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+--- Thread: Stone Cold (/thread-1959.html)
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Stone Cold - Ilesha - 02-04-2026
The weather had been getting worse. She was grateful for the day off -- not that she had intended to be home, but having a stuffy nose and the cold ass weather didn't seem like a good mix so she had stayed home.
And as the snow fell Ilesha remembered the last blizard she'd been through with her parents, how the ground was white -- and the city was dead silent. Moscow had slowed to a crawl but it was still trying. It wasn't that dead yet -- yet being the keyword. It was only going to get worse.
Ilesha hunkered down in her own apartment but she had to check on the garage below first. Last thing she needed was for the doors to cave in because of the snow. Buring all the equipment inside would be bad. And cost too much money for both her semi-employeer and herself. She didn't want to have to replace things when she could make sure everything was shored up nice and tight -- a little magic here -- a little there and it would all be good.
She might have to undo some of it later -- like the tiny hinges might get sealed shut but that was the price you paid for strength -- the tiny little movments might be impared. That was the biggest problem she was finding in making her armor. That strength and movement seemed counter intuitive. She needed to find a better way.
But she was down stairs in the garage -- well outside it. Her hands on the walls filling the cracks with the power. She wasn't going to let her home fall because of the storm or poor maintenance.
RE: Stone Cold - Claude Saint-Clair - 02-05-2026
The weather was terrible and getting worse. Claude was wondering about Nora. She had gone to the Sanctuary as always this morning. He was hoping she was fine. If he didn't hear from her soon, he would call. He had made it back in time. He thought it prudent to get some groceries. Couldn't hurt to be prepared they got snowed in.
Claude had seen the woman before. She lived in the building, but they hadn't talked. It seemed odd that she was out at this time, and he would have passed her by. However he felt it - the chill he had felt when Casey had channeled the power. He looked at her for a moment before approaching. Perhaps he should tell her that she should probably be careful about channeling here. It was after all, an Atharim safe house, but that didn't mean she was one.
Curiosity got the better of him though. He was wondering what she was doing. He couldn't see her weaves of power, but she was focused on the wall. Was she reinforcing it?
"What are you doing?" he asked her, making sure not to be loud and freak her out. "Are you strengthening the wall?"
He stood, thinking he should probably get inside and that it was probably a bad idea to name himself as a channeler, but Claude's mind was elsewhere. Then again, maybe she didn't know that he could sense her.
RE: Stone Cold - Ilesha - 02-05-2026
A voice pulled Ilesha from her weaves. The humming stopped and she turned to look at the man carrying groceries into the building. "I'm making sure there are no structural issues mostly. So the building doesn't collapse."
She knew it was dangerous to let people here know what she was -- Nox had given her the run down on what the place was after his hacker friend had tracked her home one afternoon after being at the club. It was good to know. It was scary, but it was also not something she worried about. The Ascendancy would know if she were killed or went missing all of a sudden and apparently Nox had connections too. But the fact he was asking her meant he could feel her, and he could too. So even if he was Atharim he probably wouldn't say anything.
"I'm a mechanical engineer, the building is mostly sound, but it's old it needs a little help."
RE: Stone Cold - Claude Saint-Clair - 02-06-2026
She didn’t deny she was using the power. She had probably guessed he could too. She was very nonchalant about it. ”I’d offer to help, but don’t think I have the knowledge or the skill to do so.” he smiled a bit. ”But I’m glad you do.”
He let her work for a bit. ”I’m Claude - Claude Saint-Claire,” he said in introduction. ”Can you explain what you’re doing - like how you’re doing it. I’m not going to try it - just moreso curious.”
RE: Stone Cold - Ilesha - 02-06-2026
It wasn't often people asked about how she did soemthing. Usually she was the one learning. Not that she could teach him anything anyway, but the concepts were generally the same.
"Basically I'm using earth and spirt. And searching for any cracks, or weaknesses. It's called Delving. You can delve lots of things. The ground, people, things like this." She used it to find the cracks in her work.
"And if I find something then I use earth, air and sometimes fire to strength it, depends on what it is. Basically filling in the cracks."
RE: Stone Cold - Claude Saint-Clair - 02-09-2026
Claude listened, fascinated by what you could do with this power. It had taken being able to use it for Claude to see how amazing and useful it was. Right in front of him was a woman using magic to augment her skills as a mechanical engineer. That was pretty amazing.
”Well as a fellow tenant, it’s appreciated.” the building not collapsing on everyone would be a good thing.
It was however, quite cold out, and Claude wasn’t keen on getting buried. ”Hope you’re almost done, it’s getting pretty bad. Making some stew and will have plenty. You are welcome to some as thanks for making sure we’re all okay.” Claude gave the woman a smile, let her know his apartment number and began to head into the building.
RE: Stone Cold - Ilesha - 02-10-2026
"I have some hot bread baking in the oven. I bet that would go well with stew -- and a bottle of wine." She was almost done. She could proably weave some air and fire and make the area warmer. But that could be worse. And there would be melting snow too. And that could be just as dangerous.
It was nice to know others like her lived here too with the threat of the Atharim. Not that they could out right kill you these days. But they could make life difficult.
"What apartment? i'll stop by with the bread and wine."
RE: Stone Cold - Claude Saint-Clair - 02-11-2026
Fresh baked bread was always a good thing. Claude gave her his apartment number and let her get back to work. It was an odd thing for him to invite someone over he just met, but he felt good about it. It wasn’t much out of her day to do it, but it was still a great gesture to make sure others were safe. And at the very least, having someone else in the apartment would perhaps keep his mind off the fact that Nora wasn’t.
He unlocked his door and put away the groceries. It should last a while. He had little cleaning to do to prepare for company as he generally kept things pretty clean, so he began to cook. He turned on the stove and began to get the beef cooking as he prepped the vegetables. Pretty soon the apartment was smelling divine. Cooking had been one of those things Claude had picked up when Nora had started her training with Grym. It had been something to fill time, but he had enjoyed it.
Claude tossed the ingredients into a pot and began to get the sauce going. It would take awhile to cook, but the smell would be good and the stew would be hot. That was something always welcome on a cold stormy day.
RE: Stone Cold - Ilesha - 02-12-2026
Ilesha finished up what she was doing. The building wasn't too bad, but it could still use some maintenance she was sure.
Her aparment smelled like her grandma's house. And she made it just in time as the timer to the bread machine went off. Unlike her grandmother she didn't do it all by hand. She just didn't have the patience for bread making but it was something she liked to do. That and homemade tortillas were some of the best things she had in her life.
She pulled the bread out and took a big wiff of the bread smell as it opened before she hurried it to a cooling tray. Her wine wasn't expensive but it was still a good vintage -- one of her mom's favorite actually that cost more in the States than it did here.
She headed up to Claude's apartment and knocked on the door. It smelled good even in the hall.
RE: Stone Cold - Claude Saint-Clair - 02-16-2026
Claude kept working on the food. He enjoyed working in the kitchen. It was something that Nora had been glad for - especially now that she was spending so much time at the Sanctuary and was getting back late. It was fine with him. His schedule was a lot more free. He could pretty much set his own schedule. The stew was coming along and making the apartment smell wonderful. As it simmered, he pulled a couple of wine glasses out and set them on the counter.
It didn't take too long before he heard a knock on the door. Claude cleaned his hands off with a towel and opened the door to find Ilesha there. He gave her a smile and held the door open in a gentlemanly fashion. He was, after all, a gentleman. "Welcome. Please come in!"
He gestured to the counter. "Bread smells wonderful! You can set it on the counter," he grabbed a bread knife and put it over there. "The stew still needs a little more time, but it should be done pretty quickly.
He gave the stew a stir. Then turned to his guest and smiled. "Well, at least it's warm in here, and our building isn't going to fall down." He was trying to stay lighthearted. He was glad to have someone here. He wouldn't worry about Nora so much that way.