the light and how it's affixed to the ceiling.

It would help to have something to stand on, but he can easily make out the five-sided nuts holding the panel in place.

Zahnrad hmms. "I hope one of those wrenches will fit," he notes, "And I wish I had a chair. Want to do this now, or later?"

"Later, I think," Amelia says. "You can stand on Djivan's shoulders, or tell Axel how to do it. I don't think I could hold you up high enough for long enough."

Zahn hmms, "I might be able to hold you up. But I'm not sure you'd want to unbolt it." He then shrugs and sits back down. "So, feeling better?"

The Kadie girl nods, saying, "Yes, thank you Zahn. Now all I have to do is get the smell of sweat and adrenaline out of my fur. Good thing the shower works!"

"Ah, good. And after your shower I'll comb out your tail and such for you. Least I can do, really," Zahn notes and smiles. "And, in the future … well, I'll try to be more attentive to how you're feeling. Sorry for arguing with you down there."

"It's okay, I know you're used to arguing everything with your family and aren't used to me yet," Amy says, getting to her feet. "Hmm, you can probably make a drum or something to use in the ruins, right?"

"Easily. Cut the top off a barrel, stretch a thick fabric over the top," Zahn explains. He then grins and notes, "And heh, yes, arguing with my family can be a chore. Every discussion turns into an hour long debate where everyone thinks they know best… It's tiresome." And with a wink, he tacks on, "Especially when I am the right one."


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GMed by BoingDragon

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