therookery | crystal

( Behold, a new voice on the crystals. Soft, good-humoured, with an accent that sounds Scandinavian / relative equivalent. The crystal catches a quiet breath of laughter before she speaks. )

I don’t know if you’re really lucky to have an engineer turn up, or if I’m really unlucky that I need to figure out the machinery.

I mean, learning about the infrastructure of a city in a whole different world isn’t even a “once in a lifetime” kind of opportunity, and pretending I’m some sort of genius at kinetic motion just because I know some mechanisms from home would be pretty fun, but…

Wow.

( Maybe that sounds a little weightier than her first "wow.")

Oh, I'm Abella. Riftwatch, you’re gonna have to have a lot more ramps by the time I’m done with you. Somewhere has to accommodate wheelchair users, even if it’s some kind of fairy tale world.

( Hmmm. )

Wait, can you just make them float, here? (More softly, ) Flying wheelchairs would explain the lack of ramps. I mean, this crystal thing is remarkable, so... let me know if I don't need to think about the ramps.

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Make hauling a bit easier,

[ does he agree with clarisse? yes. does he feel a little compelled to stick up for the new guy? also yes. it'd be handy to bring handcarts down the occasional, interior steps. and they're already rebuilding —

(one more wish for their infinite list. what's the harm in that? gotta have something to get you through.) ]

What brings it to mind?

I just came from a place where I saw a woman strap a wheelchair to her back and drag herself up stairs and ladders, in a… combat context, and a world with a lot of disfigured soldiers returning to civilian life. Making a facility easier to navigate is beneficial in emergencies, including times when elevators are unsafe to use.

In practical terms, I’d need to see schematics for the keep if we have them, assess damage, find out what the goals and priorities are. Ramps can be useful for ensuring accessibility for horse-drawn vehicles, or large objects being moved by manpower, so there are some that might merit prioritisation during earlier stages.

This was just an attempt to put myself out there and thinking of something to say that happened to draw on recent experience.

Must've been pretty rough t'go through all that.

[ if she was near enough to see desperation, she was involved, by action or inaction. be one way to squeeze a little control back out of the world. ]

Emergency's a good instinct. Had to evacuate a lot of folks when the towers came down. A few got stranded — griffons couldn't always get in clean. Be a real blessing if we'd some help with that. Maker willing, won't need it again.

[ but: stairs, ladders. at least one broken leg. ]

I’m not the one still there.

( She says it lightly enough, but you don’t need a degree or experience in interrogations to know it was, in fact, rough. )

Being prepared for multiple scenarios is important. There’s been a lot of advancements in mechanisms that prevent mass-casualty and injury events. I mean, I think it was less than fifty years ago that panic bars were invented? That happened because of a tragic crush accident in Rondon, over a hundred children died. I don’t know all the details of the mechanism, but the concept can help develop something that’s of use here, and it helps make emergencies more survivable, it’s worth doing.

Probably not the number one priority either, but it’s stuff you can at least keep in mind when figuring out how everything fits together.

Yeah. Feel you for that,

[ left enough people up north. by action, or inaction, you squeeze a little control back out of the world.

and then she's talking. most of it goes over his head. he's a disfigured soldier, not an engineer. speaking of: ]

You met our Master of Works yet?

Some things are awful no matter where you are.

( War, being the victim of those in power, being pitted against others in a battle royale - universally bad. )

Not yet, this is my first day at the keep. Where can I find them?

Tent's up in the main yard — name of Barrow. Busy shoring up our defenses, but reckon he could always do for ideas.

Barrow. ( She’s writing it down. ) Thank you.

You’re not secretly Barrow, are you?

Don't worry, got about half a foot on me. Name's Cedric. If it's your first day, you get a chance t'sit down yet? Breathe?

Not yet, I was busy playing with the crystal and making a bad impression.

( ha ha ha
Alll-mer help her it was meant to be at least a little bit playful )

Reckon you're ahead of schedule, then. Took me about a week.

[ joking. sort of. a slight pause, before he adds: ]

Not a bad thing to stay busy. Going from — everything, to nothing like this, 's a lot. But if you need a break, there's a pot of something going in the kitchen yard.

It comes with the profession, we need to be as efficient as possible.

( She'll take the joke. )

Oh? ( It's hardly unique, communal sharing and pulling together, but when they're speaking so directly about the need to stay busy, it highlights exactly why she needs to stay busy. )

That sounds nice. I think I need to get to work as soon as possible, but I'll stop by when I can. Is this a regular thing?

Cook does a few meals a day. Surroundings are... well, you already heard.

[ tinge of a smile on the end of that ]

Any rate, I'm posted up in the Prayer Garden. You need anything, swing by, 's the one with the statue.

-- Are there multiple Prayer Gardens?

( Or multiple gardens? She feels like there's definitely multiple statues. )

Hand of th'Maker's in every garden, [ has the rote drone of another joke — ] But there's one grows for the Infirmary. Had a tree fall, otherwise didn't knock out too bad.

I get the feeling I need to learn who the Maker is.

( And maybe check to see if there's any moon gods she needs to keep an eye out for. Hopefully not literally, though apparently you never know with the moon. )

And probably you, too. What is your name, helpful stranger?

He, uh. Made the world,

[ and fumbling to explain that now may, itself, explain why he's not a chantry brother ]

Made all of us. It'll be in the reading. Anyway, 's Cedric.

[ lot of folks yelling, facts coming hard and fast, and more on her mind besides. (i'm not the one still there.) so it's nothing personal that she'd forget. if it feels personal — well. that's his problem. ]

But you don't gotta worry on that. Luck getting settled.

That explains the name.

( Is she teasing him? Only a little. Gently. )

Well, I appreciate your help. I hope we have a chance to talk again soon, Cedric.

crystal

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