ponyville Outlaws and Alchemists (Ask for invite)

[Aisede]

Rose tilted her head to the side, furrowing her brows- before doing a full on barrel roll and facing him head on again. "I'm afraid I am unfamiliar with this game, 'Go Fish.' how does one play it? Does it involve actual fish?" 

 

If it did, she was in trouble, because while she could just create some simulated piscine life forms, she'd have a harder time locating and obstracting actual fish.

[PyroBlaze]

Vera paused for a moment at her questions, his mouth moving with no sound as he tried to process what she had said. After a moment, he just started laughing, forgetting about his work for the moment as he tried to catch his breath. 
 

“No, there’s no actual fish involved.” He said after his laughter had died down a bit. “It’s a foal’s game, really. The point is to get groups of four, which you normally do by asking the opponent if they have a specific number of card, like 3s. If they have any, they give them to you and you go again. Otherwise you draw a card and it’s the next player’s turn.” He explained as best he could from what he remembered. 

[Aisede]

So it has elements of Liar's Dice in it, but it's more of a trade? Curioser and curiouser. "So if I have three fours, and you have one, and I ask you if you have a four, then you must give it to me- and under those conditions, I win the match?" 

 

It's such a simple game. In her first life, her foals never wasted their time on such trifle things, instead learning life lessons and adopting vital skills that they would later use to thrive in the harsh environment they grew up in. 

[PyroBlaze]

“Well, the game’s not over until you run out of cards, and you put all the sets down when they are complete. When the game ends, the one with the most sets wins.” He clarified, starting his work again and soon enough he finished. It wasn’t exactly a mansion, but it was functional to keep things out. It was good enough for him, especially as just temporary shelter. 

[Aisede]

"So it is... A juvenile form of Rummy," Rose confused, appraising the hippogriff 's work with a critical eye.

 

She swam around its circumference, studying its many angles and dimensions. It was a far cry from the best she'd seen, but she supposed it would have to do until she could find a more competent carpenter. "And this will keep me, my love, and my foal safe?"

 

She had to clarify, especially considering who it was for. Rose could survive easily without any sort of shelter, but Aloe and her egg... They deserved something more. 

[PyroBlaze]

“I mean, it’s nothing fancy, obviously. Should work just fine as a shelter to keep stuff out though.” Vera shrugged, looking over at the mare. He swam over to the door, opening it up and looking around the inside. He hadn’t really been making this with three creatures in mind, but they would probably all fit in there. 

[Aisede]

She also followed him in, looking around. She didn't seem overly confident in what she saw, but she didn't voice those right that very moment. "I'll have to make renovations some other time, but it does seem sturdy enough, and the environment of this lake is rather static. No hostile marine life that I detected, and few enough ponies visit the lake that our discovery is low."

 

She turned towards Vera, offering a hoof with a profession demeanor. "You have done a sufficient job, sir."

[PyroBlaze]

“Well, I was working under the impression this was just a demonstration, not actually a home for multiple creatures. Not like I’m experienced making those anyways though.” He said, accepting the hoof and shaking it. “How much longer on this potion, anyways? I wanna be ready to let the shard take over.”

[Aisede]

Hmm... Well the potion should only last an hour, it took her about twenty minutes to gather the materials, and it only took about half that long to assemble the sample structure. 

 

"Surprisingly, we haven't been down here for more than thirty minutes at the least, so it should still have about half an hour left in it. We could spend that time restructuring your demo building into something more sturdy, if you like. It would definitely be appreciated, and I can pay you afterwards if it's liveable."

[PyroBlaze]

“Very well, I don’t see anything better to do.” Vera shrugged, getting to work again. It shouldn’t be too hard to do, especially with a magic user helping out. Fortifying the structure was a simple enough task, though he wasn’t entirely sure how to make it more livable. He wasn’t exactly an expert on how modern amenities worked, especially not underwater ones. 

[Aisede]

Unfortunately, with two ponies who didn't know shit about proper housing, the end result was still rather... Lackluster, but it was a damn sight better than what had been standing there before.

 

Satisfied with her own work- and especially the modifications to the room containing the modified Maretonian ruins, she gave the entire structure one last appraisal before nodding.

 

At that exact moment, the potion's effects also began to wear off, the hippogriff very quickly reverting to his terrestrial form as the magic binding his metamorphosis was undone by entropy. 

 

--

 

Before even a drop of water could enter into his air-breathing lungs, Rose reported the two back onto dry land a short distance away from the pool she'd had created, briefly glancing at the rack of extra bottles. None of them were missing- as if she'd ever expect somebody to steal them- so she redirected her attention to Vera with a cordial smile.

 

"I must appologize for the abrupt change in scenery, I simply didn't wish for you to accidentally get any water in your lungs. I know how difficult that can be for terrestrial mammals."

[PyroBlaze]

One second Vera was examining their work, the next he was on land again and rapidly returning to his land form. He had to blink a couple times again, looking around to get his bearings. Seemed they were back at the shop, which was fine by him. 
 

“No problem, thanks.” He said, rolling his shoulders a bit as the changes finalized and he was back to his land form. “I suppose now is as good a time as any to do that card game, and discuss the payment for the last part of that job.”

[Aisede]

"excellent idea! I actually had something special in mind, if you would be interested in some adventure on the side ~ please, follow me inside." Rose would lead Vera past the front counter, and to a closed door.

 

The room beyond the door was not the room that was usually there, but Vera didn't need to know that as the gestured inside.

 

There was a table and a set of chairs in there, with an otherwise homely decor. A deck of cards lay on top of the table, awaiting use. 

[PyroBlaze]

Vera raised an eyebrow at the mention of adventure, following her to the door and peeking into the other room. It seemed safe enough, just a table and chairs in a quaint room. He let her walk into the room first though, just in case. 

[Aisede]

Noticing his skepticism with a roll of her eyes, she went ahead inside and continued talking. "Have you heard of Marais De Fue? It's a hazardous region with monsters, fire geysers, and a rich trading economy- rich in materials, not neccesarily wealth."

 

As she took a seat herself at the table, she tossed him an expectant look. "I have a friend there. 'Nautilus' is her name, and she has something to give you in exchange for your services. How much do you think fire hydra blood is worth in the local market? Or their scales. Teeth." She shrugged. "Any part of that creature, really. Or other strange and awesome fauna and flora."

[PyroBlaze]

Vera followed her into the room, taking the other chair and sitting in it. He looked at her for a bit after she was done speaking, thinking about what she had said. 
 

“That depends, what kind of services would this ‘Nautilus’ require? Harvesting a hydra is no simple task, especially in a region like that. I am not in the business of risking my life unnecessarily.” He said, beginning to shuffle the cards. 

[Aisede]

The moment he sat his flank down, she picked up the deck and began to shuffle it with a flourish, causing the cards to perform figure-eights and other such gravity defying tricks before rejoining their paper pedros. "Oh, no, she's already taken care of that. She's a monster hunter. She just needs needs your help harvesting some plants or transporting some goods to the market. In return, you get to keep a share of what she makes." 
 

The cards did one more mundane trick before settling down, whereupon she began dealing the cards face down. "Or you could keep the raw materials for whatever reason. Fire hydra scales are a lovely shade of red and would make for interesting decor."

[PyroBlaze]

Vera rolled his eyes as the deck was taken from him so Rose could do it with more style, but he said nothing about it as she talked. Well, the fact the hydra was already dealt with certainly made things easier, and it made him actually consider taking the job. He remained silent as she dealt the cards, aside from some hums of thought, though her mention of using the scales for decor did make him laugh slightly.

 

"Do I strike you as the kind of guy to settle down anywhere long enough to need decor? Nah, at most I might use them for armor or some other gear. Still, that does sound doable, I'll probably head that direction after I'm done here." He said, looking down at the pile of cards that had ended up in front of him. "So, what game we playing?"

[Aisede]

"Rummy," she said simply, finishing doling out seven cards each before flipping up the top card on the deck: 9 of clubs

 

"Five-hundred point game. I assume you know how to play?" Discreetly, she tucked the two Discords back into the card box, since those weren't a part of this game.