The Zeltivan Monument Series Part 3: The Materials

by **Minerva Agatha Zipporah** on July 22nd, 2012, 3:45 pm

OOC :

51st Day of Summer, 512 AV
Not far from Zeltiva

Tock was bouncing in her seat, giddy with excitement.

A few days ago, she'd bought a wagon, just for this trip. She'd modified it extensively, cutting boards and having Naily, her little hammer on wheels, nail them down as an extra layer on the wagon bed. She'd also crawled underneath, and added several more support beams to the undercarriage. The modifications added extra strength, so she could be sure the wagon would endure the weight of the stone she wanted to bring back.

She had applied for the land at the beginning of the season. Then a few weeks ago, she had traded favors to recruit some of her coworkers to help. Finally, after a somewhat ill-fated scouting trip, she had located the stone she needed, a day's journey from the city.

With the wagon, rented horses, her recruits, and all her Animated babies with her, she finally arrived at the site after traveling all day yesterday and most of this morning. Upon arrival at the site, everyone would see the signs of Tock's precious trip here. Large arrows were carved into the wood of several trees, right off the roadside, indicating where he stone was. A path had already been marked along the trees, a wide mostly straight route with markers along the trees that bordered it. A few trees that were just plain in the way had been cut down by Choppy, but others simply had a route marked to drive around them. The path was also marked with a line of dirt dug up on each side, drawn between the arrow-marked trees to indicate the path the wagon would need to stay inside.

"Awright boys!" Tock called out, hopping down from the wagon. "Lesgo! On the clock, c'mon, sooner we git 'er done, sooner we all goes 'ome!"

Tock got her babies down from the wagon, while the men unloaded and started looking around. Several had brought weapons, in case of danger. Tock's babies could also be quite lethal, if need be.

The first thing she did was carry Cutty, her Animated saw on four metal legs, over to the nearest fallen tree. Choppy, her Animated axe, followed along, waddling along on his stork-like legs. "S'okay baby," she reassured him. "Scary mean lady ain't 'ere today..."

She gave Choppy the commands to start him chopping through part of the fallen tree, then lined Cutty up a few feet away. "Cut baby," she told him. Nothing happened. "Cut... CUT!" Finally, on the third command he started moving, rocking his legs back and forth to drag his saw blade over the tree. Between him and Choppy, they'd be able to cut the tree up into segments pretty quickly. About five feet of the tree trunk was still right in the path of the wagon, and would need to be removed. But Tock planned to use that same wood for helping to build scaffolding beams around the boulders, so they could use a rope and pulley systems to move them into the wagon.

With her babies working, she headed over to get Diggy, her large, Animated shovel on large wagon wheels. While she was petting him and scratching behind his spade, she grinned at Leigo and asked, "Whatcha think, mate? Look like a good'un?" She pointed through the trees, off beyond the marked area where the path led, to the clearing where the rocks were. Several tall granite boulders rested there, alone among the conifers. Likely they had been dragged down through the surrounding mountains by ancient glacier movements, then dropped there, forgotten, standing for millenia before Tock decided to claim them as hers.

LedgerWagon -35 GM.

by **Leigo** on July 23rd, 2012, 12:22 am

Dismounting was probably the best thing that happened to Leigo that day. Never having spent much time around horses, his crotch wasn’t quite used to riding. It had a couple of annoying itching scrapes to show for as well.

The boy was just stuck looking around the soon would be camp in curiosity, but Tock’s voice tugged him out of it. “It does appear so, yes. What will the monument look like anyway?” letting himself be silent soon after, the boy would try and not stare at her many contraptions. She seemed to have a name for each one and treat them as if they were living. Something told the boy he would need to do the same to get on her good side.

Not quite certain how did he get tangled up into all of this anymore, Leigo still remembered certain details. A good example was the respect he held for the girl’s vision – as eccentric as she might’ve been; she knew all too well just how low the town’s morale was. Something like this could easily bring the people closer together and possibly uplift their spirits high enough to endure the present sickness spreading through the populace. Now if she could only speak more clearly so his ears wouldn’t bend over backwards whenever she spoke, Leigo would actually admire the girl. Like it was though, she was closer to interesting than admirable, but all those thoughts were better left unvoiced. After all, had someone poked at him so openly he would’ve cut off their finger – or something equally satisfying.

by **Iris Timandre** on July 28th, 2012, 2:07 am

51st of Summer, 512
The Konti, was just outside of Zeltiva. Within the wildlands. For some strange reason Iris felt the need to go out for a walk, alone. She knew her family had told her never to travel the unknown but Iris decided to be ignorant this once. Not knowing that a Konti slave is priceless to some other races.

The healer had her light-scale fish leather armor on. With her Gladius in the leather sheathe located on her belt. On Iris back rested her backpack, inside was a waterskin, a week's worth of food, and medical supplies.

After a little while Iris heard some strange sounds coming from a direction. Suddenly a woman came into view. One Iris had seen before, the Konti sighed to herself when she figured out it was the same exact woman who made her clean a wall. Iris decided she didn't want to be alone anymore so she walked up to the man and woman.

Loudly Iris said "What are you two doing?" The Konti tilted her head waiting for a reply. Her left hand rested on the hilt of her Gladius. And her right hand held the strap of her backpack.

by **Minerva Agatha Zipporah** on July 28th, 2012, 3:05 am

Tock scratched the back of her head at Leigo's question, giving him a bashful grin. "Oy, well," she said, "ain't quite gots all the details worked out yet. But 'e's gunna be a big'un," she held her arms out wide. "Noble. Tall. Wants fer ta be like, all's 'bout Zeltiva. Proud 'n stuff. Wit' the water, an' the city, an'..." she shrugged, not sure how to put it into words.

"Gunna be a 'beaut, 'e is!" she declared, planting her hands on her hips.

When Iris stepped over, Tock showed no hint of surprise, nor did she ask what the woman was doing out there away from the city. She was in Tock's work zone. Therefore, she was here to work. "'Ere, carry 'ese over ta the rocks," she said, dumping a few coils of rope into the Konti's arms. "Over 'ere," she pointed through the trees to where the large ring of boulders could be seen.

To Leigo she said, "'Elps 'em clear out the brush." She pointed to where some of the men were hacking through shrubs and other underbrush that might be in the way. The plants were tossed aside, past the dug out line Tock had used to mark the 'road'.

"C'mon, baby," she told Diggy, stepping forward. The shovel, mounted on tall wagon wheels, rolled along with her out into the grass. "See the lines?" she told him, pointing. The shovel rotated in place, aiming its spade where she pointed, the glass eyes mounted on the handle and axle studying the marked lines. "See the lines, baby? Dig between the lines, just level." The shovel immediately rolled forward, eyes scanning the ground for lumps to be dug out. When it found a patch of raised earth, it scooped the soil up, then swiveled around to hold it out to Minerva like a child holding up a prize for his Mommy. She grinned and clapped her hands, bouncing on her toes. "Good boy!" she praised him. "Dump it over 'ere," she pointed past the line. Diggy rolled over and dumped the dirt out where she indicated, then returned to find more dirt. He could continue thus until the patch of ground was level. Some of Tock's coworkers had to scoot out of the shovel's way, uncomfortable at the Automaton's presence. One of them yelped and scurried back when the shovel rolled right up to him to dig up a patch near his feet. The man cast a look Tock's way, but wisely kept his mouth shut.

Tock then grabbed some more tools off the wagon and led the way up to the rocks. Soon they'd have a scaffold set up here, and between Choppy and Cutty clearing the trees, and Diggy leveling the ground, they'd be able to roll the wagon right up there.

by **Leigo** on July 29th, 2012, 2:50 pm

Leigo would listen to Tock closely, shrugging right back at her as she finished. She was either still clueless or couldn’t put the thing into words when it came to the monument’s appearance. Both thoughts reassured him some, showing she was actively thinking about it. The city couldn’t ask for much more.

A Konti approached them and Leigo got that uneasy feeling he usually had around aquatic creatures ever since – he needed to move away, so he was grateful when the redhead pulled them away from each other. Leigo would go pluck out the shrub while the albino went for the stones while carrying something. He would suspect it to be ropes, but making sure wasn’t in his best interest.

Boy could feel pain bubbling up in the rib he suspected as cracked. Damn thieves – would it ever heal? It was demeaning to move slower than most of the others, but as long as he didn’t rush it, the process was almost painless. If only he could see himself now, he would probably laugh and mock. And others should do it too. There was no excuse to be so weak, no matter the history of it.

Peace and quiet of his features was soon replaced by silent growling. That damn living shovel thing just couldn’t stop going on his nerves. Why was it even here, there was no doubt people could do it themselves… ALONE!

At least Onuo wasn’t talking – gods knew that would piss him off something major right about now.

by **Iris Timandre** on July 30th, 2012, 9:35 pm

51st of Summer, 512
After Tock dumped the coils of rope into Iris' arms the Konti's eyes widened. This was definetly not the first time she'd been forced to work by the same exact woman. Iris didn't budge, she wanted to know what she'd be working on. If she chose to listen to Tock.

"Since I'm apparently working with you two now, care to tell me exactly what I'm working on?" The Konti raised a blond eyebrow at Tock confused.

Iris didn't take to kindly into being dragged into things. She wasn't angry but she wasn't happy about it either. She was a healer, not a rope carrier. That's what Iris thought. When she came into Zeltiva she didn't want to find work as a rope carrier.

"So, Tock right? I remember seeing you one time when I got lost and ended up at your cottage.....Only to end up cleaning your walls."

Iris remembered that day, it was her very first day in Zeltiva and it was nothing like she thought it'd be. Iris wasn't even supposed to end up in Zeltiva. It was a complete mistake. But the city wasn't as bad as she first thought it was.

by **Minerva Agatha Zipporah** on July 30th, 2012, 11:01 pm

"Oy, whazzer look like, Sook?" Tock replied to Iris. "We's 'aulin' stone what fer ta build my statue! Now c'mon, we's burnin' daylight, we is!"

She was so focused on her work that it didn't once occur to her that Iris wasn't among the people she'd actually 'recruited' for this job. When she had a project going on, the names and faces of those around her blurred together and became irrelevant. She had a vision, and she intended to see it through.

She directed everyone to keep the work flowing, alternating between giving orders to the workers, and giving commands to her Animated babies. Diggy was mostly able to continue on his own, other than fetching his Mommy every now and then to clear away a rock that was too heavy for him. Choppy and Cutty, however, needed constant direction. Cutty especially proved problematic, and when the workers started realizing it, they all gave the Animated saw a VERY wide berth. He often ignored her commands, continuing to cut even after she'd repeatedly told him to stop. There was strain in her eyes each time she had to badger him into obeying. She also had to carry him to each new location, unlike the others who walked on their own. Of course, Cutty COULD walk... but she had scars from the last time he'd been walking somewhere and refused to stop when she ordered him to. The last thing she needed was him hurting someone today...

As the trees were cut, and the wood sliced into workable sizes, Tock directed everyone to carry the lumber to the rocks. Construction went pretty simply, considering most of the volunteers were Tock's coworkers, who were used to this sort of thing on the job. Under her direction, they worked to assemble the wood into a basic frame. They used two trees near the rocks for the vertical struts, and raised wood with ropes and pulleys to create a horizontal crossbeam. They also added some diagonal supports between the trees and the crossbeam, for added strength.

Then Tock and a couple of others climbed up the trees and straddled the beam, moving out towards the center, right above where the main boulder was. More lengths of wood were raised up and nailed perpendicular to the main one, then reinforced with triangular struts.

Once the supports were assembled and in place, they began tying ropes in multiple loops around them, hooking a pulley system in place to get ready for the heavy lifting.

"Awright, someone bring the wagon on down!" Tock called out from her perch up on the cross beam. Then, realizing her babies were still in the way, she started shouting to them, "Diggy, come stand 'ere fer Mommy!" she pointed to a spot nearby. "Choppy, forward... left... forward... stop!" Diggy was smarter than the others, and could figure out his own way where he was going. The others, however, needed to be directed every step of the way, for they lacked the ability to truly think for themselves. Before long they were directed out of the way, with the workers casting them distrustful looks and keeping well away from the dangers Automatons.

OOC :

by **Leigo** on August 6th, 2012, 11:43 am

oocI sort of fell asleep yesterday before I could finish. Anyway - here it (finally optional) is.

Before Leigo could even say they were finished with the brush and all its cousins, he could see people moving forward. Chopping down timber and getting it to the boulders seemed to be the game. He too took up one end of the downsized tree. Jesting through his abdomen, the rib would remind him just how weak he was compared to his usual, already less than strong self.

Regardless of this he’d endure it. Without voicing much, he’d simply growl at each sudden movement due to either terrain or his co-carrier misunderstanding their direction. As soon as they let the damn thing down, he’d stop trying to help around and wait for the rest of it to get to him. There were quite enough of them to go around. No need for him to do the heavy lifting just yet. Were it under other circumstances, he wouldn’t have been able to stand by so idly. Yet this was a community project, so to speak, and the blond could rest for a bit while others worked. It wasn’t for him, it was for the city – and damn straight the city would need to work on itself if it was going to help itself recover and prosper!

Before he could ever realize it, Leigo would notice just how distracted he had been as the beams were already being placed in their lots. They would soon start to pull the wood up, but that wouldn’t faze the boy either. It simply wasn’t the best job for him in his current state. As much as one loved something else, self appreciation was always important too. And Leigo sure took the last one seriously… very, very seriously.

Finally spotted by one of the construction workers, he’d feel something showed into his hands. Looking down he’d see a hammer and some overgrown, hybrid nails. After being pointed in the right direction (twice), he would start hammering the damn things into the beam with less than decent speed. He’d call out to Tock, who he knew was somewhere above him.

“Oi, redhead!” taking the time to try and spot her “Where’d those guys come from?” he’d wait for her to turn and point out there – to her – well whatever they were. Sure he could’ve just called them things, but after she called herself their ‘mommy’, it sounded less than appropriate. Hell there wasn’t anything appropriate about this whole situation. Who the hell mothers a bunch of objects mashed together with the ability to fight? Truly, that last ability was their saving grace, yet the still didn’t appeal to the boy in the least.

by **Iris Timandre** on August 8th, 2012, 6:50 am

51st of Summer, 512
Iris was confused again. She knew nothing about hard labor and all of the things Tock apparently knew of. She could clean a floor or two but this was just not up Iris' lane.

The Konti dragged herself over to the rocks and dropped the rope right by their side. Thoughts of escape rang through Iris' head but she didn't want to disappoint Tock for some odd reason. So, Iris stood by the rocks waiting for Tock to yell another command out loud.

"Done, Tock. Anything else you'd like me to do over here?" Iris prayed that Tock wouldn't make her do any real heavy lifting. Iris was paranoid because she knew she wasn't the strongest thing walking around Zeltiva.

occ; Sorry about the post :[

by **Minerva Agatha Zipporah** on August 8th, 2012, 6:28 pm

"Oy, s'Tock, ya wanker!" Tock shouted down to Leigo. She couldn't stand it when people called her 'red' or 'redhead.' She'd been teased about her hair far too often as a kid, and while she certainly didn't mind the way it made her stand out, she didn't want to have people singling her out for it, either. It would be the same for her if someone called her 'sweetcheeks' because of her ass, or 'mounds' because of her breasts. She was proud of her body; all the construction work she did kept her thin and in good shape. She didn't mind wearing tight pants or a low cut blouse to show her attributes off a little either... but the moment someone focused on those attributes, instead of on her, she got pissed off.

She looked and saw him pointing at her Automatons. "'Ose're my babies," she called to him from her perch on the support frame. "Dun worry... 'ey ain't gunna 'urt nobody. 'Ey's jus' bein' good boys fer Mommy." The Automatons were currently sitting still off to the side, staying out of the way as she had ordered them.

Soon the wagon was brought over, and Tock climbed down one of the ropes to descend from her perch. Hand over hand she lowered herself down, slipping a few times, but thankfully her leather gloves stopped her hands from suffering any rope burn. She landed a bit heavily on the back of the wagon below, holding onto the rope for a moment longer to keep her balance. Noticing that Iris seemed to need something to do with her hands, Tock told her, "Oy, Sook, what's 'bout ya start us up some lunch, aye? I could use a good tucker. 'Ere's some extra scrap wood over 'ere fer a fire," she gestured to the side where all the extra scraps they'd cut off were lying around. "'Ere," she said, grabbing a sack off the back of the wagon and tossing it to the Konti. It had some of the food supplies they'd brought along for the trip.

The crew seemed eager for something to eat, and voiced their agreement, urging Iris to cook something. Tock didn't have a clue if the Konti knew how to cook, but she wasn't picky about what she ate.

Meanwhile she tossed one coiled end of rope to Leigo and said, "Let's git 'er done. We can rig 'er up good, 'en 'as a tucker, 'en gits 'er onta the wagon, aye?" She started directing the workers to wrap ropes around the boulder she'd chosen, one taller than a man and quite wide. It took a bit of effort to find the best ways to secure the rope, tucking it around ridges and depressions in the stone for a secure grip. Once the ropes were adequately secured, she had the men dig out the dirt around the base of the boulder, exposing the underside. They dug a wide patch out between the boulder and the wagon, so that the boulder started to naturally tip in that direction, held upright only by the ropes. They'd be able to lean it into the wagon with little effort, letting physics do the job for them. It was just a matter of working slow, and keeping things coordinated.