Bright like a Diamond (Lorna/Open)

[Lydia]

The scientist pupil had survived her encounter with Revenants, her trip down the river, and her wonderful 'vacation' of spear-fishing. Now, she was trying to further her scientific experiments by experimenting with different materials' ability to amplify and focus the energies of the Nether. Specifically, gemstones. Their unique crystalline shape might have the necessary properties to augment her powers to new heights. After all, anima mages made use of their natural environment to soup up their strikes, and she was pretty sure those damned Elimine fanatics got extra power from having holy water or crosses or just being in one of those hokey-pokey hoity-toity churches. But practitioners of the Elder Arts? Nobody thought about them. What would they use? What did they get? Nothing but bigotry, misunderstanding, and spite.

So she would be the one to figure it out. And the best way to figure things out was to experiment, to test, to try, to fail, to try again. That was science. She had to dabble in it, try different combinations and hope that something worked before she blew her own face off. Thus her need for gemstones. And where better to get gemstones than the ridiculously rich mines of Thria? They produced gems by the pile, by the heap, by the boatload. The only problem was that the mines were swarming with guards. How would she get to the different carts? She wanted to test rubies, sapphires, emeralds, and most of all diamonds. Oh, and gold too, if they had any. Gold and silver.

There was an alloy that stopped magic, right? Maybe there was one that enhanced it? Magical weapons simply harbored magic, so there had to be a way to enhance its power and focus it. She'd heard of talismans and other 'enchanted' items, but she figured those were hogwash.

Anyway. How would she get past the guards? She figured that if all she had to do was grab a handful of stones and a chunk of metal, it shouldn't take too long... She just had to stay hidden. Hopefully no guards had spotted her yet. Where was the best place to go in?

Over there. By those empty carts. Now!

[Deleted]

How many days was it? How many weeks? Months? A year maybe? He did not know how long he had been in this mine. He and the other workers were slaving away digging out all manner of gemstones and precious ores. If only their ship could have plundered this beauty he thought. His back ached and his stomach growled but despite all his weaknesses Ephraim found strength in this turmoil. He kept his spirits up with a whistle of a familiar tune, or chatting with the others. He was the only one he knew here that had not broken yet. The guards hated him for it but he still obeyed.

His once golden blond hair, kept so nicely in a ponytail was loose and free, darkened with dirt and muck. His clothes, once so finely woven and stylish were replaced with burlap. His only motivation was desire to see the ocean again and his knowledge of the truth. Etruria was in for a lot of scandal and potentially civil war against the Prophet if what he knew came to light. He would find Nora and make sure he was rewarded for his aid when she was on the throne. Plus she has his rune and his necklace. Both of which he would like back.

As the day progressed like normal they worked by the bell and kept a low profile the little changes never went unnoticed by the boy. The guard was sick for two days but is now back, there seemed to be a conflict between two of the guards and so were swapped in their pairings. The one by the entrance was favoring his left leg because of it. Alcohol involved maybe?

Then something very out of the ordinary was occurring, there was a little blond girl sneaking in. IN! This, this could be the break he was waiting for! He needed to help her in whatever little sneaking endeavors she had. With a quick swivel of his head he slinked off of his post and began to make for a hiding spot. He had to talk to her. There was no way she would get in and out without his help. She could very well be his way out as well.

[Lydia]

"Okay, Lydia. Focus. You've just got to find a handful of rocks. Nothing too hard. Come on."

The pupil flicked her hood up, obscuring her head in the dark fabric, and dove under a cart, laying and looking out at the workings of the mine. There were guards patrolling all over, but they all moved in a regular, predictable fashion. Their positions covered most of the ground, though, so there were few spots safe from their gaze. She'd have to be very careful with her movements in order to evade detection. And it would only get harder in the mine proper. If only she had somebody on the inside, someone to help her. But that was foolhardy. Associating with prisoners? She was here for science, not to try and free some convicts. But to be honest, if she messed up, she'd be right in there with them. So how would she manage this? Carefully, obviously, but that was a bit of an understatement. She'd have to negotiate with a prisoner who wouldn't snitch, get past many guards, get her stones, and probably help the convict get out. More than enough for a day's work, and certainly nothing she'd done before.

Ah, science. What she did in the name of science.

The pupil looked out. No guards watching here - after all, there was nothing of value in these empty carts. She darted quickly to the next one, slithering underneath. She could smell the coal dust in the air already... It was as if she were already descending into the maw of the huge mine. She'd be lucky to escape its jaws in one piece.

[Lorna Scathach]

Lorna groaned and rubbed her head. The soldier had finally been assigned to a squadron and they had been put on their first mission...which was reinforcing a guard force against a simple bandit raid. Not the most glorious of missions but her kill count had been the highest on the squad. Of course even that came with it's costs...the soldier had taken a meaty fist to the back of her head one time too many. She still had a bit of a headache leftover from that struggle.

After receiving her pay some of her comrades decided to throw a celebration. One of them had family in Thria, which begged the question why they pledged themselves to Laus, and they had invited her along to their home. It had been fun, though the hangover did little to better her headache.

It got better, however, when she was recognized as a Lycian soldier. Evidently things were desperate in Thria, as she was offered a fair sum of gold to help guard some carts by a mine. Her head demanded a pillow beneath it but, really, there was no way Lorna was going to turn down decent gold for an easy job. She accepted it and proceeded to regret the decision for hours to come, as the guard shift was full of listless, dull guardsman, the relentless sound of metal on rock as the miners swung their pickaxes, and a particular mine worker who would not. Stop. Whistling.

Many a time Lorna had shot the young man a glare, but he just kept going. At this rate it was only a matter of time before she lost her composure and chewed the man out. Instead Lorna gripped her lance tightly, as if to let out some frustration, and continued on her set path. She had not been in charge of guarding the mines themselves, which made sense as she was an outsider, but merely the carts that were used to haul back whatever was mined up.

She paused and glanced over at one of the carts. No...she was certain she had just seen movement. Really? Who the hell would be trying to sneak by here anyway? What were they going to do, steal some stupid rocks?

Lorna walked over to the cart she had seen movement near and begun to inspect it.

[Deleted]

Ephraim was sneaky enough to skate out of work, in fact it was easy and a game in which he held the unfair advantage. He was above everyone and looking down at the workers, the guards, and the little intruder. Uh oh, his ticket to freedom was about to be discovered by the sexy guard, he could not let that happen.

Quickly grabbing a chunk of coal out of the wall he threw it so that it would bounce off a barrel behind the soldier, causing enough noise to grab her attention. From there, he simply slipped into a crack and hoped no one would inspect his spot closely.

He did not see a reason for anyone to but you can never be careful enough when lashings and even death is on the line. "Hmm..." Perhaps he could work this soldier into his plans. She seemed to him she may be a very proud and problematic type, but enough chatting later and he could soften her up... he thinks. But that is later, not now.

He needed a way down to the blond girl, or at least her attention. Maybe he could just toss her one of the jewels he grabbed on the way? No, if he was caught with a jewel... yeesh, no. When he was safe he sidled his way out of the crack and around the upper wall. Two guards suddenly catch his attention.

"Hey new girl, we're going on break, you don't mind manning the post do you? No? Great!" The soldiers never offered a chance to speak as they walked away. 'Jerks.'