Post by: wavewright62 on March 27, 2021, 01:49:29 AM
And as always, if the day's prompt inspires you, feel free to post your own work - poem, drawing, story, photos
(https://imgur.com/SdnsnoG.png)
**This break is to last for 3 weeks, and there
Edit: I'll put a table of contents of sorts here, and link to the messages as they're posted.
1. (How to Catch) Nalle (no link, it's the next message!)
2. Woodland Sounds (https://ssssforum.com/index.php?topic=1172.15msg=179902#msg179902)
3. (How to catch) Möntti (https://ssssforum.com/index.php?topic=1172.30msg=180018#msg180018)
4. Fir or pine trees (https://ssssforum.com/index.php?topic=1172.45msg=180092#msg180092)
5. (How to Catch) Lalli (the bear) (https://ssssforum.com/index.php?topic=1172.45msg=180156#msg180156)
6. Bird(s) (https://ssssforum.com/index.php?topic=1172.60msg=180219#msg180219)
7. (How to catch) Metsänukko (https://ssssforum.com/index.php?topic=1172.75msg=180304#msg180304)
8. Moss and/or lichen (https://ssssforum.com/index.php?topic=1172.75msg=180348#msg180348)
9. Brook, pond, or spring (https://ssssforum.com/index.php?topic=1172.90msg=180409#msg180409)
10. Rowan or birch (https://ssssforum.com/index.php?topic=1172.105msg=180474#msg180474)
11. Hilly landscape (https://ssssforum.com/index.php?topic=1172.105msg=180510#msg180510)
12. (How to Catch) Karvaturri (https://ssssforum.com/index.php?topic=1172.120msg=180535#msg180535)
13. Oak or lime (tilia) trees (https://ssssforum.com/index.php?topic=1172.120msg=180572#msg180572)
14. The bear family (https://ssssforum.com/index.php?topic=1172.135msg=180601#msg180601)
15. Leaves and blossoms (https://ssssforum.com/index.php?topic=1172.150msg=180648#msg180648)
16. (How to catch) OC bear beast (https://ssssforum.com/index.php?topic=1172.150msg=180662#msg180662)
17. Night in the Forest (https://ssssforum.com/index.php?topic=1172.150msg=180679#msg180679)
18. Bear vs moose (https://ssssforum.com/index.php?topic=1172.165msg=180701#msg180701)
19. Hunting and/or game (https://ssssforum.com/index.php?topic=1172.165msg=180715#msg180715)
20. Outside the Known World (https://ssssforum.com/index.php?topic=1172.180msg=180729#msg180729)
21. Mushrooms (https://ssssforum.com/index.php?topic=1172.195msg=180751#msg180751)
22. (How to catch) Hallavanahka (https://ssssforum.com/index.php?topic=1172.195msg=180768#msg180768)
23. (How to catch) Kusiaistennuolija (https://ssssforum.com/index.php?topic=1172.210msg=180793#msg180793)
24. (How to catch) Pöppö (New chapter starts!)
Post by: wavewright62 on March 27, 2021, 01:59:54 AM
Day 1 Prompt: (How to Catch) Nalle
Lucky me, I get to go first! I have concocted a plan for Nalle in words & pictures. It's under a spoiler because there is a kinda sorta gruesome bit of horror in the pictures, commensurate with the level of horror we see on the pages.
Spoiler: clever plan to kill nalle the rampaging pekinese • show
Post by: catbirds on March 27, 2021, 02:45:35 AM
Their enthusiasm for getting blue hair really shines through!
Post by: JoB on March 27, 2021, 03:35:09 AM
Post by: Maglor on March 27, 2021, 06:17:38 AM
Why not just feed her a bomb?
Post by: moredhel on March 27, 2021, 06:48:12 AM
Post by: thegreyarea on March 27, 2021, 07:03:52 AM
"No, these plans with bombs don't work. The beast seems able to smell explosives from very far away. Next question!"
"Can I choose the tone for the blue hair?"
"Grrr...."
Post by: Maglor on March 27, 2021, 08:15:13 AM
"No, these plans with bombs don't work. The beast seems able to smell explosives from very far away. Next question!"
What kind of explosives can it smell? Can it smell something, that will only become explosive, being mixed with it's
stomach acid?
Can it smell a capacitator powerfull enough, to zap it dead from the inside?
So much possibilities and I only came to see them now T_T
Post by: Alkia on March 27, 2021, 08:36:00 AM
Post by: Keep Looking on March 27, 2021, 09:55:37 AM
(And again, thanks so much to you (and jitter and grey) for taking on the responsibility for the chapter break filler this round - I genuinely don't know whether I would've managed, given how busy I've been.
Post by: Jitter on March 27, 2021, 11:16:03 AM
There are indeed a couple of days free, we have 21 prompts claimed but there are 23 days before the first page of next chapter. So, anyone who wants to do a piece about any bear beasts or something to do with forests, give me a shout or PM me and / or thegreyarea!
Post by: Vulpes on March 27, 2021, 01:10:03 PM
Oh crud, one of my contributions is barely (haha) started! (Don't worry, I'll get it done on time.)
Wonderful, wave, a suitable convoluted plan that will totally work, riiiight? ;D
Post by: Buteo on March 27, 2021, 01:59:11 PM
It remains a universal truth, teachers of any kind need to be careful what they
I really needed some humour like this right now....
Post by: Sevseres on March 27, 2021, 02:26:30 PM
Thanks for the great start wave!
Post by: Róisín on March 27, 2021, 06:29:05 PM
And anent blue hair: don’t do what I once did! I had put a blue dye through my hair for a part in a play (this was back in the 1960s so I was still a redhead rather than having the faintly red-streaked white that my hair is now). I then made the mistake of going swimming in a heavily chlorinated pool before going home and to sleep.
The next morning I stumbled out of bed at 0430 in the dark of a winter morning, got dressed, brushed and braided my long hair in the dark, and hauled myself off to work. I was getting strange looks all morning, but it was around noon before I passed a mirror and realised what people were looking at: between the dye and the chlorine my hair had become a viridian green. Until the colour faded I looked very strange!
Post by: thegreyarea on March 27, 2021, 08:40:14 PM
What kind of explosives can it smell? Can it smell something, that will only become explosive, being mixed with it'sMaglor, I like the way you think.
stomach acid?
Can it smell a capacitator powerfull enough, to zap it dead from the inside?
So much possibilities and I only came to see them now T_T
I've told on some post before that if I lived in Y90 I would probably have a workshop to make traps and devise clever ways to kill troll and beasts. We could work together! :)
Post by: wavewright62 on March 28, 2021, 01:36:10 AM
Day 2: Woodland Sounds
In the Forum, it's the middle of the night. What can you hear in the middle of the night? Jitter tells us.
After another day of rowing, they camped again. They had seen many inhabited islands, with their lakewalls and guard posts. Emil had entertained the idea that they should spend the night in a village, maybe get decent beds too. But Onni thought it was too much of a hassle, and time consuming, and Reynir supported him. Lalli was happier outside of villages in any case.
This time they chose a larger island. They had to climb a bit from the beach, where they had tied the boat, but found a good spot on a hill that dropped steeply on most sides. As there was plenty of room, Lalli and Emil took the tarp and asked Reynir to paint another confusion stave for them. Admittedly the small tent was a bit crowded with three people inside. The campsite was nice and the weather pleasant. Lalli and Emil withdrew to their camp quite soon, and Onni took the first watch. Reynir declared he’d sleep like a baby, with the whole tent for his disposal.
Reynir lay down and bundled up in the blankets. The sighing of the waves had ceased already. I wonder why the wind quiets in the evening? he wondered idly. Treetops were still rustling in the remaining evening wind, but soon that would quiet too. Some muffled words carried over from Lalli and Emil’s camp, but all in all it was very silent. Reynir dozed off. After a short while he woke with a start. It was really really quiet. Too quiet! Maybe something had happened to Onni? As quietly as possible Reynir crawled to the tent flap. Onni was sitting on the log they had placed as a seat, looking up at the pale summer sky. He looked very peaceful. Reynir sighed with relief and crawled back to bed. Time to sleep…
*creak* *creak* *creak* *creak* *creak* *creak*… What was that! A weird creaking sound startled Reynir again. What could it possibly be? Maybe an old troll had been dormant nearby, so deeply that Lalli hadn’t felt it, and was now waking up and arranging its limbs? Many, many limbs! Maybe its ribcage was opening up and… “Onni! Onni!” Reynir whispered desperately.
“What is it? Do you feel something?” Onni was immediately alarmed.
“No, I hear it! Something must be moving nearby!”
“What do you mean? I don’t hear anything suspicious?”
“How can you not hear it? That weird creaking?”
Suddenly Onni chuckled. “Oh, that! Don’t worry, it’s just… sammakoita. I don’t know the word in Icelandic. A small animal. They make the sound in their breeding season. They are this big.” Onni made a gesture with his thumb and index finger.
Reynir felt sheepish. “Oh. I see. I have never heard such a sound before. It’s weird.”
“Maybe you don’t have them in Iceland. Go back to sleep now.”
Listening to the creaking was kind of soothing, now that he knew what it was. Soon Reynir drifted to sleep. Only to be woken up by Onni crawling into the tent. “Your turn now. Wake Lalli next.”
Sitting outside, Reynir noticed how very silent it was in the middle of the night. The creaking animals had quieted down, and there was no wind. Very peaceful. Onni didn’t even snore. Occasionally something rustled in the trees, but Reynir had been assured the spot was safe so he didn’t mind.
After his watch Reynir tiptoed to wake Lalli. Emil protested quietly for having to let Lalli go, but Lalli was as silent as a shadow. Reynir went back to their tent, nudged Onni until he made enough room for him too, and went back to sleep.
A piercing cry cut the cool nighttime air. “Kuiiiiii kuiiiii kuiiiiiii” followed by a loud drumming. Again, Reynir startled. He jumped straight up throwing the blankets around. Unfortunately, in his momentary panic he forgot he was in a tent and so he got tangled in the canvas.
“What is it now?” Onni protested.
“It’s… something’s screaming! And I’m stuck!”
“Reynir. Calm down. That is a woodpecker. They are loud, yes, but harmless.”
“A woodpecker?”
“Yes. It’s a bird. Stop struggling and I’ll help you with the canvas. How is all this new for you? You traveled through Finland for weeks that one summer?”
“Well, yes, but we were many people in one tent. And let me tell you, Sigrun snores. Loudly and incessantly. I didn’t need to worry about any other nighttime sounds!”
“I see. Now, can we please try to sleep a bit? We’ll have to row tomorrow again.”
“Yeah. I’m sorry. I won’t mind the woodpecker anymore.”
But soon (too soon!) it was Onni, who was shaking Reynir awake. “Is it morning already? I haven’t slept an eyeful!” Reynir groaned.
“No, not yet. But since you haven’t heard the nighttime sounds… come with me. It’s worth it, I promise. Keep quiet.” Onni guided Reynir to the edge of the camp. “Listen.”
After they stopped, Reynir heard it. Birdsong. First it was just one singer, but as they waited and the night progressed towards morning, more and more voices joined. Finally, the air was filled with music. Many different songbirds calling, in the trees, in the rushes at the beach, at the edge of a nearby meadow. It was fantastic, filling Reynir’s heart with joy. Joy of life, joy of being alive, of being surrounded by living, healthy things, despite this being, nominally, the Silent World.
“It’s… it’s so beautiful! I didn’t know there were so many different songbirds! How did you make this happen?”
“Me? I didn’t do anything. This is what they do, this time of year. Assuming of course no grosslings around. I just woke you up to listen.”
“Thank you for this. Thank you so much. I’m very glad you did.”
“Good. Now, let’s get back to sleep.”
Notes: sammakoita = frogs (singular: sammakko)
Iceland doesn't have any amphibians, and very few species of songbirds. The birdlife is rich and varied, but heavily leaning on seabirds with only a few species of passerine birds. Some of those do sing, but there's nothing like the chorus of different singers in the wee hours of nights in the early summer here in Finland. We get loads of birdsong in the daytime too, but the night singers are even more impressive because otherwise it's so quiet. Iceland also has no woodpeckers, which is a shame as they are quite lovely birds. Except if they find something nice and loud in your house that they think is good for drumming!
Don't be fooled by Wikipedia's "birds of Iceland" list. It includes all species that have been sighted there even once.
Post by: Tarnagh on March 28, 2021, 01:49:01 AM
Post by: Róisín on March 28, 2021, 03:08:35 AM
The first two entries are good. Let us try to keep up that standard!
Post by: wavewright62 on March 28, 2021, 03:44:15 AM
Maglor, you are seeing whole new ways to approach and dispatch bears, eh? I know you have a contribution later in the break (sshhh, no spoilers from me)(but it's gonna knock your socks off, people, shhh), but can you perhaps see how to dispatch our unclaimed bears Kusiaistennuolija, Hallavanahka or Pöppö? Let Jitter know if the lightbulb moment comes.
Post by: Sevseres on March 28, 2021, 04:16:09 AM
It made me think of a nice song. I'll put it under spoiler. Album it belongs to is completely songbird themed and I really love it.
Spoiler: show
Post by: Róisín on March 28, 2021, 04:30:03 AM
Post by: Tarnagh on March 28, 2021, 04:45:18 AM
Post by: JoB on March 28, 2021, 07:16:37 AM
I hope the mage actually can turn hairs blue, I feel like those two would haunt the guy forever otherwise! I had enough experience with kids to know that :onni:I note that he didn't say anything about what pattern it'd be in. Polka dots in three different hues of blue, anyone? >:D
Post by: moredhel on March 28, 2021, 07:17:54 AM
Post by: Vulpes on March 28, 2021, 09:19:53 AM
Thank you for today Jitter. Your writing always brings such coziness <3
It made me think of a nice song. I'll put it under spoiler. Album it belongs to is completely songbird themed and I really love it.Spoiler: show
Pretty song! It reminded me of Einojuhani Rautavaara's Cantus Arcticus for orchestra and tape. I found this very neat video that shows the score, fascinating to see the notes about the tape. It's more melancholy, I suppose, but I find it quite beautiful.
Spoiler: show
Post by: Groupoid on March 28, 2021, 11:17:35 AM
And “where from, where to are they travelling?” I ask myself, not expecting an answer.
Post by: Jitter on March 28, 2021, 11:31:59 AM
I tried to find examples of the night singers (yölaulajat) but pretty much everything I found has speech on top of the birds! Or sounds of traffic etc. Here’s something nevertheless
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(This one has lots of blackbird, which is one of my favorites although perhaps a bit earlier than my story)
Groupoid, there is context! I was writing a longer story, but for whatever reason I was not able to work on it for the past week (yes, the reason is All This, I’m sure you guessed) so I cut only the actual Woodland sounds part. I’m not answering the question now, because maybe I will manage to write the actual story too after all :)
Post by: Mirasol on March 28, 2021, 12:31:44 PM
Wave, your contribution was hilarious, really the kind of content I needed right now! (You may expect your obligatory drawing of blue-haired soldiers in this thread somewhere in the middle of next week, once my exams are through for now. ;) I hope it´s still ok if I draw it a bit later, but the mental image is just too funny...)
Jitter, I really liked your story as well, it was really sweet! I love how Onni immediately rolled back when Reynir thanked him for showing the beautiful sounds. Like "Yeah no, I totally only did this so you let me sleep, don´t be weird about it!" :'D
I would be very interested in the rest of the story, but of course you don´t have to write it if you don´t find the motivation. All This(TM) has taken a toll on my motivation as well, so I understand where you´re coming from.
I´ve also been enjoying those bird-songs very much.
Post by: thegreyarea on March 28, 2021, 12:32:16 PM
sevseres, Vulpes and Jitter, thank you so much for sharing all that beauty! That made my day! :)
So I leave you with something different: Brazilian nocturnal birds. Surely some (all?) would surprise Reynir... O_O
Note: It's 8 min. long, and there's a biologist talking in Portuguese. Sorry for not having english captions, but I think it can be appreciated anyway. (it does have the Scientific name of each species).
Post by: JoB on March 28, 2021, 03:02:34 PM
(You may expect your obligatory drawing of blue-haired soldiers in this thread somewhere in the middle of next week, once my exams are through for now. ;) I hope it´s still ok if I draw it a bit later, but the mental image is just too funny...)"Blauhelmfrisuren, vorwärts!" ;D
Spoiler: show
... I'm afraid that "bluehelmullets, advance!" loses quite a bit in translation ...
Post by: Lallicat on March 28, 2021, 04:03:42 PM
Post by: Róisín on March 28, 2021, 06:49:10 PM
I remember when I was camped in the Cathedral Ranges with a city person and the cicadas sang 24/7. I liked it, but they couldn’t sleep through the sound.
And Grey, that little owl looks like an Australian mopoke, another delightful creature of the night. They hide by pretending to be a broken branch.
Post by: wavewright62 on March 29, 2021, 01:08:54 AM
Day 3: (How to catch) Möntti
Today Róisín is here to bring us fresh puddles
Lying peacefully in the mud was sweet for the old bear.
He had struggled to reach the swamp as his body began to fail him, weak and feverish from this disease that had ulcerated his skin badly enough to make his fur fall out in clumps and cause every exposed patch of skin to itch and burn beyond enduring. Even worse were the urges that coursed through his fading awareness: the desperate need to attack any living creature he encountered. Not just for food, although he was certainly hungry. Starving. But even more strongly than hunger, he felt the mad urge to bite or claw any animal he met, or even to breathe at it or spit on it, anything that might transmit this alien sickness that had invaded his body to a still healthy creature.....no! He would not remember that! He would not do it again! He was a bear, not some unnatural.....thing.....
He had remembered enough of his life before these horrors had begun that he managed to find the cool peat swamp that his mother had shown him when he was still a cub. That had been another bad year. Hot, humid and sticky weather, clouds of midges, deerflies, mosquitoes and other biting pests crawling all over him and sucking his blood, creeping into his eyes, nostrils and ears to bite and suck from the thin, sensitive skin there, leaving raw areas that swelled, burned and itched.....
His mother had shown him how to lie in the cool, brown, astringent peat water, splashing it over his head, rolling in the dark mud beneath to leave him with a protective coating on his skin that kept all of the insects smaller than deerflies from biting him, and even they were slowed down by the mud. The comfort and relief it gave had been amazing. His many bites had begun to stop itching and to heal, and he had slept every night on the edge of the swamp, coated in protective healing mud. So it was no wonder that he had remembered this place when the Rash had begun to drive him mad with itching and lack of sleep.
But the swamp could not help him to survive the urges. Nor could it block out the voices, constantly crying in his head with the tones of mates, cubs, rivals, prey..... Only the voices of the forest gods were not changed, and even those felt far away and blurred. Tapio and Mielikki could not save him from this horror, yet he felt that in some way his pleas had been heard.
The other thing that helped him, as he lay in the cool water or rolled in the mud, was watching the frogs. He ate them, of course, when they came near enough for him to catch, as he ate everything that he could capture, trying uselessly to fill the bottomless pit of hunger that this disease had opened in him, but he also liked to simply watch them.
They did not seem to catch the disease at all. As the numbers of their predators reduced they had bred more freely, and since some of their prey, such as flies, had increased vastly in numbers, the land could sustain the increased numbers of frogs. The old bear liked to watch the frogs as they hunted insects, displayed for their mates or simply played in the water, leaping athletically among the stems of the reeds or dancing from leaf to leaf of the water lilies, snapping up flies, moths or mosquitoes as they went. He admired the freedom with which they moved through the elements of earth, air and water with such ease and freedom, and wished that he could be like them, free and playful and immune to the disease that had destroyed him.
He scarcely noticed as the progress of the Rash through his ruined body began to reshape it closer to the form most on his mind. Had he been able to see himself, he would not have understood what he had become. Yet the changed form seemed, somehow to suit him. The swamp was a comfortable place to be. Time passed.
The humans came. From the times Before he remembered humans, and knew that he was in mortal danger. Humans hunted and killed bears, and sometimes ate them. Yet the forest gods sang to him and told him to be still and to have no fear as the humans approached him.
The human mage began to sing to him, and his song echoed that of the gods. Peace, the songs said. Peace and no more pain. Peaceful sleep at last, and then a return to the world in a fresh new shape. He had only to be still and wait. He waited. He scarcely felt the thin sharp blade enter his brain, only the cool darkness that followed. Time passed.
************************************************************
Muscles contracted, flicking the tiny tail to move him away from the egg mass and into open water. He swallowed the scrap of egg membrane still in his mouth from where he had chewed his body free of the egg, and that woke hunger. He needed food and shelter. The clump of rushes offered both. The tiny tadpole concealed himself among the tall stems, nibbling at the coating of algae that covered them. He was safe and at peace, no longer a suffering bear beast but reborn into a new shape and a new life.
Post by: Tarnagh on March 29, 2021, 01:38:32 AM
Post by: Tindveden on March 29, 2021, 03:35:51 AM
That was beautiful! <3
[Whoops - I realised that my original comment was a bit spoilery, so I've deleted it]
Kudos!
Post by: Róisín on March 29, 2021, 06:00:14 AM
Post by: thegreyarea on March 29, 2021, 06:17:16 AM
Post by: Keep Looking on March 29, 2021, 07:13:39 AM
Post by: moredhel on March 29, 2021, 07:48:23 AM
Post by: Maglor on March 29, 2021, 09:12:23 AM
Post by: Vulpes on March 29, 2021, 09:30:22 AM
Post by: Jitter on March 29, 2021, 09:54:34 AM
Post by: Buteo on March 29, 2021, 12:23:10 PM
Wave, that was hilarious. Of course that plan will totally work!
Jitter, it's all the more fun to chuckle indulgently at Reynir because I could just picture being on the verge of defaulting to panic because I didn't know what I was hearing in the dark....
Róisín, a touching story, calling back to the plight of the in-canon bears. Such a gentle, hopeful ending.
Post by: Lallicat on March 29, 2021, 06:16:38 PM
Post by: Sevseres on March 29, 2021, 06:25:24 PM
Post by: wavewright62 on March 30, 2021, 02:26:18 AM
Day 4: Fir or Pine trees
Let us all welcome Alkia to the event, with a bit of stillness for our day.
(https://i.imgur.com/kJFbwPd.jpg)
Away from the city is Kitty,
Strutting through the firs in a forest all hers.
Post by: moredhel on March 30, 2021, 04:52:19 AM
Post by: Róisín on March 30, 2021, 05:57:09 AM
Post by: thegreyarea on March 30, 2021, 06:03:08 AM
Kitty, strutting through the firs
A forest, all hers
Here goes my haiku version, inspired by your text!
That's a beautiful painting, Alkia! I love the way you managed to create depth of field with the overlaping trees, and of course that tiny lovely Kitty! Thank you!
(All even more admirable to me that never managed to work right with watercolours) :)
Post by: Tarnagh on March 30, 2021, 06:04:05 AM
Is that watercolor?
Post by: Keep Looking on March 30, 2021, 08:51:22 AM
Post by: Buteo on March 30, 2021, 11:43:29 AM
I love the tall, enduring pine trees, and little Kitty, with her feline "Mine... all my world!" attitude.
Post by: Jitter on March 30, 2021, 03:47:32 PM
Pine tree
Everything ends. It had had an incredibly long life, and its body was still unwilling to cease. But too much is too much. The smashing and thrashing had finally ended it, and it lay lifeless on the ground, trapped under the heavy weight.
Later
The mangled carcass poisoned its surroundings and it lay on bare rock. No animals came near it, and the bugs and critters knew better than taste the diseased flesh. Whether by some surprise blessing, luck, or sheer coincidence, no rashlings further crushed its bones either.
But everything ends, even supernatural pathogens. The cycles of sun and rain, freeze and thaw affect even stone, and finally its already atrophied flesh started to decompose. Fungi grew on it after the sun of sufficiently many summers had decontaminated it.
Later
Leaves and needles from the neighbouring trees had largely covered it. Moss grew on the bones, and the natural order of living things progressed. Nearby, on a warm and dry day, the scales of a pinecone opened. A woodpecker feasted on it, but one of the seeds fell to the ground and landed into a small hollow. There was just enough plant matter at the bottom, and some sun came through the same hole the seed had arrived through. So it settled there (after all, it hardly had any choice in the matter) and waited.
A bit later again
The snowmelt provided abundant moisture. The very thin soil under the seed may have been washed away, but it was snugly in the hollow and the soil stayed put. The seed grew a little root to hold itself and its soil to the ground. When that was secured, it started to try find some sun.
Still later
The seedling was struggling. The hollow had been a good place to get started, but was now too small for it. It had some needles in the sun, but it felt it was supposed to get more sun and grow more needles. A lot more! It grew branches, trying to find good positions for them. Oh, here was another hole! Double sunlight, double good!
Even later
The sapling was very proud. It had been bent into an awkward position, but it had spread its roots widely and strengthened so much that it had managed to raise the obstacle off the ground. Now it finally had room to grow into the great big tree it was supposed to become. Spreading its branches towards the sun, it fondly remembered the little hollow it had started in.
Much later
The young tree felt jubilant. Finally it had grown taller than the neighbors! Its branches were laden with pinecones, spreading its essence around. Except for that one branch that was always in the shadow. There were no pinecones, as it bore stranger fruit.
Many decades later
A little girl was skiing by. “Daddy! Look at that pine! What is that strange thing?”
“Hmm, it is strange indeed. Looks like some sort of a skull. But I have no idea what animal that could have been. It’s somehow... off.”
“But why is it high in the tree?”
“ Oh, honey, I don’t know. It looks very old. Not much is known of the Difficult Times.”
“Maybe someone put it there! A human hero!”
“Maybe they did... now that you mention it, I remember something! They used to do rituals out in the forests. Sometimes a mage would take the skull of a slain beast, and place it high in a tree to release the spirit of the beast back to Tapio and Mielikki. I think it was called Kallohonka.”
***
The pine tree felt a weird sensation. The skull cracked and fell to the ground, and that one branch was free! It felt lighter, but for some reason also a little sad. A strange little whirlwind blew for a second in its branches, ruffling its needles. The wind felt a little sad too, but also very happy. (How weird, the tree wondered, how could a wind feel anything?)
***
“Oh look daddy! It fell! Now it’s all broken! I would have wanted to study it! To see what kind of thing it used to be!”
“Well, maybe that’s for the best. Like I said, it must have been very old. You know it’s best not to touch Very Old things.”
“Yes, I know. But this one was all dry and clean. Look daddy, one tooth is unbroken! Can I take it? Please daddy please!”
“Well, let me see... You are right, it’s dry as, um, bone. You can take it I suppose.”
“Thank you daddy! Thank you Mielikki! I’m sure it will bring me blessings!”
***
A few kilometers away, in a warm den dug under a great big spruce, protected by thick snow, a young female bear stirred. For the first time, it felt the as of yet fluttering movement of new life in its womb. A cub then! Or maybe two.
Edit: spruce! No firs grow naturally in Finland! I always get them confused. Norwegian SPRUCE is the second most common tree in Finland.
Post by: Sevseres on March 30, 2021, 06:00:58 PM
And such a lovely fic too. I love these kind of stories with a quiet, relaxing tone of hope even in harsh surroundings.
Post by: Vulpes on March 30, 2021, 06:44:40 PM
Post by: Alkia on March 30, 2021, 07:58:06 PM
Jitter, I love your fic!!!! I've always liked stories from the point of view of seemingly simple/not sentient things, and this one is lovely. You've inspired me to draw this scene, I just can't resist the image of a mossy, mushroom-covered bear skeleton with a little pine sapling growing out of it!!
Post by: moredhel on March 30, 2021, 08:04:43 PM
(https://moredhel.is-a-geek.net/skull.png)
Post by: wavewright62 on March 31, 2021, 12:29:55 AM
Day 5: (How to Catch) Lalli
Lalli the Bear Beast, that is, although it's easy to mistake - as Grade E Cat tells us today!
One thing in common with the bear
When he and Onni came into Keuruu’s main eating area with their respective evening meals, Tuuri was already sitting at their usual table, alternating between giggling harder than she had in years and catching her breath. She eventually calmed down enough to show them the book she had brought with her: the latest version of the bear beast registry, which was one of the documents she consulted regularly to make up for the fact that she couldn’t approach actual trolls and beasts. According to it, Lalli now had a namesake bear, an easily slain caterpillar-like creature with a vulnerable belly. Lalli promptly decided to distance itself from it:
-I have nothing in common with it.
Tuuri interrupted her giggles:
-Nope, you do have something in common with it.
As Lalli was pondering whether asking what it was would be good idea on not, Tuuri tickled his belly under the table. His reaction was both way too visible and way too noisy to go unnoticed by anyone in the eating area who wasn’t both deaf and blind. For the next few days, Lalli was more grateful than usual that he was on the shift with the fewest people who cared about base gossip. When it came to people he interacted with during daytime, sticking with Onni for the rest of the week had worked until some of the teasing had crossed the line between “acceptable” and “unacceptable”, warranting disciplinary action. By the time said disciplinary action had been dated enough to risk the teasing starting again, people in Keuruu base had found another piece of amusing information with which to entertain each other. Any remarks about his “vulnerable belly” that popped up once in a while were assumed to be one of the many jokes about how cat-like he was. As much as Lalli hated the creatures, they were much less embarrassing to have things in common with than the caterpillar-bear.
xxxx
He did have another thing in common with cats, come to think of it. He only let people he trusted and occasionally medics touch him. Especially certain parts, including his belly. He never thought he’d leave that much leeway to someone who wasn’t Tuuri, Onni or trying to treat a wound in that specific place. For some reason, he remembered that bear beast for the first time in a long time. Maybe it was because they were in the middle of chasing three other ones. Emil whispered, as to no wake the tent’s other occupants:
-Hey, Mikkel told me something strange today. Apparently, Tuuri told Reynir to tell Mikkel to tell me to check the Finnish bear beast registry if I got the chance. Is there anything in there you think I should know?
The answer was easy:
-No.
-Good, I wasn’t sure trying to find a copy was worth the effort, anyway.
Lalli knew Emil was strangely uninterested in books for someone who had trained to work with them at some point, but this was an upside of the situation he hadn’t thought of before. If he didn’t risk waking Mikkel up, he would have probably kissed Emil on the spot. He seemed to be in the middle of falling back asleep, anyway. Lalli heard a voice coming from his other side:
-You are aware of the fact that we will need to get that registry updated if we manage to slay those bears and get back to civilization, right?
For a brief moment, Lalli thought becoming part of the Kade didn’t sound so bad.
Post by: Buteo on March 31, 2021, 12:49:50 AM
Jitter, loved your fic, in a different way. It's heartening to look for what good may develop from current sadness, and recall that the world has a longer view than any single one of us.
Moredhel, lovely art from your inspiration!
Everyone is filling the chapter break with support and encouragement!
Post by: Tarnagh on March 31, 2021, 01:11:59 AM
Post by: Jitter on March 31, 2021, 01:35:38 AM
Moredhel, thank you so much for your lovely illustration! Alkia, we have prompts for both moss and mushrooms later, so if you still feel inspired and make the piece, those would be perfect days to post it! Also I’m sorry I put “fir” in the prompt and not spruce. Your trees are spruce nevertheless (spruce have hanging cones while fir cones grow upwards) so no harm done.
Cat, that was hilarious! Please do write the followup for when they do see the registry! Also, the disciplinary action was taken by Onni, right? What did he do? Blue hair?
Post by: Groupoid on March 31, 2021, 05:20:21 AM
Apparently, Tuuri told Reynir to tell Mikkel to tell me to check ...My foot, I laughed so hard at this! :'D And each other work was lovely as well.
Post by: Sevseres on March 31, 2021, 09:18:53 AM
Post by: Vulpes on March 31, 2021, 07:24:23 PM
I had a friend who was terribly ticklish, and another friend would torment him without actually touching him - he could actually do it over the phone! "Jaaason... I'm reaching for your ribs... I'm going to tiiiickle them..." and poor Jason would collapse on the floor, writhing and laughing and shrieking, "Nooo! No! Staaaahp!"
Moredhel, lovely inspiration. I have a bear skull here on the shelf in front of me, and you did a great job of the structure. And creepy modifications!
Post by: wavewright62 on April 01, 2021, 01:08:48 AM
Day 6: Birds
Birds have played, and continue to play, a vital role in both SSSS and ARtD, both as spiritual entities and actual animals. Birds are immune to the Rash, but I defy you to be immune to the charm of MollyVampiric's contribution today!
(https://media0.giphy.com/media/A2APqOvoCVVMSECCyi/giphy.gif)
Post by: MollyVampiric on April 01, 2021, 01:28:25 AM
Spoiler: show
Post by: Jitter on April 01, 2021, 01:59:40 AM
That is lovely! And must have been a lot of effort! Also a cool concept.
Post by: moredhel on April 01, 2021, 05:05:17 AM
Post by: Grade E cat on April 01, 2021, 06:02:58 AM
Cat, that was hilarious! Please do write the followup for when they do see the registry! Also, the disciplinary action was taken by Onni, right? What did he do? Blue hair?
Maybe, if I get in the mood later. Otherwise, I was thinking of disciplinary action from a more official source, but I wouldn't be surprised if Onni ended up going all big brother on someone before the whole thing was over... who knows, maybe he's one of the people who got disciplinary action after whatever happened. Unfortunately, I still watch Anime, so blue hair hardly registers as a punishment to me.
Post by: Mirasol on April 01, 2021, 08:19:33 AM
(http://i.imgur.com/HFoIJdS.gif)
Roisin, your tale was beautiful and brought a tear to my eye! This was such a nice way to resolve frog-bear´s story!
Alkia, your piece turned out stunning! All the colors are so nice! And so is the accompanying rhyme, as well as its Haiku-form by Grey!
Jitter, your story was really sweet as well!
And moredhel, your drawing turned out really nice! Skulls are difficult, good job!
Cat, I laughed out loud at your contribution!
And MollyVampiric, I´m in awe! This must have taken forewer, and the animation is really smooth! Your Onni-drawing is sweet too!
Long story short, you guys are awesome!!! XoX :))
***
So, after this extensive overuse of explanation-marks, here´s the promised drawing:
(https://i.postimg.cc/BbCH6TkY/Blue-Hair-Mirasol.jpg)
I hope I managed to do your characters somewhat justice, Wave. I´m a big fan of your expressive, sketchy artstyle, but had a bit of a difficulty trying to adapt it into mine.
Also while drawing this I noticed how cool your captain-character´s hair is. It´s awesome!
(And I just had to give hood-wearing-soldier long hair, I needed someone to show off a blue gradient on...)
The medic-character they´re talking to is actually a part of the crew I´m about to send bearhunting in my break-contribution. (Admittedly, she only plays a very minor role. But I liked the idea of tying the stories together in a way by putting them into the same universe.) For what it´s worth, her name is Maarika.
Post by: JoB on April 01, 2021, 09:36:02 AM
who knows, maybe he's one of the people who got disciplinary action after whatever happened.... do we need a thread to balance this one (https://ssssforum.com/index.php?topic=451.0)?
Post by: moredhel on April 01, 2021, 10:50:18 AM
your drawing turned out really nice! Skulls are difficult, good job!
In this case it was easy. The story says the skull is somehow off. So you can not do wrong as long as it resembles a skull.
Post by: Jitter on April 01, 2021, 11:03:17 AM
I also love Maarika's hair and outfit!
In not-so-very-other words, I love everything :)
Post by: Vulpes on April 01, 2021, 12:33:21 PM
Mirasol, I was hoping someone would do the blue hair - awesome! :D
Post by: Sevseres on April 01, 2021, 12:47:07 PM
Thank you for your adorable animation, Molly.
Mirasol for some reason I cannot see your images, I wonder what is wrong with my internet 🧐 I shall see those mysterious blue haired people one day
Post by: Buteo on April 01, 2021, 06:41:26 PM
Great Blue-Hair Brigade, Mirasol!
Post by: wavewright62 on April 01, 2021, 06:53:22 PM
Team Leader discovers that you shouldn't make a threat unless you are fully prepared to carry it out, but fortunately Akka smiles upon them and lends them the colours of the sky for their teammates as a gift, not a punishment. (nnooo, not the 'do you love the colours of the sky' meme)
You are very correct about the sketchiness of these, too - I actually didn't gift the leader with quite that cool of a hairstyle (the inside of the hood was only vaguely suggested, as was the hairstyle), but they look very very smart with your update. Consider all of them canon. As props for a joke (and the subtext which seems to have been sufficiently masked by the humour), none of these characters had names or backstories, so there's nothing to impede them gaining their own life elsewhere.
While I'm here, I keep my intrusion into the posting of the works to a minimum, but I am (as always) massively enjoying hosting your works.
Jitter, I got a chuckle out of Reynir's confusion, but I also loved the evocation of the 'dawn chorus' of stirring birds, and then sevseres' audio on that score. Utter marvel, the two of them together. (shared the link of the audio with my daughter, and she loves it too)
Alkia's lovely forest and its happy traveller made me smile - both your and thegreyarea's poems fit so nicely.
Oh Grade E Cat, I adore missing scenes and totally canon back story! I got a chuckle out of this one, all right.
I am always in awe of animation, and MollyVampiric, your gif is lovely in its simplicity. Coming together, even if for a little while, sometimes is enough.
Róisín, you have outdone yourself with your tearjerker of poor old Möntti getting the relief we would all want for such an afflicted entity. Together with Jitter's extra story, a fitting reminder of death as a vital stage in the renewal of life. Then delightful moredhel further embellished Jitter's story with that lovely illustration, complete with
Post by: wavewright62 on April 02, 2021, 01:44:23 AM
Day 7: (How to catch) Metsänukko
Speaking of moredhel's art, check out today's! Amazing what some inspired 'farm magic' and a dose of UV can do?
(https://moredhel.is-a-geek.net/bear.png)
Post by: JoB on April 02, 2021, 03:33:31 AM
none of these characters had names or backstories, so there's nothing to impede them gaining their own life elsewhere.OC at dead run: "FREEDOM!!!!! At long last! To let that hair grow right down to my ankles!"
Post by: Jitter on April 02, 2021, 05:46:27 AM
Ok this turned out fairly incoherent :V What I’m trying to say is that you nailed it!
Post by: moredhel on April 02, 2021, 06:28:48 AM
If anybody wants more details I have some versions with higher resolution.
You need a lot of patience for using these links, the upload works through my not so fast connection.
https://moredhel.is-a-geek.net/bear_better_res.png (https://moredhel.is-a-geek.net/bear_better_res.png)
https://moredhel.is-a-geek.net/bear_high_res.png (https://moredhel.is-a-geek.net/bear_high_res.png)
https://moredhel.is-a-geek.net/bear_insanely_high_res.png (https://moredhel.is-a-geek.net/bear_insanely_high_res.png)
Post by: Buteo on April 02, 2021, 12:57:25 PM
Loved the selection of muscles - just enough to make joints move. That's one solid-looking skull; I hope the marksman's rifle is pretty high-powered!
Post by: Sevseres on April 02, 2021, 02:36:59 PM
Post by: thegreyarea on April 02, 2021, 03:10:12 PM
Jitter, your Pine Tree story is beautiful and heartwarming! As usual it shows your fantastic ability to make a great story from anything! And also as usual it makes me want more and more on that timeline and characters. :)
moredhel, thats one nice skull, with the right amount of changes to tell us its from a rash beast (I wonder how it would look while alive...) I bet you were already thinking on your prompt when you did that. :) And let me jump to your prompt to say that it's great! (and yes I saw the higher res. version O_O ) I feel that some time was spent looking at bear's muscles and bones... I really like the tension in the result. Will they get the bear? Or it will escape? It's a kind of cliffhanger image. And that ring surrounding the beast? Is it magical?
Grade E Cat, one perfect story! I also vote that Lalli's belly sensibility becomes canon!
(BTW. Vulpes, I also have a close person that can be tickled at a distance, just by saying that while I move my fingers (I'm sure it's The Force). Now I must try with the phone...)
Molly, your
Oh, and the "sketch" is excellent too! I wish I could sketch like that.
Mirasol, one nice drawing that perfectly complements Wave's story! I'm curious to see your story and Maarika's part on it (also, diversity is welcomed!)
JoB, thanks for reminding me about that thread about Mikkel! It's been a long time since I delighted myself reading it! Also,well pointed that some characters would run as soon as they got enough freedom for that!
And sevseres, thanks for pointing that song. Very nice!
Uff! Hope I got everybody! Now back to my prompt... :)
( And thanks Vulpes and Alkia for liking my haiku attempt. Whats good on that may be blamed on Jitter. Her haikus started me on it... :) )
Post by: moredhel on April 02, 2021, 03:20:20 PM
Post by: Vulpes on April 02, 2021, 04:26:13 PM
Post by: wavewright62 on April 03, 2021, 12:49:27 AM
Day 8: Moss and/or Lichen
I don't know about you, but having read through Vulpes' submission below, I appreciate these under-rated
Symbioses
Throughout the taiga, you will find lichen. It grows on every surface, from trees to soil to stone, and takes many forms. You may find broad, green patches like lettuce leaves growing on the trunks of birches, or leafy clumps wrapped around spruce branches, pale grey on top and inky black below. Shaggy grey-green beards hang in the shadowy depths, while on the forest floor a miniature forest of ghostly pale green rises from the fallen needles. In a clearing you might find a burst of colour, tiny red-tipped branches among the moss and sulphur-yellow crusts on a boulder.
(https://i.imgur.com/s5pxxtO.jpg)
“Onni…”
Onni sighed, but had to admit Reynir had been minimally irritating during the past hour or so, sometimes lending a hand as he strung wires between trees. “Yes?”
“These wires… you can tell when something touches them, right? But not exactly where?”
“Yes, that’s right.”
“May I try something? While you take a short break?”
Onni shrugged and nodded, and sat down, took a flask of water and some bread from his pack.
Reynir handed him a short, stout stick with a rune painted on it.
“I’m going to paint a few runes back in the direction we came from. Once I’m out of sight, touch this stick to the wire and see what happens.”
Another shrug. Reynir beamed, pulled out a brush and pot of paint, and drew a rune on the last tree with the wire tied to it. He backtracked along the wire to the previous tree and painted the same rune. He continued back, tree by tree, rune by rune, until he was out of sight. Onni finished his bread and water, briefly considered tossing the rune stick into the underbrush, then decided to give the foreign mage a chance. Some of his stuff had worked, after all. He stood, reached out and touched the stick to the wire.
It was as though a map hung before him, showing the wire as a sulphur yellow line and the trees as diffuse yellow dots. Between two yellow dots was an orange spot, shimmering. Suddenly it vanished, only to reappear a bit closer, then began moving along the line toward him. He turned, and Reynir came in sight, trailing one hand on the wire. His anxious look melted into a huge grin when he saw the look of amazement on Onni’s face.
“It works! I knew our magics were compatible!”
“How…” began Onni. He shook his head, and much to Reynir’s surprise, laughed.
“Alright, what other tricks have you got up your sleeve? Come along with me, and talk.”
(https://i.imgur.com/kpmnuRl.jpg)
The crusts, the blades, the strands, the upright miniature trees, the spikes and cups, all are lichens, and each one is an amazing symbiosis. A lichen is not a single organism, it is a commensal relationship between a fungus and an alga. The fungal partner provides the structure. What you see is made of a tangle of mycelia, the threads that make up all fungi. Embedded in this mesh are single-celled green algae. They provide food, through photosynthesis. The fungus also spreads its mycelia across whatever the lichen is growing on, absorbing mineral nutrients to share with the algae.
(https://i.imgur.com/TeGUmzB.jpg)
Tuuri was working late, transcribing a particularly fascinating book. Sigrun came in.
“You still up, Fuzzy-Head? You should get some sleep.”
“I’ll go to sleep soon, Sigrun, but I want to finish this passage first. I won’t be able to sleep for wondering about it, anyway! But shouldn’t you be sleeping, too?”
Sigrun scratched her arm. “Having trouble sleeping. This stupid thing itches, it must be Mikkel’s lousy stitches.”
They sat in companionable silence for a few minutes, Tuuri making notes and Sigrun staring out the window.
“Hey Fuzzy-Head.”
“Mmm?”
“You read lots of books. Any of them about medicine?”
“I’ve read a little bit… but Mikkel’s the one with medical training, shouldn’t you ask him any medical questions?”
Sigrun snorted. “I wouldn’t be too sure about his having any actual training, you know? So, this thing itches like crazy, is there anything I can put on it?”
Tuuri thought for a moment. “Hm. My mother used to put peppermint oil on insect bites, but we don’t have any of that with us. Oh! But we have oatmeal!” She got up and started rummaging around.
“Wait, I’m itchy, not hungry!”
Tuuri laughed. “Not to eat! Grind it up fine, mix it into a paste, and put it on the itchy area.”
Sigrun looked skeptical. At this point, Reynir came through the door. “What’s going on? I woke up and heard voices.”
“Oh, sorry Reynir,” said Tuuri. “Sigrun and I were just talking about itchy skin cures. We’ll try to be quieter.”
Reynir brightened. “What kind of cure are you using? I think I might be able to help.”
“Fine oatmeal paste, held on with a bandage,” said Tuuri.
“Oh yes, I can make that work even better!”
It was Tuuri’s turn to look skeptical. But Sigrun was willing to try pretty much anything by that point, so after the wound was covered with oatmeal paste and wrapped in a bandage, Reynir carefully drew runes on the bandage.
“My arm isn’t going to burst into flame now, is it?” joked Sigrun.
“Maybe we shouldn’t mention to this to Mikkel,” said Tuuri, “he might be offended, you know?”
The others concurred, Sigrun agreeing to remove the bandage and oatmeal paste before having Mikkel check her healing progress.
Early in the morning, Lalli returned from scouting. Mikkel had to let him in, because Sigrun was sound asleep. She slept on, through the crashes and bangs that accompanied breakfast-making and preparations for the day. Finally the smell of breakfast roused her, and she came out, looking more rested than she had in days. She made eye contact with Tuuri and Reynir, grinned and gave them a thumbs-up.
(https://i.imgur.com/OxmluID.jpg)
Through their mutualism, lichens expand their opportunities. Cradled in a web of fungal mycelia, the tiny algae can live where their free-living cousins cannot. And the fungus, fed by the sugars the algae produce, can set up shop on bare rock or soil, where there is nothing for its decomposing fellow fungi to consume. Together, they become more than the sum of their parts.
Post by: Buteo on April 03, 2021, 02:09:19 AM
Post by: Maglor on April 03, 2021, 03:03:23 AM
Post by: Róisín on April 03, 2021, 04:06:37 AM
Oakmoss (a lichen despite the name) is a perfume fixative as well as a perfume ingredient in its own right, and Reindeer Moss (another lichen) is a food substance for both humans and animals in many cold parts of the world, and there are many other lichen species that are edible scattered across the planet, though you need to identify them carefully, because some are poisonous to humans.
Then there are the huge number of lichens used for making dyes and mordants (mordants are the substances that make dyes stick to the cloth, sort of analogous to the fixatives that meld the different elements of a perfume into an harmonious whole, and some of which can change the colour given by a dye substance - more of that later). Many of those beautiful muted earth colours in old tweed fabrics come from lichens, as do reds, purples, oranges and blues. One lichen dye which is likely familiar to anyone who has done chemistry is Litmus, which is made from a group of lichen species that make a useful dye for cloth, but gives utterly different colours depending on the acidity or alkalinity of the mordants used. From this use it evolved into the pH test for whether a substance is acidic or basic, turning red or blue depending on whether the substance is acidic or alkaline.
Then there are the medicinal lichens, again found all over the world. My favourite is Usnea, which as well as being a useful dye, is a widely used traditional medicine across the world, and one which is presently being investigated for the use of one of its components, usnic acid, to treat some strains of antibiotic-resistant tuberculosis. Amazing organisms, lichens!
Finally there is the importance of lichens as soil builders and things to give an ecology a bit of a kickstart. There have been several studies on the emerging ecology of Surtsey, a modern volcanic island which has been well observed since it emerged from the sea. Lichens were the first organisms to take up residence on the cooling volcanic rock, and eventually broke down enough rock and caught enough windblown debris to start an ecology on Surtsey. It is still tiny and struggling, but it is there!
And Vulpes, I especially liked the analogy you drew between how lichens work as a symbiosis, and how Onni and Reynir build a symbiotic synthesis out of their different magics.
Post by: thegreyarea on April 03, 2021, 06:26:57 AM
(and the stories are also precisely mixed with the canon!)
(http://i989.photobucket.com/albums/af14/epierceabbott/Screen%20Shot%202016-06-09%20at%2018.49.29_zpskgnjyknr.png)
Post by: Mirasol on April 03, 2021, 09:28:09 AM
*crying into her breakfast cereal* @Mirasol , that's amazing! I didn't really flesh out these characters, but you certainly did, and placed into a GAG ORDER IMPOSED TO PREVENT SPOILERS !
Team Leader discovers that you shouldn't make a threat unless you are fully prepared to carry it out, but fortunately Akka smiles upon them and lends them the colours of the sky for their teammates as a gift, not a punishment. (nnooo, not the 'do you love the colours of the sky' meme)
You are very correct about the sketchiness of these, too - I actually didn't gift the leader with quite that cool of a hairstyle (the inside of the hood was only vaguely suggested, as was the hairstyle), but they look very very smart with your update. Consider all of them canon. As props for a joke (and the subtext which seems to have been sufficiently masked by the humour), none of these characters had names or backstories, so there's nothing to impede them gaining their own life elsewhere.
Aaah, I´m glad you like it!!!
moredhel, wow, clearly a lot of work went into this! Every shadow and muscle is perfectly placed!
Vulpes, this was wonderful! The pictures set the mood really well (did you take them yourself? They´re beautiful!), and the parallels of working together to become more than the sum of one´s parts fit together nicely! (as if in Symbiosis! :D ... I´ll see myself out...)
Also thank you to Róisín for even more interesting information on lichen!
Truly a fascinating species... I remember learning a bit about them in Biology-class, though never much deeper than the fact that they are a Symbiosis. (Which is a shame, as I now realize!)
Post by: Vulpes on April 03, 2021, 09:44:26 AM
Hmmm... guess it would be a smarter move to make heroes actually use some fungal/lichen madicine and/or use those in whatever whichcraft they make. Without it I just see two stories, weakly connected to each other. The stories themselves are nice though.
Haha, I almost did that - but got waaaay off down a rabbit hole of lichen uses, and got stuck on how exactly any of the crew would be using them. Róisín gives an excellent summary of those uses (I knew I could save myself the bother! :))). I wanted to focus on the symbioses among the crew, and it got too confusing to also include lichen in those vingnettes. I considered having Tuuri use Usnea on Sigrun's itchy wound, but that left me without a lichen link in the other vignette... and I'm a stickler for symmetry, so oatmeal it is. ;D
Thanks Buteo, glad you liked the images - I haven't used my dSLR in ages, but got it out and tramped around in the woods. This also served as a push to start really learning GIMP. I've used Photoshop in the past, but it's really pricey and apparently you can do anything with the GIMP that you can in Photoshop... but it's quite the learning curve. I figured, I learned how to do my stats in R, I can learn how to postprocess images in GIMP. Now I have to re-learn how to use a "real" camera (as opposed to my phone) and figure out all the ins and outs of GIMP. Doing this gave me a good boost!
grey, thank-you so much! And you noticed that I fit the stories into canon. :) For no particularly good reason, that was important to me to do.
Mirasol, I did indeed take the photos (see above). Don't feel bad about not knowing more about lichen, it's good that you at least remembered they're a symbiosis. Most people hardly know they exist, but as Róisín points out, they are fantastically important ecologically, making soil from bare rock, setting the stage for other plants to grow.
Post by: moredhel on April 03, 2021, 10:50:30 AM
Post by: thorny on April 03, 2021, 11:47:37 AM
I wanted to focus on the symbioses among the crew, and it got too confusing to also include lichen in those vingnettes.
I think for me it worked better that way. If the crew had been using lichens in their segment of the story, I might have taken the lichen descriptions as just being background for that use. Since they weren't, I had to think 'what do these two interleaved things have to do with each other' and therefore saw the analogy.
And will now point out another one: 'those two interleaved things' -- the natural history description and the crew stories -- are themselves an example of what they're illustrating: unlike things coming together to make a whole. Very nice indeed!
Post by: Jitter on April 03, 2021, 05:24:16 PM
People interested in lichen may be keen to know a third partner in the symbiosis was discovered as recently as 2016! It is another kind of fungi, single-cell yeast: https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2016/07/160721151213.htm
Post by: Vulpes on April 03, 2021, 06:00:51 PM
I'm glad you like the photos, Jitter. You probably encounter some of the same species in the Finnish forests! And thanks for that link - I knew about (and didn't include, for simplicity) cyanobacteria, which may occur instead of, or with, algae, but I'd missed the basidiomycete thing. Very cool!
Post by: Róisín on April 03, 2021, 08:43:10 PM
Post by: wavewright62 on April 04, 2021, 01:34:06 AM
Day 9: Brook, pond or spring
Today Groupoid gives us an insight into the effect our crew has on the local community.
The gossip had already announced them days ago. They were the talk of everyone with enough mind to communicate. It didn’t happen every day that humans ventured in this region, and bets had already been made on how long they would last. Puro was curious to see them in person, when they came to his little realm. He wanted to know who these people were that managed to convince the Swan to give a soul some overtime in the physical world.
----
Finally they arrived and put up their tent nearby. Human faces. Like it was a only a few days ago, he recalls how ages ago humans had stood by his banks for the first time. They had looked a bit different then, and talked other languages than today. And Puro himself had been a different brook. But he was still amazed by the humans and their power to use and form the world they found themselves in to their liking.
He wished these humans luck in their fight against the evil Kade. More than once had it come near Puro and killed the ducks he so adored, when they nested in his reeds. He would try to give these people the cleanest water he could manage. Ever so slightly adjusting the currents, so the nastier bits some beasts had dumped upstream wouldn’t land in their canteens.
One of the humans placed a foreign magic around their campsite. As if by a magnet, Puro’s glance was pushed away from it. He could overcome the pressure without much trouble, but he was still intrigued by it. He would have to tell his sister about it, next time the rain allowed them to meet.
----
Reynir dipped his head underwater and massaged his scalp. – Wait. Was that giggling he heard? – He lifted his head ouf of the water. Nothing unusual. He continued washing his hair. – There it was again after a while. Bursting laughter.
“Tuuri, do you hear that?”
“Nah, nothing unusual. I just hear the babbling of the brook.”
Reynir finished washing his hair, ignoring the giggling, and let his hair dry by the campfire.
Puro loved hair. When it formed soft clouds around the heads of people and caused those intricate currents, going around and between the fine hairs. Neither sand nor plants came close to that, not to mention the water-repelling feathers of birds, which were boring in terms of current. Oh, how he loved this! How he’d missed this!
He recalled how some years ago a light young woman and her sturdy companion bathed in him and made their camp at nearly the same spot as the group today. Two of the men here today even reminded him of her. He recalled how in an even earlier time he’d been the meeting place of the women in the nearby settlement, to wash their clothes and exchange gossip. There had always been nice currents they made (and juicy gossip), though the soap they’d used sometimes gave him indigestion.
Oh, tomorrow these people would go on again, and he would be back to moving gravel around and watching mayflies grow. He didn’t hate it, but Puro kinda missed the mammals. They were more fun to have around than the monsters they had turned into. He’d say something like “How do you do?” and the beasts would only answer screeching and screaming.
----
Well, there they started packing up. It was nice having you here, Puro thinks to himself. Oh, and could you please remove the spell, while you’re at it? … Just a bit? … Smudge the marks? … No? … Are you really intending to curse that spot so no animal will have a look at it without a big reason to do so? Please tell me the rain will wash it away. … Well, at least it’ll be a little souvenir of their stay.
Reynir came running back shortly after they left, cursing his forgetfulness under his breath. With his boots he dug up the sigil in a few places, to break its effect, then he ran back to the others. “Thank you! Bless you!” Puro tried to shout after him.
(For some reason the mages are mostly deaf to the spirit’s monologuing. And his behaviour may not fit into existing folklore.)
Post by: Grade E cat on April 04, 2021, 02:11:21 AM
Post by: Róisín on April 04, 2021, 06:14:57 AM
Post by: Jitter on April 04, 2021, 08:16:14 AM
Post by: moredhel on April 04, 2021, 08:34:54 AM
Post by: Vulpes on April 04, 2021, 09:04:03 AM
Post by: Róisín on April 04, 2021, 10:28:25 AM
Post by: Sevseres on April 04, 2021, 11:55:34 AM
Post by: Crumpite on April 04, 2021, 11:34:21 PM
Trees grow on the tops of the valleys as the stoney bottoms are too wet.
But, you,should see the lichens !
They grow in circles, some of them eight feet in diameter.
I've often wondered just how old they must be given the lack of sunshine and short growing season.
There are lots of strange microclimates up there.
It's the only place I've ever seen a worm snake, they're only an inch long...
Wonderful art and stories everyone, thanks !
Post by: Róisín on April 05, 2021, 01:22:38 AM
Post by: wavewright62 on April 05, 2021, 01:32:42 AM
Day 10: Rowan or Birch
Story time: I blame Kitty for this one, for starting the 'WIP Me Into Finishing This' (https://ssssforum.com/index.php?topic=1173.0) thread. I contributed a drawing I'd abandoned, illustrating a story (https://archiveofourown.org/works/10524495) I wrote some years back. The complete story is at the link, but an excerpt is spoilered below.
In brief, it's a fix-it fic in which the Norse goddess Gefjon attempts to help Tuuri after she is injured, enlisting the help of Reynir. Unfortunately, Reynir's efforts alone are not enough to effect the required magic, so Lalli invokes the aid of Rauni, the Finnish spirit of the rowan tree (at last we get to the tie-in to the theme!). I have illustrated the scene where Rauni and Gefjon dance together.
Spoiler: rauni meets gefjon • show
Spoiler: spoilered for nude derriÈre • show
Post by: Róisín on April 05, 2021, 02:46:56 AM
Post by: Mirasol on April 05, 2021, 09:57:42 AM
Wave, this turned out great! I´m glad you tried your hand at this piece again, it was definitly worth it! (so no blame on Kitty, we have to thank her for this. :'D)
Post by: Vulpes on April 05, 2021, 10:33:39 AM
Post by: Crumpite on April 05, 2021, 08:15:15 PM
Post by: Tarnagh on April 05, 2021, 11:30:28 PM
Post by: wavewright62 on April 06, 2021, 01:52:15 AM
Day 11: Hilly Landscape
Two things this fandom loves dearly - landscapes and poetry - are today combined by midwestmutt. Ahhhh.
Tendrils of mist rise
Out a Spring green canopy
The hills of my home
Mice rustle through leaves
Wind-swept branches rise and dip
Birdsong everywhere
The sun arcs its way
o'er hills that glaciers reprieved
In the distant past
Post by: Róisín on April 06, 2021, 02:58:01 AM
Post by: Jitter on April 06, 2021, 03:53:16 AM
Incidentally I came up with a couple of complementary ones, not having seen yours! Mine are about a specific hill, which for me is definitely a focal one in the ”hills of my home”.
(https://i.postimg.cc/1XnwmV45/81-AEE3-CC-16-A8-40-BA-A603-74-A412-A32-F59.jpg)
(https://i.postimg.cc/mD67WyL5/5-FAA9-C5-F-AD99-4-D48-BBCB-5-FC940-B301-DB.jpg)
(https://i.postimg.cc/hjGVY5Bm/49-A41-A47-E7-A1-4-DCD-9-EA5-D380703-D5-DAF.jpg)
As you can see from the haikus, Koli is two syllables and Pielinen (the lake) is three.
In case someone doesn't see the pictures:
There are three pictures, two of which have haikus.
The first one shows a view from Koli (seen from the hotel, the same level as the upper end of the funicular and the Nature Centre Ukko) towards the lake with dense fog and then with the fog clearing and a partial rainbow appearing over the lake. The haiku reads:
The lake is breathing
Mist rises from Pielinen
Koli hides itself
The second picture is an aerial photo of the Ukko Koli summit and the lake beyond it, with yellow autumn foliage (birch) and dark of the conifers. This picture is not by me, as I don't have a photography drone. However I wanted to borrow one that works with the haiku:
Bones of the mountains
Remnants of a range now gone
Ancient hill Koli
The photo is by Harri Säynevirta and taken from the all free image bank (license CC 0 i.e. public domain) kuviasuomesta.fi
The third one is a collage of four of my winter photos from Koli, the uppermost is looking towards the west (overlooking the funicular tracks), two are towards the lake to the east and one is snowy trees with some sunset in the background.
Here are more aerial (and other) photos by a proper photographer: https://eskonkuvat.kuvat.fi/kuvat/Kuvia%20Pohjois-Karjalasta/
Koli info for the interested!
Koli is indeed "bones of the mountains", it is the last vestige of a mountain range higher than the Himalayas from 2 billion years ago. The current altitude is 347 m above sea level, and some 253 m above the water level in the adjacent lake Pielinen. Before the previous ice age it was several hundred meters higher than now, although the mighty mountain range was gone already. The remaining peaks nowadays are largely formed of very hard quartzite that was able to withstand the erosion of eons, including several ice ages, longer than the rest of the range. The rounded shapes of the rock was generated by the ice sheets just like Midwestmutt describes.
The old name for Koli and/or the area is Mustarinta ("Black-chest") which also happens to be one of the many many names for bear! Coincidence? Maybe, maybe not. It is not known whether the name here derives from bears (there is a rock formation presumably resembling the head of a bear) or just from the fact that it looks dark from the distance. The current name Koli started appearing in maps since 1700's but the origin for it is not known. One theory references the word meaning bald in Carelian, which would refer to the bare summits. Such prominent bare rock summits are rare in southern Finland.
There are many folktales about there having been places of worship, sacrifice and public assembly, and hermit wisemen living there. However there are no archaeological finds to support this, only oral traditions. The place gained popularity during the national awakening of Finland, so some of the stories may be at least exaggerated by the artists enthusiastic about Finnish traditions in general and Koli in particular. Nevertheless it's an impressive place and has most likely been viewed as a place with powerful spirits.
A preserved poem mentions Kolin korkeat isännät, Mustarinnan murhat miehet "the high masters of Koli, the murder men of Mustarinta" (the "murder" here means they are fearsome) that were known to live there in 1500's. Fear of these spirits reigned strong and no houses were built in the area throughout the 1600's. The area became permanently inhabited from mid 1700's when local clergy had scoured out the "superstition of the simple folk". The spirits were approached to ask for luck in the hunt by the hunters of the surrounding areas all the way to Ilomantsi who prepared a ceremonial meal on the summit to share with the spirits. (source: Pielisjärven historia I, 1954, Kilpeläinen, Hintikka ja Saloheimo)
Post by: Vulpes on April 06, 2021, 01:40:53 PM
Post by: Jitter on April 06, 2021, 03:04:15 PM
Southern Lapland fells that have trees have wonderful tykky. For example Riisitunturi (another National Park) is very famous for it, and the trees and landscape are located conveniently so that they are easy to reach even for people with limited mobility. As long as you are in southern Lapland, that is. Or in Kuusamo. See e.g. here: https://revontulia.com/2016/03/04/riisitunturi/
I think I posted some pictures from Ruka (in Kuusamo) last winter, when we went there and visited the Oulanka National Park. It was just before the pandemic, 13,5 months ago and it seems like it’s been an eternity or maybe two.
Post by: wavewright62 on April 07, 2021, 01:25:29 AM
Day 12: (How to Catch) Karvaturri
Fuzzy-Wuzzy was a bear, Fuzzy-Wuzzy had...way too much hair and was actually named Karvaturri. Mirasol shows how the hirsute one was defeated.
Mirasol gives the content warning: Slight gore-warning, to about the same extent as in the comic, a bit of swearing
Spoiler: how to catch karvaturri • show
Post by: Grade E cat on April 07, 2021, 03:44:04 AM
Spoiler: my prime suspect • show
Post by: Vulpes on April 07, 2021, 10:09:45 AM
That fic gave me a headcanon as to who could have written the initial scout report. That brevity looks kind of familiar.Spoiler: my prime suspect • show
kyllä. ;)
Post by: Sevseres on April 07, 2021, 02:31:43 PM
That fic gave me a headcanon as to who could have written the initial scout report. That brevity looks kind of familiar.Spoiler: my prime suspect • show
"Description: very hairy
Behavior: stupid
Territory: yes
Time of Sight: tuesday
Extra Notes: bear"
The fic looks awesome but I sadly don't have the time to read it properly rn ;w; I'll read it once I find the time. Wave, midwestmutt, I loved yours. I lovelovelove it when icelandic and finnish magic work with each other, more so when it is with such elegance like your fic and lovely drawing is, wave!
Post by: Vulpes on April 07, 2021, 04:19:56 PM
Post by: JoB on April 07, 2021, 04:36:27 PM
"Description: very hairy"Additional eyewitnesses: ☂"
Behavior: stupid
Territory: yes
Time of Sight: tuesday
Extra Notes: bear"
Post by: Jitter on April 07, 2021, 05:45:44 PM
Sevseres (and JoB) beat me to it, but since this came to my head complete, I’ll go nevertheless.
S: Ok, next! Oh, it’s you. Hello, Hotkainen.”
L: —
S: And your report?
L: No threat.
S: Ok, good. Did you see anything?
L: yes
S: oh, want to tell me what it was?
L: —
S: Ahem, tell me what it was.
L: Bear
S: A bear? You mean like a normal bear?
L: No
S: No? A bear beast?
L: Yes
S: You saw a bear beast?! Why did you report no threat?
L: Far. Walking away.
S: I see. And you are absolutely sure of this? It’s no threat whatsoever?
L: *shrug*
S: So which one was it?
L: None.
S: Not in the bear registry? You sure?
L: —
S: Ok (straining to stay calm). Did you get a good look at it?
L: Yes
S: ... and?
L: *shrug*
S: Please tell me what it was like
L: A beast bear
S: Yes, indeed. Anything special about it?
L: *shrug*
S: What did it look like?
L: Very hairy
S: Any special characteristics?
L: Very hairy
S: Yes, I got that the first time. Anything else?
L: —
S: So that’s all you are gonna say?
L: —
S: So why don’t we write that down then!
L: *shrug*
S: How is this information going to help us catch it?
L: *shrug*
S: Seriously, any tips on that? Hmm?
L: Your problem.
S: Why you little...
S2: Watch out! You know he bites if you yell at him!
Post by: thegreyarea on April 07, 2021, 07:49:47 PM
So, on chronological order:
Jitter, the yeasts article is fascinating, as the whole theme. Thanks for sharing it!
Groupoid, I loved every single bit of your story! Brilliant! It reminded me the Kami of Shinto beliefs (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shinto). I also share moredhel's opinion on spirits remembering mammals, and particularly humans. And the soap reference is so funny!
As for that other reference... Excellent! :)
And Vulpes, thanks for waking my memory! I read that, many years ago. It's a great story!
Also thanks to Róisín, for pointing the bonnie yew tree! We can trust that you'll never run out of fascinating references!
Wave, your story is extraordinaire! The poetic tones are so very appropriated for the characters! And the magic! O_O I also loved the picture! The way things glow! And the small detail of the cat tank on the background!
midwestmutt, your poem/haiku is so beautiful and powerful! I can't get tired of reading it!
Jitter, the pics are amazing! Yours and the others, every single one. And the haikus too! The day I visit Koli I'll surely have "bones of the mountains" in my head! :)
(and many thanks for the interesting info too!)
Mirasol, I love your story! I saw it in my mind, panel after panel! As Vulpes I appreciate the symetry on the reports and also want more tales about those characters and their special team!
Grade E Cat, sevseres and Jitter, you got it! Onni's participation is now canon to me! :)
Post by: Vulpes on April 07, 2021, 08:04:54 PM
"Additional eyewitnesses: ☂"
Lol! :haw:
Jitter, I love your little scene. Very true to character. :))
Post by: catbirds on April 07, 2021, 09:16:48 PM
Wave, I'm glad you saw your formerly abandoned/messed up sketch through! It turned out great, the story was also sweet! I've missed the way you draw expressions and all your doodles in my time away from here ;D
Vulpes, your story was so interesting! I feel like I took a whole biology lesson there haha. You have such a clear source of inspiration and I hope nature will inspire you for years to come! This kind of reminds me of when I went on walks and field trips with a particularly knowledgeable friend who would blather on about lichens and such for ages.
Groupoid, this story feels so mysterious... but hearing stories about benign and friendly spirits always puts me in a good mood!
Midwestmutt and Jitter, mist sure is a popular topic for poems these days :) I love poetry and I appreciate all the nature imagery in yours!
And great collages, of course. I've always been especially drawn to the way the snow weighs the evergreen tree branches down, so I'm so glad Finnish people came up with a name for it. Also, thank you for the Koli information!
Mirasol, whew, your descriptions of the fighting... very intense, very vivid (imo). I guess the report was pretty far off! Thanks for this story, it's a good balance of scary stuff (to me) and lighthearted team building moments
Okay! I've definitely missed a few since I last commented and sorry if this is... long but there's just so much I adore in this thread!
Post by: wavewright62 on April 08, 2021, 01:19:38 AM
Oak trees in their splendid variety definitely show up in mythology on a regular basis. Standing alone or in a forest, their spreading branches inspire us, as do the leaves and acorns responding to the seasons. Today thegreyarea brings us a tale of one such mythical (perhaps not?) oak.
thegreyarea's warning: As my dear readers will surely infer from the title, this story features several mentions to an alcoholic beverage.
Rum
The great tree felt something hit an exposed root. Instantly she became alert, fearing that something might have crossed through the several layers of magic that shielded her from the World. It has been some time since humans threatened her kind, however many worse things came into being, some new, some very old. Could any of them reach her?
Yet she couldn't sense any danger, and her shields seemed intact. Maybe one of the small beings that inhabited her made a mistake and fell, finishing its short life? It happened before. But no, she couldn't taste blood in her roots. It was... alcohol! And a lot of it.
She extended her senses towards the place where the little mammals stored most of their things... There weren't many around. Actually she could feel just one, and she could sense despair... Cautiously she probed, caring not to damage that delicate mind, and soon found what she wanted. No reason to worry, but now she was curious about how the story will end, and how it began. She dig deeper in the little mind until the first memories of that day...
---
Grey woke up as someone knocked at his door. He hastily tried to arrange his head's fur and rushed to the entrance, wondering who could be up knocking so early.
He opened it and found Mirasol, looking happy as a sunny day. "Hi Grey! Good to see you!"
"Hi! Glad to see you too!" Then he remembered it was Midsummer. "All's ready for the party? Can't wait to taste the cookies!"
"The kitchen is almost ready. Actually I'm on my way to help Merlin with the cookies. But I'm a little late, and he asked me to bring rum. Could you please do it for me?"
"Of course! I had no idea that rum was part of the recipe. Is it only for the special Midsummer cookies?"
"Silly, you know that's a secret, right? Can't tell you. Nevertheless the rum is very important. Now, will you be a nice squirrel and fetch a bottle for me? I still have lots of things to set up."
"I'll just comb my fur and head straight to the warehouse!"
"Great! We still have some hours before the rum is needed, but please don't forget. Bye!" She went down the alley, humming some song.
---
Grey checked his shoulder bag, making sure he got all the basics. Book, comb, water and a small bag of cookies. Perfect! He added an empty bottle for the rum and was ready to go.
It would be easy. Just a small trip to the warehouse, then up to the kitchen to deliver the bottle. And then finding a nice spot to spend the rest of the holiday reading until the party. He always loved Midsummer!
Upon leaving the cabin Grey took a moment to enjoy the view. His home could be a bit away from the central area, but it was on a high place, and he would never grow tired of that amazing view over Oak Town, with all the houses, alleys and stairways spreading over the large branches of the Great Tree.
Dawn hasn't arrived yet, and the street lights were still on. The network of suspended walkways crossing between branches made the view over the town even more beautiful, like a giant glittering spiderweb. At the center, right over the main trunk, a patch of intense light marked the Forum's location. Grey squinted to see the small figures that were decorating the ample amphitheatre for the party. Too far to distinguish anyone, he knew, and it was time to move on.
---
Grey ran down the alley until the start of the branch. Better not wait for the elevator, he thought, welcoming the opportunity to exercise. His mirror had been complaining that a certain squirrel had gained at least 30g lately, maybe more!
So he took the stairway that descended along the trunk, and after several levels arrived at the warehouse floor, a large ring of platforms and buildings that encircled the trunk just under the lower branches. Anyone could easily spend hours searching for something there, and at such early hours on a holiday no one would be around to help. Luckily that wasn't a problem for Grey. After working there for three years he knew exactly where alcoholic beverages were stored.
He reached the desired area and climbed to a higher place for a better view. Took him less than a minute to locate a large barrel labelled "RUM", next to an entrance.
As Grey turned to get down his tail hit something. A broom, he saw, nothing serious. However it fell over a lever, and that lever released a set of pulleys, allowing a box to fall over the next platform. He took a deep breath. The box seemed intact, and hopefully nothing was broken. Luck was on his side.
In the next second the structure under the box made a loud noise and collapsed, dropping over a line of barrels on the floor. The last one rolled until it hit the rum barrel, that in turn rolled, slowly, through the door, and kept rolling until it broke the guardrail and fell.
Grey, paralysed, watched the events unfold. He felt his heart inside that barrel, falling towards the roots, far below. Only a full minute after the distant crash his mind started to work again. The first thought was simple: "I'm screwed!"
---
This time he called the elevator. What would he tell to Mirasol, to everybody? "Sorry, there will be no party this year"? Maybe "Apologies, I couldn't take care of my big fat tail and spoiled everything"? A squirrel party without cookies was no party!
Grey's thoughts were very dark while the machine slowly moved upwards. A disaster! People would never forget nor forgive him! He even felt a brief headache, like something entering his head! It disappeared as fast as it came. He never had a headache before, but all things considered it wasn't a surprise.
The elevator stopped with a clang. Time to move and face the consequences, he thought, looking at the big watch over the kitchen entrance.
A young squirrel came out. "Already thinking on the party, Grey? Still some hours to go!"
He was so distracted it took him a moment to reply "Oh, hi Ran. Yes... I mean no, I don't..." And suddenly a thought hit! Hours! He might have time to avoid disaster!
Gray gave him a big hug. "Thank you so much, Ran!"
He stood there, surprised. "Err... What's up, Grey? Are you ok?"
"Yes, yes!" He started to run. "I'll explain later. Must go now!"
---
Grey felt a new hope as the elevator climbed. Someone in Oak Town would surely have rum! If only he was looking for ale... It would be so easy!
At the top he even took a minute to delight his eyes on the beams of light filtered through the higher leaves. Morning has come, and he needed to focus! Just find that bottle!
However he couldn't simply knock at every door. It would take too long and, worst, alert everybody about the problem. Asking the right person was the key, and he already had one squirrel in mind.
Arriving at the Forum Grey easily found him, up at the amphitheatre border, always attentive to everything. "JoB! How nice to see you!"
The big squirrel looked at him. "Hello Grey! Up so early on a holiday?"
He knew that JoB already supposed there was a problem, but would be too polite to ask. "I'm searching for something for a friend, and... well, since you always know so many things..."
He raised an eyebrow. "And what that thing might be?"
"Well... rum! I need a bottle of rum!" And felt his cheeks turning red.
"Hum... I see... Suppose I can't ask why, right?" He was silent for a while. "I'm afraid I can't recall anyone having one of these. As you know most squirrels don't drink, and rum isn't exactly popular... I guess we might have some in the warehouse. Have you checked there?"
Grey gulped. "Err... Yes, I... I've just been there, but it seems the rum is over."
"Then I can't help you, I'm afraid." He pointed down. "Try asking Wave. She might know."
"Oh, good idea! Thanks anyway." Grey walked down the large steps to the center of the Forum and found Wave surrounded by kids. There was some commotion, and she was wearing her hat, which meant things were serious.
Grey waited and after two minutes everything was settled. Wave saw him and removed the hat. "Hi Grey! What are you doing here? Wanna help? We have a lot to do!"
"I'd love to, but I need to do something first."
"I hope you're not in trouble... Yet you do look like someone that accidentally broke an expensive vase!"
Damn, was that so obvious? He just wanted to run, but there's no other way.
"I need... a bottle... of run."
Her eyes widened. "Isn't it a bit early for that?"
Before the conversation attracted everyone's attention he took a step closer and muttered. "I don't want to drink it! It's for a friend! Some recipe that needs it."
She looked unconvinced, and Grey felt pierced by her eyes, until she opened a large smile. "Just jokin', dear! I believe you! But I'm afraid I can't help. Try asking Róisín, she might know."
"Great idea! Thanks!" He was already running. How hasn't him thought about asking Róisín before? She knew so many things, and so many people too!
Grey used the walkway to cross to the next branch, caring not to look down. It was a vertiginous drop to the mass of roots below.
Róisín lived in a steep area, with houses grouped around small platforms connected by a funicular and several stairways. After the hundredth step he regretted choosing the stairs, promising himself that if there was a party he would not eat as many cookies as last year!
He feared finding Róisín surrounded, as usual, by squirrels of all ages. Everyone wanted to drink from that well of knowledge! However this time Grey was luck and found her alone, leaving her house. "Hello Róisín. Remember me?"
"Of course! Grey, isn't it? Two... or maybe three seasons ago? My basic magic course. And you did have some talent for that!" She kept walking. "I'm on my way to a class. Would you accompany me there? How are you doing?"
They walked together while he thought how to bring it up. Better go straight to the point.
"Róisín, I need a bottle of rum. It's for a recipe, but it's also a... surprise, and I can't go around asking everybody. I supposed you might know, or even had some."
"Well, let me think... no, I don't recall anyone. Wait, I had a bottle, some time ago! I gave it, as a gift, to Merlin. He appreciates that. You can ask him."
Grey felt his hopes falling like the barrel before. "Anyone else?"
"Try Crumpite. He and Merlin are good friends. I've heard they share many tastes."
"Thank you so much! Do you know where he might be?"
"Down there at the lake, probably. He told me some eggs would be hatching today. If I were your age I'd take a glider suit. It's the fastest way."
A glider! Mielikki help him! He wasn't a flying squirrel! She was right, of course, but he never flew from such a high point, only small jumps to lower branches when he was younger.
Nevertheless Grey decided to take his chances. He couldn't wait to leave that problem behind. He located a hanging platform and borrowed a suit, fixing in on wrists and ankles. Then he approached the border, prayed to Mielikki, Ilmatar* and the Great Tree, took a deep breath and jumped.
---
The little squirrel was interesting. Clumsy, but filled with good intentions. She felt, however, that his story would end soon. He clearly had no experience, and his descent was too fast. Her roots would soon taste his blood... But she was curious to see if he could find the rum, and he did preyed to her! So she focused energy, heating the air...
---
Too fast! He was going to die! No way to slow down before hitting the mass of roots that covered the ground. Grey closed his eyes and got ready for the impact, wishing it was brief and painless. The worst was to go after failing his friends, everybody!
Then he felt a warm wind against his body. A thermal current! A quite strong one! He twisted and bent, and finally managed to use the ascending wind to reduce his speed, landing without any grace but blissfully intact!
Grey removed the suit, still shaken and incredulous. It was a miracle to be alive! He spotted someone coming, walking along a tortuous root. He's been on the ground many times, but the huge mass of visible roots never ceased to amaze him. No one could tell that underneath them, and the tree's immense girth, there was a small island. It just looked like the Great Oak stood directly over the placid water.
And now he could see who's coming. He didn't need do go looking for Crumpite after all.
"Grey! It's really you! I didn't know that you could fly so well! That manoeuvrer at the end was rad! And risky!"
"Well, I don't know how I did it. I guess Mielikki and Ilmatar were looking for me..." He felt a sting in the back of his head and turned. There's no one behind him, just the oak. "...or maybe the Great Tree blessed me with luck!"
Then he remembered the reason for that mad moment. "I hope you don't mind me asking, but Róisín suggested that you could have a bottle of rum, and I'm quite pressed to find one."
"Hey, no problem! Actually I had one, but gave it to Merlin, maybe two years ago. Oh, don't be sad! Listen, there's already a lot of people on the other side, enjoying the holiday and playing with the ducks. Why don't you go ask them?"
He didn't like the sound of it. "Thanks, but I'd rather not go asking everybody. It's... a surprise." He was starting to believe that nothing could be done.
Crumpite put a hand on his shoulder. "Look, some are your friends. I saw Jitter playing on the water. And Vulpes was riding one of my ducks. I'm sure you can trust them."
Seeing his friends sounded good, and Grey managed a half-hearted smile.
"Good, good! You go, I have to check a nest over there. Several eggs are hatching. Soon we will have a new batch of ducks."
He left Crumpite, walked towards the trunk and got around it. On the opposite side several squirrels enjoyed the water on small groups, while others rode ducks. Three were even making a race! He just wanted to be that happy!
His friends saw him and waved. Grey waved back and sat on the root, watching. Nellie, Keep Looking and many others were playing keep away, using a nut as a ball, and Vulpes was racing, trying hard to sustain himself over a duck. Jitter came out of the water and sat by his side, dripping. He checked if no one was close enough to listen and told her the whole story. She asked him a few questions and stood there, thinking while a small puddle grew around her.
Moments later she smiled. "Grey, I have an idea! Yesterday I was with Alkia and Molly at the Lehto, helping Vulpes with his hives, when a group of humans arrived. I'm sure they were going to spend the night there."
"And how that can help me?"
"Because one of them had a bag, and inside there was a bottle of rum!"
---
Sure, it was Midsummer, but the lake's water was pretty cold at his feet. Grey waved at Vulpes and he came, riding a duck. "Grey! What's up?"
"A lot, friend. I'll tell you later. Right now I really need to borrow your duck."
He slid along the duck's side into the water, splashing it all over Grey and making him shudder. "Here, have it pal. But you got to tell me that story later, at the party." He winked and patted him.
"Sure!" Grey refrained to mention his doubts on that matter and climbed the duck, grabbing gently its neck and whispering. "Please, I need you to take me to Joensuu's Lehto, as fast as you can."
It emitted a soft quack and Grey held tighter as the duck swam away from the margin, opened its wings and accelerated. Soon they were airborne, heading towards the mist that perpetually encircled the Great Tree's territory. The duck was flying really fast, and Grey was glad he didn't had to speak the magical words that would let they pass through the barrier. Every squirrel knew well that ducks and swans, for some unexplained reason, where the only beings allowed to cross without the proper passwords. Everything else would simply be diverted. Those trying to leave would magically exit the mist heading back to the tree, and anything coming from outside would go around the area and reach the opposite side of the lake without ever seeing the enormous oak in the middle.
---
Soon they arrived at the Lehto. Grey asked the duck to wait, and gave him a cookie from his bag as reward. He ran to the clearing where the cabins stood, and climbed on the nearest tree. It was early in the morning, but the humans were already outside, preparing breakfast.
Good, he thought. It meant that he could go inside without being noticed.
Grey ran over a branch. Those trees were big, and old, but looked so small compared with the one were he lived. Anyway he was careful, because they were pretty high anyway, and he already had enough falling experience for the day.
He jumped from the branch to the cabin's roof. From that point he could see that the humans were on the front. He descended on the opposite side and found a half-open window. Now to find that bag.
He walked around cautiously, trying to make no sound, until he finally saw the bag Jitter described. And for the second time in the day he felt his heart fell to the floor.
There was a cat sleeping next to the bag! It looked young, and not very large, but big enough to eat a squirrel, no doubt!
Grey stood there, hidden over the cupboard, thinking. He was just a few steps from saving that crazy day. And then he remembered how that happened back at the warehouse, and got an idea!
He returned outside. There it was, in the back porch, lying against the wall. A broom, just like the one he knocked down earlier, but enormous, human-sized. Grey easily climbed the uneven planks, reached the tip of the handle and pushed it with all his strength.
The broom made a lot of noise when it hit the floor, as Grey expected. He got back inside, just in time to see the cat slowly walking out, still drowsy, attracted by the sound.
Grey reached the open bag, and there was the bottle, just as Jitter described. Now just a bit of magic.
The human-made bottle was huge, taller than a squirrel, and he needed to shrink it. He took his bottle of water, put it next to the big bottle and used a charcoal to draw the symbols. Then he recited the words.
Nothing happened! What had he done wrong? He tried again, without success. He checked his bottle. Empty! He already drank it, and he couldn't exchange an empty thing for a full one. Grey recalled Róisín's teachings. "Magic needs balance.". He searched his bag. Well, that would have to do.
Grey put the bag of cookies next to the huge bottle and recited the words. This time it worked! The bottle shrank as the cookies grew enormous! He took the now squirrel-sized bottle, closed tightly the cap and put it in his bag. The relieved squirrel was just about to cross the window when a large human entered the cabin and walked towards the bag. He reached for it and seemed puzzled, looking around as in search of something, or someone.
Grey just had time to slip outside. He ran as fast as he could. Luckily the cat was nowhere to be seen. He jumped on the duck and soon they were flying back home.
---
He knocked at the Kitchen's door and waited. Soon Mirasol opened it, and he was overwhelmed by the intense smell of baking cookies. "Grey! What took you so long? Where's the rum?" She didn't look angry, tough, just a bit annoyed. "Merlin have been asking me for it the whole morning!"
He took the bottle from his bag. "Here. Now please tell me that we will have cookies for the party."
"Oh, of course we will! We already made some!"
"You already... But... How? Wasn't it part of the recipe?"
"What? No! The cookies have many things, but no alcohol."
Grey felt his head spinning. All that... for nothing!
"Come in, I'll give you a cookie. But let me take care of this before." She ran towards Merlin, that stood next to a large cauldron, looking quite unhappy. His eyes widened and a wide smile came to his face when he saw the bottle. Then the old squirrel opened it and took a large sip.
Soon she was back. "Do you know this is the only day in the whole year when Merlin drinks alcohol? And rum is his beverage of choice. That's why it's so important to him."
Grey was out of words.
"Look, I'm sorry. I see the way I spoke this morning misled you. I hope it wasn't very bad. Can you forgive me? Please?"
"I... Sure. I should have..."
"Great! Thank you! Oh, here's your cookie!"
It was hot, and the smell invaded his senses. He ate it faster than he should, and felt much better, as if the day's madness has been just a bad dream. "Wow, that was delicious! Can I have another?"
"Not now! We have a lot to do. You can eat them at the party!" She gently pushed him towards the door. "But I'll save a small bag for you. Now go."
He saw boxes filled with small chunks of some dark ingredient. "And what's that? You make the crunchy bits out of it?"
"Shush! I already told you I can't tell! It's a secret! Go! See you at the party!" She pushed him outside and closed the door.
Grey started walking, still a bit dizzy. He sat on some leaves, watching the lake. What a whacky morning! Reaching for his book, a new idea crossed his mind.
"I should try writing down this story. Maybe people would like to read it!"
---
The Great Oak softly disconnected from the little mind. These squirrels surely have exciting moments in their short lives! She would remain attentive over this one. Now she would rest a bit until they started the party. She felt a bit drowsy... Then she remembered the broken barrel. Maybe it's from all that rum. She let her conscience drift to a comfortable slumber, aware that, had her a mouth, she would be smiling.
---
"Hummm... Those are delicious, Mikkel!" Sigrun looked really satisfied, and the main reason for her smile was the small, half-eaten cookie on her hand. "How careful of you to save these amazing cookies for our first safe breakfast!"
"Glad you liked it. I do enjoy providing a small surprise here and there."
"You must show me where you bought those! Or find the recipe! We could be rich selling cookies like these!"
"I'll see what I can do about that, but I'm afraid the recipe is a secret."
"Hum... Fine! We talk about it later. Now be nice and give me another. Changing subject, anyone had strange dreams last night?** Mine were... Hey pipsqueak! Stop! Hands out of the bag! You already ate three!"
_______________________________
Notes
* Ilmatar is a Finnish spirit of air.
** Shameless reference to my previous story for the 2020 advent calendar, that also happens when our heroes were at the Lehto. Therefore I'd assume that we can see Jitter, Alkia and Molly, in their squirrel shapes, on the first panel of page 317 (http://sssscomic.com/comic2.php?page=317) :)
More Notes
I wanted to include everybody in the story, but of course we are too many for that.
My apologies to those that weren't mentioned. Please consider that each of you were there too, happily playing on the water.
Also my apologies to all those that had parts of this story, because I didn't ask for permission. I thought about that, but feared to spoil the surprise... I hope you don't mind.
Special thanks to Mirasol. Her position as "Squirrel-cookie-chef" was the starting inspiration for all this. And my apologies for putting her on a secondary position on the kitchen, but old Merlin wouldn't accept otherwise (he threatened to turn me in a squirrel...)
Even More Notes
If you drink do so in moderation. Don't drink and drive (not even ducks).
:)
Grey's feats were performed by a trained professional. Do not try to reproduce them.
:)
No squirrels, ducks, trees or brooms were harmed in the making of this story.
:)
Any resemblance with actual minnions is entirely intentional.
* Ilmatar is a Finnish spirit of air.
** Shameless reference to my previous story for the 2020 advent calendar, that also happens when our heroes were at the Lehto. Therefore I'd assume that we can see Jitter, Alkia and Molly, in their squirrel shapes, on the first panel of page 317 (http://sssscomic.com/comic2.php?page=317) :)
More Notes
I wanted to include everybody in the story, but of course we are too many for that.
My apologies to those that weren't mentioned. Please consider that each of you were there too, happily playing on the water.
Also my apologies to all those that had parts of this story, because I didn't ask for permission. I thought about that, but feared to spoil the surprise... I hope you don't mind.
Special thanks to Mirasol. Her position as "Squirrel-cookie-chef" was the starting inspiration for all this. And my apologies for putting her on a secondary position on the kitchen, but old Merlin wouldn't accept otherwise (he threatened to turn me in a squirrel...)
Even More Notes
If you drink do so in moderation. Don't drink and drive (not even ducks).
:)
Grey's feats were performed by a trained professional. Do not try to reproduce them.
:)
No squirrels, ducks, trees or brooms were harmed in the making of this story.
:)
Any resemblance with actual minnions is entirely intentional.
Post by: JoB on April 08, 2021, 02:26:21 AM
"Hum... I see... Suppose I can't ask why, right?" He was silent for a while. "I'm afraid I can't recall anyone having one of these. As you know most squirrels don't drink, and rum isn't exactly popular... I guess we might have some in the warehouse. Have you checked there?""Over" some railing indeed, but be careful with any translations. In German, it's common to say "über" (over, above) instead of "übrig" (left over, in excess, surplus; in particular, "es ist Rum über/übrig" = "there's some rum left"), even though AFAICT these two terms are not related beyond the somewhat similar spelling. ;)
Grey gulped. "Err... Yes, I... I've just been there, but it seems the rum is over."
Ah, the irony. Because I'm a teetotaller, I might very well have some rum still sitting in the bar I inherited. The bottle of Laphroaig I bought years ago for a gift (before learning that the giftee-to-be had put a plug into his whisk(e)y consumption) is still sitting here untouched, too. :P
The human-made bottle was huge, taller than a squirrel, and he needed to shrink it.... I was wondering how you would pull that off ...
[mental picture of Mikkel finding a squirrel next to his open rum bottle]
"It wash jusht de fumes while I washiphonin', honesht ... !"
I wanted to include everybody in the story, but of course we are too many for that.[Forum has 1224 registered users right now]
My apologies to those that weren't mentioned. Please consider that each of you were there too, happily playing on the water.
... that cookie-baking duty's gotta be a nightmare ...
If you drink do so in moderation. Don't drink and drive (not even ducks)."Another drink, captain?"
"Thanks, but no way. I'll still have to drive home after flying 'er back to the East Coast."
Post by: Jitter on April 08, 2021, 08:01:07 AM
I just hope your story doesn’t cast a shadow of doubt on my frequent claims of the rum being gone! :)
(https://40.media.tumblr.com/8fee9ee15914160cfe08ff14b469ffea/tumblr_inline_nlguc03PU31r2g2kx_500.png)
Post by: thegreyarea on April 08, 2021, 08:55:17 AM
"Over" some railing indeed, but be careful with any translations. In German, it's common to say "über" (over, above) instead of "übrig" (left over, in excess, surplus; in particular, "es ist Rum über/übrig" = "there's some rum left"), even though AFAICT these two terms are not related beyond the somewhat similar spelling. ;)Thanks! I'll be particularly careful the day my vast and relevant work gets translated to German...
(probably the same time when it will be translated to anything else... so I don't have to worry much) ;)
As for teetotaller, I really had to google that! And found from where it came (On Collins Dict.: Word origin: redupl., for emphasis, of initial letter of total)
[mental picture of Mikkel finding a squirrel next to his open rum bottle]You got me giggling for a long time with that one!
"It wash jusht de fumes while I washiphonin', honesht ... !"
I just hope your story doesn’t cast a shadow of doubt on my frequent claims of the rum being gone! :)Oh, I remembered that! It's the reason why it's rum and not something else :) I'd say that it's the opposite, it confirms that the rum is effectively gone!
Post by: Vulpes on April 08, 2021, 10:14:36 AM
Post by: Róisín on April 08, 2021, 10:25:15 AM
Post by: Jitter on April 08, 2021, 11:36:49 AM
Oh, I remembered that! It's the reason why it's rum and not something else :) I'd say that it's the opposite, it confirms that the rum is effectively gone!
Ok good so nobody noticed I know where the rum is, even when it's gone O:-)
Post by: Crumpite on April 08, 2021, 10:37:58 PM
That was a wonderful story 😀
I was happy to supply the Dream Ducks for such an important mission !
They sure seemed to have fun in the races and general mayhem.
Its Important to let them have some fun and give them cookies for treats, which I see you took care of 😀
Well, I must depart, I'm working on an important new book: Notes, by Crumpite...
Post by: wavewright62 on April 09, 2021, 01:57:53 AM
Day 14: The bear family
Today sevseres bring us... brings us... *blows nose loudly* Warnings for tissues needed! iloveyougottagobye
(https://i.imgur.com/6I64y13.jpg)
Post by: catbirds on April 09, 2021, 02:06:58 AM
Post by: Róisín on April 09, 2021, 04:20:36 AM
Post by: moredhel on April 09, 2021, 04:37:50 AM
And nice to see I was not the only one to find out how a bear skull may look like.
Post by: thegreyarea on April 09, 2021, 06:01:37 AM
*wipes tears*
Trapped in disease
Endless forest wanderers
Reborn in love, free
Post by: wavewright62 on April 09, 2021, 07:08:37 AM
Mirasol, you came up with an ingenious action sequence to defeat poor old Karvaturri, and great use of your OCs!
And Grey, well, seeing us all immortalised that way was extra charming, and you too found an ingenious route to accomplish your goal in an unexpected way! (I haven't quite tried to visualise a mod hat - I imagine it's a ball cap with MOD on it, or something similarly modest. Don't want to be mistaken for a Schmott Guy with a verra nize hat, y'know.)
Such inventive stories.
Two weeks down, one week to go, and it's been lovely.
Post by: Róisín on April 09, 2021, 10:13:58 AM
Post by: Vulpes on April 09, 2021, 12:15:19 PM
Post by: Mirasol on April 09, 2021, 12:33:12 PM
Really nice Haikus, midwestmutt!
Jitter, yours are lovely too, even with pictures! (That I somehow can´t see on my computer though on my phone it worked fine... O_o) And thanks for the information about Koli too!
And thank you for the feedback on my story, everyone! :))
I didn´t necessarily intend for the scout in question to be Lalli, but I love the scenes you came up with! Headcanon accepted! :'D
Grey, oh my, that story was awesome!!! XoX I love the squirrel-world you came up with and the way you included us forum-members and our inside-jokes! I´m very flattered my position as cookie-chef was able to inspire you! (No worries about the secondary-position in the kitchen-part! Like JoB said, cookie-baking-duty for so many people is a lot of work and I´m glad Merlin holds a lot of that responsibility too... ;)) You have outdone yourself once again with the forth-wall-breaking! (and today´s Haiku is of course also very good!)
sevseres, this is beautiful! I do hope the bear family gets a nice ending like this.
Post by: Jitter on April 09, 2021, 01:41:55 PM
Post by: Alkia on April 09, 2021, 06:58:40 PM
Also, I've been reading/looking through all these, and this chapter break again reminds me what great skills reside on this Forum!!! so many amazing beautiful emotional funny lovely things aAAa!! I don't have enough time to praise each work individually, but I liked the lichen pictures and stories especially, Vulpes (but maybe that's just because I love lichen in general :D)
Post by: Crumpite on April 09, 2021, 10:35:21 PM
That's a wonderful, wonderful, wonderful painting of the three bears !
Very touching 🥰
Please keep up the good work !
Thanks 😀
Post by: wavewright62 on April 10, 2021, 01:50:04 AM
Day 15: Leaves and blossoms
MollyVampiric thinks this one developed a bit off-prompt, but I certainly am enjoying it - now you can, too.
(https://media1.giphy.com/media/53ihDZ6tHc8x4R47Ck/giphy.gif)
Post by: thegreyarea on April 10, 2021, 07:16:38 AM
As for being in-topic, at a first I thought those were (autumn) falling leaves, but then I see them as butterflies, leaving me wondering if those are leaves that start behaving as butterflies under Lalli's magic (which would be awesome). :)
Post by: Sevseres on April 10, 2021, 07:17:14 AM
Also, thank you everyone for the nice words. And thank you for your beautiful haiku, Grey.
I certainly wish not to steal the spotlight of this perfect little animation, but I had written a little fic surrounding the scene of with the bears. It's more about one of our dear protagonists rather than the bears (who are just the other protagonists at this point, really). I never write anything so it is a bit wonky, but if you wonder how things may go from the perspective of a certain little forest mage, this is how I imagined it.
Spoiler: show
Post by: Vulpes on April 10, 2021, 10:25:43 AM
Oh, and grey, I totally missed saying how much I liked your haiku in response to yesterday's piece. Haunting and hopeful.
Alkia, thanks, I'm glad you enjoyed the lichen, they are amazing. There seem to be a lot of lichen-fanciers on this forum!
Goshdarnit, Sevseres, you made me get grit in my eyes again! Beautiful companion to the drawing, which is beautiful in its own right.
Post by: Róisín on April 10, 2021, 01:06:33 PM
Post by: wavewright62 on April 11, 2021, 01:34:28 AM
Day 16: OC Bear
We have JoB to thank for this new registrant on the Bear Registry, and without further ado....
Spoiler: Electric Bugbearroo, at your service: show
Post by: Róisín on April 11, 2021, 02:06:03 AM
Post by: Jitter on April 11, 2021, 06:07:33 AM
Post by: JoB on April 11, 2021, 06:10:54 AM
Hmm, very very intriguing! I trust the second part will shed at least some more light on all of this!
Spoiler: show
Post by: Vulpes on April 11, 2021, 10:16:17 AM
Post by: Jitter on April 11, 2021, 12:50:49 PM
Sevseres your story is lovely! And not wonky in the slightest!
Post by: JoB on April 11, 2021, 01:07:21 PM
Dammit JoB don’t even think you are getting out of explaining any of this!... says the one who should have the least problems to "get" the Finnish terms, for starters ... :P
(Assuming that Wikipedia and Transgarble haven't taken inspiration from obscure Martian dialects while I looked things up, of course.)
Post by: wavewright62 on April 12, 2021, 02:33:48 AM
Day 17: Night in the Forest
Vulpes looks back to an early episode in our favourite cleanser's career (not at all inspired by John Denver).
The test
“The night belongs to beasts of prey, and always has. It's easy to forget that when you're indoors, protected by light and solid walls.”
– Cornelia Funke, Inkheart
Cleansers basic training – Week 1
Emil was beginning to suspect that his fondness for cake had put him at a disadvantage. Although the Cleansers were not exactly choosy about their recruits, they did require a basic level of physical fitness. Basic training involved bringing those less fit up to speed. Within the first two days of basic training, he had acquired the nickname “Dumpling”, usually heard in the phrase, “Move it, Dumpling.” He had never run, lifted, carried, and hauled more in his entire life. Every muscle and every joint ached, but he’d be damned if he was going to give up.
Cleansers basic training – Week 3
Emil was still the Dumpling, and he was still bringing up the rear, but now he was among the stragglers rather than a distant last. He had a natural aptitude for all things fire-related, and gained the respect of the other recruits by his fearlessness around explosives. In a couple of weeks time, they would get outside the training compound and do a real-world exercise. He was excited and nervous about it, but confident that he would show them how good he really was.
Cleansers basic training – Week 5
Emil hadn’t realized that their real-world exercise was going to involve spending the night in the forest, alone. He had spent little time outdoors at night, and even then there was always someone’s window in sight. But here there were no lights. The darkness was a physical thing, so thick that he had to push through it. It filled his eyes, his ears, his nose, his mouth, and he felt like he was suffocating. He could hear his rapid, shallow breathing and feel his racing pulse. To help calm down, he closed his eyes – he couldn’t see anything anyway, maybe it would help him forget the pressing darkness.
He was sitting at the foot of a tree, leaning against its comforting trunk. He focused on breathing slowly and deeply, and his heartbeat slowed. He could do this. He would do this. All they had to do to pass the test was to spend the night in the forest and return to the encampment the next morning. He would be fine.
*crack* off to his left.
Emil scrunched his eyes tighter shut, and told himself firmly that it was nothing.
*snap* somewhere in front of him.
He opened his eyes. There was little difference compared with having them closed, although now he noticed that the sky made a slight paleness through the treetops. He scanned around, looking for animal shapes in the darkness. Nothing moved.
*scuffle scuffle* to his right.
He whipped his head around – nothing! He was on a little knoll, and it sounded as though something was circling it. The hair on his arms was standing up, and a trickle of sweat was making its way between his shoulder blades. He clutched his knife tightly.
*crunch crunch crunch* back in front of him.
They had been told only to use light in an emergency. There was a penalty for doing so, and to keep them honest they were each given a torch with a strip of paper glued over the switch. If they used it, there was no way they could hide the fact. Emil fished the torch out of his pack, and held it, like a security blanket.
*scuffle crunch* a bit further left.
Whatever it was sounded closer – it must be zigzagging its way up the knoll towards him! He still couldn’t see any of the dark shapes below him moving. He tried to guess its size based on the sounds and where they appeared to be coming from. Maybe a midsize dog? A small bear?
*snap scuffle* in front of him again.
He couldn’t stand it – there was probably hideous bear beast right in front of him, just about to tear him to shreds, surely that counted as an emergency! He ripped off the paper and turned the torch on.
The reassuring yellow beam shone straight out in front of him, and illuminated… nothing. He carefully swept it back and forth, pointing it down the slope. Finally he saw the gleam of an eye reflecting it back. For a brief instant, his heart raced, until he realized that it was a small, perfectly normal, terrified mouse a hands-breadth from his feet.
He tipped his head back against the tree trunk, switched off the torch, closed his eyes, and groaned. He was never going to live this one down. Then again, he had the rest of the night to come up with a good story.
Post by: Jitter on April 12, 2021, 06:37:48 AM
We (Finns, that is, but I wouldn't be surprised if the same applied to Swedes) tend to pride ourselves on how we are not afraid of the forests. Forest has rather been the place of safety, where people flee from the villages when the enemy comes. In the SSSS situation this would be very different, with the Rashlings all around. Sad thought :'(
Post by: thegreyarea on April 12, 2021, 10:54:08 AM
*wipes eyes, again*
...and captures very well Lalli's way of seeing things. Well done!
JoB, that's very interesting! I don't recall reading any story from you. Is that a first?
I really like it, with all those references and details, that show how carefull you were with the setup. And that twist on the final part... :) As Jitter I'd really like to know more.
Vulpes... I'm still laughing about it! So very very Emil! (While I'm sure that as someone that never slept a night outside solid walls I'd probably feel exactly like Emil, and also probably take less time to use the torch... ). But now I want more of Emil training and cleansing times!
Thank you all so much! :)
Post by: Jitter on April 12, 2021, 12:42:48 PM
JoB, that's very interesting! I don't recall reading any story from you. Is that a first?
Vulpes... I'm still laughing about it! So very very Emil! (While I'm sure that as someone that never slept a night outside solid walls I'd probably feel exactly like Emil, and also probably take less time to use the torch... ). But now I want more of Emil training and cleansing times!
Thank you all so much! :)
I don’t recall reading any story from JoB either. Maybe he’s just punishing us for wrangling him to do it and doesn’t even have a scenario built? this is definitely what I choose to believe instead of a plan to attack Sweden
Vulpes’ story about Emil’s training is a bit more wholesome than the stories on AO3, at least the ones I have happened to come across 😚 :emil:
Post by: Vulpes on April 12, 2021, 01:21:03 PM
Vulpes’ story about Emil’s training is a bit more wholesome than the stories on AO3, at least the ones I have happened to come across 😚 :emil:
Apparently I'm pure of mind... :'D Thanks for the heads-up! I will remember that if I'm looking at AO3.
I went camping with a group of fellow students during my PhD training. We arrived at a national park in early evening, and spent the first night in a site very close to the park entrance, where lots of people come for day trips. Anyone who has visited a national park is probably aware that it's these sites where all the mooching animals turn up, because it's where they're likely to find goodies. Setting up tents in the half-dark, someone left some fruit on a picnic table. In the middle of the night I was wakened by snarling and scuffling right outside the tent. At first my heart rate went through the roof because it sounded so big - a bear! - but then good sense prevailed, and I realised it was a couple of raccoons squabbling. Sure enough, there were raccoon tracks all over the place in the morning. But my tent-mate crawled out, wide-eyed, and asked, "Did you hear the BEARS last night?!?" :))
Post by: JoB on April 12, 2021, 04:13:20 PM
JoB, that's very interesting! I don't recall reading any story from you. Is that a first?Nnnnnnooooo, I'm usually right out when it comes anywhere remotely near arts, but I still much rather write than draw (https://ssssforum.com/index.php?topic=242.msg15765#msg15765), and even that happened repeatedly (https://ssssforum.com/index.php?topic=242.msg83742#msg83742) ...
I don’t recall reading any story from JoB either. Maybe he’s just punishing us for wrangling him to do it and doesn’t even have a scenario built? this is definitely what I choose to believe instead of a plan to attack SwedenSuuure, the characters are outright talking about a "plan B to overcome those Swedish electrified fences" but there's no intent whatsoever "to attack Sweden" ... anyone having a guess at what plan *A* is, given the term "hyppäänalle"? 8)
Post by: Sevseres on April 12, 2021, 05:15:45 PM
Post by: thegreyarea on April 12, 2021, 06:44:31 PM
Nnnnnnooooo, I'm usually right out when it comes anywhere remotely near arts, but I still much rather write than draw (https://ssssforum.com/index.php?topic=242.msg15765#msg15765), and even that happened repeatedly (https://ssssforum.com/index.php?topic=242.msg83742#msg83742) ...I really like those drawings! (and visiting old Forum pages. So much awesomeness!) But did you wrote any story here in the Forum before? I'd love to read! And I'm not alone. :)
Suuure, the characters are outright talking about a "plan B to overcome those Swedish electrified fences" but there's no intent whatsoever "to attack Sweden" ... anyone having a guess at what plan *A* is, given the term "hyppäänalle"? 8)Connecting your story and the translation Google gives me on that term I would say that plan A is...
(under spoilers if someone wants to develop its own theory without any influence)
Spoiler: show
Post by: Jitter on April 13, 2021, 01:23:05 AM
Connecting your story and the translation Google gives me on that term I would say that plan A is...
(under spoilers if someone wants to develop its own theory without any influence)Spoiler: show
I’m for some reason thinking that...
Spoiler: show
Post by: wavewright62 on April 13, 2021, 02:12:19 AM
Day 18: Bear v Moose
We were all greatly amused with Job's story earlier this week, right? Well, hold onto your antlers because he's back with more grossling shenanigans! Spoilered solely for length.
Spoiler: rather long story is how job bills it: show
Post by: JoB on April 13, 2021, 02:20:06 AM
But did you wrote any story here in the Forum before? I'd love to read! And I'm not alone. :)Uuuuhhhh ... I remember one story that I actually posted to the forum, but that one was a complete failure (I intentionally tried to be as cryptic as can be) and didn't get a single reply. There might've been more, but I'm afraid that I'm not maintaining a registry ...
(I later had more success with outright riddles (https://ssssforum.com/index.php?topic=1137.msg174731#msg174731), rather than stories.)
Connecting your story and the translation Google gives me on that term I would say that plan A is...Spoiler: show
Spoiler: show
I’m for some reason thinking that...Spoiler: show
Spoiler: show
Spoilered solely for length.(... I admit that both stories would merit a "SSSS typical horrors" content warning, especially now that I can compare them to the other submissions of this chapter break filler, but I finished and submitted them before the topic of such warnings arose in that other thread ...)
Post by: wavewright62 on April 13, 2021, 05:18:05 AM
(... I admit that both stories would merit a "SSSS typical horrors" content warning, especially now that I can compare them to the other submissions of this chapter break filler, but I finished and submitted them before the topic of such warnings arose in that other thread ...)
I may have been watching a bit of Reykjavik Grapevine lately, and now have become thoroughly accustomed to the idea of catastrophic news delivered by a man playing Frisbee golf with his dog, which matches the tone of your second story fairly exactly.
Post by: Jitter on April 13, 2021, 07:41:39 AM
Spoiler: show
I don’t think warnings are needed when we are at level with canon violence, especially as the description wasn’t that vivid. In some other context yes, but the Forum has a general content guideline that canon-typical violence may occur. Detailed description of gore and/or body horror would definitely require a warning (or go to the mature board) but I don’t see anything like that in these, bearing in mind that the audience is expected to be SSSS fans :)
Post by: JoB on April 13, 2021, 10:50:00 AM
Spoiler: show
Spoiler: show
... whoops. Shoulda have looked that up, seeing that my source (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Finnish_name#First_names) doesn't specify ... O:-)Spoiler: show
(Though I was trying to insinuate physical appearance only, not necessarily gender.)
Post by: thegreyarea on April 13, 2021, 11:55:31 AM
I hope we can read many more from you in the Future!
Also I noticed that Star Trek reference!
Spoiler: show
And the Kaiju!
Spoiler: show
... whoops. Shoulda have looked that up, seeing that my source (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Finnish_name#First_names) doesn't specify ... O:-)Allow me to suggest a source that is very interesting, covering all nordic names. It includes names and surnames and a bit of history/etymology. I found it very useful when I'm writing.
(Though I was trying to insinuate physical appearance only, not necessarily gender.)
https://www.nordicnames.de/wiki/Main_Page (https://www.nordicnames.de/wiki/Main_Page)
Post by: Vulpes on April 13, 2021, 12:00:07 PM
And of course it brought to mind Purple Wyrm's recent edit (https://ssssforum.com/index.php?topic=271.msg177596#msg177596)...
<snip> ...catastrophic news delivered by a man playing Frisbee golf with his dog...<snip>
:))
I only saw one piece from the Reykjavik Grapevine, and there was no dog involved, but it was a little... different. Obviously I must continue
Post by: Grade E cat on April 13, 2021, 12:31:11 PM
Post by: wavewright62 on April 14, 2021, 12:44:59 AM
Day 19: Hunting and/or Game
It's totally a myth that all Australian fauna is out to kill you, isn't it, Róisín? At least, that was the conventional wisdom pre-Y0, before... well, read on!
HUNTING AND GAME
Alan cursed as his rifle clicked and failed to fire. The hog deer he had had in his sights startled and bounded away, terrified in a way that he had never seen in years of hunting in his native mountains. Then he saw what had been following the deer, and felt the same terror that it had shown.
The thing might, once, have been a dog. Finding a loose feral dog was not unusual here, even finding one that was big enough and savage enough to attack a man. That was why, when he walked in the wilder parts of the land between his home in Erica and his brother’s land in Walhalla, or as far up into the mountains as Wood’s Point, Cooper Creek or Maidentown, he carried a rifle even when he wasn’t hunting. There was also the rumour of the big cats. Alan wasn’t especially worried about those. They might stalk a human, but from what he had seen, they seemed to act more from curiosity than from malice or hunger, but one could never be too sure.
So before he went any nearer to the thing that was following the deer he checked his hunting rifle, standing as still as he could while doing so, and trying to remember what his Cornish grandfather had told him about going unnoticed should he meet something dangerous in the bush. Focused on its prey, the thing seemed not to see him while he made sure his hunting knife was loose in its sheath and checked that his rifle was clear, with nothing stuck or jammed. Then he began to creep closer.
He soon realised that whatever this thing actually was, it certainly wasn’t a normal dog of any kind. There were far too many teeth, some of them in places where no kind of dog he had ever heard of should have teeth. And he was used to dogs that were dumped out here being the kinds that turned out to be bigger or hungrier or less well behaved than their owners had assumed the cute puppies they bought would become, while the dogs that were lost or just left behind by hunting parties were most often beagles or pigdogs.
This dog was in no way normal. It might at some point have resembled an Akita, a breed of dog that Alan neither liked nor trusted even when it was not wandering loose in an area where feral dogs were a dangerous nuisance. But this was bigger than any Akita he had ever seen, and it seemed to be in some way.......deformed?
What troubled him most, however, was the smell of the animal, and how it....... felt? Alan didn’t know what to call that sense, but he was glad of it when it gave him warning of a snake too near his feet, a branch about to fall, or when it just produced a strong feeling of ‘don’t step there’ in an area of swamp that turned out to be far deeper than he had expected. His grandpa had always said that back in Cornwall he might have become a bard or even a druid in the Gorsedh Kernow, but Alan wasn’t even sure what that actually was. However, what he did know was that this thing just felt......wrong.
He was still debating what to do when the creature charged.
By pure instinct Alan brought the heavy knife up in time to deflect the strange dog from his face, and to drive the blade into its heart. Or into where he would have expected its heart to be. But nothing happened, other than that the thing twisted in midair and locked its jaws around his forearm. He could not suppress a scream of pain, but managed to bring the knife around and stab it into the side of the dog’s head. He was surprised when it fell off the blade with a pathetic whimper and did not move again.
Alan wrapped his scarf around his bleeding arm and began to walk shakily back toward where he had left his ute. He was almost there when the cat stepped into his path. The panther-sized, jet black cat, with faintly glowing eyes and an oddly curled tail. Before he could raise a weapon the cat spoke in his mind.
“You did well,” it said. “But you need to have help for when this happens again. Welcome this young creature as a friend. It will help you to call on the Land as you need, and warn you when these......things are near. Feed it, care for it and it will stand by you and keep you safe to do your task, as its children’s children’s children will do for your descendants until this plague has gone from your world. This is not my world, but I live here, and would not see it fall in such an unnatural way. Talk to the marngits at Lake Tyers, then to your brothers, and see what, with all of you working together, can be saved. Farewell, and good luck.”
Before Alan could speak or move, the huge cat was gone, but from the bushes in front of him stumbled a very young and somewhat battered-looking quoll joey. Alan recognised what it was because his older brother kept a similar-looking one that had wandered into his house last winter. He knew that the proper term for it was a joey, because it was a marsupial baby, but he could not help thinking of the tiny animal as a kitten.
Post by: Vulpes on April 14, 2021, 09:08:41 AM
Edit to add: I had to go look up some images, and I have to say, quolls are pretty darn cute! :))
Post by: Róisín on April 14, 2021, 09:31:38 AM
I will probably continue this story as part of my ‘Very far to the South’ set of fanfic stories, since I have promised my readers on Archive of our Own a tale of what happens to the residents of Wood’s Point. I am glad you enjoy these stories.
Post by: midwestmutt on April 14, 2021, 11:49:30 AM
Post by: Róisín on April 14, 2021, 12:37:05 PM
Post by: Buteo on April 14, 2021, 01:14:32 PM
I'm glad I made it back over here to see your story, Róisín!
The many and diverse talents of our artists and writers are keeping this chapter break down to near-normal levels of anxiety and only occasional dread. Much heartfelt thanks to you all!
Post by: JoB on April 14, 2021, 03:08:43 PM
And I don't think it's long, at all (since mine was longer ;) ).At 3,400-some words, it's 11+ times the minimum set for this filler, I guess that makes it "long" for its context ...
Allow me to suggest a source that is very interesting, covering all nordic names. It includes names and surnames and a bit of history/etymology. I found it very useful when I'm writing.Me not having a bookmark for it readily available should tell you how rarily the writer in me does a chestburster routine to see the light of day ... :-X
https://www.nordicnames.de/wiki/Main_Page (https://www.nordicnames.de/wiki/Main_Page)
for some silly reason I have it in my head that Leif was using a big reel-to-reel tape recorder, perhaps just to make it that much more over the top. You did describe it as heavier...Heavier than the loudspeakers that he schlepped a boatload of into the bushes, that is. Even with the SSSSverse's advances in battery technology, I don't think that a big Y0 tape recorder could really be made portable enough for a single person to haul it cross-country for half a day in pursuit of a moose beast.
But actually I wasn't picturing a tape recorder in the first place. You effectively need Mylar (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/BoPET#Electronic_and_acoustic) to make magnetic tape, which ought to be difficult to come by in the no-petrol post-Rash times. I would expect them to have fallen back to steel wire (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wire_recording).
Spoiler: show
Post by: Vulpes on April 14, 2021, 04:58:24 PM
Heavier than the loudspeakers that he schlepped a boatload of into the bushes, that is. Even with the SSSSverse's advances in battery technology, I don't think that a big Y0 tape recorder could really be made portable enough for a single person to haul it cross-country for half a day in pursuit of a moose beast.
But actually I wasn't picturing a tape recorder in the first place.
Well, I did say it was silly... ;)
Post by: wavewright62 on April 15, 2021, 02:11:25 AM
Day 20: Outside the Known World
Today Maglor brings us a spooky horror tale of survivors in Russia, where believers have been gifted magic from their deities as well, but there are many deities with competing agendas, not all of them benign. You could say it's a horror show story. (Geddit? Horror show? хорошо? *ba-dum-tsssh* Awww, come on, I've been waiting weeks to make this pun!)
Spoilered for length, with chapter breaks that I put in to enable readers to find their place more easily if reading it in phases. This is an incomplete story, in progress.
Content warning: includes body horror and graphic violence beyond SSSS canon levels. Would ordinarily be posted on the 18+ Mature board, but is included here as part of this challenge; the decision to keep it here is on me.
Spoiler: snegoorochka chapter i • show
Spoiler: chap ii • show
Spoiler: chap iii • show
Spoiler: chap iv • show
Spoiler: chap v • show
Spoiler: chap vi • show
Spoiler: notes from maglor • show
Post by: Róisín on April 15, 2021, 06:51:30 AM
JoB, most of the magic-using cultures of our world have some variety of compelling love spell. Can’t say I approve of them, though I do know of ways to break most of them. Interesting that in your notes you mention the ones that include the use of various kinds of blood, which seem especially widespread. I first encountered them in the Mediterranean traditions, but they seem to be common everywhere - just yuck!
Post by: Vulpes on April 15, 2021, 09:15:02 AM
Post by: Maglor on April 15, 2021, 09:39:37 AM
The bad thing is that with this last part what people see here doesn't end with a cliffhanger. Anyway, once I'm done with my busynesses, I'll continue the story.
To anyone else, thank you)
Post by: Róisín on April 15, 2021, 12:49:39 PM
Post by: Jitter on April 15, 2021, 03:12:31 PM
Post by: wavewright62 on April 15, 2021, 06:09:30 PM
Oh, you included that last part with Mara. I thought it would stay a draft, untill I get some reactions on the main text, but ok.
The bad thing is that with this last part what people see here doesn't end with a cliffhanger. Anyway, once I'm done with my busynesses, I'll continue the story.
To anyone else, thank you)
Aw, whoopsie, my bad.
(https://41.media.tumblr.com/c3b0676cc280e5f8c5dc5f2569454317/tumblr_nq1wy0BMEE1r6soqlo4_250.png)
I found that part again while I was gathering the notes, and appended it. I thought it was a really cool snippet introducing another magic user with more complexities, taking the middle road, and a great continuation of Vera's story, but forgot that I hadn't replied to you with feedback.
Post by: Maglor on April 15, 2021, 06:21:28 PM
WDYM by the middleroad?
Post by: wavewright62 on April 16, 2021, 12:42:21 AM
It's ok)Your mage tending Vera has gotten magic neither from dark forces or G_d, but from some other agency - also not allowing herself to be subsumed by any other force! Badass!
WDYM by the middleroad?
There's still a very steep cliffhanger here, too, over the whole abyss dealing with Death. To some extent this is my favourite part of the story.
Post by: wavewright62 on April 16, 2021, 12:49:17 AM
Day 21: Mushrooms
In the inimitable words of LooNEY_Dac: "I AM LOONEY!!! (maniacal laughter)"
I cannot improve upon that, really I can't. So let's get fluffy...
A Kingdom of Mushrooms
A “Stand Still, Stay Silent” fanfic
Spoiler: I: (How to Catch) Lalli • show
Spoiler: II: Birds • show
Spoiler: III: Brook, Pond or Springs (or Maybe a Western Stream?) • show
Spoiler: IV: Rowan or Birch • show
Spoiler: V: Hunting and/or Game • show
Spoiler: VI: Reality Ensues (Maybe) • show
Spoiler: Authorial Notes • show
Post by: JoB on April 16, 2021, 02:25:54 AM
Where’s Onni, you ask? Oh, he’s around… somewhere…If you say so (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Golf_(1984_video_game)) ... >:D
Post by: midwestmutt on April 16, 2021, 10:52:59 AM
Post by: Jitter on April 16, 2021, 11:17:54 AM
Post by: Mirasol on April 16, 2021, 01:08:16 PM
(http://i.imgur.com/5kWOnem.png)
(Just to today´s contribution real quick, I think this is quite an interesting premise, all silliness aside! For all we know, original Kade-person could have been someone using gaming as escapism, and the comforting memories come back up whenever a fragment of their former mind comes back. Without even realizing it the Kade may trap their victims inside of these memories in a sort-of desperate attemt to save them with something they remember as good and safe. Am I overthinking this? Most definetly.)
Anyways, I drew a continuation of the last drawing I posted here (I was meaning to fit it to the "outside the known world"-prompt, but then I was crazy-busy yesterday and didn´t have the time to post it. ^^")
(https://i.postimg.cc/CLnKH1qM/hair-Mystery-Mirasol.jpg)
(Characters are all from my story-contribution. From left to right: Ailikki, Tuovi, Ragna, Maarika)
Ok then, I´ll just leave this here. See you the next time I take a studying-break! :'D
Post by: Vulpes on April 16, 2021, 02:47:27 PM
Mirasol, I like your idea that the "core" person of the kade was a gamer. Nice drawing, too! Ragna's expression is particularly spot-on.
Post by: wavewright62 on April 16, 2021, 06:03:07 PM
Post by: thegreyarea on April 16, 2021, 08:18:22 PM
And speaking about talent, another great drawing, Mirasol!
Post by: wavewright62 on April 17, 2021, 01:53:23 AM
Day 22: (How to catch) Hallavanahka
All right, class, enough games, it's time to swot up on the history of the events of Y91 with a journal review. Today's article of interest is brought to us by Vulpes, who has kindly shared with us Aarne Kettu's fine research and overview on the above topic.
(https://i.imgur.com/ON48SG4.jpg)
(https://i.imgur.com/WMaPpxj.jpg)
(https://i.imgur.com/GkKrutx.jpg)
(https://i.imgur.com/Gq2oNyT.jpg)
Post by: Grade E cat on April 17, 2021, 02:52:56 AM
Post by: Jitter on April 17, 2021, 01:21:37 PM
May I ask what do you reckon prompted someone to write a 500-page book about the expedition as early as Y95? Did the slaying of both the Kade and Surma (as well as the bears) lead to significant area gains immediately upon their return?
Post by: Sevseres on April 17, 2021, 02:24:49 PM
All the contributions have been super lovely. I love how creative this community is.
Post by: Vulpes on April 17, 2021, 04:09:27 PM
Ooh Vulpes, this is perfection! I especially love the way you made it to look like I journal article too!
May I ask what do you reckon prompted someone to write a 500-page book about the expedition as early as Y95? Did the slaying of both the Kade and Surma (as well as the bears) lead to significant area gains immediately upon their return?
Glad you like the journal formatting - I know that very few people will be familiar with the look, but I couldn't resist for the amusement of those who are! I've probably mixed science and arts journal conventions in things like the reference format, but I realised that I was waaaay overthinking it and didn't go looking at actual history journals.
I figured that if nothing else, Sigrun (and Emil) would trumpet their success far and wide, so of course someone would write about it! :)) Also, getting rid of a kade and Surma would considerably reduce the danger (assuming no other similar horrors) so it would probably lead to attempts to reclaim some land or at least an improvement in conditions in the small settlements close to where the kade and Surma were plying their trade. As for 500 pages... well, academics do like to go on and on... ::)
Post by: catbirds on April 17, 2021, 04:41:29 PM
Mirasol, I love your characters and their warmer, brownish clothing designs!!
LooNEY_Dac, my stomach hurts from laughing at the absurdity of what's going on here (in a good way)! It reads like a concept from my middle school imagination, but even funnier because the poor crew is stuck in these games. Sigrun seems in her element somewhat, though.
Roisin, I love the ending of your story, and I also think quolls are very cute now :)
MollyVampiric, you animated this so well! The colour contrast... :OOOOOO
Post by: Crumpite on April 17, 2021, 10:07:32 PM
That was unexpected and wonderful !
You really captured the look and feel of a scientific journal !
I'm still laughing 😆
All our heroes were perfectly in character too.
A very original take on it...
Such talent here, it's amazing.
Thanks 🐿🦆🐿🦆
Post by: wavewright62 on April 18, 2021, 01:33:44 AM
Day 23: (How to catch) Kusiaistennuolija
Brand-spanking-newbie madumb puts forward a welcome contribution to our collection, and (as you have probably already seen, since it's far more eye-catching than my text!) it's a doozy!
(https://64.media.tumblr.com/0fdd0f3bc0e3a471fd956b7225c765f7/7e39ad8040f9e78c-7b/s1280x1920/055f51b28dc4e252174d5ef10381bef80a193754.jpg)
(https://64.media.tumblr.com/a0f91f7bbe11fe11669571f7db4e2fba/7e39ad8040f9e78c-30/s1280x1920/21c8a0a06f95b3943a5b9a8147523c0370e45703.jpg)
(https://64.media.tumblr.com/693dfc5092b51b020e2b277bbbd82869/7e39ad8040f9e78c-bc/s1280x1920/0532a3e85dff6623a8390085c6df0065650778ad.jpg)
(https://64.media.tumblr.com/e47a1692b53c287562c36aaa6761ee6e/7e39ad8040f9e78c-e0/s1280x1920/20355696b31d307b43b527405674fb604d74f0ae.jpg)
(https://64.media.tumblr.com/f397dd94351473205b487a0a8da62d6c/7e39ad8040f9e78c-b9/s1280x1920/538c508871df3fc5007f21cc64281814b68f81bc.jpg)
(https://64.media.tumblr.com/6176e448393d81e8778f53bf25a484f7/7e39ad8040f9e78c-e8/s1280x1920/cbc5e1535173e8b4abc54765c608926c09d6a3ca.jpg)
Post by: JoB on April 18, 2021, 02:04:54 AM
I've probably mixed science and arts journal conventions in things like the reference format, but I realised that I was waaaay overthinking it and didn't go looking at actual history journals.As a former academic¹ I fondly² remember having to reformat the references section of a paper so as to match the style guide of whatever journal / conference I was going to submit it to, because of course the differences would go beyond what automated means³ could cover.
Historians of today would AFAIK insist on having years given in four digits and with an acronym pinpointing the calendar used, but the post-Rash ones can reasonably be expected to have a different approach in that respect, especially if the events discussed are post-Rash, too.
¹ Math / CS
² Irony, n., a major ingredient used by authors to steel themselves for upcoming interactions with editors
³ e.g., BibTeX (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/BibTeX)
Post by: Róisín on April 18, 2021, 07:01:54 AM
Post by: thegreyarea on April 18, 2021, 07:30:08 AM
I'm on my phone now so more later, but I must Must MUST read "The truth about Trifolium repens"! :)
Madumb, great story! That bear looks much more terrifying in your hands! May this be the first of many contributions from you!
Post by: Vulpes on April 18, 2021, 12:18:42 PM
Vulpes, wow!! You've formatted it exactly like the academic reports of my nightmares :'D I'm kidding, I'm kidding! Poor Emil's diary, but I would never have thought to make an academic paper out of a story so this was an awesome idea :)
Credit where credit is due - JoB's story had "citations" (links to relevant web pages) which put me thinking in that direction. As it was, I was struggling to finish it, and had already been through two completely different approaches.
Vulpes,
That was unexpected and wonderful !
You really captured the look and feel of a scientific journal !
I'm still laughing 😆
Excellent! Laughter was the goal... but it is a collection of rather obscure jokes, so I wasn't sure if it would be effective. Glad some hit the mark. :))
As a former academic¹ I fondly² remember having to reformat the references section of a paper so as to match the style guide of whatever journal / conference I was going to submit it to, because of course the differences would go beyond what automated means³ could cover.
Biology is terrible that way! Every gosh-darn journal has a slightly different reference format... bane of my existence. I've only briefly explored automatic formatting, and it didn't work properly so I gave up.
Madumb, Mirasol, Vulpes and Looney, those are all wonderful! And Vulpes, I am much amused by the academic citations!
I'm glad you enjoyed them! I had a lot of fun inventing them.
I'm on my phone now so more later, but I must Must MUST read "The truth about Trifolium repens"! :)
It's a great piece of investigative journalism. That Rakel is a brilliant writer. ;)
madumb, that's awesome! Brought back memories of summer camp, singing that song - luckily none of the campers came that close to being eaten. :haw:
Post by: Jitter on April 18, 2021, 05:18:26 PM
And with this, it’s become Monday here in Finland and the break is over! Thank you each and every one for the comtributions and comments! Despite the... circumstances, we did well again!
The rumor has it there’s still one bear beast on the loose! Let’s hope Mielikki smiles upon us and someone catches it!
Post by: Róisín on April 18, 2021, 05:40:47 PM
Post by: Sevseres on April 18, 2021, 05:43:34 PM
Day 24: (How to catch) Pöppö
Sometimes one must stand up for the dirty work even when no one else dares to. I only claimed this last prompt, but a mysterious hunter had a more stressful issue with the same beast. I'm posting early since I have to go to sleep, and it seems the new chapter has just started too, yay! Thank you all who organized the break and contributed. It's been a lot of fun!
"Come over here!" The mage shouted as she took cover in the gap under a large rock. "No point of running, that bear is fast!"
It sure was. They hid in the gap, trying to steady their breath. They both had thought this to be an easy kill. But Pöppö was ferocious. Even with those jiggly meat sacks it had instead of any sensory organs, it was perfectly aware of everything. And it was so angry. Maybe at that last party who left it to rot instead of releasing its spirit? The hunter didn't care at this point, she only knew that she had to get both of them out of this alive. She peeked at her companion, hastily trying to draw a protection rune with shaking hands. They could hear the beast running. It was making disgusting, wet sounds that would make anyone feel sick in their stomachs. It ran straight past their rock and the hunter relaxed a little, but soon it stopped and ran back. It went back and forth around the rock. Searching. Not long after, the sound became terribly close. Pöppö made a growling, wheezing sound. My gods, the hunter thought in terror, it is standing on the rock, isn't it?
"I'll do plan B" the hunter whispered.
"Wha...?! N--no!" the mage whispered back, horrified. "You know how inhumane that plan is..."
"There's nothing else left to do."
"No, you-- we can't! This is not the way we were taught. And what if it doesn't work? It will get you right away. No... I can get us out-- I can-"
The hunter shushed the mage. Even if it didn't work, and gods knew that she even kind of wish it didn't, she could distract the beast. She could save the mage.
"Stay here." was her last words to her, she tried to look strong and held her breath. It was a horrible plan. Even if it worked, she knew the mage would not look her the same way again. She would have become a ruthless, remorseless killer. And the mage too would leave her, realizing there is no good in her.
She hopped onto the rock and stood up, face to face with the bear. The bear stood up, ugly and ready to attack. The hunter gathered all her determination and shouted her heart out.
"Noone wanted you for the chapter break filler!"
The bear froze for a second. A loud noise followed. That dry, unmistakable CRACK. The bear loosely raised its paw towards its chest. Whining, the heavy body fell down the rock, dead of a broken heart.
The hunter stood on the top of the rock, gazing at the lifeless body. She couldn't gather the courage to face the mage. What could she have said to her? What words would a monster speak?
Before she could continue, she felt the touch of the mage surrounding her. "I am so proud of you" the soft voice spoke. Shyly, the hunter hugged her back. They both cried a little, but it was okay, for they were the tears of joy.
And they lived happily ever after.
Post by: Róisín on April 18, 2021, 07:26:57 PM
Post by: wavewright62 on April 18, 2021, 10:48:01 PM
May I also take this moment to thank all of our contributors for the break event. You are all awesome.
Post by: catbirds on April 19, 2021, 02:45:49 AM
madumb, I love how chipper these three look :) To me, it reads like a fast-paced comedy manga, down to the expressions and all. Not sure if that's what you intended, but I think it's great!
Sevseres, I did not expect that punchline at all! This must be the most potent of all spells. Thank you for this short and sweet end to the chapter break.
Post by: Jitter on April 19, 2021, 08:31:17 AM
At least the mage is there to send it off properly!
Post by: Vulpes on April 19, 2021, 12:06:52 PM
Post by: thegreyarea on April 19, 2021, 12:26:20 PM
Sorry for not commenting more now, but I'm a bit busy. Congratulations to all our wonderful contributors and commenters, and thanks for making another extraordinay break filler!
I'm proud to be in your company!
_____________________________________________
We left it to rot
One brave faced the beast and won
Found our happy end!
Post by: Mirasol on April 19, 2021, 02:49:58 PM
Vulpes, I love the serious formating of a silly story! (Also, he-he, I´m a reference! :'D I apparently wrote 60 pages on the topic... hm-yeah, seems acurate to my usual habit of overly-detailed-describing-everything.)
madumb, this was so cool! Welcome to the forum, may you have fun here! (And of course share more of your works if you want to.)
And Sevseres, this really got a laugh out of me! I came expecting drama, and the twist was everything! :'D Poor Pöppö!
And a very nice Haiku-ending to this amazing filler, Grey!
I´ll add to the many thank yous to all the people who contributed here, this filler really made all the studying I currently have to do a little better, and all the contributions were so good!!! And thank you so much to our wonderful organizers as well!!! Events like these always make me so grateful to have found this community! :))
Post by: madumb on April 19, 2021, 04:51:03 PM
What a terrifically creative place to dwell \o/
I smiled and sniffled and laughed and shuddered and awwwed and how all these are so bear-derful.
♪ An enchanted moment, and it sees me through ♫
Post by: Annuil on April 19, 2021, 11:38:22 PM
Tak så mycket! Kiitos paljon! þakka þér kærlega fyrir! Tusen takk! Mange tak!
And here’s my Emil from one of the previous Chapter Breaks, thanking you all, amazing people, who managed to get through when things were tough (and this indeed was a tough Chapter Break, especially the begging of it). :emil:
https://1drv.ms/u/s!AsSnHPIBASO_pj1IM6bvsj48vZ_l
Post by: Alkia on April 20, 2021, 09:30:35 AM
Another big THANK YOUUU for everyone who made this chapter break possible, organizers and contributors!!!! I remember the olden days when in chapter breaks we could do nothing but wait for the comic to return, but now I sort of look forward to each break because of the outpouring of creativity and loveliness it brings about :)
Post by: Vulpes on April 20, 2021, 10:18:40 AM
Vulpes, I love the serious formating of a silly story! (Also, he-he, I´m a reference! :'D I apparently wrote 60 pages on the topic... hm-yeah, seems acurate to my usual habit of overly-detailed-describing-everything.)
Eee, you noticed! :))
Post by: Jitter on April 20, 2021, 06:06:24 PM
Also I frankly forgot her patronym was Valgeirsdottir. These are not family names like Jane Smith is Ms Smith, Rakel would be Ms Rakel if the honorific were needed. Or Dr Rakel, if she didn’t run off to Finland to live with some mages and whatnots. But this was a reference in a Finnish journal and we don’t have the same practice so the mistake is the article author’s and not yours.
Fun fact: the family name of the author of the article, Kettu, is Finnish for fox (Vulpes vulpes)
Post by: Vulpes on April 21, 2021, 11:59:14 AM
Vulpes, I didn’t notice until now. Perhaps because you put Rakel in as P. Valgeirsdottir! I suddenly realized you referred to her a few posts ago :)
Also I frankly forgot her patronym was Valgeirsdottir. These are not family names like Jane Smith is Ms Smith, Rakel would be Ms Rakel if the honorific were needed. Or Dr Rakel, if she didn’t run off to Finland to live with some mages and whatnots. But this was a reference in a Finnish journal and we don’t have the same practice so the mistake is the article author’s and not yours.
Fun fact: the family name of the author of the article, Kettu, is Finnish for fox (Vulpes vulpes)
:'D Oh, alphabet, why are you so difficult? :'D
P, R - they're close, they differ by one little line, of course my brain made me choose the wrong one!
I'd forgotten about the different usage of names in Iceland. In English-language journals, I've definitely seen various -sons and -dottirs, so it's the usual thing of imposing our norms on others.
Indeed, I chose the name Kettu for that reason! So the article is by a fox (A. Fox). :))
Post by: Jitter on April 21, 2021, 06:14:25 PM
Indeed, I chose the name Kettu for that reason! So the article is by a fox (A. Fox). :))
Oh I was sure you knew, it was to inform some others who probably didn’t. I didn’t notice thw A Fox though :)
Post by: Vulpes on April 21, 2021, 06:53:24 PM
Oh I was sure you knew, it was to inform some others who probably didn’t. I didn’t notice thw A Fox though :)
Hah, thanks, I just assumed that only a few people would get it! :'D
Post by: Róisín on April 21, 2021, 08:10:51 PM
Post by: Vulpes on April 22, 2021, 05:33:21 PM
I thought it was subtle and funny.
Thanks! I figured you'd catch the subtleties. Glad you enjoyed. :D
Post by: Keep Looking on April 25, 2021, 12:03:23 AM
Thank you so much to Wave, Jitter, Grey and everybody else who's been keeping the chapter break fillers alive when I haven't been able to (and especially to Wave for posting the entries!), and to everybody who made all these wonderful works!
Side note: I listened to the Cosmo Sheldrake music with the birdsong, and it was lovely - I continued listening to their other songs while reading through the thread.
(Also, and this is from right at the start of the thread, the discussion on birds singing at night has reminded me of many camping trips where I'd wake up in the middle of the night to the sound of magpies warbling in the darkness. Apparently 3 am is a great time for them to present their songs. Although usually I don't object to waking up during the night when camping in the bush, it means I can go outside and look at the stars all glittering, and the air always has this feeling to it that's just. Fresh. Good.)
Post by: Róisín on April 25, 2021, 12:40:45 AM
Post by: JoB on April 25, 2021, 04:40:06 AM
For one thing my poor vision works a bit better without the glare.
Spoiler: (saaaaayyy ... • show
Post by: Róisín on April 25, 2021, 07:38:49 AM