witchcraft and sorcery

[witchwatcher]

For a brief moment, in a certain part of fairyland there is a tear that leads to the cold sky above a snow-covered hilly forest somewhere in the mortal world.

Comments

[imeanforever]

"I'm not going to hurt you."

[witchwatcher]

Scatter believes it. Mostly. If she was going to control her, the first word out of her mouth would have been 'stop' not 'you're wearing your name'.

"Even so. Not like I had much choice, but I wish I had at least thought of it." Sigh. "I'm gonna go back in a couple minutes. Anything you want to pass along to Copycat while I'm here?"

[imeanforever]

"Nothing in particular."

[witchwatcher]

"Okay. Thanks for the healing."

Time to go buy some earplugs. Or maybe to try and get herself cursed - voluntary curses that are still beneficial in some way do exist, and 'unable to hear orders' probably isn't even the weirdest thing the good cursers have been asked for. Though it would make military service awkward.

She rests for a minute and then disappears.

[imeanforever]

And Promise goes back into her tree.

[witchwatcher]

Four days later, Scatter and Copycat appear again and look for Promise.

[imeanforever]

Promise is harvesting roots. "Hi."

[witchwatcher]

"Hi. Scatter can't hear you right now, by the way. Chatterbox's special overrides earplugs, though. Since you saw her nametag, a good test would be if I try to relay an innocuous order from you to her."

[imeanforever]

"Pat your head," Promise says.

[witchwatcher]

Scatter pats her head. "So, that worked." She's louder than usual. Probably because she can't hear herself. "Do we go find a Neuroi now?"

"I think so, yes. Unless you have stuff to finish first, Promise?"

[imeanforever]

"I'd like to eat lunch. After that I'm all set."

[witchwatcher]

"We'll wait here. I brought a book. Don't want to go home, Scatter can't really spare the mana."

[imeanforever]

"Okay. Should I turn you invisible?"

[witchwatcher]

"May as well skip it. Floating books are probably suspicious, and we'll be staying right here anyway."

[imeanforever]

"Okay."

Promise roasts her roots with sorcery and eats them and then says "Ready when you are."

[witchwatcher]

"Recon said today's wave of little ones were heading to the outskirts of Berlin. I can track them at range, so we can appear just outside the city and we won't have trouble finding one. Promise, your wings will be odd but if you say you're a transformed human people will probably take it at face value. We probably won't have to talk to anyone."

The two Witches mount their Steelwings. And all three people are in the air on a chilly morning.

There must be quiet a lot of humans down there, if the sheer number of buildings and farms is any indicator.

Copycat scans the horizon. "It'll take a minute to find the nearest lone Neuroi. Don't want a group of 'em yet, don't want to risk fighting a big nasty one with only two Witches."

[imeanforever]

"Okay."

[witchwatcher]

"Scatter, three hundred forty miles bearing two ninety four." Poof.

[neuroihive]

That thing is probably the Neuroi. It screeches, a shrill unpleasant sound, and turns in their direction.

[imeanforever]

And it is named Neuroi. Click.

"Stop," Promise tells it firmly.

[neuroihive]

It stops screeching. It stops moving forward through the air. It stops waving its... Arms?

[witchwatcher]

"It worked. Excellent."

[imeanforever]

"Do you want it to do anything else, or just stay put?"

[witchwatcher]

"See if it can tell us about how Neuroi work? We didn't think they had language, but obviously they do since it understood you."

[imeanforever]

Promise tells Neuroi the Neuroi, "Say 'hello'."