[Carrie] Chapter 3: The Leaders of Thura Forest

[Erynn]

Carrie also nods her head in agreement with Jasna's assessment. "She seems like she can't judge a social situation to save her life, but never fails to notice when somebody needs a friend, even if they don't yet.", Carrie acknowledges readily, then briefly changes her tone and demeanor, confiding in the two women beside her, "I'm concerned about how she'll handle the upcoming conflict though, given how she dislikes seeing others in distress..."

Carrie's attention then turned to their destination itself, the mention of its quality reminding her of the first evening she had spent in this new world.

"They are surprisingly luxurious, given the apparent level of technology in this world.", Carrie noted with some degree of interest, continuing her own assessment, "I wasn't expecting to find anything that even approached facilities in my world, but however they've done it, they're functionally the same."

Despite not having quite arrived at the baths yet, Carrie's conversation with her new companions was already helping her to unwind, and her mind was once more returning to its natural inquisitive state.

[Throndir]

"She'll be fine, and, well, if she struggles, we're there for her too, you know? We're all... 'close'." Jasna hesitated when she said 'close'.

"Family?" Eveleen suggested. Jasna shrugged, though there was a barely visible blushing to her dark features. Eveleen ended up smiling at the reaction.

"Yes... family..." Jasna said awkwardly. She cleared her throat. "Anyways, the Lamia Priestesses keep their tunnels prepped and ready for the hero. There are at least a hundred Priestesses here, each of them routinely doing tasks. I believe it's part of their calling. Even before you were summoned here, the Priestesses, for hundreds of years, have been doing something similar in preparation for the hero. Cleaning, preparing things to eat, ensuring the bathing house is ready for use. Synithise can tell you more about it of course, but they all have their own roles. Since you've been summoned into this world, they're all probably on overdrive to ensure everything here is perfect. More than likely, they have their mages replacing the water in the pool at various intervals through the day, and heating it up too with similar magic."

[Erynn]

Knowing that Synithise would have no end of support in trying times was a source of significant relief for Carrie, even if she still wondered how the woman would cope. Jasna's reaction to Eveleen's gentle prodding on the subject of considering everyone family brought a smile to Carrie's lips just the same as it did the dullahan matriarch. The mildly embarrassed reaction, according to Carrie, should she be asked, could be aptly described as adorable.

At the mention of magic being used to prepare the bathhouse for use, Carrie makes her first observation as to the nature of magic within this new world.

"It seems like magic is often used for tasks my world would employ technology to accomplish.", Carrie ponders aloud, "Has magic perhaps solved the sort of problems here that would have spurred further research and development in a world without it? Or has it become a sort of 'technology' in its own right?"

As she ponders the use of magic for the purposes of a basic task like replacing and heating water, Carrie arrives at the group's destination and steps in, searching for towels and a bathrobe like she had last time. It doesn't take her long to remember where they are and step into one of the nearby alcoves for some privacy while she changes. As Carrie disrobes, she has a sudden thought that strikes her which, as disconcerting as it may be for her to ponder, causes Carrie to look down, searching first for the old frag scar on her right side, then for any sign of injury sustained during the battle that led to her being in this new world in the first place. Carrie knew that if she had died in her world, particularly given that she had called in an air strike on her own position, it was highly unlikely that she had retained that physical form, and was likely now inhabiting a new one provided by whatever entity it was that had sent her here. Carrie reasoned, whether correctly or incorrectly, that the presence or absence of her old scars would tell her exactly what the nature of her current physical form was.

[Throndir]

"I'm not sure if you would call it technology, but magic has made everyone's lives easier. When we require fresh water, someone gifted with water magic creates it. When we need fire or to heat anything, fire mages can shine. When we need construction works, earth magic helps in the process. Air magic too has it's uses, cooling things, or drying things combined with fire magic. It's said a human country that existed here in this new world a decade ago created things called 'magitools', which were small items that did convenient things. Our forest hasn't personally seen one though, and with that country's destruction the creation of such tools are much more limited now. Many of them the Felencorp now own as well."

Looking at your body, it was scar-free. Any wound that you may have suffered in your life, or any scar or disfigurement back in your own world has vanished. Your body was at a form as if you had never injured yourself, you yourself felt like at the peak of your health.

[Erynn]

"Yeah, that's what I was afraid of.", Carrie replied from within the alcove as she wrapped a towel around herself, "Magic is standing in for all the technological advancements that were made in my world. With no need to develop more advanced technology scientific progress has stalled."

Carrie steps out of the alcove headed for the water, a look or mild irritation on her face. Discovering that her body didn't bear any of her old scars was a mixed bag of emotions for her. On the one hand, her side wouldn't ache whenever a low-pressure weather system decided to pass overhead. On the other, her scars told a story about who she was and served as a constant reminder of where she had been and what she had lived through. Additionally, the absence of those scars told her that she couldn't take anything about her current situation or condition for granted. It occurred to Carrie that she now had absolutely no idea as to the extent of her physical capabilities. She makes a mental note to rectify that issue at the earliest opportunity.

"We have a saying in my world.", Carrie explains, slipping into the warm water and leaning back to rest against the side with an arm up on the surface surrounding the pool, "Necessity is the mother of all invention."

Carrie notices rather suddenly that a slippery bar of soap she hadn't seen shot out from beneath her arm and into the water. Carrie at first writes the incident off and ignores it, but a few moments later, she suddenly freezes, turns her head to give the floating bar of soap a glare that could only be described as simultaneously incredulous, and frustrated, then immediately wades over to retrieve the bar of soap and begins examining it thoroughly. She turns it over several times, scratches it with a fingernail, and applies force with her fingers to the surface to determine how hard and brittle the substance might be. Carrie then turns to Synithise and asks a question in a tone of voice that said, 'If the answer is what I think it is, everything suddenly changes.'

"Synithise, does the process used to produce this soap leave you with a clear liquid byproduct?"

The expression on Carrie's face was intense and expectant, but also tentatively excited about what the answer might be.

[Throndir]

"I admit, the sciences were never a strong suit for most of the people of the Darmona Kingdom... We simply had no real reason to. The Felencorp would probably be ahead..."

The soap that you took and scratched was softer than the type you would find back on earth. It was similar to some lye soaps you had used however. When you asked Synithise about the soap, the lamia priestess looked towards you.

"W-well... umm... I don't actually know." Synithise admitted as she played in the pool. "Most of the things we have here are given to us by Jasna's tribe, or the trader that comes by once a year. The soap..."

"... is something we gave the Lamia Priestesses yes." Jasna said. "We don't produce a lot of it... soap isn't a commodity the people of Darmona use often, but the process is simple too... Wood ash, and water, boiled, followed by tallows. With just the right amount and just the right temperature, it eventually hardens to produce the soap..." Jasna continued her explanation. "There really is no by-product I'm aware of... But I could show you how the batfolk make it?"

You can roll INT, or Knowledge (Earth and Life Sciences)

[Erynn]

Rolled 1d20+17 : 16 + 17, total 33

Knowledge: Earth and Life Sciences

[Throndir]

Knowledge (earth and life sciences): 33
You very well knew the process Jasna was describing. There was a popular movie back in your own world that made use of it as well. Glycerin was the byproduct of saponification, a process created when fat, oils, and lye water combine. Through the method Jasna described simply, they were more than half way there. What Jasna's people produced was a soap that contained both lye and the glycerin. However, it was closer to the final stages of preparation where the glycerin could be extracted. The end result would be a soap that would still be effective, and the glycerin as a separate by-product. The key ingredient that was missing was simply adding salt, as the salt itself would force the soap mixture to separate from the glycerin, then all one would need to do next is wait for the entire thing to cool and curdle, remove the soap, then strain the left over by-product, which will eventually result in glycerin.

[Erynn]

"Ah. You're adding enough salt to make the mixture harden, but not enough to cause it to separate.", Carrie acknowledges, continuing with a grin and a pleased gleam in her eye at the knowledge that she could actually obtain glycerine in the world she found herself in, "Adding more salt will cause the soap to separate from the water and byproduct, like curds. Once distilled, either by straining or by alcohol, you're left with a clear, colorless liquid. This liquid, glycerine, is what I'm after. If the right minerals can also be found in either your caves or these tunnels, there's a very real possibility that we may be able to reproduce something from my world."

Carrie pauses for a moment to catch her breath, realizing that if the recipe she had in mind was indeed possible to reproduce it was going to dramatically shake up the dynamic between Darmona and the Felencorp United Alliances.

"The soap that results from this process will be much harder and will last much longer in use.", Carrie explains, providing Jasna with an enticing incentive to explore this new saponification process, "You'll have the best soap out of any produced in this world. If we export it, we could bring in a great deal of coin while simultaneously producing a highly effective weapon of war."

Carrie can't help but laugh at the next thought that occurs to her, voiced aloud, "We might wind up having Felencorp pay us for the same soap that lets us blow them up!"

Carrie then finally lets the leaders of Thura Forest in on what she's planning.

"If I'm right, and we can actually collect all the ingredients necessary, we're going to be making something my world calls plastic explosives.", Carrie elucidates, "Plastic explosives can be used for mining, and demolishing structures. It can also be used for military purposes by packing it into a sturdy container and attaching a fuse. The container in question can then be used against an enemy in one of several ways. You can ignite the fuse and throw it at them. You could load a larger container in a siege engine like a catapult and hurl it at an enemy that way. Or,......."

Carrie hesitates before finishing the sentence, her demeanor becoming much darker and her tone conveying her disgust at voicing the next idea, " Or you could plant it where you expect the enemy to be so that when they walk by they set it off. Regardless of which method is used, the container will shatter when the explosive goes off, sending large numbers of projectiles flying into any enemy nearby. The results are devastating. Such devices can wound or kill many enemy soldiers at once, particularly if large quantities of explosives are used."

Carrie then makes a statement that would no doubt get the attention of anybody with half a military mind, "The sort of devices I'm describing are effective weapons of war even in my world. Even if Felencorp comes at us with some ridiculous new technology, we'll already have a means of fighting back if we can manage to produce this stuff."

[Throndir]

Jasna shook her head. "We've never thought of adding salt to it. This is the first time I've heard of something like that too... What we have eventually hardens once you leave it to cool for long enough though, but we're willing to try. We don't make soap very often, but we can have some of the batfolk start it up. At what point do we add in the salt?"

After you described to her how it could be done, Jasna nodded. "When I get back to my tribe, I'll let them know, and we might be able to try this tonight... Selling the soap too is a good idea... We only have a single trader that comes through Thura forest though, in part due to the secrecy that we maintain here."

"If these plastic explosives can help us  drive the humans out... Then we should try!"

State any more plans for the rest of the day. It'll be roughly around 7 PM when bathing is done.

[Erynn]

Once bathing is over, Carrie will seek to get in a quick training session for the feat Throat Slicer.

"We'll need an experienced alchemist to mix the different ingredients.", Carrie informs those present, "And we'll need a place away from any people or structures in case something goes wrong. Basically, nobody who isn't needed should be present when the stuff is being made. Once the process is complete, it'll be relatively safe to handle, but while the chemical reactions are still taking place, the consequences of a mistake can potentially be catastrophic."

Carrie then addresses the issue of the lone trader.

"The nice thing about soap is that it's not a perishable good.", Carrie states, "If we need to, we can stockpile the stuff until we find a way to get it out of the forest and into a better location to start selling it. The sooner we can get some underground infrastructure going, the better."

Carrie then notices quite abruptly that she is doing the exact opposite of relaxing despite the environment.

"Anyways, we can leave the specifics associated with the rest of the process for later. Right now, we should be relaxing.", Carrie concludes, then looks around with a grin and a single question, hoping to dig into the subject of the question in question, "Now, where are those pies?"

[Throndir]

The rest of the bathing was spent in relaxation. Small talk was shared between the group, and when the pies came out, both Synithise and Jasna had some. After bathing was done, Eveleen and Jasna bid their farewells, each one heading back towards their respective homes in the forest. Later that evening, you spent some quiet time to yourself, and with a small light weapon, began to practice slicing someone's throat.

Training check requested, its in D23 of your sheet, looks like its a +9 modifier. State if its expedited, or normal as well. DC will be 15.

[Erynn]

Rolled 1d20+9 : 12 + 9, total 21

Expedited trainind dc19

Rolled 1d20+6 : 6 + 6, total 12

dc14 forced training

[Throndir]

Location: New World - Lamia Priestess Tunnels - Training Gym
Date: Day 2 - 9:00 PM

You pushed yourself to train. And though you still made progress learning how to slice throats even better, you felt fatigued by the end of it.

8 non-lethal damage. Fatigued status.

You can still attempt more training if you wish. Though being fatigued grants penalties. You'll need 8 hours/fullnight's rest to refresh the training limits, which will affect at what time you wake up the day after.

Training
Throat Slicer: 1/8

[Erynn]

Carrie, alone in the training area of the tunnels, is finally beginning to truly feel the fatigue of the entire day's events. From trying to learn a new language, as well as magic, followed by meeting two new people and the emotional exchange that resulted, and now an extra push to reinforce skills she'll no doubt be using often in this new world, Carrie realized that it was time to rack out for the evening. If she wanted to be up at any sort of reasonable hour in the morning, she would need to hope that the previous evening's nightmares didn't re-occur. Carrie also distinctly hopes that the new set of memories that she possesses won't contribute to the problem, but recognizes that it's a very distinct possibility.

Carrie sheathes her Ka-Bar, and makes her way toward her room, stopping by to let Synithise know that she was calling it an evening before she does so. As Carrie doffs her uniform, she recalls pointedly that she only brought one outfit with her into this new world and makes a mental note to take a little time to build a wardrobe in the coming days. As Carrie lays down to rest for the night, two opposite thoughts cross her mind. Tomorrow, she was going to meet a great many new people. In the coming conflict, many of those same people were likely to lose their lives. Carrie realized that her objective was to ensure that as few of them as possible lost their lives while resisting Felencorp's occupation.