Lotsa Parties ( Current location: Termina field) Thread 5

"Well we didn't get new outfits," Kairo said as he glanced at Calcifer. Maybe he shouldn't have said anything.

"Ingestion of hallucinogens in the bushes." Chaos said as he looked at their unchanged surroundings.
"Why are we going to a jewelers?" Fist asked while she stretched her arms out

"They sell magic rings. I mentioned it before, I think. Though I guess it was a while ago. I figure it could help."

"We probably could use anything that can help in this quest." Piped Quint,

Kowen sat on the floor outside the jewellers shop. “Magic rings,”she thought to herself. ”Whatever next.” Sighing to herself she pulled her runes from the belt around her waist and scattered them in front of her. She picked three runes and returned the rest to the pouch.
Her long, dark hair fell like a curtain covering her face from the onlookers. She turned the first rune.
“Raidho, the chariot,” she said quietly. “Travel.”
She turned the second rune. “Eihwaz, the yew tree. A reliable man is close.”
With the third rune, a slight frown crossed her face. “Jera, the harvest, in opposition. Repetition. That makes no sense,” she mumbled again, but after so long reading the runes, she had learned not to question them.

"Anyways, let's get going," said Ruul, starting to walk. He led them out of the large courtyard, and across the bridge they had seen earlier. The path was empty, with no traffic at the moment. The river that the bridge crossed bent to the left as they walked along it, leading them to another bridge. This one took them into town. It was livelier in here, with a small bunch of kids tossing a ball back and forth. Some music drifted from an open window, and the scent of a freshly baked pie wafted from another.

Ruul quickly led them to a shop with a large and obvious sign above the door. "Vasu Jewlers" it said in bold writing, with "Let magic ring!" Written underneath it. Ruul smirked at the corny catchphrase.

Kairo seemed to be the first to notice the woman sat on the floor although how the others could miss her as they approached was a mystery to him. Her long dark hair stood out against the light walls of the jewellers and as she looked up at the group, he saw that the entire of eyes were a dark grey colour.

Kowen looked up as the group of travellers approached her, or more accurately, the ring shop. She quickly put the last three runes in her pouch and stood up, dusting her dress off as she did.
She studied the group carefully before her eyes came to rest on Ruul.
"The reliable man?" she questioned quietly to herself.

Reina wasn't one to stare at strange people on the street but this one was staring at them, and more specifically Ruul. Did she know who they were or what they had done?

Chaos only took a passing glance at their audience. If he'd seen a group like theirs he would probably stare too, at least for a moment. Ready to get a move on, he opened the door to the jewelers for the rest of the group.

Fist walked right in and started looking around. Jewelry was pretty, but overall it seemed like a waste of money to her.

"I've never bought anything from a jewelry store before." Jillian said, but she added more quietly, "But I did used to steal from them..."

"Helllooooooo!~" came the sound of a high-pitched but definitely male voice. From a back room, a plump mustachioed man dressed in brightly colored silk with a pristine white turban wheeled in on a strange chair with wheels built into it. He didn't seem to actually need it for transportation, as he used his legs to propel it. Clapping his hands, he surveyed the newcomers, not batting an eyelid at the masks that some of them wore. "Hmmmmm? Could you perhaps be Terminans? I know how fond they are of masks!" Without waiting for an answer, he carried on, "Well, I can certainly see that you've come from a long way away! I am grateful that sch travelers chose my humble establishment to visit!" Standing up, he took an exaggerated bow that cause the feather on his turban to droop almost to the floor. He suddenly stood back up with a speed that a man of his girth wouldn't normally have, "I am Vasu, second of the name, and prouuuud owner of this establishment! Please, dooooo take a look around! And since this is your first time, you can get a free ring at random! Just pull the lever on the Gashapon on the desk! Once each only! I'll be watching you!"

Ruul was swept into the introduction without being able to get a word in edgewise. When it was done, he chuckled awkwardly and stayed quiet, standing next to Aero.

"Well he's cheery," Kairo said with a wry smile before walking over to the machine the owner had pointed to. Glancing at the chart beside the machine he said loudly "Come one, Power Ring!"

He pulled out the ring and took it over to the counter. "Hey, Mr Vasu, what ring is this?"

Vasu II puckered his lips as he stared intently at the ring, "Aha! That is the Rang Ring Level 2! Projectiles that return to the user, such as boomerangs, grappling hooks and chakram will gain extra damagin power! More so than the level one ring. If you would rather sell the ring, it is worth 400 rupees. Alternatively, you can trade it for another ring of equal or lesser value according to the list."

"Can I trade it for the power ring L3?" Kairo asked. "That one will work with knives, right?"

The place was quite odd, but interesting at the same time, to Aero. She stood by Ruul looking on at the rest of the party, casting glances at the black-haired woman when she thought she might not be looking, curiously.
She looked up at Ruul after a minute, and hesitantly reached up a little hand to touch at his tattoos. They didn't feel any different from his normal skin. "Do they hurt?"

Calcifer eyed the black-haired woman with cold skeptical eyes, finding her too weird. He didn't want to walk up to the dispenser thing just yet. His ears pricked up as he looked around.

"Yes it will!" Said the jeweler enthusiastically, "You could even get two! Or receive a refund of 200 rupees along with it." Reaching under the table, he pulled out the Power Ring Level 3.

Ruul shook his head, "Nope, they were added magically somehow, so no needles involved!"

A red snake popped out of a similarly colored jar that was sitting next to Vasu, and glanced around at the group. "Hey!" It said, "Why doesn't the next person take a ring? Hey!"

Calcifer jumped just slightly, his ears pinning back. He looked at the snake with a strange mixture of surprise and a creeped-out feeling. He walked up to the dispenser, pulling the lever and giving the reptilian creature a last sideways glance before picking up the ring that clacked in the little metal tin. He held it close to his eyes, turning it over, his brow furrowed. "What's this?" He half-muttered to himself.

"I'll take the rupees," Kairo said with a grin.

The door opened and closed quickly as Kowen slipped inside. She was eager to know if these strangers were the ones the Runes spoke of.

"I'll try it." Fist said with interest. She pulled the lever and grabbed the ring it gave to her. "What's this one do?" She asked while turning it in her hand

Vasu swapped rings with Kairo and dropped a hefty sum of 200 rupees on the table, "a pleasure doing business with you! I warn you, you'll take more damage while wearing that ring, so be careful."

"Hey!" The snake said to Kowen, "Haven't seen you before! Hey! Have a ring!" It pointed with its tail at the Gashapon.

A blue snake slipped out of a blue pot and stared sleepily at the red one. "Oy, cool it, Red. You're too pushy. Oy."

Vasu examined Fist's ring. "Oh! Lucky you, this is the Red Ring! It raises the power of bladed weapons!" He turned his attention to Calcifer, "Oh," he said flatly, "That's the Fist Ring. It adds some power to punches, but really, it's barely noticeable."

Calcifer blinked and stared glumly down at the ring in his palm. "Oh," He grumbled. "...Fist, are you going to use that ring?"

Kowen turned to the red snake and said "I do not take kindly to be shouted at, if you have something you wish to say you should do so in a respectful manner."

Kairo picked up his rupees and ring and put both in his pouch before turning to the new woman, the one who had been watching them outside. "If people want respect they should earn it," he said to her before standing off in a corner and waiting for the others.

"Hey! Sorry, it's just how I talk!"

"Oy... It's true. Every day, all day. Oy..."

Deciding it was his turn, Ruul stepped forward and pulled the crank. "That's the Double Edged Ring," Vasu said. "It doubles any damage you deal, but returns half of it back to you. Very powerful, but very dangerous!" With a sweeping motion, Vasu turned to Kowen, "Welcome, young lady, to Vasu Jewelers! Forgive Red Snake, he is a tad boisterous."

Calcifer paused in his conversation with Fist, surprised at the woman's sharp tongue. Even more so at Kairo's. He still looked at her eerily, but mentioned, "Forgive him. He's not usually so crass to strangers."
Even Calcifer was decent to people as long as he didn't know whether or not they deserved to be jerks to.

Aero smiled. "Oh." She fell quiet, watching the black-haired woman come in the shop and her interactions with the others.

Kowen raised her head and looked at Calcifer. "I appreciate your decency, perhaps your friend should learn to hold his tongue,"