I spent the rest of the day with Thelia hovering over my shoulder as I talked to a friendly Halfling. She was a potter, and had dealt with porcelain before although a more primitive version. After some discussion I managed to order about 700 tusks although they wouldn’t actually be made yet. Just paid for in advance. We got the preliminary measurements for Thelia done, along with some designs namely my crest pressed into the outside facing portion of the tusk.
The porcelain tooth would be much whiter than her other tusk, but Thelia insisted that it be marked so orcs wouldn’t abuse the practice. The tusk would be ready in a few days. This however opened up a whole slew of ideas for me. And upon returning to the inn I furiously wrote out ideas.
Magical tattoos, magical wands, magical staves, even magical food. So why not magical teeth. We would need an enchanter, but creating tusks for orcs that had things like mage lights, spark, create or destroy water, detect poison, purify food and drink, etc. Was clever, and extremely marketable. Especially if 600+ orcs missing a tusk each were coming.
Hell magical teeth were profitable even if you weren't an orc. Nobles could replace a tooth to have something like purify food and drink cast on everything they eat. Never have to worry about poisons again. I was kinda surprised no one had thought about it before. But I suppose dentistry wasn’t exactly profitable when a minor cure wounds could fix any toothache you had.
“Thank you for the wonderful meal Marnie.”
I say. She smiles a hand on her hip.
“It ain’t a problem at all.”
She replies. I stand from the table, Thelia shadowing me. I get to my room, and stand outside the door.
“Uhm goodnight Thelia.”
I say, and open the door a crack to slip in. Her foot catches the door, and I swear under my breath.
“Dragon Slayer Jonathan, it is my duty as your pledge to protect you at all times.”
She swings the door open. Once in the room, she sits down in a chair in the corner. I let out a sigh.
“I need to get ready for bed.”
I tell her.
“You know change into something more comfortable.”
I continues, she doesn't react.
“I am going to take my clothes off, would you look away. Please?”
She blinks at me.
“Why?”
She asks. I let out a sigh.
“Because it’s awkward, and embarrassing for me.”
Thelia doesn’t say anything, but just raises her hands up in front of her eyes.
“Thank you.”
I say, and swiftly change clothing.
“You can remove your hands now.”
I tell Thelia. She drops her hands, and leans back in the chair.
“I don’t know why you are being so embarrassed by it. It’s has a good size, average.”
Thelia says. I flush red.
“HEY! You weren't supposed to look.”
Thelia shrugs.
“I’ve seen naked men, and women before. You shouldn’t get bothered by it.”
She raises a hand to her mouth, and yawns. She unfastens some leather straps from around her shoulders, and legs. She removes the light leather armor she is wearing. This isn’t MMO armor either. But the proper gear made to protect the points you don’t want to be stabbed. She is actually much smaller looking without her armor on. A rough woolen shirt and pants the only thing underneath.
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Her arms look dry, and the green skin is cracked along her joints. I pull a pocket sized bottle of hand lotion out of my bag and throw it at her. She catches it easily.
“It’s called lotion you rub a small amount, and I mean only a drop or two, onto your skin where it’s dry. It makes it softer, and smoother. It's good for your skin.”
She clicks the lid up, and raises it to her nose. She recoils slightly due to the strong smell, but with another sniff I think she likes the smell.
“It’s like what those human lords, or nobles wear sometimes isn’t it made of flowers runoff, and animal fats.”
She says. I shrug.
“Kinda that's perfume, this one is scented by the stuff put inside of it. It’s shea butter which is a paste made from a plant.”
I tell her. She nods, and takes a small amount and rubs it on her skin. Her hairs stand on end, and I can see goosebumps run up her arm.
“Keep rubbing it until you can’t see it, and your skin is kinda shiny.”
She does as told, and repeats the process with the other arm. She motions to toss it back to me.
“Don’t worry you can keep it. I have another.”
I lift a second one from my pack. I could figure out how to make more, eventually. I put mine back into the bag, and, tuck it under the bed. I climb onto the bed, and under the blankets.
“Well goodnight Thelia.”
Loud snoring is my only reply. Maybe I should get a silence spell for Thelias tooth. I turn over, and let sleep take me.
I awaken in the white space. Large steps lead to a platform, upon which rests an elegant white couch inlaid with gold, and gems. Marylin Monroe lays on the couch in pristine white furs feeding herself grapes.
“This is the life isn’t it. You just have so much to draw from. Lust, greed, wrath, gluttony, envy, sloth, and pride. Your world is absolutely filled with it.”
I let out a sigh.
“So what you can read my mind? Look over my entire past?”
I ask the staff. It tilts his head.
“Not exactly, I can feel images, and pictures small glimpses of memory, and emotion. I knit them all together in a web that I use to interpret what you see or feel. I could if I wanted try and rebuild your memory from the ground up, but it would take centuries with everything you have seen.”
The staff pops another bunch of grapes into its mouth.
“I thought you were a gluttony elemental? Shouldn’t you be more gluttonous, like your previous form.”
I ask.
“Gluttony elemental, hah, yeah sure those are a thing. No I’m a spirit. Like spirits of earth, trees, bodies of water. I was a spirit of hunger. Spirits can change however. And binding me to the staff made my form a little more malleable. I’d always been that single minded dull beast, but now OH BABY I can do so much more.”
She wiggles her eyebrows at me, and touches herself lightly. I avert my eyes.
“Aww don’t be such a prude. You don’t even knoo~oow how good this feels. Only having one emotion. Suddenly it’s a whole spectrum, at least a 600% increase in emotions. Flash, Bang, Alakazam.”
She explains, I pout.
“Really quoting Nat King Cole at me.”
Staff practically leaps from the sofa, clapping her hands in glee.
“And don’t even get me started on music. Fuck the slow ballroom music, give me EDM, House, or Metal, it’s just so raw.”
She walks down the steps her clothes changin. The pristine white turning into a black top that barely covers her breasts, and booty shorts that stay together by sheer willpower. Her skin tans, and her hair grows longer, losing its volume, and turning brown.
She slaps her own ass,
“Don’t you wanna pound this tight little thing.”
She licks her lip.
“Please don’t ever do it again, I feel violated within my soul.”
I reply. She pouts.
“Not even just a little.”
She holds her fingers up in front of me, barely any space between them. I shake my head. She throws her hand up in the air.
“Why’d the one person who wouldn’t want to bang the shapeshifting mental construct with no chance of getting prego have to come here.”
She exclaims. Her form shifts into a large man, scars and tattoos covering his arms.
“How about a fight I’m feeling kinda angry now.”
The staff says it’s voice dropping a few octaves.
“Or we could talk about how amazing I am.”
She transforms into that Marylin Monroe again, wearing an elegant dress, and covered in jewelry.
“Or we could talk about plans to get more items and artifacts, I could help with that.”
She grabs my arm and loops it with hers. Her clothing changes once more her hair becomes disheveled. Her eyelids droop, and her dress turns into sweatpants and a hoodie. Two mismatched slippers on her feet
“We could take a nap together.”
I feel something tugging on my consciousness, i can tell.I’m gonna wake up soon.
“We can continue this little talk later. Maybe drill some virtues into you.”
I say to the staff. The staff grabs onto my chest with pleading eyes.
“Don’t go…”
Her clothes become haggard, her eyes sullen, and her body emaciated.
“Please don’t go…”
She whimpers, and I wake up.