"Just let me see what I can figure out." Jesse stepped forward, kneeling in front of the crime scene. Garrett had calmed down, and now he was calming the still panicky Sparklez (or Mr. PP).
"This is… Why is this happening?" Sparklez questioned as Garrett's hand rested on his shoulder in a comforting manner. "Who would do this?"
"Guys, there's something strange about these arrows…" Jesse spoke at last, plucking an arrow from the stone cold ground. It did seem weird looking, Garrett agreed. He had never seen anything like it. The arrow, along with the others, had tip of green instead of the normal silver of iron. "Ivor, you know enchantments and potions and stuff. What do make of it?" The dark-haired man with green robes took the arrow from Jesse and observed it, sniffing out it's scent. Garrett went to the scene and picked up another arrow. He observed it.
"Mm… Smells like… Yes!" Ivor nods, then Garrett cut him off.
"Potion of Poison, right? My friend, back home, she was trying to figure out how to make these things. Never got to the success stage when I left. Last I heard of her, she was hurt in an explosion one of her new potions made. Still alive, unlike this poor guy." Garrett had a little flashback to home, when he had felt the fire from the explosion and gone in to save her.
"Wait, t-tipped arrows? I've heard of those. Nasty things, but still pretty new." Sparklez spoke up, the worry and panic still evident in his voice.
"Using potions to make arrows…" Ivor mumbled, intrigued. "The possibilities are fascinating!" he exclaimed, waving the arrow around. He almost hit Garrett with the point if he hadn't leaned back and stumbled a bit, falling back into Jesse, who caught him with ease.
"Stop waving that thing around!" Garrett glared, regaining his balance. He thought he saw Petra and Lukas giving each other a look and Jesse sticking her tongue out at the two. He hoped Petra and Lukas didn't ship it already. He already did. ;)
"Wait, Sparklez, back up. What did you say that was?" Jesse looked at the Captain, her eyebrow raised. In a rather adorable way.
"Tipped arrows? You can, like, put different potion effects on them." Sparklez answered, then pondered, wondering, "Could've sworn I saw a tutorial on how to do those not too long ago… But my nerves are too shot to remember who right now." Ivor handed the arrow to Jesse, probably for safekeeping.
"Well, let me know if it comes back to you." Jesse gave him a nod, pocketing the arrow. Garrett also pocketed the arrow, to take it to his friend when he arrived home.
Home.
Garrett missed home pretty badly. He remembered his friend asking him to deliver a message to a group known as the Order of the Stone. It was a letter for help. He hoped his friend was hoping the fort well at the blacksmith shop he owns.
"Hey, Garrett, right?" Garrett jumped a bit to turn around and find Petra.
"Oh. Hey. Petra, right?" He questioned, and she nodded to confirm it.
"You doing alright? You seemed a little stressed out, and it most definitely wasn't from him."
"I'll tell you later, alright? After we've figured this out."
"Understandable. Gotcha." She nods. "But you better tell me sometime soon."
"Look, if it's about this, I did not kill him!"
"Most signs are pointing to you right now, Garrett. I suggest you be careful." Ivor sneered, glaring at him.
"It's not me!" Garrett protested, glaring at him. The fire roared once again. Garrett took a deep breath, calming himself. As he did that, he got a major migraine. Garrett held a hand to his head, trying to battle it, but it's strength was too powerful and it took over. Garrett leaned against the table, clenching his eyes shut as he worked on getting the migraine down. This happened much too often ever since his world had gone out of control. And now it was catching up to him.
The area where TorqueDawg's stuff was lying, it was an inventory you'd expect from an average guy. Nothing too valuable. Garrett stepped past Jesse and only spread out the items a bit to get a better look at them.
"Nothing too valuable, really." he pointed out, licking his lips as he spoke. Before he did so, a trapdoor opened and took his stuff. Garrett almost fell in himself. He backed away just in time.
"And there's the trapdoor that sucked up his stuff." Jesse added, motioning to the hole in the ground. Garrett looked down to find four hoppers in a two-by-two array. "Looks like it's a matched set with the arrow dispenser up there." Jesse motioned upwards, where, sure enough, there was an arrow dispenser up there.
"But you saw his stuff. He didn't really have anything worth stealing." Petra looked across the group, her eyes meeting Jesse's.
"Perhaps it was to dispose of the evidence?" Ivor questioned, raising an eyebrow.
"Hello? Everything okay in here…?" a new voice came from the other side of a door. The door itself slowly opened to reveal a girl with pink hair. Garrett raised an eyebrow. At the sight of the newcomers, she stopped short. "Woah, what's with the crowd?" she questioned Sparklez, who stood nearest to her.
"I, uh…" Sparklez ran a hand through his dark hair as Garrett stood from his spot on the ground. "I was about to get everyone together to tell them at once." He made his way past the pink-haired lady, doing a moonwalk with a look before disappearing to the other room.
"Okay…?" pink-haired trailed, looking to the newcomers. "Hang on a minute, it's you! I recognize you!" Garrett raised an eyebrow, pointing to himself.
"Me?"
"Not just you, silly. All of you." the pink-haired lady laughs, making Garrett blush a bit and run a hand through his hair as he looks away in embarrassment.
"'Recognize us?' How?" Jesse was confused, but she also seemed to hold a hatred for the pink-haired lady.
"Wait, she must be talking about the portraits. Sparklez was telling me about them before TorqueDawg attacked me." Garrett spoke, moving towards her.
"Wait, what?"
"I think Sparklez will explain that part." Garrett shook his head, following Sparklez into another room, only to be walk in on a redhead with a beanie and a calico cat. It was only her in the room, which Garrett found odd.
"Follow me." he heard the pink-haired lady tell the remaining people in the kitchen. Garrett stepped to the side to allow them to get through. Pink Hair winked at him before going to where the dining room was. "Thanks." she grins, making Garrett blush a bit.
"Ah, no problem." Garrett shyly ran a hand through his hair. Garrett couldn't see the problem; Jesse's face was a little red and her hands were balled into fists so much, her knuckles were turning white. He decided to let it go, and went towards the seats in the room. After a lot of running and creeping around, his legs sure were tired. It was then when he noticed the portraits. He had for himself as well, and he smiles when he saw himself on it. He was leaning against an anvil, holding a diamond axe that was also propped on his shoulder and a hand lit aflame. On his face was a smirk, and Garrett couldn't help but to smile. That was a pretty neat portrait of him.
As usual, his face looked ashen, his bronze goggles rested on his scalp, and his attire rested on himself. He sighs, looking down at his clothes. He hasn't been able to get himself any armor. But then again, it's not like he would need any. He was okay with the spiky black hair always mussed up to match his black leather jacket, dark orange tee, dark jeans, and sneakers.
"You found yours, huh?" Garrett jumped again when Sparklez came up behind him.
"Yeah, I did, I guess. It's nice." Garrett shrugged, looking back up to the portrait.
"Can you really hold fire like it shows?"
"No." Garrett lied. "I wish, though." Garrett sighs, shaking his head.
"You're a blacksmith, right?" the redhead approached him, a calico cat following her.
"Where I come from, yeah." Garrett nods. "Singed off my eyebrows once." he laughs a little at the memory.
"Really? Sounds like fun."
"It wasn't." Garrett chuckles, shaking his head.
"I'm Cassie Rose. This is Winslow." the redhead introduced herself and her cat.
"I'm Garrett." Garrett held his hand out, and she helped him out of his seat.
"Come on, Garrett. You too, Cassie." Sparklez called from another doorway.
"Well?" Cassie questioned, looking to Garrett.
"Let's go." Garrett nods, allowing Cassie to take the lead.
Chapter 2! Whoo!
I'd like to hear what you guys think of the twists and turns I've made on this one!
Now, off to another softball game! Wish me luck!
Til then, dear readers!