Rock And Ruby

Rock And Ruby
Date of Scene:	04 February 2013
Location:	Junon
Synopsis:	Priel sits on a crate atop of some prime real estate, and Valos wants a 'piece' of the action.... action that is unbeknownst to Priel, even to -be- in existence, in the first place!
Cast of Characters:	Priel Aylin, Count Valos

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Priel Aylin has posed:
It had been perhaps a couple days since Priel had finished extorting poor Faruja for his hard earned coin. All for the sake of love. Now, she had decided to step out of Fluorgis once again. Her aimless flying carried her out to the southern continent and to the port town of Junon.

Deciding to take a rest there, she descended downwards, landing into the stone paved streets. "Hmn..." She mused, bringing a hand to her stomach. "...I guess I'm hungrier than I thought I was. Better take care of that."

A quick look around soon revealed a street vendor and off she went, procuring herself something to eat with the knight's money. With a couple meat skewers in hand, the dragoness then turned and headed off somewhere to sit and eat. Not too picky about where she did so, she wound up plopping down on top of a wooden crate, immediately beginning to eat...

Count Valos has posed:
It just so happened on this day that there was another being with the ability to fly in the city of Junon; and without the prerequisite of machinery, no less! Though, on this occasion, Gidarch Valos was trudging down the street rather dilatorily, for being composed primarily of mineralized matter made one heavy.... strong as he was, conserving energy meant that he didn't want to rush anywhere if he could help it, as that would run down his stock quickly; and why didn't he fly?

Because carrying himself through the air was even more of a hassle.

Adorned in his silver mail, but without his elk-skulled helmet, he paused while mid-stride, and turned his head towards the crate. Bending down to touch the ground with his uncovered hand, he adorns a thoughtful expression on his face as he considers whatever it is that he's feeling. His eyes widen ever so remotely with enthusiasm as he realizes something is in his midst that has value which can be easily extracted. He adopts a more hasty pace as he heads towards the crate, but before he can reach the thing, he's intercepted by Priel.

She actually reaches the wooden structure a good twenty seconds before the dark one is upon the thing. When he approximates both Priel and the crate, Gidarch bows a little, and issues a greeting, which is the polite course of action in a situation such as this; he didn't know her, so he wasn't familiar enough with the woman to bypass proper introductions before stating his business, "Salutations." With luck, he might be able to conduct his affairs without much delay, and continue his journey.

Priel Aylin has posed:
Far too busy filling her stomach, Priel had paid no mind to to the approaching Count. Ahh, how long had it been since she had some good food? ...Probably not long at all, but it sure felt like it right now! So even when he had stopped before the woman and bowed, she didn't take notice. Sure, she most definitely heard approaching movement. Especially with her ears.

But no, it wasn't until he actually spoke his greetings that the dragoness bothered to look at him. "Hmm?" She intoned half curiously, and half in annoyance. Her deep blue eyes, subtly slit in a reptilian manner roved over Gidarch's form for several seconds, discerning his appearance. He was tall, very tall in fact. And his skin was quite dark, gray in fact. And those ears. She would wager that he was some manner of elf, but didn't care nearly enough to ask.

Biting off the last piece of meat from the skewer she was working on, she set the meatless stick down before moving on to the next one. "So..." Priel spoke casually between chewing. "What are you talking to me for? Is there something you want?" Swallowing her food, a smirk then played across her face, tail waving about behind her in accordance to her emotions.

She hasn't budged from the crate.

Count Valos has posed:
Not bothered in the most minimal degree that she hasn't seen fit to exchange pleasantries with him, Gidarch could only assume Priel was a pragmatic sort; this would make life easier, he surmised.... they wouldn't have to get into a discussion about the weather, or eachothers' welfares. Folding his arms over his chest, he nods to her calmly as she queries as to why he's nagging her, hoping to reassure her that he intends to accommodate her inquisitive nature, by giving a prompt answer for her convenience!

That was the respectful thing to do, undoubtedly.

"There is indeed something I desire, and I am under the assumption that my humble request would be of such meager magnitude that it would barely inconvenience you, thus allowing you to be rid of my presence without stall." Unfolding one arm, he extends his index finger towards the crate and remarks, "I would like to temporarily relocate that crate approximately one meter away from its current position; the trajectory therein of said object does not concern me. If you would be so generous as to arise for but a moment, I would be most grateful." Gidarch's face doesn't convey much emotion in contrast to Priel's; no smirk, no frown, nothing to denote any sort of reasoning for /why/ he wants to move a crate a few feet, or how important this venture is to him, if it is indeed of much significance.

Inwardly, the nobleman is not entirely certain if she'll comply, or need coaxing of the monetary sort, but whatever the case may be, he hasn't yet offered any sort of compensation for the favor he's asked- perhaps he assumes that she's altruistic enough to oblige without the necessity of payment.... or maybe he just hopes it.....!

Priel Aylin has posed:
Well.

His request was simple enough. Indeed, she could just stand up and rid herself of this man's presence quite easily. Buuuut...Nope.

There was no discernible reward in that now! Feeling an idea coming to her, Priel's smirk widened into a smile. "Oh, but...I'm already so comfortable! I really don't feel like moving after all~" To accentuate her point, the redhead crossed her legs, one over the other, and made herself a bit more comfortable, just to spite him.

Her tail in the meantime seemed to have a mind of it's own, the tip lightly stroking the side of the crate as if saying 'Mine!'. She let it sink in for a moment before going on to speak again. "...But I guess I COULD move if I were paid to now~" Well, that wasn't subtle at all. Priel clearly found this entertaining and chuckled to herself as she bit off another piece of meat, chewing slowly and allowing the Count to offer a response to the matter at hand...

Apparently extorting Faruja wasn't enough now.

Count Valos has posed:
Her mannerisms conveyed to Gidarch a sense of relaxation that suggested she was genuinely invested in her crate-sitting endeavor- he had absolutely no idea that she was deliberately feigning interest in her activity as a means of trying to extract funds from him by demonstrating that he was causing her a severe disservice by asking of her what he was requesting.

The Count's eyes dart over towards the meat skewers as he takes a tally of how many remain, and he tries to calculate how long she'll need in order to finish her feast. Guessing that she might only need twenty minutes to polish off her confections and digest it combined, he decided to make a supposition, "I can see plainly that you are indeed attached to employing this structure as a means of support while you consume your subsistence." He drops both arms lifelessly to his side, showing a less defensive attitude, perhaps as a means of empathizing with her plight, and he tilts his head to the side, "Would you say that in forty minutes, you would be vacated from this crate?"

It would be transparent to gamble on the notion that Valos is somewhat 'attached' to the prospect of moving the crate, if he's willing to linger around in limbo for over half an hour, or return later on just to adjust its orientation.... The fact that he's reluctant to divulge any information on why it's of such vitality also may hint that there's more going on than meets the eye; nevertheless, since he's shown enough courtesy to ask how long she plans on occupying that particular spot, mayhap she'll be equally considerate and offer him the sought data! That costs her nothing in the least.

The dark one hasn't specified whether or not he's willing to endorse her financial transaction, but he wagers on the probability that Priel isn't likely to spend all day sitting atop a random, wooden crate, hence his cause for not immediately accepting her offer. Gidarch asked a simple enough question, so he anticipated on the reception of a simple answer.

Priel Aylin has posed:
Priel had expected that he wouldn't take the offer, but the fact that he had expressed that he was willing to stand around and /wait/ for her to finish was a whole new thing on it's own. Wow. But rather than voice that thought, Priel just shook her head, biting off another piece of meat and chewing thoughtfully.

He was quite fixated on this crate. And considering that he wanted it moved, it was likely that he wasn't interested in the contents, but rather, what was /under/ it. What WAS under it? Just some stone pavement or what have you, no?

How curious.

"Rather than that now..." The dragoness started, deflecting the drow's inquiry. "Is there some reason why you happen to be so interested in this spot here? I know you don't care what's in the crate, so..." Her tail then lifted, the tip jerking downwards a couple times to indicate the ground. "...There's something down here that you're after, right? What is it?"

Maybe there was some sort of valuable material embedded into the ground. That would have been an interesting sight to see at the very least.

Count Valos has posed:
He had doubts that she would stay over forty minutes, but when she shakes her head, he arches a brow in surprise..... very subtle, but enough to convey his sense of confusion over her need to feast for over forty minutes. Suddenly, Priel began to ask questions of his justifications for wanting her to move; which to Gidarch registers as an irrelevant line of questioning /unless/ she was in fact, curious, and hoping to profit from his predicament, by uncovering the secret of the object of his desire. His lips flatten out as he stands motionlessly before her, unwilling to budge- there are now two people who are stonewalling each other; with one of them actually being physically composed of matter not unlike that of a stone wall!

"You are behaving nosy by inquiring into the stimulants that have spawned my agenda." His eyes narrow ever so slightly, "You.... are not that interested in the contingent of eating comfortably on this crate, are you....?" At this point, he's beginning to speculate that she's purposely antagonizing him. It is only logical to assume that one is prying into his business if they want to share in the wealth. Folding his arms as he resumes his defensive position, he cants his head downward, a looking at her sternly, "Eventually, the persons assigned to the task of shipping this crate will come and move it, and it shall be relieved of your occupancy."

He flaps his hand dismissively, deciding to relent just a smidgen, "What is the cost I must pay for you to allow me to move this crate? I would rather not wait all day to complete my task." He hasn't actually confirmed that there's something valuable buried that he intends on exhuming, but his hesitation in giving her a sufficient reply to assuage her curiosity might insinuate that her theory may have merit- else, wouldn't he simply deny it..... Well, a liar would, but Gidarch is no liar, unbeknownst to the dragoness....

Priel Aylin has posed:
Oho, so whatever was down here, he wasn't willing to impart the knowledge of. Interesting. Priel's smile widened just a tab before she shrugged, uncrossing her legs and then crossing them the other way. "Am I really now? I wonder, I wonder..." Yes, she was evading the question again, conveniently moving on to the next.

So he would be willing to part with some of his funds in order to move her. Not exactly as she planned, but this is a favorable outcome as well. Even if he backed out in the end, she was sure to get a laugh. "How much? Hmmmn..." Priel mused to herself, tapping a cheek in feigned consideration.

"Weeeeeeell, if you really want me to move, I'd say that 6000 munny would be an adequate cost~" Wow, that was more than she charged Faruja for his embarrassing love letter!

Count Valos has posed:
If there was one thing Gidarch was good at, it was rationalization- provided he had enough facts to work with, however, with the dragoness snooping into his affairs, there was no other explanation other than that of a greedy wretch trying to take advantage of a man in need. Gidarch raises a finger and decides to make a point, "I witnessed you scaling this crate quite a spell before I reached your proximity. I could have 'accidentally' collided with you, knocking the crate aside, apologized, proceeded on my way, then returned later on, oblivious to your knowledge, and carried out my task. That would have been a fallacious manner in which to behave, and the ruse would have been highly unprofessional, but I did not take advantage of the fact that you were ignorant to the reasoning behind why I wish to move this crate, at the time of my electing the aforementioned course of action."

He nods to her, and holds his hand out, palm up, as if pleading with her to show mercy, "You are showing me a heavy degree of discourtesy by charging the fee that you are charging.... And yes, I assure you.... a collision with me would have knocked you aside enough to displace the crate to the adequate degree that the next person seated upon it would not have stymied my ambition; I weigh over six hundred pounds, and I can lift upwards of tenfold that." With that declared, the dark one refolds his arms, and rears his head back and upwards, in an expectant, sanctimonious way, "I request you reduce your price to a sensible one, as a gesture of acknowledgement to honor the courtesy I extended to you, that I did not need perform."

The dark one continues to speak with a dispassionate voice, in defiance of the condescending nature of his diatribe, "You are trying to exploit me, despite the fact that I refrained from subjecting you to similar treatment; just the intent of that in itself is incorrigible, by the standards of conventional societal norms, overlooking such things is an easy enough chore, by virtue of the fact that most socialized behavior is blind devotion to ritual, and designed merely to appease the emotional dependencies of those who crave positive affection over negative reactions." There, that's logical, right? How can she possibly refute his claims? Well.... there's always the possibility that she might still /refuse/ despite being unable to /refute/, but that would simply make her an uncivilized barbarian, and she doesn't wish to earn such a foul reputation, does she.....? For the sake of Gidarch's coinpurse, let's hope not!

Priel Aylin has posed:
Priel blinked, listening to Count Valo's rather long winded speech silently. That ever enduring mocking smile was on her face the entire time and she did not seem to be taking it to heard at all. Once he had finished, a moment of silence reigned...and then laughter. "Pfffft! Ahahahahahaha!" The redhead just burst out into laughter at his points.

Was he right? Was he wrong? It didn't matter to her, it was just funny. Hilarious even. "Oh! Phew! This is...Ahahahahaha! ...Oh this is too much! Pfft--!" Holding out a hand for him to hold on a bit, Priel then resumed her laughter for a bit longer, her tail erratically waving about as she did so. Wow, she was having a blast. At least someone here was enjoying themselves.

Eventually though, after a bit of time, the dragoness' laughter gradually died down to a chuckle and she took several deep breaths to try and recover. "I haven't laughed like that in a long while. Perhaps I should thank you." But no, she wasn't budging still.

"Hmn...How about 3000 Munny then~?"

...Well, it was half. But was that really an improvement?

Count Valos has posed:
To say that he was astonished at her audacity would be an understatement, yet she still remained atop the box- unrelenting in her determination to be paid for her eviction. The price was still outrageous by far, and though a man as affluent as a drow wearing pure silver would seemingly be willing to splurge a little now and again- it was a matter of principle here! Equal in conviction to the dragoness, Gidarch had no intention of giving the other party their way, even though she offered a rebate. "Unacceptable."

The dark one shakes his head, still with a deadpan expression on his countenance, but then arose an aura from within him, and the very ground resonated with his exuding of elemental energy; exclaiming his intentions as a forewarning so as to give Priel yet still a bonus of voluntary consideration, he called out, "If.... you will not be moved from your position, then the foundation upon which you rely must then yield!" Without any further procrastination, the ground rumbles a little, and suddenly, from beneath the crate, the ground extrudes skywards. A pillar of solid earthen matter erupts in an exactly vertical manner, resembling a precisely hewn column extending to the heavens, raising the crate from below.

It's actually much more of a smooth ride than one would expect from a modified quake; but if Gidarch is thorough in something other than his ability to contrive rational argumentation, it was manipulating terran matter. It's unlikely that the dragoness will be thrown off, for the velocity of the burst slows steadily as it nears its peaking, at which point she'll be approximately thirty feet in the air, if she's still perched on the crate which now lies atop a beam composed of solid rock.

At the stage of its completed ascension, the dark one calmly liberates a sizable ruby, whose value indisputably ranges in the territory of approximately eight thousand munny; that being a conservative estimate, at that. The dragoness will have ideally received no damage from the ordeal, barring any potential depreciation to her ego that might or might not have transpired during.... and if she can fly, then even if she had toppled off, she might have easily been able to cushion her fall to the extent of avoiding damage.... all courtesy of her lack of ability to cling to the crate which now stands on a pedestal! Inspecting the gem for a second, Valos tries to estimate the quality- but he hasn't yet had time to lower the pillar of stone and soil, that will take a few more moments. The drow seems to have mostly removed his attention from Priel, practically oblivious to her very existence, as he examines his newly excavated treasure.

She's a capable girl.... she has wings.... she can get down if she's that eager to return to the ground- if she gets motion sickness, on the other hand, she may happen to expel the food she just ingested, which would in turn befall an unsuspecting dark elf. Optimism is a better way to see the circumstances as they are, albeit realism may not factor into said outlook.

Priel Aylin has posed:
Aw. And she even gave him a fifty percent discount and everything. Priel feigned disappointment at his answer, pouting as a child would but still refused to move from the crate. "Ohhhhh?" She intoned curiously, watching as the Count manipulated the ground into moving, causing a pillar of stone to rise upwards.

All the while, the redhead did not move from the crate, rather, she looked down, watching as she rose higher and higher into the air with interest. "So you can control earth magic, huh? Interesting!"

Of course, so could she. But she wasn't exactly here to show off now. And so Priel continued to watch, seeing the nobleman extract a ruby from the stone pillar raised. "So that's what you were after." Her jewel hoarding dragon instincts blared at the sight, but...she managed to keep it in check.

With her seat on the crate becoming more and more unstable, a pair of wings began to extend from the dragoness' back. Without wasting any further time, she was lifted into the air, wings flapping as she then descended downwards. Once landed, her wings retreated into her back again, seeming as if they were never there to begin with.

"So, what do you plan to do with that, huh?" She asked casually, munching on her last meat skewer in the meantime.

Count Valos has posed:
Both of them won out on this day- one inherited a valuable stone that would fetch some serious munny, while another was the proud owner of a temporary belly-laugh, which most likely decimated stress levels of said individual. It was impressive that Priel managed to stay aloft the crate even as it lifted off, but Gidarch wasn't easily enthralled by tricks others could perform, not unless they were mentally uncanny; this wasn't to say the dragoness' ability to falsify particular emotions and put on an act to beguile Valos into believing her earlier ploys was not a type of intelligence.... it was simply not the sort for which the dark one held much admiration. Crafty in her own way, the dragoness has undoubtedly coerced others out of their funds, undeniably one might say that her talent lies in playing on the feelings of others, but when one's sentimentality always lies dormant, this is much harder to do.

Not impossible- there is one person who has evoked emotional sensations within Gidarch, but that femme chronomancer hasn't been seen for a good span of time. Probably possessing more mastery in earth magic than most others, Priel might be able to at least appreciate the finely-chiseled quality of the pillar the dark one erected; such is not something one could construct without a nigh unrivaled proficiency in the art of brandishing mineral, or metal.... but Valos was a one-trick pony in that sense, for while his knack at geokinetics far surpassed that of almost all others, he didn't have much influence over the other elements. "I can not see how controlling earth magic in of itself is interesting, for the quantity of people who harbor such prowess are numerous indeed; only when measured by caliber of quality might you have cause to marvel at what I do." He responds to her; taking the humble approach to her charitable flattery. No.... earth magic itself wasn't that interesting.... doing it /well/ was interesting!

The ruby gleams in the sun for a moment, but then Gidarch pockets the article, knowing that the impulse will possess him to pawn it off at the first possible juncture, negating ones where he might be supplied an inadequate compensation. Once she asks the dark one what he intends to do with the precious stone, he shrugs, "Sell it. Buy supplies with the money I procure..... and then find another when my provisions run dry." Although little does she know, when he refers to 'provisions', it has nothing to do with food. Gidarch has a tendency to tighten up, and items similar to 'Gold Needles' are required to keep him viably flexible. He's not sure why he's even bothering to answer her inquiries, but since she was unselfish enough to answer him when they initially met, and he made his request, that was preferable to being completely ignored, which she had every right to do. The Count has classified the dynamics of their relationship to be along the lines of a 'truce', with neither being especially fond of the other- Priel didn't proactively attack him, as it were, which was more than could be said of Will; the childish hobo graced Gidarch with a blast of strange, destructive on their last encounter!

Priel Aylin has posed:
"Huh."

Resting her hands upon her hips, she tilted her head a bit at his answer. "Well, that's pretty...boring." Ah yes, the standard sell it and buy supplies answer. Perfectly logical and expected in it's entirety, yet, Priel somehow figured that someone as strange looking as Valos here would be up to something much more entertaining slash suspicious slash interesting! Guess not.

With a shrug then, the redhead straighted up, crossing her arms behind her head casually, staring up at the sky in the meanwhile. "Well then, I guess I'll just have to leve you to your no doubt noble supply run~!" Grinning at that, her tail arc back, patting the stone pillar twice before she began to approach the dark elf. The movement in and of itself might have seemed suspicious, but once she reached him, all she did was reach up and attempt to pat his shoulder. "You have fun now, Mr. Way too tall, Dark, and mysterious jewel detector~"

She was making fun of him, wasn't she?

She totally was.

Count Valos has posed:
The Count was indeed 'boring' by the standards of most, but then, he didn't see any reason to engage in thrills and action unless it was absolutely necessary- and his reasoning he was quite willing to share if anyone were to inquire! But most people had a hard enough time holding a conversation with him, let along figuring out what specific questions would be fruitful, or for those who were motivated by self-interest.... what inquiries would be beneficial to oneself! When she approaches, Gidarch seems to be a little bit on edge- wondering what her justification was..... but more disturbing was the fact that she actually intended to 'touch' him! What was with people and their need to touch each other.

Not that it actually hurt in the least, but when she caught him by surprise by making physical contact, he issued yet another subtle wince, as though something she'd done had caused him discomfort..... as was the case with other people who've violated his personal space, but without desire to inflict bodily harm, he had to restrain himself from executing some sort of pressure-point attack, thus disabling the offending body-part in question. Strangely enough.... there was /one/ person who he didn't actually mind touching him, and deep inside himself, he wanted her to do more of it.

A slight tremor of his body transpires in synchrony with his wince, demonstrating that he didn't approve of her bold behavior, but he doesn't take it upon himself to scorn her for it, and tries to take it in stride; maybe if he doesn't create a fuss, she won't have an excuse to continue bothering him, he rationalizes, "I should notify you that I am under no obligation to follow your commands. Furthermore, your command is one that promotes self-destructive behavior, so that is all the more cause for me not to exhibit compliance." So... evidently, to Gidarch, 'fun' is self-destructive- no, he didn't even ask what type of fun Priel was referring to in particular, thus, he was either being presumptuous, or he was of the belief that /ALL/ forms of fun were damaging. Evidently, though..... the dragoness was having fun, and what would ordinarily be at Valos' expense, if he were not so impervious to her sarcastic remarks...... for the most part!

Priel Aylin has posed:
Well that was an interesting response. "Oh? What's this about self destructive behaviors now?" She asked, grinning as then began to slowly walk circles around the tall drow. As if caging him in, though not really. "All I said was for you to have fun with whatever it was you were going to do now~" Her grin widened then as she thought about it for a moment longer.

"Oh wait...don't tell me. You equate fun with self destruction? Is that it? Ahahahaha~!" Apparently that was quite funny to Priel because she began to laugh at the notion quite readily. "Oh wow! That's amazing! So fun is self destructive now!" Continuing to casually circle around him, she decided to poke a bit more fun at this. For what it was worth anyway.

"So tell me then; is all fun self destructive now~?" With that question posed to Valos, the dragoness rested her hands on her hips again, tilting her head from side to side as she began to speak anew. "But there are so many different types of fun! Classifying it all as self destructive is such a broad statement! What about children playing games? What about spending time with people you like? What about performing a task that you enjoy? There are so many~"

And then she raised a hand, beginning tick off 'fun activities' "Let's see now, what's fun....playing ball...reading a good book...hanging out with friends and catching up...mating with your lover...making money...visiting new places...meeting new people..." Wait a moment.

One of those things was not like the other.

Count Valos has posed:
It appears as though Gidarch has sabotaged himself; in striving to be rid of her, his declaration that fun..... in general, was a bad thing, had roused Priel's curiosity enough to prevent her from seizing a departure. Her grin was enough to remove all doubt that he had evoked inquisitiveness within the woman, and then inwardly he questioned how he could have possibly answered her /without/ precipitating more questions. It was beginning to become clear that since nobody understood where he was coming from, that anything he said would ultimately cause confusion; not very reassuring for a man who likes his privacy.

All the same, he decides to /try/ to accommodate her, by at least listening to her blathering, and incessant querying, as he folds his arms across his chest, awaiting an opportunity to interject a point of his own, so as to muddle or enlighten her..... giving himself ample opportunity to escape! Then again, that maneuver could also fail. "All forms of fun are intrinsically designed for the same purpose; to disqualify one manner of fun is to deny the legitimacy of them all. And because they all share a synonymous net result, they all share the same inherent flaw." He shakes his head, and looks off to the side, "I do not imagine that you could possibly conceive of what the structural defect in recreation is, and therefore.... I do not fathom that your postulations are worthy of my time. You are no more equipped to argue with me than that religious zealot, Mister Senra."... otherwise known as Faruja, who did a very poor job impressing the dark one.

The count then points at her, almost accusingly, "If you can tell me what the most fundamental problem with fun is, than I will humor you..... otherwise, I have no reason to believe your intellect rivals mine by even a factor of ten." This could be construed as either condescending, or as a challenge; regardless of why Gidarch has decreed what he has decreed, it's apparent that he's no longer amused by Priel, and that he sees her as inferior. This is unlikely to earn her favor- by happenstance, acquiring her ire may be just what he desires, on the other hand!

Priel Aylin has posed:
"Ohhhhhh~ Big man flexing his big brain~!"

Apparently, Priel was not insulted. Or even moved by his decree, challenge, or whatever it could be called. She just smiled wider at his words, like some sort of trollish sponge and soaked up whatever what thrown at it and just came out all the more amused for it. But one thing DID catch her attention though. The mention of a certain rat.

"Aha...You know that rat now? Wow, what a small world~" A faint laugh is given then as the redhead paused in her circling. "As for this nonsense about intellect or whatever you've got going on up there..." She shrugged nonchalantly before offering an answer. "My intellect doesn't need to rival anything you specify now. You could have the biggest brain ever and still fail after all~"

That said Priel turned around, crossing her arms behind her head again, tail idly waving about behind her. "On the other hand, someone with an allegedly inferior intellect can easily overcome one of a greater intellect by one simply virtue; underestimation~" She turned her head sideways, smiling pleasantly at Valos. Was that some sort of threat?

Probably. ...Or not. Hard to tell.

"Anyway, once again, I'll leave you to your noble quest~" Walking off at that, the dragoness pat the stone pillar that had been raised in passing. "You should put this back into the ground though. Unless you want Shinra guards after you~" Another amused laugh, and then Priel said nothing more, walking off on her own.

Lord knew what she was going to be up to.

Count Valos has posed:
The dark one shook his head, "You made the supposition that classifying fun was a broad statement, which was a value judgement on your part, which was provoked by my observation that fun is self-destructive, following your insistence that I engage in such folly. To allow you to prove your own point true, I generously offered you a chance to enlighten me to the nature of the lowest common denominator of sport that carries with it an innate disadvantage. You have refused, and that informs me quite well of the caliber of your cognitive mettle." He nods, and waits for her to wander off, as she directs at him what could be 'arguably' interpreted as a mild threat, but Gidarch simply remarked, "That is an empty claim."

He nods as she finally offers to give him his leave, but then in its wake she advises him to return the pillar into the ground. Glancing over at the stone pedestal that he raised, Valos rubs his chin in thought, at the mention of the ShinRa guards bothering him over the presence of the newly generated obstruction, "A trivial matter.... no more difficult than refuting any of your assertions." he says in a deadpan voice- the actual content of his words though, is on the haughty side,.... they aren't nearly as impartial as one could have aspired to have constructed them.

As far as the gem is concerned..... if he receives guff from any authorities about returning /that/ to the ground..... The odds are, he won't put it back where it was /originally/ located, but if the Shinra harass him, he'd elude them until such time that he'd reach the border of their territory..... then plunge it back -into- the ground whilst imposing a degree of depth therein which would make it unclear to them where it ultimately ended up being located. Following that, he'd reposition it a few feet adjacent, and simply walk off, thus leaving it as /their/ responsibility to reclaim, since he'd legally 'abandoned' the thing.

Later on, the dark one would return and excavate it for his own acquisition on the basis that he was not 'one hundred percent' sure it was the exact same stone, and that they had no proof that the rock he'd found that was -not- on their property was indeed, their own. The Count is not a liar, he's simply a man who speculates alternative possibilities when he doesn't /wish/ to endorse the most probable one, if the most probable one is not preferable to his agenda...... this is probably part of the reason he has no friends.