Peek: Two New Crewmates

Warnd nervously eyes the fire elementals, hoping they don't notice him and his friends hiding around a large rock in the volcanic area. For once, Lem is as apprehensive as he is, with only Marle looking eager. "There's definitely a couple of them out there. You're sure these fire Resist potions are going to be enough?" whispers the elf, not liking their chances if the potions aren't up to snuff.

Marl nods. "Old Staiven said it's a tried and true formula that he hadn't had a chance to dig out in a while."

"If they're as good as the aqua affinity ones, we should be golden," comments Lem, trying to be positive, but his nerves can be heard in his voice. Warnd sighs and tries to steel himself.

"Get one to grab you, stuff it into a crucible, block it with another, repeat until we have enough," he reminds himself of the plan. He'd call it crazy and stupid, but he came up with it after Marle said she wanted to tame a couple basilisks for her class. Actually, it's still crazy and stupid, and even more crazy that Marle wants to get not just one, but two of the odd dragons for her class!

But it's the best plan they have. They even talked with a rancher antkin about how to do it, and he agreed that it'd probably work. But now, peeking around the rock at the blob of living flame, Warnd really wishes the antkin had called it a terrible plan. Well, they're here, and the potions are drank. No sense wasting time.

He pulls a small clump of coal from his pocket and tosses a small piece near the elemental, and is both relieved and terrified that it actually seems attracted to the fuel. Even better, the others meandering around don't notice the one break away, not even after it clearly spots the small party and starts dragging itself forward quickly with grown gooey tentacles.

Despite his instincts yelling for him to run, he instead holds out a hand, slapping at the nearest psudopod. Ordinarily, that'd be a very poor idea, as the elemental quickly latches on and wraps around his limb. It feels warm, but not like the searing pain he would expect if the potion wasn't working. He quickly moves and sticks his hand in the crucible Lem is holding, and with his friends' help, they quickly scrape it off and slam another crucible over it, giving them another spot to stick an elemental.

Marle holds the crucible down, making sure the elemental can't push it off and escape, and soon gives her friends a huge smile. "It worked! Let's get more!"

Warnd nods and starts luring another out, then another and another. The elementals may be deadly, but they're not especially smart. They happily wrap around his hand and don't notice he's not burning away until after they get scraped into a crucible and trapped. They gather a good ten elementals before they run out of room, and Lem stands in the cart, holding the crucibles as Marle hauls it back towards Thedeim's territory.

"Now we just need to find a basilisk or two..." comments Warnd, surprised at how smoothly things are going.

"I still can't believe you want basilisks," comments Lem, which Marle shrugs at.

"They're the best for hauling that Thedeim has. I might be able to do something with a swarm of armory bees or something, but the harness that would take would be... a mess. The harness for a basilisk can be a lot simpler. It just needs to be able to handle the heat."

"I hope the antkin will be willing to trade enough buffalo hide for it." Warnd can't think of a better material to try to make a harness, and neither could Marle.

"I shouldn't need that much... but yeah, I hope so, too. I dunno how much they want to charge for it yet."

Lem shrugs. "I think you might be pleasantly surprised. They already have their armor for dealing with heat, so I don't think it'll be in much demand. I wouldn't be surprised if they've only processed it to help train a tanner or leatherworker."

"I hope so," admits Marle. "We've been making a nice bit of extra coin together, but I don't have all that much to spend."

"Well, we need to tame the things, first. Where to?" Warnd eyes the entrance to Thedeim, wondering just how they're going to help their friend with her tame.

"We'll stick to the tunnels near here and... hope. If we bring them deeper into the dungeon, the wyrms might come make sure the elementals are dealt with. But if we stay near the outskirts, I'm hoping they'll leave us alone."

Without any better ideas, they do just that. They spot a few wyrms poke their heads into the tunnel, looking like they're wondering why there's a bunch of elementals around the party, but they thankfully don't attack. As the time drags on, and Lem starts wondering how long the potions will last, a basilisk finally rounds the corner and gives the three a measuring look.

Lem puts his worries aside and carefully hands Marle one stack of crucibles, and she slowly approaches the denizen. "I've got a treat for you..." she says clearly, hoping to keep the basilisk calm. It watches as she tips the stack over, carefully lowering it to the ground before she removes the capstone crucible. Her hands are hardly out of the way before the basilisk's long tongue darts in and captures the elemental, quickly dragging it back to the disturbing mouth.

"That's a good basilisk. I've got a few more. Would you like to come home with me? I need some help to be able to move things." The denizen tilts its head as she talks, probably not understanding. It looks happy to eat the next couple elementals, with Marle shuffling closer and closer each time. Finally, there's only one elemental left.

She takes a deep breath and this time reaches inside, letting the elemental wrap her hand before she pulls it out. "Here you go, last one." The basilisk looks more confused as she holds out the invader, looking uncertain if it should just lash with its tongue or not. "Here, just open up," she suggests as she gets close enough to touch the denizen. It carefully opens its unsettling maw, and though Warnd can see more than a little fear in her movement, Marle doesn't hesitate to stick her hand inside.

The long tongue easily scoops the invader off her hand, leaving her unharmed. She smiles and pulls back, letting the mandibles close before she starts patting its head. "See? That's a good basilisk. I'll take good care of you, I promise. Now, do you think you can find a friend? I'd like to have two to help pull the cart."

The basilisk makes a happy hissing sound, its long tail slowly wagging as Warnd and Lem stare at the scene. The basilisk dives into the side of the tunnel, probably to go find another one for Marle to tame, and she returns to the two as it does so.

"That went well," comments Lem, earning a wide smile from Marle as she nods.

"Just one more and we'll be good to head home!"

"How're you going to feed them?" asks Warnd, looking where the thing melted its way through the rock. Where Lem's comment earned a smile, Warnd's earns a nervous look.

"I... think I'll need to come back down here every so often? I don't know how often they need to eat just yet," she admits.

The elf snorts in amusement as he spots two basilisks melt through the tunnel wall, one of whom is the one Marle already tamed. "Hopefully not more than once a week. We can bring them along on our delves without too much problem, but I don't know if we can delve more often than that."

The kobold looks relieved as she accepts the other stack of crucibles from Lem. "I don't think they'll eat more than that. And if we delve this deep every week, maybe we'll be able to try out the forest eventually!"

Warnd and Lem smile at that idea as Marle starts taming the other basilisk, each member of the party recognizing how ridiculous that sounds. Not long ago, the idea would have been unimaginable. But now, it seems merely ambitious rather than impossible. With time and each other, nothing feels insurmountable anymore.