Tales from Stone Field Borough -Working, working, working ...
Sun, 02/19/2012 - 23:22
Tales from Stone Field Borough is going to be a collection of short, slice-of-life stories about the gremlins who live in a specific area of Emberlight. When I have an idea, it usually takes me a week or two to write the whole thing, and I'll add stories as they're finished. I'll also be adding illustrations sporadically.
Honestly, these are largely for my own entertainment. I hope that some of you share my dry sense of humor, however.
Finished Stories
Knock, Knock, Boom: a frequently-inturrupted romance, shortly after the events in The Writing on the Wall
Part 1
Part 2
Jelly Jam:in which some little pests cause some big slimes
Part 1
Part 2
Roomies: roommates can be a headache
... And Eat it, Too: in which Knights aren't the only ones to find cake in the Clockworks
Stories In Progress
Untitled thus far: Because y'all need another novella
Jelly Jumble Revised: Vifig's story will be joining the rank of canon stories shortly
Character References
Velt, Kotir, Kexed, T'Keva
Drawn but in need of edits: Vakren, Gista, Muren
On the list to do: Ketter, Kotter, Durst, Brisli, Palt, Drekken, Testafir, Hexil, Captain Ziftadrine, Leuitenant Koroliss, Teret (not necessarily in that order)
Art (that isn't a direct illustration)
Kex and T'Keva being domestic
Pending Suggestions
Vakren should bring home a baby Kleptolisk (suggestion by Regal-The-Soverine): I'm planning for Vakren to bring home a pet, although it won't be happening quite in the way it was suggested
If I don't have any plans at the moment, I'm happy to take suggestions from you guys: if there's a supporting or background character mentioned in any of the stories that you find interesting, I'll make them the next to be featured. Likewise if someone wants to suggest a genre.
Sun, 02/19/2012 - 23:38
#2
Knock, Knock, Boom - Part 2
The next day was considerably more normal, until Kexed had finished work for the day. At that point, he discovered Vakren standing outside his office waiting for him, and he could not fathom why.
“Can I help you with something?” the Foreman asked, eyeing the rolls of paper in Vakren’s arms with no little suspicion.
“Oh yes, of course,” answered the other gremlin brightly. “You see, now that you’re in charge of budget allotments for research and development, and since you’re a friend of my sister, I thought– ”
Kex sighed and unlocked the door once more. “Come on in,” he said unenthusiastically. He had better just humor the guy and get it over with.
* * * * *
It was late in the night when Kex dragged himself through the front door of his own home. His brother was sitting on a bench taking inventory of the parts he had collected while out in the Clockworks.
“Hey bro,” he said without looking up. “Looks like a decent haul this time. No sign of Bettit, though.”
Kex was glad to hear that Kotir was watching for Gista and Teret’s girl, but at the moment it was the last thing on his mind.
“Kotir,” he said seriously. “I need a favor.”
“Yeah?” Kotir looked up at his younger brother, raising a brow as the latter took a seat. Kexed was not usually the sort to ask for favors unless it was really important. “What do you need?”
“I need you to keep Vakren away from me tomorrow, no matter what it takes,” Kex answered flatly, then flopped wearily backward into his chair.
The older gremlin almost laughed, but managed to hold his tongue. Barely. “T’Keva’s brother? Why?”
“Because I’ve been trying for days to ask T’Keva to be my mate, and he’s either shown up to interrupt or just flat kept me from seeing her twice now. I wouldn’t put a third time past him.”
“Ahhh, finally manning up and getting rid of the last of those jelly cubes in your spine, huh?” Kotir teased.
Kex shot him a venomous look. “Don’t give me that. You were the first interruption yesterday.”
“Hey, I said I was sorry.”
“That’s why you’re doing me this favor.”
“Fair enough.” This time it was Kotir that couldn’t refute logic.
* * * * *
Kexed opened his office door a crack and peeked out several minutes before he intended to leave, hoping to find nothing to prevent him from emerging onto the street. Sure enough, however, there was Vakren walking in his direction. Fortunately for Kex, Kotir (who really didn’t have anything better to do this time of day when he was in town) was also nearby, and neatly cut off Vakren’s route to his brother’s office.
Vakren seemed rather surprised to be approached by Kotir – he had yet to actually meet the gremlin, and could see no real reason the burly thwacker would want to speak to him.
“Vakren, right?” Kotir asked by way of lack of introduction.
“Yeeeeesss …” the smaller gremlin answered suspiciously, drawing the vowel out as though it were several syllables. “… and you are?”
“My name is Kotir.” He offered his hand. “Kexed’s brother. I’m here to keep you occupied for the evening, or until I hear otherwise, whichever comes first.”
Vakren stared. “Why?” he asked flatly, forgetting to shake the proffered hand in his confusion.
Kotir shrugged and withdrew it. “Because my brother keeps trying to ask your sister to spend her life with him, and you keep either interrupting or otherwise getting in the way.” He saw no real reason to hide his motives from the guy.
Proving himself to be just as clueless as Kotir had expected, Vakren looked genuinely surprised; panicked, even.
“Hey, calm down, man,” Kotir told him once his eye had started twitching.
“But … but … why would he do that?” T’Keva’s brother cried.
“Uhh … because he’s so crazy in love with her that you’re probably the only one in the borough that hasn’t noticed?”
Vakren still didn’t look convinced. Kotir heaved a sigh.
“Look: you’re obviously worried about your sister. That’s understandable – I worry about her and she’s not even mine. But think about how much less you’ll have to worry about her when she’s settled down and being taken care of by a nice, steady mate. A Foreman, even, so you know he’s not going to be running off into the Clockworks to get himself killed and leave her alone. So calm down, quit that eye of yours twitching, and let’s go get a round of drinks like a pair of reasonable gremlins.”
It was Vakren’s turn to heave a sigh. “What if I don’t want to?” he asked petulantly.
“Then I’ll sling you over my shoulder and take you,” Kotir answered, frustrated. “By the core, man, you have the social intelligence of a jelly cube.”
The venting was apparently a better distraction than the threat had been.
“Actually, jelly cubes have a surprisingly complicated social structure, and they …”
Kotir groaned and started nudging Vakren in the direction of the nearest bar as the latter rambled about the societal structure and hierarchical awareness of various members of the jelly family. It was going to be a very long evening.
Kexed watched the two walk off together and breathed a sigh of relief as he slipped out the door. No one and nothing short of an invasion on Stone Field Borough by Tinkinzar himself was going to keep him from his goal tonight.
The Foreman dashed through the metal streets, calling out hurried greetings to anyone who hailed him and moving on before they could say anything else, until he arrived, panting, at T’Keva’s home.
“Why on Cradle did you run here?” the mender asked in puzzlement as she lowered the canopy that opened her workroom to the outside.
“Because I didn’t want to risk anyone catching me and needing something that would take the rest of the night,” Kex answered as he helped her tie it down. Once it was securely fastened, the two of them loitered in the doorway for a moment and he slipped his arm around her waist, bringing his face close to hers.
“T’Keva!” It was Gista, calling from the closed canopy of her own home shop and starting to walk over. “I was just wondering if you– ”
“Gista, I hate to interrupt,” Kexed said as the tinkerer reached them. He really didn’t hate to do it, but one had to at least pretend to be polite. “But is anyone sick or injured and in need of T’Keva’s immediate assistance?”
“No, nothing of the sort,” Gista answered. “But– ”
Kexed held up his unoccupied hand. “In that case, I ask that you save it for another time,” he said firmly. “We are going for a walk.”
Without waiting for an answer, he turned, his arm still around the mender’s waist, and walked off, Usumas following untethered behind them.
T’Keva laughed dryly to cover her confusion. “You’re acting a bit strangely today,” she commented after they had walked a block or so. “What’s going on? And where are we going?”
“Honestly, I have no idea where we’re headed.” Kexed stopped and turned to face her, both hands resting on her waist. Only then did he realize that he had ushered her off without her staff, and that she had been walking genuinely blind, trusting him to guide her.
“Is everything alright?” she asked gently after he had been silent for a bit, looking at her.
“Yes, everything is fine. It’s just …” Now was as good a time as any. He had been steeling himself all day for this … for several days, actually … and he was going to be neither more prepared nor less nervous later. He already couldn’t remember what he had planned to say, so he just blurted out the first relevant thing that came to mind.
“It’s just that I’ve been so in love with you for so long that it’s stupid I’ve never said anything before and all I really want is for you to come share my home as my mate and I’ve been trying to ask you for days but people keep showing up and things keep going wrong and …”
“I will,” T’Keva interrupted gently.
“Wait – you will? You’ll be my mate?” She nodded, and Kex felt more surprised at her answer than she looked at his not-quite-question … until he picked her up and spun her around, that is. There was some clapping and a few cheers from the other gremlins on the street as he set her down and pulled her close.
The healer chuckled softly into the crook of Kexed’s neck as she nuzzled him.
“What’s so funny?” he murmured in her ear.
“I was wondering if you’d ever ask,” she answered softly. “I probably should have said something myself, but I didn’t want to push you.”
Kex’s only reply was to hold her more tightly. He didn’t care much that this had been a long time coming, or even that they were still standing in the middle of the street with a few dozen other gremlins looking at them. If they were impeding traffic, he could always write himself a citation later – he was busy enjoying the here and now.
* * * * *
Kotir was as quiet as possible when he pushed the front door open and peeked into the dimness. Kexed and T’Keva were curled up together on the largest of the soft benches in the front room, fast asleep. It looked as though they had dozed off in each other’s arms while talking, and Usumas’ soft glow could be seen through a doorway, as though the silkwing had decided to give them some privacy. If their clothes were a bit rumpled, it was too dark to tell.
Smiling to himself, Kotir eased the door closed without entering and stood on the front step for a moment, hands in his pockets. He had hoped to come home to a scene like that, and finding T’Keva’s place empty when he dropped off her inebriated brother, he had rather expected it.
Satisfied, he locked the door with his new key and, whistling, strolled down the street. He may as well crash at Velt’s place tonight.
Sun, 02/19/2012 - 23:25
#3
Is this new?
Your writing another right away?
Sun, 02/19/2012 - 23:29
#4
I finished this one before I
I finished this one before I finished the other, even though it's a sequel. XD
Sun, 02/19/2012 - 23:31
#5
Derrrrrrppp
That explains alot. Now excuse me while I freeze myself for the rest of time.
Sun, 02/19/2012 - 23:52
#6
Well, I hadn't actually specified yet ...
*poke, poke* Don't freeze!
Also, I sent you another message.
Sun, 02/19/2012 - 23:55
#7
I just... Closed SK
Now I have to open it again. Nevermind.
Sun, 02/19/2012 - 23:59
#8
XP
It's not like the message was important; it could have waited, you silly thing.
Mon, 02/20/2012 - 06:00
#9
BEST FANFIC SERIES EVER!
Again, this is great! :D
Mon, 02/20/2012 - 07:38
#10
^.^
Awww, thank you. I'm blushing. I'm sure it's not the best, but I'm glad you're enjoying it. :D
Thu, 02/23/2012 - 20:27
#11
*smokes pipe*
Awesome.
400% Awesome.
Nuff said.
Fri, 02/24/2012 - 04:40
#12
Thanks and new story
Thank you, Jmtheawesome!
I should be adding the next story around the first of the week.
Mon, 03/19/2012 - 06:40
#13
Jelly Jam - Part 1
Hexil's jelly cubes had taken a beating lately.
First, there had been that incident some weeks ago when eight or nine of them had been crushed. It had been strange: none of the cores had been taken, but there were footprints and drag marks that led to his old shed. The shed itself had been empty. That was the day that the easiest pathway into the city proper had been destroyed, and Hexil couldn't help but wonder if the two were related.
Both before that and after the pathway had been repaired, Brisli's little monsters (the farmer could never remember their names) had taken to jumping off of the shed onto the jellies whenever the cubes were close enough to that wall and his back was turned. Hexil had a mind to tear that shed down, but he never actually seemed to find the time or motivation to actually do it. The gremlinites had been caught in the act a few days ago when one of them missed the jelly he was aiming for and broke his leg, however, so he knew he had a bit of a respite while their mother was keeping them in the house. He wondered how long it would last until they drove her crazy.
Hexil stood surveying his decimated herd. He was a scruffy-looking gremlin of average build who was never without a well-scuffed hat of virulisk hide, the wide brim of which was full of nicks. It had been garishly colored when it was new, but time, rough handling, and a lack of washing had rendered it a nearly uniform brown. His clothes, while considerably cleaner, were oversized and matched his hat for disrepair; no amount of nagging from his mate could convince him to replace them until they were ready to fall off.
One of the five cubes he had left was stuck against the side of the pen: the stupid thing bumped against the wall, backed up a short way, and then attempted to continue in its original direction, only to bump into the wall again an instant later. Hexil pushed it off the wall with his stick and watched it wobble across the enclosure, where it repeated the exercise against another cube that seemed disinclined to move.
Hearing steps approaching behind him, the farmer turned his head to see his friend Durst walking toward the enclosure, his customary cigar hanging from his mouth. He was a short, squat gremlin in a leather apron who slept little and ate much, so it was probably a good thing he bred food creatures for a living.
When Durst reached the low wall that Hexil was standing on, he scrambled up onto it and pulled out another cigar, lighting it on his before passing it wordlessly to his friend. The two stood puffing and watching the stuck jelly cube bumping against the lazy one for several minutes in silence.
"You have a run on common cores?" Durst asked finally, his voice hoarse from years of smoking.
"The twins were here," Hexil grumped.
"Going to have to do something about that," his friend answered, the cigar wobbling in his teeth as he spoke.
"S'pose I oughta tear down that shed."
Durst contemplated for a moment. "Switch pens," he said with a barking laugh that ended in a bout of coughing. "No gremlinite'll jump on the spiny ones, if they got half a head."
* * * * *
Ketter and Kotter were sorting their father's spare parts as part of their punishment for ruining several of Hexil's jelly cubes. Their mother had offered to make them work for the farmer for awhile, but Hexil had declined, saying that he didn't want them anywhere near his farm. So the two were stuck doing tedious chores in the house and had been forbidden to step foot out of the borough into Stone Field without an escort.
"This is boring," Ketter complained as he held up a pair of gears to compare their size.
"It's your fault, breaking your stupid leg so we got caught," his twin brother retorted, giving him a shove.
"Only 'cause you pushed me!" He shoved Kotter back, knocking over a box of bolts.
The two jostled each other back and forth a few times until Kotter punched his brother in the side of the head, at which point the shoving turned into more of a brawl. They rolled across the floor, kicking, headbutting and biting each other as they sent parts skittering across the room.
"What are you boys doing in there?" came a call from the kitchen.
"Nothing, Mem!" the twins yelled in unison.
This answer was obviously suspicious, and it wasn't long before Brisli appeared, wearing heavy, padded mitts up to her elbows. She surveyed the scene in the swift, decisive manner that only mothers and teachers can, and sighed heavily.
"The two of you have about five millicycles to clean this up and get your rumps outside where you can't drive me crazy," Brisli told her gremlinites in stern exasperation. "And don't get into any more trouble."
"Yes, Mem," Ketter and Kotter answered, one after the other. Their mother eyed them a moment and returned to the kitchen; she could smell something on the verge of burning.
Unable to believe their luck, the two young gremlins exchanged a look before cleaning up the scattered parts in record time and racing out the door before their mother could change her mind.
* * * * *
Hexil had gotten Durst's help in herding the last of his plain jelly cubes into a corner, where they had stupidly remained stuck while the two middle-aged gremlins dealt with their spinier cousins.
Wearing a mismatched jumble of protective gear, none of it meant for this purpose, and armed with long poles, they prodded the spiny cubes into the pen with the others. It had taken some effort to keep the two types separated and wrangle the spiny ones to the opposite end of the pen so the others could be herded into the enclosure further from the shed. Finally, though, they had finished, and Durst had returned to his own operation, leaving Hexil to finish settling the cubes in their new homes.
The farmer surveyed his handiwork, satisfied that his jellies were safe from unruly gremlinites, and headed back into town. It was time to eat.
* * * * *
Because they had been forbidden to enter the Field on their own, Ketter and Kotter recruited a girl about their age to be their escort.
Testafir lived across the street and three doors down, and was the sort of gremlinite that just couldn't say 'no' to anything. Most of the time, this made her seem sweet and obliging, but when the twins were involved, it usually meant trouble.
"What are we doing out here?" Testafir asked as the three gremlinites crossed the repaired pathway that led out of the borough.
"Jelly jumping," Kotter answered casually, keeping an eye out in case Hexil should be near his pens.
"Didn't you get in trouble for that already?"
"Yeah," said Ketter. "But Mem let us out of the house."
Testafir wasn't sure how to respond to that, so she followed the twins to the back side of the shed and climbed up onto it with them.
"Okay - ready, set, g- WHOA!" Kotter had been starting to take a running leap when he saw what was in the pen and nearly fell off, Ketter catching the back of his shirt just before he tumbled forward onto the spined cubes.
Peeking over the edge into the field, Testafir grimaced. "I ... don't think this is a good idea, really."
"No kidding!" Ketter stared down at the spiny new residents of the pen. "He switched fields on us. Now what are we going to do? There's nothing else to jump off of around here."
"Dunno," Kotter answered, annoyed, as he dropped from the shed to the wall and started walking along it. Ketter and Testafir followed behind him, passing the nearly-empty pen holding the cubes they had been planning to jump on and the one beyond it, full of cubes that had so many spines that their surface was little else. Kotter came to stop at the next pen, which had been split into separate stalls, fifteen on each side. A wide path ran down the center of the enclosure between them.
"These look pretty fun," he said, examining the small, yellow lichen in the nearest stall.
"I wonder why they're all separated like that," Ketter added. "I bet if we let them all out in the middle, we could bounce all the way down the path on them 'cause they're so round."
Testafir couldn't see much harm in that, so the three gremlinites clambered down into the central walkway and started opening pens. They were halfway down the row before the first of the lichens emerged onto the path, so it wasn't long until every stall was opened and they turned around to go back and close the doors.
There were a lot less lichens than they had expected. Most of the ones that were there were a lot bigger, redder, and spinier than the ones they had just released.
"Are they supposed to do that?" Ketter asked as they watched two of the small lichens directly in front of them merge into a larger one with a double core.
"I don't know, but they're doing it anyway," Testafir answered, backing away as the lichens continued combining themselves into fewer, larger, meaner-looking blobs. The twins stared for a moment more before all three of them broke and ran.
The lichen, which used to be thirty lichens, followed the biggest things that it sensed moving.
* * * * *
Drekken was on the edge of the city consulting with an Assistant Utilities Manager about extending the power grid to allow for building in the area. It was good to get out of the office, so the Assistant Foreman was glad that his duties now included field meetings. The other gremlin, Portren, seemed to be of the same mind, so the two of them were going over everything in incredible detail to justify staying out in the open for as long as possible.
The two assistants were nearly out of things they could possibly discuss when a little voice called out from across the path that spanned the gap between the borough and the Field. It sounded like Drekken's daughter.
He turned to see Testafir and the twins from across the street tearing down the path, followed at a bit of a distance by the biggest lichen he had ever seen; blood red and bearing spines that were probably bigger than he was, it was the size of a small building.
"What have you three been doing?" Drekken asked as the gremlinites reached the city side of the bridge and Testafir flung herself into his arms.
"We let the little yellow jellies out," she sobbed into his chest as Ketter and Kotter scooted behind the adults to hide.
Drekken glanced from his daughter to the guilty-looking twins behind him to the lichen, which was slowly wobbling its way toward the borough. "We'd better go tell the Foreman."
* * * * *
It had been a peaceful day in the Foreman's office, and Kexed was in a good mood. The peace was shattered, however, when Drekken burst through the door carrying his daughter, followed closely by Brisli's twins and the representative from Public Utilities he had been sent to meet. They were all panting, as though they had been running. Except for Drekken's girl, who was sobbing and sniffling and had given herself the hiccups as a result.
"What's going on?" Kex asked, standing.
"These three let all of Hexil's lichens out of their pens, and now there's one huge one heading into town," Drekken answered, breathless.
The Foreman wondered whether they had to deal with this sort of problem elsewhere in Emberlight.
"Portren, go alert the Patrol," he ordered. "Drekken, take the gremlinites home and go find Hexil."
As the others hurried to do as they were told, Kexed grabbed his jacket and headed out the door after them. He hoped Vakren was as much of an expert on slimes as he thought he was.
* * * * *
Vakren getting ready to give up and call someone.
He was trying to install some lighting in his home, as the place used to belong to his blind sister and only rooms such as the front living area and her workroom, where guests and patients were likely to be, were fully illuminated. The only problem was, he knew nothing about electrical work.
There was a series of knocks on the door, rapid and insistent. Vakren figured that it was one of his sister's patients; not everyone had heard (or, in many cases, paid attention) that the mender had taken a mate and moved in with him a few blocks away two days ago, so people looking for medical assistance still showed up every few hours.
Putting down the fixture he had been examining with no idea of what to do with it, the researcher trotted to the front room to open the door. It wasn't a patient: it was his sister's new mate.
"Kotir tells me you've studied slimes. We're going to need your help," Kexed said breathlessly. This puzzled Vakren nearly as much as attempting electrical work for the first time; the other gremlin was normally the sort with a friendly greeting first thing. Maybe he was in a hurry. Either way, Vakren appreciated someone taking an interest in his research.
"Extensively!" the gremlin replied, preparing to launch into a long, detailed explanation of what he had learned while living in various Lichenous Lairs for quite a long time. He didn't get a chance, however, as Kexed grabbed him by the wrist and hauled him out of the house, pulling the door closed before taking off down the street with the researcher in tow.
"Some gremlinites let all of Hexil's lichens out of their pens, and now we have one big lichen heading toward Emberlight," Kexed filled him in as they ran. "I obviously know nothing about the things, and I would like to avoid any of the casualties that would come from just sending the Patrol after it; someone always manages to blow themselves up."
"How many lichens are we talking about?" Vakren asked.
"I don't know the exact number, but Hexil almost never has less than two dozen on hand at a time."
Vakren blanched under his fur. "That's going to be one big lichen colony."
"I haven't seen it yet, so I'll take your word for it," Kexed answered, panting. The two of them stopped talking and tried to run faster.
Mon, 03/19/2012 - 06:57
#14
Jelly Jam - Part 2
A sizeable group of gremlins had gathered on the Emberlight side of the pathway, while the giant lichen wobbled on the edge of the Stone Field side as though unsure whether to proceed.
Captain Ziftadrine had brought two explosives specialists with her, along with half a dozen combat gremlins. She had not yet given the order to attack, as the lichen was not currently moving forward and the pathway was too narrow for more than two of her fighters to attack the thing at once. As no one was in immediate danger, she was loathe to let her demos destroy the bridge for a second time in two weeks without a go-ahead from the Foreman.
Drekken had shown up with Hexil, who still had part of the meal he had been eating in his hands. The latter was loudly cursing gremlinites of all types. Brisli was still wearing her oven mitts and had come along to see what she would have to punish the twins for this time after the two had dived under their beds and refused to come out. She was trying hard to ignore the farmer: in the mood he was in, apologies would probably make things worse.
Kexed and Vakren joined the party, followed by several gremlins who were simply curious to see why their Foreman was tearing down the street so fast. These last joined the group of others who had just happened to be in the area and were staring across the gap at the monster on the other side.
"Captain, can you have your people keep anyone not here to try and handle the problem back while we discuss what to do?" Kexed said to Ziftadrine as he caught his breath. "Hexil, please come over here; I want you to be involved," he added as the Captain gave the orders to her officers. The request was part diplomacy and part hope that the farmer knew much more about slimes than how to breed them to be extra stupid.
Once Kexed, Vakren, Ziftadrine and Hexil were standing together and Hexil had calmed down enough to participate in the conversation, the Foreman got down to business.
"First things first," he said. "Is there any way to split the lichens once they've merged?"
"I don't know!" Hexil answered. "I've never let them form into a giant, let alone a colony!"
Vakren shook his head. "They'll break apart eventually, but it will be gradual, as each of the cores is ready to begin its replication cycle."
"How long does that take?" Kexed asked hopefully. Vakren shrugged in response.
"It could be weeks, for all we know. They'll stay apart while the replication takes place, though, and that always takes a day or so."
Ziftadrine scowled. "So we're going to have to kill it." Hers was a no-nonsense existence, and she usually liked the path of least resistance: the simplest solutions to a problem were often the best ones. The path of least resistance, in this case, seemed like it was going to be a pain in the neck.
"We could lure it away," Hexil suggested quickly, not wanting to lose all of his lichens and have to start over with new ones. It always took a few generations to achieve the extreme stupidity that he liked to have in his slimes; being dumb made them docile, and that was important to his operation.
"We would need a larger group of things moving around over there than there is over here," Vakren added thoughtfully.
"If we did that, what would keep it from coming right back here?" asked the Foreman.
"Rock salt," Vakren answered decisively. Hexil groaned, but he couldn't really argue ... there wasn't any other logical way to hem the thing in until it was ready to replicate and split.
"Does anyone know where we can get that much rock salt?" Ziftadrine asked. "My officers can go the long way around and lure the thing away from here after we disperse the crowd, but we'll want the salt ready to put down once they have it far enough away."
No one did, and Kexed rubbed the spot between his eyes with the heel of his hand. He was getting a headache. After a moment's fruitless thought, he scanned the crowd, his eyes falling on Brisli. That gave him an idea.
"Brisli!" he called, walking over to where she was standing with Drekken. "Does the bakery buy salt in bulk from somewhere?"
"Yes," she answered, perplexed at the odd question. "We have it sent in from a company out in Silver Spring."
"Have you gotten a shipment lately?"
"Two days ago." Brisli still had no idea where this conversation was going.
"Hmm." That sounded promising. "Could you do me a favor? I'd like you and Drekken to head out to the bakery and to however many of the eateries it takes to buy any bulk salt they have. Drekken, find out from Hexil how large of a space the lichen should have so you know how much to get, and make sure everyone you get salt from makes a bit of a profit. Just keep a tally of how much you spend. Have someone deliver it here; you'll never be able to carry it all."
Brisli nodded as Drekken headed off to talk to Hexil; it was the least she could do after her sons had caused so much trouble. She was going to have a lot to tell her mate when he returned from his trip.
As the two of them headed off to collect the salt, Captain Ziftadrine's group set about sending the assembled crowd away. There was some grumbling about that, but the lichen colony wasn't doing anything; it seemed to at least be aware that it was too wide for the path. Once the area was mostly empty again, the Patrol headed out towards the alternate pathway, hopefully so that they would be in position by the time the salt started being delivered.
* * * * *
The salt was a long time coming.
Kexed could see the Captain and her Patrol officers waiting on the other side of the gap, one of the large stones the Field was named for between them and the lichen colony. Although Ziftadrine was watching the borough side for the signal that everything was in order, it seemed like the group was eating a meal they had picked up on the way to the other bridge. He wished he had thought of that.
"Vakren, I have to stay here. Do you think you could tell T'Keva that I'll be home late and pick up something for the three of us to eat on the way back?" Kex asked, indicating the both of them plus Hexil as he dug some money out of his pocket and handed it over. The farmer was pacing and fretting, disinclined to head home until the whole mess was taken care of. His lichens were at stake, here.
"Sure," Vakren answered, probably the only one who was pleased with the day’s events. He was actually having fun with this, getting to make use of his research, even though no one wanted to hear about other facets of slime culture (they had made it abundantly apparent, and Hexil had even threatened violence if he didn't "shut his yap"). It would be good to see his sister today, too, and he had to admit that he was getting pretty hungry, so the errand was all-around agreeable.
The errand also took far longer than Kexed and Hexil thought it should have. While the farmer grumped about it, Kex simply assumed that Vakren had decided to tell his sister about what was going on at the edge of town in detail. He almost felt bad for sending the researcher over there when he had a story to tell. Finally, though, Vakren returned with a shallow box of smaller containers that meant it was time to eat.
Two smallish crates of salt had arrived by the time the three finished their meal, and Durst showed up on the scene shortly thereafter.
“What’s this I hear about those little pests letting out the lichens?” he asked Hexil hoarsely, not having taken a good look at the other side of the bridge path. As usual, a large cigar was clamped in his teeth, and both Kexed and Vakren took an involuntary step backward as he exhaled a cloud of bluish smoke with a wheeze.
Hexil jerked his thumb toward the lichen colony that still wobbled on the edge of the Field, and Durst did a double-take.
“Wouldn’t have believed that if you told me tomorrow,” he commented, staring at the spiny red blob blocking access to the Field. “Wouldn’t have thought you all would all just be standing here looking at it, either.”
“We’re waiting on some more crates of salt,” Kexed answered dryly, gazing up the street. “Excuse me: here comes another.” With that, he headed up to meet the delivery person with Vakren trailing behind, glad for an excuse to get away from the cigar. Drekken showed up with Brisli while they were stacking it with the other two, pushing a small cart full of shovels.
“Thought we might need these,” Drekken said as they approached. “Is this all that’s here?”
“So far. I’ve taken names as they were delivered so I could match the deliveries with your voucher stubs. How many are we expecting?”
“Eight more,” Brisli said.
“I have a feeling that my whole morning tomorrow is going to be spent cashing out payment vouchers,” the Foreman sighed. “But at least we should have enough.”
“So, who’s going to spread the salt barrier?” Drekken asked.
“I was wondering that myself,” Vakren added.
Kexed groaned. He wished he had thought of that, too. “I have no idea. It’s a little late to call in a maintenance crew. I guess we’ll have to do it.”
Brisli burst out laughing.
* * * * *
It was late in the evening by the time all eleven crates had been delivered, but Kexed was finally able to give Captain Ziftadrine the signal to have her officers lure the lichen colony away from the path. The nine Patrol gremlins deployed, heading out from behind the stone towards the spiny slime.
“Keep your weapons at the ready, but don’t actually use them unless it makes an attack,” the Captain ordered. “Move around a lot and make plenty of noise. Jump around and wave your arms if you have to.”
It didn’t come to that. Nine adult gremlins were a much easier moving target to sense than three small gremlinites had been, and the huge lichen headed off in the direction of the tactical-gear-clad group.
Those waiting with the salt just continued waiting until the thing was far enough away not to notice them, then hurried to stack the crates on the cart and head out to a distant part of the field. The plan was to make a large circle on the ground with the salt, leaving a space open for the Patrol to lure the lichen colony through. Once the colony was in the center, the last of the salt would be used to close the circle so that the colony would be stuck inside.
Once Kexed, Drekken, Brisli, Hexil, and Durst had gotten the first batch of salt crates to the part of the field they had chosen, they got them all unloaded and opened up. Hexil and Durst stayed to start laying down the far end of the circle and give the Patrol something to aim at, while the others returned for the rest of the salt.
The work was tedious, although once the Patrol realized that all they had to do to keep ahead of the lichen colony was walk at a decent clip, it was no longer particularly tense. The nine of them laughed and joked, one of them making one bad slime pun after another, until they were able to lure the lichen into the open circle the others had created. It was nothing to close the circle once it was inside, and everyone present breathed a sigh of relief when the lichen colony tested a few directions, found them to be unpleasant, and slumped in the middle of the circle.
“Drekken,” Kexed told his assistant as they walked back across the pathway with shovels slung over their shoulders. “I’d like you and Palt to send me your Building and Maintenance budgets in the morning. In the interest of public safety, I’m going to work a wall around the jelly farm into it. A tall one.”
* * * * *
Hexil gazed over at the construction crew working around his slime pens with satisfaction and returned to his project: he was constructing his own wall. It was only a short one to keep the small lichens away from the salt as they separated from the colony to replicate, but it was important. He didn’t want to lose any of them after all of this, and maybe he would find a use for the stray enclosure later.
Not much else had come of the whole thing; he had heard that Brisli’s boys ended up in the Foreman’s office for a talk with both Kexed and Captain Ziftadine, after which they had been most penitent. Eatery meals throughout the borough had been a bit bland for a few days, although a few cooks had taken advantage of the lack of salt to create something new and interesting (usually involving blaze peppers), and mouth-burningly spicy had become the trend in a few places. Vakren had been by the farm to describe to Hexil how it looked when one lichen was about to split off from the others, which had been educational. He had stayed to describe any number of other things, which was less educational because Hexil had fallen asleep.
The farmer had just placed the last block in the low wall when Durst walked up, huffing and puffing. The latter lit a cigar and handed it over to his friend, and the two of them stood watching the lichen colony test out the new wall as one core, a darker color than the others, slowly migrated first out of the aggregate and then out of the colony, dragging a lump of slime with it. The lump faded from red to yellow as it moved to the opposite side of the enclosure, apparently wanting to be alone.
“Huh. He was right,” Hexil remarked. He had been a bit skeptical about Vakren’s information.
“Yup,” Durst answered. “Looks like you made out alright in the end.”
“That I did,” Hexil confirmed. “Didn’t even have to tear my shed down.”
Sat, 02/25/2012 - 16:13
#15
Great!
Awesome
401% Awesome
Not enough said, some I will continue with praise.
It was great! I enjoyed how the humor gave it the feel of a lighthearted story that would start like this
"You wouldn't believe it, but I was just sitting in my house, when out of nowhere..."
Awesome. :D
Sat, 02/25/2012 - 17:18
#16
XD
Haha, thanks Isis ... I actually think I sleep-posted this after I got off of work this morning (I finished it at about 4 am during a slow part of my shift but didn't have internet access for some reason), so it may have a few mistakes. XD
I've been trying to keep this set silly and lighthearted, so didn't want to get too tense with a climax.
Thu, 03/08/2012 - 06:23
#17
lol typo
this is awesome XD but i found a typo, or at least i think its a typo O.o
*"What have you three been doing?" Drekken asked as the gremlinites reached the city side of the bridge and Tickafir flung herself into his arms.*
lol you named the little girl gremlin after me
Thu, 03/08/2012 - 06:33
#18
lol indeed
Dangit, I thought I edited that. I accidentaly typed "Vakros" instead of "Vakren" a few times, too. XD
... I'm also apparently posting as my husband. Don't mind me. XD
Thu, 03/08/2012 - 16:59
#19
Last Poster: Sol-Ether
I saw this and was like...
HOLY FUDGEMONKEYS ITS SOL! WE CAN TALK OF HOBOS AND OTHER STUFF THAT WOULD ANNOY TEV...oh wait its actually Tev.
Whatever you're both still awesome. :D
Thu, 03/08/2012 - 19:28
#20
Hands Down
Hands Down the Frist Story 'Knock, Knock, Boom' was brillent and i mean BRILLENT it was funny it was romantic it was well made alltogather. Thow with the second Story Jelly Jam you could have coused just a littile bit more comiedec choas exaple: lichen colony thretens to colaps platforem and Hexil gos crazy removes the rock sailt and trys to lure it away right into the middle of town. not trying to critasize you not trying to force the idea just saying you could have done more with that story.
oh and heres a story Suggestion there is some road work going in T’Keva's naborehood on and Vakren is wailking along the construction zone there is a sudden colaps and he falls into a draine pipe (he can do that cuse he is a gremlin and gremlins are small ) He is unharmed and rescue is only mineits away but he descavers he is not alone only feet away from him is ... A BABY KLEPTOLISK !?!
Thu, 03/08/2012 - 20:54
#21
Replies!
@Isis: You're nutty, you know that, right?
@Regal: Thank you! I actually had something crazier planned for Jelly Jam ... they were going to use the borough power grid to kill it. But then the "A Pinch of Salt" mission came out for the first time just as I was getting to the part where the gremlinites let the slimes out, and I decided to go a simpler route. This isn't the last we'll see of Hexil and his slimes, though. ;)
I'd love to hear your suggestion, once you get it added. ^.^ EDIT: I'll take that into account. While it may not happen like that, we may see Vakren bringing home a pet in the near future.
Thu, 03/08/2012 - 19:43
#22
Still Awesome
@Tev: Yepperino! :D
Thu, 03/08/2012 - 20:28
#23
Yup
A smart dude: Yes i agree with you, Tev. Isis is a completely and utterly psychotic entity, a manifestation of insaninty.
Striker: SHADUP NO1 NOS UR WORDS
Ace: ... AHDUH
Vot: ....
Thu, 03/15/2012 - 17:40
#24
Wobble
Just finished Jelly Jam. It confused me a bit at times but it's still very nice.
Thu, 03/15/2012 - 17:57
#25
Wobble indeed
I was thinking about going back and editing that one a bit, since I realize I got a bit lazy toward the end (and as I said earlier, I apparently sleep-posted it after work one morning). What was confusing so I can go back and look at those parts?
Thu, 03/15/2012 - 19:24
#26
It's confused!
There were several parts that I could not explain if I could remember them, but the whole deal with the Lichen Colony at the end was confusing. I can't say I'm a particularly adept writer or critic and so I find myself unable to pinpoint anything exactly.
It isn't quite clear to me how they used the Rock Salt. They initially used it to keep the Lichen out of Emberlight, correct? But then later they lured it to some more Salt..? When did they create that? What exactly did they create? And where was it? Perhaps these questions can show my confusion and hopefully point out the areas for my lack of eloquence and comprehension.
Sun, 03/18/2012 - 11:21
#27
So funny :D
It really is. No sarcasm here.
Sun, 03/18/2012 - 17:26
#28
Replies
@Windsickle: I'll see about making the latter part of the story clearer. Thanks for the feedback!
@Phantom: Thank you! No sarcasm here, either.
Mon, 03/19/2012 - 05:30
#29
By any chance, rolecasting?
/\
Mon, 03/19/2012 - 06:07
#30
'Fraid not.
Sorry, I prefer to write using my own characters, so I'll probably never rolecast for this unless I decide to do something unusual one day.
Mon, 03/19/2012 - 13:53
#31
Oh well.
D: Oh well. Knock, Knock, Boom is funny. The name sounds like something Robert Munsch would write...And you know that guy eh? He writes funny children's stories.
Mon, 03/19/2012 - 14:48
#32
Oh, Munsch ...
Yes, I'm familiar with Munsch (I used to be a manager in a children's book department). I've never been a big fan of his work, but "Stephanie's Ponytail" was pretty funny. "Love You Forever" is kinda' creepy, though ...
Tue, 03/20/2012 - 12:39
#33
@Tevokkia
whens the next story?
Tue, 03/20/2012 - 12:46
#34
@Regal
I'm not entirely sure ... I've got a lot of projects I'm juggling right now. I started writing it, but wasn't liking it much, so am going back to revise what I already had written with plans on approaching the story from a different angle.
Tue, 03/20/2012 - 14:46
#35
Hehe...
Funny that I just read A Promise is a Promise at school today...co-incidence?
Sun, 03/25/2012 - 15:18
#36
Question for my readers
Okay, aside from the story I'm currently working on for this series and the one I have that's a prequel to some of the events in The Clockwork Renegades, I've started a third, unrelated bit of fiction. It's of rather a different mood than these, being quite a bit darker.
My question is: would you guys rather I continue with my usual habit of posting the entire thing when it's done, or try out the "post sections as they're finished" format that the board seems to favor, even though there may be a considerable wait between sections?
Sun, 03/25/2012 - 15:52
#37
Usual Habit please.
I like that.
Mon, 03/26/2012 - 01:19
#38
We'll see if it's still a good idea come 8.
Oh, the ideas that show up at four in the morning ... the next Stone Field short is going to be ridiculous.
Mon, 03/26/2012 - 14:01
#39
@Tevokkia
YAY for the ridiculousnuss.hay Tevokkia do you know how to ad/change a pic cus i would like one to go with my posts.
Mon, 03/26/2012 - 14:17
#40
@Regal
At the top of the page, click on "Forum Preferences" and go to the "Edit" tab. You'll be able to choose a pictures from among the pre-loaded ones there. Unfortunately, we can't do custom pics. :P
Tue, 03/27/2012 - 18:29
#41
@Tevokkia
TY varey much ( no time to chat must add pic!)
Wed, 03/28/2012 - 18:41
#42
New, but not new
Started working on a fourth story for this series at the same time as the third. It's hard to tell which one will be finished first. XD
Wed, 03/28/2012 - 18:56
#43
@Tevokkia
as funny as that is pleas dont confus your readers.
Wed, 03/28/2012 - 19:02
#44
Don't worry!
Well, I won't post either of them until they're finished, and the order the two are posted in won't really matter since they primarily involve different characters. So there shouldn't be any confusion. I'm just having a little trouble completing the one, so I'm hoping working on the other will help.
... this is aside from the other two I'm writing that aren't part of this series. XD
Thu, 03/29/2012 - 17:27
#45
@Tevokkia
Keep up the good work :D
Fri, 04/06/2012 - 06:32
#46
Wait....can you show art of EVERY GREMLIN IN THESE STORIES?
I MUST KNOW !
Fri, 04/06/2012 - 06:40
#47
...! All of them?
... umm ... maybe? When I get around to it? Right now I only have Velt, Kotir, Kex and T'Keva. I've been doing some other things.
Although if a gremlin doesn't get a name, they also don't get a picture. I'm not going to draw every single resident of Stone Field. O.o
Fri, 04/06/2012 - 12:30
#48
Alright.
Q.Q
Fri, 04/06/2012 - 18:01
#49
@Phantomhamachi
give her time her guineuios work takes time
Sat, 04/07/2012 - 07:51
#50
More stupid ideas from early morning
The next story is short, sweet (ha! I made a pun!) and rather assumes that gremlins aren't particularly familiar with frosted cake and birthday candles.
Kexed tapped the nib of his pen on the corner of the page as he perused the report, occasionally pausing to underline a phrase or to make a note in the margin.
Finally reaching the end of the page, the gremlin stopped to shake out his writing hand and massage the bridge of his nose. Old habits died hard, he supposed, and he hadn’t been long enough in his new promotion to lose the furrowed brow or the death grip he had kept on his pen while trying to do the work of at least two people in his old position.
Conscientious and fairly uncreative by nature, Kexed was more suited to office work and less suited to engineering or combat professions than most other gremlins. Truth be told, he had no stomach for mending, either, so he was generally considered to be rather dull and had few friends to speak of. Despite that, he was well-respected for being dependable and hard working; it seemed that public servants could be forgiven for being boring as long as they got the job done.
The Foreman was about to start on a new page when there was a rap on the door, and he stood, stretching, to open it. The diversion would be welcome; his eyes still hurt a bit from staring at the last thirty or so pages.
Kex had meant to say “Greetings, what can I do for you today?” upon opening the door, but didn’t get past “what” before stopping. Standing on the other side was a slim lady gremlin who leaned lightly on a wrench staff, smiling bemusedly at him. Her eyes were obscured by dark lenses, and a silkwing, attached to her wrist by a tether, sat placidly on her shoulder.
“T’Keva,” Kexed breathed, trying not to sound as awkward as he felt and considering it a boon that she couldn’t actually see him right now. He swallowed hard and stepped aside. “Please, come in.”
“Thank you Kex.” The blind mender stepped over the threshold. “I thought I would come see how you were doing in your new office. You’re not working yourself too hard, are you?”
The other gremlin closed the door behind his friend and gently led her by the elbow to a bench against the wall. “Not as much as I used to,” he answered with a wry laugh. “Careful there, I’ve moved a few things around since Vitras had the office.”
“I suppose I’ll accept that.” T’Keva settled herself on the bench and leaned her staff against the wall as Kexed sat next to her, hesitated, and inched a little closer. “I would hate for you to continue exhausting yourself now that you have a few capable people to delegate to.”
Hoping to steer the conversation elsewhere, Kex cleared his throat. “So, what have you been up to since your adventure?” He had envied her the trip little; mostly, he had worried himself sick as soon as he discovered she had left Emberlight with some knight to chase down a group of insurgent bombers, and had continued worrying himself sick until he knew she would be home safe. Never mind the near heart attack he had had upon seeing her after his superior at the time had tried to have her killed.
T’Keva chuckled good-naturedly in response. “Falling back into the old routine, mostly, except that brother of yours always coming over to talk.”
“Kotir?” Kexed felt a surge of jealousy and fought hard to keep the frown out of his voice: he was certain that with her keen hearing, T’Keva had already picked up on the sudden spike in his heart rate. “What about?”
“You, actually. Most of the time. When he’s not being a pest.” She tilted her head quizzically at her friend’s reaction.
Kex’s surge of jealousy abated, making way for mingled confusion as to what Kotir could be up to and relief that his more-exciting older brother was not, apparently, trying to woo T’Keva. He had considered it a possibility, after they had spent so much time together outside the city recently. “Nothing too scandalous, I hope,” he said evenly.
“I honestly doubt there’s a scandalous story out there to tell.” She looked contemplative, and Kexed took a moment to admire the fineness of her features. Not too long a moment, though, lest she somehow manage to hear him staring. “It’s almost as though he’s trying to either convince me or remind me of all of your good qualities.”
“Is it working?” the Foreman asked, only half teasing.
There was no teasing in T’Keva’s voice or expression, though. “I don’t need convincing. Or reminding.”
Kexed thought his heart was going to stop.
He took her near hand in both of his, squeezing a little, and was just opening his mouth to speak when there was a knock on the door.
“I’m sorry, let me just get that,” Kex said, a trace of frustration in his voice as he released the healer’s hand and stood to answer the door. It was Palt, the gremlin whom he had hired to fill his old position. The Foreman sighed and turned to his friend on the bench.
“It looks like I need to go over some things with Palt, and I do have another few hours of other work to do after that – would you like to visit my home this evening?” he asked hopefully.
“I’d love to.” T’Keva smiled as she picked up her staff and rose to her feet. Kex guided her to the door and stood looking at her for a moment.
“I’ll see you tonight,” he said, raising his hand to touch her face but pulling it back before actually doing so.
“See you tonight,” she answered before turning to go, Usumas the silkwing taking off from her shoulder to act as her eyes.
Kexed sighed and turned back to his desk, only to jump in startlement upon seeing Palt, whom he had forgotten was there. Palt, for his part, was watching Kex with intense amusement.
“You’ve got it bad, Boss,” he commented with a bit of a smirk.
“Yes, well … let’s just have a look at those manifests you brought, shall we?”
It was going to be a long few hours.
* * * * *
Kexed paced the floor, more nervous, he knew, than he should be. T’Keva was his friend. His good friend. His very good friend. Never mind that his plan was to ask her to be more than that …
Putting it that way to himself, Kex was nervous all over again.
His nerves here just beginning to devolve into actual panic when there was a rap on the door, and he forced himself to calm down a bit, taking deep breaths as he approached the door to open it.
“Welcome,” Kex said, ushering T’Keva inside. Her fur looked silky, as though it had just been brushed, and he wanted to touch it. “Would you like to let Usumas loose so he can fly around a bit? I haven’t moved anything since your last visit, and I can help guide you if you need it.”
“I’m sure he would like that. Thank you.” T’Keva smiled at him and leaned in to brush her cheek against his in greeting. Feeling his face grow hot, Kexed smiled to himself as he accepted her staff and helped her to untether Usumas, who flapped lazily across the room. He was happy that she trusted him that much, and also that the silkwing wouldn’t be sitting on her shoulder staring at him while they talked.
“May I?” he asked, slipping his arm around her waist to escort her to a seat.
“Please,” she answered, placing her hand over his and resting her head on his shoulder. “Was there something specific you wanted to talk about? You seemed as though there was something on your mind this afternoon,” the healer added as they sat.
“Yes, well,” Kexed started, taking both of her hands in his and clearing his throat several times. T’Keva tilted her head quizzically. He figured he had better start talking before he lost his nerve altogether, and hoped he wouldn’t ramble too much before actually making the point he wanted to make. “I know I’m not the most exciting gremlin, or exciting at all, really. And I’m not a brilliant researcher, or even very smart, or any of the other things that a gremlin ought to be …”
“I think you’re not giving yourself enough credit,” T’Keva interrupted gently with an indulgent little chuckle.
Kex took a deep breath. “Be that as it may,” he said, but was interrupted less pleasantly before he could finish the thought by a knock on the door.
“What, again?” he asked incredulously. He couldn’t believe he had been stopped from asking the same question twice in one day, and considered not actually answering the door. But, it could be important, and he heaved a sigh as he rose to see who it was.
“Hello?” Kex asked as he opened the door. It took him a moment to place the gremlin on the other side, as it had been awhile since the two had met.
“Gista said my sister would be here,” that other gremlin said with a broad grin.
“Is that Vakren?” T’Keva asked from where she was sitting, sounding about as exasperated as Kex felt. “When did you get into town and why didn’t you just go home and wait for me to get back?”
“Just now. And I couldn’t wait to tell you all about what I found, so when Gista said you were here, I was sure that Kexed would be just as interested,” Vakren answered, inviting himself in and crossing the modest room to sit next to his sister before Kex could even close the door.
“Really, Vakren, Kex and I were trying to have a serious conversation. Please - go home, get some rest, and I’ll see you when I get back,” T’Keva scolded, but her brother didn’t seem to hear her, and if he did, he ignored her completely. Rather than apologizing for the interruption and leaving like any reasonable gremlin would, he launched into a homily on the social habits of kleptolisk colonies, which he had been observing in the Aurora Isles for some time before he returned to Emberlight.
Not caring at the moment to be polite, Kex groaned audibly and flopped into a chair, looking over at T’Keva. The mender, for her part, had turned her face in his direction and was wearing an expression of such utter apology that his heart went out to her and, for her sake, he just couldn’t be mad at her brother.
For the time being, though, there didn’t seem to be much to do but let Vakren talk himself out. This was one of those times that drove home for Kexed how little alike T’Keva and he brother were: while she was small, fine-boned and soft-spoken, he was tall and lanky, with a tendency to talk with his hand and a habit of losing his spectacles off of his nose when he was excited … which seemed to be most of the time.
Vakren just kept talking despite several attempts at interrupting him, and Kexed assumed that he must have dozed off at some point, because he awoke to Usumas sitting on his head as Vakren was saying something that ended in “T’Keva and I should be getting home now.”
“Wait, what?” Kex asked blearily, waking up quickly and looking at the time. It was late. Very late.
“Of course. My sister needs her beauty sleep,” Vakren answered, as though it had been Kex keeping her up this whole time.
“She’s quite beautiful enough,” Kexed mumbled grumpily.
“Can’t I just meet you there?” T’Keva asked, trying to stifle the sort of yawn that suggested she, too, had just awakened from a doze.
“Nonsense.” Vakren snatched Usumas off of Kexed’s head and practically picked his sister up.
“I’m really sorry about this,” she said, ducking under Ren’s arm as he shooed her to the door. “I’ll talk to you tomorrow.”
“It’s okay,” Kex answered, handing her staff to her so that Vakren wouldn’t forget it in his apparent excitement to get home. “I’ll see you then.”
Once they had gone and he had closed the door, he could still hear T’Keva’s scolding and complaining falling on deaf ears for a few minutes as they moved down the street, and he wondered whether Vakren had done all of this on purpose.
* * * * *
The next morning, Kexed left a note on his office door and headed towards T’Keva’s place. Her home was also her office, like many of the gremlins (in this borough, at least) who offered services, and he hoped that she wasn’t terribly busy this morning. Healing was one of those unsure professions where the workload tended to vary from one day to the next, depending on how accident-prone the locals were being at the time.
Much to Kex’s dismay, however, T’Keva was not home. He debated for a moment whether or not to drop in at Gista’s place two doors down to see whether she knew when the healer would be returning, despite his being a bit annoyed with the woman for telling Vakren that the T'Keva was at his house. After a few moment’s consideration, he decided to do so: the potential benefit would outweigh the potential for further annoyance.
The potential was definitely still there, however: Gista was a woman of contradictions. For being a nervous, timid sort of gremlin, she was the nosiest busybody Kex knew, and her apparent lack of any kind of common sense hid the fact that she was an absolute genius when it came to working with machines so tiny that several lenses were required to see the parts.
It was Gista’s mate, however, that was sitting in the shop window at the moment, accompanied by their young son. Teret had been a housing engineer of some renown back in the Colony, but was content to live simply here. He was a quiet, serious, dependable sort, and Kex always got the impression that there was much more to the man than he was letting on.
“Morning Kexed,” Teret greeted distractedly. “Or should I be calling you Foreman now?”
“Good morning, and Kexed is fine.” He watched the little gremlinite play with a set of gears for a moment in silence; he had never heard the boy speak, even though he was long past old enough to be doing so. Kex actually felt rather sorry for the family at the moment; they also had a grown daughter who had disappeared in the Clockworks a short time ago. Little wonder Teret was distracted. “I was hoping Gista would know when T’Keva would be back.”
“Oh, they’re both going to be awhile,” Teret answered. Brisli’s twins were jumping off Hexil’s shed onto the jelly cubes again, and one of them broke his leg. Gista went along to help out.”
“Ah, thank you. If that’s the case, I had better get back to work myself.” Kexed waved to Teret and his son, and headed back to his own office. On the way, he realized that he hadn’t asked Teret to tell T’Keva that he had been there, but figured the man would likely do so anyway. Kex wondered whether he should stop back that way later.
He didn’t get a chance. Palt was waiting for him when he reached the office, accompanied by Drekken, the gremlin Kex had hired to replace Zetkit. The Foreman nearly panicked, racking his brain in case he had called a meeting and then forgotten, but it turned out that neither of them were entirely sure how to submit their community maintenance budgets. Kexed invited them in to go over the procedure, but they asked so many obscure questions that it took nearly three hours to explain it fully. At least he knew they were being thorough.
The whole day went like this, with people coming in and out of Kexed’s office, until the Foreman was ready to pull his own ears out by the roots. Things finally slowed down in the late afternoon, at which point he breezed through his normal work in record time and sped out the door before anyone else could show up.
About halfway to T’Keva’s home, Kex nearly ran into the mender herself in his haste.
“Busy day?” he asked, linking his arm with hers.
“Ugh, obnoxiously so. We hadn’t even gotten back from fixing Ketter’s broken leg when Astia came running up to us yelling that her mate had somehow cut off his own ear and it needed re-attached right away. Then Beltren’s youngest swallowed a handful of spare parts. Then Grox set himself on fire while refueling his welding torch … and so on, and so forth. You too?”
“Yeah. Palt was back with Drekken when I got to the office, and by the time I was finished with them, the Regional dropped in to see how I was adjusting to the post. After that was a zoning dispute, which took a few hours, and then a steady stream of maintenance orders and incident reports for the rest of the day.”
“You sound like you didn’t have time for a meal today, either,” T’Keva observed. “Want to go find something to eat?”
“That’s the best idea I’ve heard all day,” Kex replied, realizing for the first time how hungry he was. Too hungry for serious conversation, really, because now that he was aware of it, he wouldn’t be able to concentrate on anything more complicated than his supper.
T’Keva seemed to be in the same mindset, and they made only light conversation over their meal. The two laughed together and were generally enjoying each other’s company so much that they lingered quite late over drinks without either of them breaching the subject of what had been on Kex’s mind the day before. He assumed she was waiting to let him revisit it when he was ready; he was actually afraid that merely attempting to bring it up would attract a distraction, thus ruining an otherwise fine evening.
Eventually, though, the street seemed quiet and the time seemed right, so Kexed set his cup down, smiling at T’Keva’s hand resting over his in the center of the table as he chose his words.
“Hey, bro! What’s up, T’Keva?”
Kex’s head snapped toward his brother so fast and his face was so full of ire that Kotir took a step back, nearly bumping into his best friend Velt, who had been walking half a step behind him. Kotir was a particularly tall gremlin, and bulky; he took his workouts as seriously as he took whacking things with his oversized wrench. He wore his goggles on his head, his jacket around his waist, and a thin, sleeveless shirt stretched over his broad chest. A wanderlust-driven Clockworks diver, he wasn’t used to being intimidated by much of anything, least of all his small, studious younger brother.
“Whoa, uh, sorry to interrupt, but I lost my keys somewhere in Jigsaw Valley,” he said sheepishly, catching the ring of keys that Kex flung at him.
“We should go,” Velt said flatly. He was a gremlin of few words who always carried a snack in the hood he never pulled up over his head. He was only slightly shorter and less bulky than Kotir, but his expertise lay less in combat and more in setting things on fire or blowing them up. He was very good at it.
“Yeah. Yeah, I think we should. Thanks for the keys, bro. We’re just going to … uh, you two have fun.” Kotir and Velt sidled off, leaving Kexed to watch them retreat with relief as T’Keva chuckled in amusement.
“Well, looks like those two are going to be at my place, or Kotir at the very least,” Kex commented dryly. “I suppose Vakren is at yours?”
“Mmmmhmmm,” T’Keva confirmed, leaning her cheek on her hand. “He’ll probably be– ”
KABOOM!
Everyone in the area turned their heads towards the building halfway down the block from which the explosion had issued, just as the blast of hot air blew past them, ruffling their ears and making many of them squint.
“What was it?” T’Keva asked.
“Looks like Goxen’s place,” Kex answered with a sigh. “I’m probably going to have to issue him another citation for detonating explosives in a residential area.”
“I suppose I had better see if he’s injured himself again,” T’Keva commented, standing and reaching for her staff.
Kexed really couldn’t refute that, so thus ended their evening together.