Complete Quest Redchron [Reaping Season I] Goodbye, Omelette!

[Ronja Bubblyfoot]

Redchron - Foot of Scaly Peak

At the end of a day of exploration, Ronja's stomach was grumbling like hell. Unfortunately, the camp she was in with @Luthien held a lot of meat, something she wasn't exactly fond of eating even if she couldn't taste it well. The texture was disgusting, so she wished for something softer and nicer.

Venturing through the rocky landscape, trying to find anything that wasn't lizard or scorpion meat was like trying to find a diamond.

"Luthiii... Ronja's stomach is doing groaaar..." Ronja whined, with her magibiotechnological organs roaring with the necessity for more fuel. "Ronja can't believe they don't have vegetables, meat is so disgusting! Ronja would be even willing to try to eat fish by now. It is also disgusting, but it is less disgusting." She pouted, holding her stomach as they marched relentlessly.

With a bag strapped around her shoulder, the only thing that they managed to find was a few cactus pieces, that were honestly horrendous as well... But hey, at least it had water in it!

"One more minute without something and Ronja will..." She blinked, frowning. "... Huh?!" Ronja widened her eyes, approaching something that looked like a red sugar-apple of the size of an overgrown watermelon. "Wh-What is this?!" She exclaimed, with her eyes retracting and dilating, clicking twice like a camera while her Investigation Mode turned on.

❰ Egg ❱

"... Egg?" She tilted her head with curiosity, and a hungry drool nearly escaped from her mouth.

 

[Luthien]

She would’ve liked to say that something exciting and mysterious had brought the elf out here to Redchron once more, a place that Lúthien had sworn to herself she’d avoid as much as possible after the last expedition she had endured in the arid place. However reality was less exciting, mundane even in this game, and as usual it had just been another delivery duty dropped onto her elven lap by Beleg.

"I know, sorry Ronja… I didn’t think they wouldn’t have even a shred of something leafy and green in their rations."

An apologetic glance was given to the blue-haired magia that had decided to accompany Lúthien all the way out here, her presence welcomed and comforting as it made dealing with the bullshit that the Spyre had to offer more bearable. The package had long since been delivered before both had learned of the lacking options the camp held for rations—it was either all beef (fresh, dried, smoked, you named it they had it) or the blandest and driest rations Luthien ever had the misfortune of putting into her mouth.

"We still have a little bit of time left before we have to head back… maybe we’ll get lucky and find something tasty?"

So far their foraging had yielded quite few results, even Lúthien’s elven eyes had trouble finding anything in this hostile environment that was safe enough to be consumimos by either of them without repercussions. Sure, personally the elf didn’t have an issue with beef, but the blonde wasn’t about to leave her friend out to hang and dry—especially considering Ronja’s dietary inclination. The cacti they had come across before had so far been the only exciting part, but it would hardly be a good enough meal for the Magia—

"… Ronja?" The surprised voice of the Magia had caused Lúthien to pause before she looked in Ronja’s direction, an eyebrow arching curiously before following her friend’s gaze… what was that red lump on the ground? "Whatcha found there?"

The palm UI was brought up as the elf changed her steps, activating her own Investigation Mode when her steps had taken Lúthien closer to her friend.

"Egg…? That’s the weirdest egg I’ve ever seen."

@Ronja Bubblyfoot

 

[Ronja Bubblyfoot]

"Right? Ronja has never seen an egg like this before." Ronja said, placing an index on her lips and leaning in to look at it closely. Curiosity and hunger eventually got the best of her, and she slowly reached to pick the egg up, turning to face the elf and allowing her to give it a closer look as well.

"It is also... The biggest egg Ronja has ever seen!" Her eyes sparkled momentarily. "With this giant egg and the cactus we have found, we can make the biggest omelet ever!" Ronja perked up, with her eyes flickering and clicking as she fidgeted in excitement, along with her stomach that wiggled happily.

She then leaned her face away from it, stretching her arms forward so she could take a wide look at it.

"Ronja needs to admit though, that she has no idea how to crack this one... It is so spiky- It is almost like a pineapple." She rose an eyebrow, looking at Luthien.

"Do you think it is good?"

@Luthien

 

[Luthien]

It really was a weird egg, and the largest that Lúthien had ever seen by far… even the ostrich eggs she’d seen on various YouTube videos whenever the girl decided to dive down a late night rabbit hole of video watching paled in size when compared to this thing. "Oh, it’s kinda rough too…?" A hand had carefully reached over to the red surface, her fingers feeling the unexpected armored texture of the object, before Ronja’s suggestion had a smile spreading on her elven lips.

"Ronja, that is a fantastic idea!"

Of course that brought the conundrum of figuring out a way for them to pry the egg open in the first place, with the scale-like protrusions that covered its surface Lúthien doubted it’d be an easy task… and just throwing it from a height wouldn’t be advisable given it’d just cause the contents to splatter everywhere.

"No way of knowing if it’s good until we pry it open… I have my throwing knives, though I’m not sure how effective their blade would be against this weird shell." A finger reached for one of the scales, poking it slightly. "Maybe I can try and wiggle it under these, and hopefully that gives us an easy access point to it?"

@Ronja Bubblyfoot

 

[Ronja Bubblyfoot]

"Yeah, it is super rough, just like a crocodile!" Ronja beamed, rubbing it gently with her hands, then giving it a pat before facing Luthien with a smirk. "Of course it is a fantastic idea! It is a shame Ronja can't taste it, but the smell will give a good preview on it." She sighed a bit, fidgeting a bit impatient.

At the mention of opening it, Ronja slowly realized it wouldn't be an easy task. Her eyes kept analyzing it for a moment, knocking it a few times, letting out a muffled sound that indicated the egg's shell was even thicker than they thought.

"I-It will be a battle to open it, yeah..." She tilted her head. "Your idea may work though, finding a weak spot and trying to lever it with a blade! We can also just slam it against a sharp rock if things go real bad." She giggled, adjusting the egg on her arms and looking at Luthien.

"Let's bring it to the camp?" She asked.

@Luthien

 

[Luthien]

Ah, right, Magia couldn’t taste things. The knowledge was one Lúthien often forgot, though it had been one of the main reasons why she had decided against the race when creating her avatar upon login into TerraSphere for the first time. It seemed some Magia could eventually develop taste in-game, she’d witness one do so firsthand as he bit into a fucking lemon, but by the looks of it that was more of an exception than a rule.

"Good thing I stocked up on spices back in Astorea then," Nothing like little dashes of flavor to heighten the scent of the meal they prepped… even if Lúthien had to go a bit harder than usual on the condiments, it was a small price for her tastebuds to pay if it meant Ronja could at least enjoy the scent of their meal. "We’ll make the most fragrant omelet yet, it’ll smell so good we’ll trick that mind of yours into thinking its tasting it~"

They certainly had a few ideas that could be tried in order to reach the contents within the rough armored leather like exterior or the egg, a nod given in response as Ronja mentioned returning to camp before Lúthien led the way.

~ ~​

"Oh hey, I found a mallet someone else must have forgotten…!"

The small tool was lifted in order to show Ronja her latest finding, the Magia currently in charge of clearing out a good work area where the girls could try to crack this thing open without risking losing half the contents or more to the hot and dusty soil below.

@Ronja Bubblyfoot

 

[Ronja Bubblyfoot]

Ronja was nothing short of exploding in joy at Luthien's mention of using a lot of spices. Yes, she did feel a bit hesitating since it meant the other girl wouldn't be able to eat something thar tasted more normal, but she simply slipped the suggestion: "There is enough eggs for two giant omelets. We just need to over spice one of them!"

As she waited in the camp, Ronja quickly crafted a giant frying pan, placing it above a magitech stove that was ready to be used. A voice caught her attention, and her eyes grew wide when Luthien returned with a mallet, making the Magia wiggle excited about it.

"Great! Here, let Ronja enchant it for you..." She said, muttering a few words to arcanamancy runes on the tool, increasing its endurance and power.

With the glowing mallet brimming with power, Ronja rubbed her hands together and stared intently at the egg. "Alright, time to make the biggest egg crack ever!" She smirked mischievously.

As they prepared to give the egg a hit, the egg would remain still, until it was the time the hammer would come for it. A second before the hit would connect, the egg would simply roll out of the way, even 'jumping' to avoid a second attempt.

@Luthien

 

[Luthien]

"Oh true, you have a point there… honestly with an egg this size we might actually have leftovers too."

Bless their UI inventory and its ability to keep food fresh for a longer time than would’ve normally been available to them, especially out here in this hot ass desert. Lúthien couldn’t help but giggle slightly upon noticing the excitement bubbling from Ronja, the Magia clearly looking forwards to this treat as she casted an enchantment on the found mallet.

"Alright, time to crack this little bad boy up~!"

She had taken the time to properly aim for a spot at the top of the egg, even measuring her motion slowly first to ensure the correct spacing and distance. So when Lúthien finally wound back the mallet, taking a deep breath, and then slammed it forth she was surprised to realize that she had missed the egg as it had rolled last second.

"What the… yeah, let me try that again."

Again the elf wound up her arms, but this time when the mallet came crashing down full force Lúthien couldn’t help but stare with her mouth wide open as the egg had actually jumped out of the way. "Did it just… wait, is this a dream?" A short moment passed before the girl released one of her hands from the mallet’s handle, reaching upwards to pinch her cheek before wincing in response to the pain.

"Oww, okay not dreaming… Ronja, did that thing just bounce out of the way?"

@Ronja Bubblyfoot

 

[Ronja Bubblyfoot]

Ronja braced herself for the impact on the egg before nothing really came from it. Apparently, eggs had more reflexes than one would expect (as weird as it may sound). Surprised, and eventually intrigued, Ronja watched as the egg simply jumped out of the way, making her frown.

"That's not a dream, this egg is bouncing like a jumping bean!" She exclaimed, almost in an accusatory tone as she pointed at the egg.

"Worry not, Ronja can hold it down-" She said, trying to reach for the egg before it suddenly started cracking, making Ronja flinch and take a cautious step back.

After a moment of suspense, the top of the egg cracked open, with a reptilean head poking out of it. A small wyvern, covered with dark and red scales wiggled its small wings, still a bit drowsy from its recent awakening. Its eyes were partially closed, barely managing to open before it finally seemed to be aware of its surroundings.

It stared intently at Luthien, then at Ronja, then at nowhere in particular before letting out a squeaky growl.

"That..." Ronja froze onto place, turning to face Luthien. "THAT'S CUTE!" She declared.

@Luthien

 

[Luthien]

Huh, we’ll she’d be damned… the egg really was bouncing around after all.

She could hear the accusation in Ronja’s bounce, the Magia getting ready to pounce and restrain the mysterious scales egg that was now bouncing around their makeshift food station. However before the blue-haired girl could act a loud craack! echoed, Magia and Elf both pausing in their movements as their eyes glued on a spot atop the egg as a large crack suddenly appeared.

"Oh! It’s hatching…?"

The fissure extended across the surface of the egg, before a short snout was forcefully pushing through. Tiny nostrils flared up as they took their first gulp of fresh air, seemingly spurring the the creature’s efforts to be freed from their prison. Eventually they had managed to break away most of the eggshell, the tiny whelp taking a moment to catch its breath and become aware of their surroundings after hatching.

"I guess that answers what type of egg it was, huh?"

Eventually the whelp’s eyes finally opened and adjusted, traveling from Lúthien to Ronja and then nothing in particular before they let out a squeaky thrill. Not too far the blonde could already see the starry eyes on her companion, chuckling softly as Ronja loudly commented on how cute the little wyvern was, before her attention turned towards her UI inventory.

"There, I knew I had some still left," With a few clicks the girl had managed to materialize some beef jerky strips, looking in the direction of the whelp before Lúthien cautiously held one up to the whelp. "Hungry little guy…?"

The piece of beef jerky was extended out towards the young wyvern, the elf remaining alert and ready to let it go and pull back her hand in case the newborn whelp was more dangerous than it looked.

@Ronja Bubblyfoot

 

[Ronja Bubblyfoot]

"It really does!" Ronja beamed, looking at it and really suppressing the urge of just booping the snout of the scaly boy, wiggling to contain her overflowing excitement until Luthien pulled out some jerky. "Ooh, do you think babies eat this kind of thing?" She asked, tilting her head and observing the tiny wyvern staring intently at the beef.

When tossed near it, the small creature wiggled out of the egg, accidentally tripping on the shell and rolling a bit.

Soon enough, it recovered its stance and stretched its wings out, crawling toward the jerky, sniffing it, then going straight for a bite, using its tiny claws to hold the food while pulling with the fangs to rip it apart.

"Wooo!" Ronja chirped. "If it was a living thing and the wyvern was in adult size, that jerky would be dead now!" She complimented the small thing being a predator since day 0.

Finishing its meal, the wyvern turned to Luthien, approaching it and looking up at the elf, tilting its head.

"Hehe, Ronha thinks it thinks you are its mama now." She said, then frowning.

"... Wait, we didn't see any 'mama' when we picked up the egg, did we?"

@Luthien

 

[Luthien]

"I have nooo idea," A glance was given to Ronja and her very valid question about beef jerky being part of a wyvern’s diet, her shoulders shrugging ever so softly before she tossed the piece near the whelp. "Think we’re about to find out soon, though."

Sure enough the scent of the jerky seemed to tickle the hatchling’s curiosity, perhaps it’s instinct too? It stumbled as it tried to remove their back legs from the eggshell prison, eventually managing to kick it off before standing on wobbly legs. Small wings stretched outwardly, offering some form of counter balance along with its long tail, before the whelp finally reached the beef jerky.

A careful sniff was given even as their eyes stared at the jerky intently, swirls of various shades of red whirling within its gaze, before the wyvern let out a small thrill as they almost “pounced” on the jerky. The claws at the joint of their wings kept the piece in place, sharp needle like teeth making quick work as the shredded small chunks the whelp could swallow while.

"Look at them go, I guess with that appetite and those movements they must be in good shape."

Soon enough the last of the jerky had been tossed over to the whelp, consumed with gusto now as they seemed to decide that this was indeed good and these creatures were safe. Soft sniffs were given to the surface as it seemed to look for more, before their eyes turned to look at the elf intently. She was surprise to see a shift in them, no longer swirling with only reds but now a myriad of shades akin to a rainbow.

"Sorry little one, that’s all I had on me…?" A soft thrill was given in response as the whelp flapped it’s wings, the snout extending to sniff in the blonde’s direction just as Ronja’s excited squeals broke through the air. "W-Wait… nah, surely it can’t thing I’m it’s mom—"

Another thrill, this time more urgent, as the whelp almost looked like it was debating if to take the dive from the table to get closer to Lúthien. "No, no, no no no…!" She instantly reached out in response, her hand pressing against the snout of the hatchling softly to stop their movement.

It was soft and leathery, devoid of any thick scales that mirrored the ones found on its egg, and the sudden snort the whelp released after taking in the ranger’s scent caused Lúthien to jump slightly in surprise. "Nope, no mama around… or a nest for that matter?" They hasn’t questioned it then, the pair too excited at the prospect of a giant omelette, but now that Lúthien revisited her memories she couldn’t help but frown.

"What if it got stolen from a nest, and then their thieves lost it?"

@Ronja Bubblyfoot

 

[Ronja Bubblyfoot]

"It really does." Ronja nodded, glancing at Luthien and then at the small creature, still awestruck that such a thing had happened. "It is a brand new one, after all!" She giggled, watching its cheerful movements and not being able to help but have a happy feeling bubbling in her chest.

Even if she was about to make it a fried egg a few minutes ago.

She then focused on the small whelp once again, seeing it eagerly trying to charge onto the table, that thanks to Luthien's efforts, it wasn't turned over by the wyvern. After the snort, Ronja reached from behind, picking it up and holding it like a baby, causing a brief protest from the whelp that eventually looked at the situation confused.

"Stolen..." Ronja looked at Luthien, then back at the wyvern, then at Luthien again. "Guuuh-" Her camera len eyes turned teary for a moment.

"P-Poor thing, we need to find their mama." She said, looking at Luthien and sniffing. "Their mama must be so sad and scared right now!"

@Luthien

 

[Luthien]

This was certainly not the way either girl had envisioned their afternoon looking like, the dreams of a massive omelet long forgotten now that the little whelp was here. Not that Lúthien particularly minded, the hatchling was definitely quite the interesting and exciting twist to their day.

"Gosh, I never thought a baby wyvern would be so chill…"

She’d watched Ronja go behind the whelp before scooping them up into her arms, and while a grumpy groan had left them at first they’d soon enough seemingly gotten used with the new feeling of being carried—curiously looking from the elf to the magia and back. "Ah, w-wait, no don’t cry Ronja…!" It wasn’t until the blonde glanced upwards that she noticed the teary look on the blue-haired girl’s face, the words that Lúthien had murmured casually apparently striking a chord inside Ronja.

"Y-You’re right," She’d come closer to the smaller magia, a hand reaching over to pat the top of Ronja’s head as the elf gave her a comforting smile. "The best place for this little one to grow is next to their momma, surely we can find her before sundown?"

Crimson eyes glanced downwards to the whelp held within Ronja’s grasp, their eyes swirling with mixtures of greens and blues and a tinge of yellow. "Watcha think, little one? Want us to find momma for you?" A hand reached over to softly caress the side of the whelp’s cheek, scratching softly underneath the side of his jaw and earning a happy croon.

@Ronja Bubblyfoot

 

[Ronja Bubblyfoot]

Ronja sniffed a bit, looking at the small wyvern and squeezing it softly in a hug, causing it to whine even if it didn't struggle much. "O-Of course... This little baby is a good baby. They are chill." She said, giving it a bit of compliment before Luthien's hand ruffled her hair, making Ronja look up at her.

Sniffing once again, Ronja clicked twice, making two mini windshield wipers appear beneath her eyelids and quickly get rid of the remains of tears her eyes had. "Yes, Ronja knew you would understand!" She said, looking at Luthien and then down at the wyvern, still concerned.

The wyvern on another hand watched the two girls with curiosity, and when Luthien turned her attention to it, the wyvern tried to flap its wings, tilting its head and letting out a brief squeak.

"Ronja can't speak reptilian, but she would guess this is a yes." She tried to guess, looking up at Luthien and smiling faintly.

"The issue is... How we will find their mama? There was no sign of her there." Ronja sighed.

@Luthien

 

[Luthien]

"We just… hmm, that’s actually a good question Ronja."

The blonde hadn’t thought that far ahead when she’d suggested reuniting the small hatchling with their mother, her brows furrowing slightly as a pensive look crossed her elven features. "Well, we did find the egg pretty high up… and wyverns fly, obviously, so maybe if we look for a higher spot around there we’ll find the nest?" Hopefully her guess was right, and the egg hadn’t been carried too far away from its original home by whatever had pilfered.

"After all, this little one hatched just fine… so I don’t think it could’ve been away from the nest or its momma for too long, right?" Her attention turned back to the whelp in Ronja’s arms, giving it another fond scratch under the chin. "Besides, once we’re closer maybe their cries can alert momma so she can find her baby faster?"

@Ronja Bubblyfoot

 

[Ronja Bubblyfoot]

Ronja and the wyvern watched and listened to Luthien intently, almost looking like the latter understood what Luthien was talking about. The suggestion of the egg is pretty high up and the mention of flying already foreshadowed a handful of problems and obstacles the two girls would face trying to deliver the egg back.

"Hmm, that will be a tough one then... Ronja does have her jet boots, but she doubts she can just fly all the way up there and put the wyvern back to place. She will just be attacked by one of them!" And of course, she wouldn't have Luthien up in the sky to fight whatever decided to ambush her.

"Talking about attacking... Maybe the cry will alert the mama. But--" Ronja smiled a bit awkwardly. "-- That means not only the baby will be found, but we will too, right?" She giggled a bit nervously, looking at the small baby and frowning her lips.

It was too cute, they couldn't give up so easily!

@Luthien

 

[Luthien]

"I have aeromancy, so maybe we could lift the whelp up high enough for the momma to grasp if she shows up…" A glance was given over to the young hatchling, giving them another scratch under the chin fondly. "But I’m still working on my control, and I’d hate to have anything happen to the little one in an accident."

This was definitely quite the conundrum, one they’d need to solve… though probably a good idea to walk and talk as they began making their way to the original spot where the egg had been found.

"I could try to mindsend the momma…" A spark of a wild thought suddenly crossed her elven mind, a hand raised to cup her chin as Lúthien’s index finger tapped her lips in thought. "Maybe, just maybe, I could connect her mind and that of the baby…?"

Granted this would be an even wilder shot than the aeromancy trick, but who better to calm the momma wyvern than the little whelp currently being carried by Ronja as the girls carefully made their way?

@Ronja Bubblyfoot

 

[Ronja Bubblyfoot]

"You mean lifting it off in a tornado or something? That does sound a bit dangerous, right, Omelette?" Ronja said, looking at the small whelp while naming it out of the blue. The wyvern could only stare in confusion, now mostly used to be held in the magia's arms. "But it could be a choice if things get too dire." She nodded.

Ronja then perked up at Luthien's suggestion. "Mindsending? What is this?" She asked, tilting her head and clicking her eyes twice, wondering what that was about.

Granted, what followed next pretty much responded Ronja, and the magia pondered about it. "Can you make that with animals?" She wondered. "Ronja doesn't think they have the proper intelligence for it-" Ronja blinked, looking at the small wyvern. "Oh, no offense though!" She shook her head, turning to look up at Luthien.

"But perhaps, we should hurry up regardless. Soon the sun will lay down."

@Luthien​

 

[Luthien]

"Truuueee… we’ll leave it as a last resort type of thing then." Ronja had a point after all, and the last either of them wanted was for the whelp to get hurt. "Wait… Omelette? Really?"

She couldn’t help the faint chuckle upon hearing the name Ronja had settled for the hatchling, one eyebrow raised high in questioning though the elf didn’t comment about it. "Oh, you’ll love this I think." When the blue-haired girl asked about her ability Lúthien couldn’t help but grin widely, winking to Ronja before a voice suddenly popped inside the magia’s mind.

< Surprised? >

A short giggled followed before she motioned for Ronja to stay close, their steps slowly taking them back to the original area where the girls had come across the scaled egg. The elf crouched low, trying to spot any possible tracks that might’ve been missed earlier as she tried to find from where the egg had come from.

"Nah, I wasn’t thinking about speaking to them directly though… but maybe I could link their minds? A wild idea really, I’ve nooo idea if I can even pull that off… but could be useful if it works?"

@Ronja Bubblyfoot