Official cover image by my co-author the wonderful Randimaxis.
Have you ever wanted to explore strange new cultures? To experience the world beyond the boundaries of your own city? Your country?
Dax Blackwater took that oppourtunity.
Have you ever wanted to show the wonders of your culture to another? To prove to the world that you're better than the stereotypes and propoganda?
Illiad Easle jumped at the chance.
This is the story of these two ponies, two different cultures coming together in the name of the cultural exchange.
Now with chapter commentary by my wonderful Co-Author Randimaxis
(The romance tag is not between Dax and Illiad in case you guys were wondering)
Tagged AU as this story diverges from cannon at the start of S4, and of course the inclusion of a whole other nation.
You caught me off guard with this, mah boy.
I couldn't be able to see the post because of the un-godly amount of people you mentioned, me included, but this is great! Hope our story gets in!
If Dax Blackwater and Illiad Easle were voiced, what would they sound like?
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Illiad is voiced by The Question from Justice League Unlimited (Jeffrey Combs)
I don't know what Dax or the rest of the Blackwaters sound like just yet, but I'll be sure to get back to you when I do figure it out.
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Perhaps, let's see how well this one does before I try to start another one.
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I am told that Dax sounds something like Michael Cera
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Me too, it's looking good so far, my other story never got any comments.
Really it just needs to get popular, the more that read it the more that will see it and all that.
THIS was what originally caught my attention; the enigmatic invitation to a world of adventure, the possibilities, the unknown dangers...
... and Illiad's writing style, after reading a few of his posts in the other exchanges.
This was the part where I started trying to give the impression of what Dax was going to be like; intelligent, excitable, kind and curious. But I wanted to show that there may have been some underlying issues, too - the proper 'Mother' and 'Father' titles at every mention, and erased words that point to a deeper layer beneath that Dax was too shy to share... yet.
Also, this is where I started feeling out what Illiad Easle was like: His attitude, his motivations, his likes and dislikes, and his fears. I'm no actual psychologist, but I will say that I've stuck my nose into a few books on the subject, and what I was getting from the Trojan was someone that I could work with to REALLY weave a fun story between us.
And so, we did just that.
And so, the two finally meet.
Little did either of them realize how much they would change the others' world... or how Fate would play its' cards for the two of them, separately AND together. It may sound kinda sappy, yeah - but keep in mind: PONIES. Can't have a Grand Redwood without some SAP. };>
Anyway, this is also where I get to play with the twins, Beck On and his identical brother Call On - or, call-on and beckon, both phrases meant to summon or bring - which is sort of what butlers do. Plus, twins have always been pretty cool in my humble opinion; why not have some fun?
My favorite parts were seeing Illiad's different reactions to the butlers and Dax himself... then 'hearing' his innermost soliloquys on each subject. THOSE really made the Trojan unicorn seem more real and alive in my mind. Again, Illiad (the writer) proves why his RP always entertains me greatly.
At this point in the exchange, Illiad had already dealt with Dax and the two butlers - it was time to meet the proper heads of the Blackwater family line. Only a slight impression of Vylia (more on her later), but more of a focus on Luther, the stoic and quietly menacing earth stallion. I wanted to be CERTAIN he was seen as no-nonsense and humorless (reasons for that also come up later).
The focus was trying to give Illiad a better idea of where Dax came from and what he had to deal with each day - and to watch and see how Illiad would react to the two most important ponies at the quarry - I expected politeness, of course... but his thoughts were often hilarious to me!
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To add to that, I'll say that, in my own mind, I'd say Vylia would have a voice much like Bette Midler, because I could hear that thinly-veiled snark she can have. Luther's voice would HAVE to be Christopher Lloyd - somewhere between Doc Brown and Judge Doom... heavy on the Doom.
The butler ponies, I could easily agree to having voiced by Simon Pegg - BOTH of them.
Enter the colt: Oglevy Blackwater, the rotten little colt who gets his kicks from being a pest. This was the chance to give Illiad something to concern himself about, as well as add a bit more dimension to Vylia as well. She looks and acts the part of a spoiled debutante, but she's far more shrewd than she lets on... at least in front of her foals (they may be growing up, but they will ALWAYS be her foals).
Plus, it was fun making Illiad sweat; sorry, old bean. Way to keep a stiff upper lip and all... but when he said that Oglevy was insufferable, I nearly died laughing; the back and forth between the two brothers was also fun to write. All in all, Illiad got pushed a bit - and he resisted the push wonderfully.
Oglevy's voice would sound kinda like an evil Jimmy Neutron (Debi Derryberry)... Oggie IS a genius, after all. }:>
And so, here's where Silver Studs makes her appearance.
When the quarry was still in the planning stages, it occurred to me that such a business would have to have all sorts of machinery running to keep it as profitable as the Blackwaters were showing to be. I toyed with the idea of a constant in-house crew of six, a pair of twins (those two became the butler ponies), and even a small nest of Changelings... but in the end, I thought it would be better for the roleplay (and easier on my mind) to have a single individual doing ALL the work - our little unicorn mare busybody.
The fact that Illiad got goosebumps over her took me completely by surprise. I had just wanted to show off a nifty side-character; instead, she'll come more into play as things progress... and this seemingly innocuous first meeting could have far-reaching implications.
Oh, and Silver's catchphrase: "not that ---, but more like ----" actually came from someone I once knew in Middle School; they were almost CONSTANTLY doing that - I scaled it back considerably, but it's still a nifty vocal tic.
At the age of twelve, I had a bucket of cold tomato soup poured over my head as a prank. They thought it was quite funny, of course.
Me? It had gotten into my eyes, stinging like fire; it had gotten into my left ear, which took a day or two to get it all out with cotton swabs; it had gotten my clothes nice and mushy... not to mention the utter humiliation at such a thing.
In comparison, Illiad got off easy... and handled it FAR better than I did. I wanna grow up to be like Illiad. };>
The Cloud Diamond.
Illiad had told me about it; it's properties, what it was capable of, what plans he had for it... and it sounded fairly interesting. When he also explained how RARE it was, I started trying to come up with a reason WHY it was so rare... the answer came later, but this is where the train of thought on it began.
Redd Handid is my attempt at making a pony NPC from one of those irritating, holier-than-thou co-workers that EVERYONE seems to have... and loathe. There's more to him than first meets the eye (as is EVERYTHING at the Blackwater Quarry), but due to Illiad's Empathic manipulation, I realized that it would be pointless to have him as the bully here; Illiad would shut him down, every time. So he more appears here because he's in the Quarry's storyline - he's not capable of being his usual self with an Empathic around!
Ah, yes... the 'incident' Luther is speaking of will come to brighter light as the story progresses. One of my favorite tropes is the 'buried sins of the past resurfacing' arc - and THIS is Luther's. We'll see how people take it, I suppose.
Knee Slapper. He kinda crept up on me; I wasn't expecting a number of things when I started creating him, like second-guessing his true nature, or trying to cook up a backstory that would work for the jovial fellow. Then, while writing with Illiad, it occurred to me that Slapper might be able to come from what would be a differing, yet not exactly opposing, set of abilities like our esteemed unicorn from Troy had? He couldn't have been the only one - right? So, Slapper ended up with the Power of Suggestion - and Illiad, being an Empathic, would have been one of the few who would even notice it.
The Hounds get noted here for the first time, too... which is something in store for one of our intrepid heroes in the future. };>
And so, the column of Cloud Diamond. When Illiad first told me what sort of ludicrous amounts of gem it truly was for its' size, it got me to thinking how it could still be feasible, as I don't care much for RetConning. So, the thought jounced around in my noggin for a while before the answer finally came to me. No spoilers.
This was fun - Illiad and I went back and forth carefully, making sure to extend the scene without dragging it out too far. It was this fight exchange that told me that I would have nothing to worry about in this RP; Illiad Easle could keep up, in spades. After this, I knew this would be a LOT of fun in the long run... I just hope I can keep up.
The guard? He didn't START evil, but as he did his job, the different generations that had been there for the "King's Treasure" had died at it's hooves(?), again and again... eventually ending up corrupting the poor thing and tainting its' mind. Selena did him a favor, truth be told; she set him free from his seemingly eternal task of watching over "the chest". But then the questions remain: Where IS the chest? And where is this "King"? Don't worry - answers coming soon. No spoilers.
Originally, the post describing the late Wheel Barrow were... NSFW-worthy; I had to trim them down without nerfing the horror aspect. I hope I did a decent job of it, but I have to say - Freddy Krueger himself would have LOVED those original descriptions of hanging arteries, strips of tattered flesh, clusters of mol-... uhm, yeah. THAT stuff.
Out of all the ill-fated workers with Luther and Slapper, my favorite name is Hank O'Rope; I thought it was rather clever.
I enjoy the idea of Luther Blackwater.
He's cold and curt upon first appearances, yet once one goes deeper, there IS a heart there. I've always liked the classic character who seems like a bad guy at first, but turns out to be so very deep and refined later.
Little things like his telling Dax where Illiad was before he said a word - there's a bond between Father and son in that; it's just not immediately obvious. But look back over previous chapters - there's a flow between them that seems short, but is simply comfortable and familiar for them both.
Plus, the thought that he had a crush on Nightmare Moon as a colt... I giggled when I came up with it.
Luther is ALREADY wealthy - not rich; WEALTHY - so he really would't need the money... besides, it was LUNA! He had to fight with himself to keep from GIVING it to her... Vylia would never have forgiven him for making NOTHING off the Cloud Diamond.
I think Illiad did a wonderful job for Luna's part - kudos to you, my friend!
... and you are quite welcome, my dear friend.
Doc Zinger is half-zebra, half-pegasus, and all fun. She's chipper and kind, even if a bit scatterbrained; when her head's on straight, however, she can be a mental dynamo. She's always trying to help others, and has an insatiable curiosity for anything she doesn't know.
She is also TOTALLY NOT MY CHARACTER.
She's the creation of my roleplay buddy, Blitz Boom, from another site. As I was completely enamored with the concept of such a strange crossbreed, I simply felt she had to be included here. Admittedly, I had written her into our roleplay without asking first, but I made it QUITE clear to Illiad that she wasn't MY creation; it ended up hampering my writing a bit, but eventually I got in touch with Blitz, and left a link to the RP with Ziggy in it.
All was fine, and the posts were approved as I'd written her, which was an impression I'd gotten of Doc through the RP Blitz and I are both in. Blitzy thought it was fairly accurate; the highest of praise.
This one's for you, Blitz Boom. *holds up full wineglass* Cheers.
I wish I had the money to commission an artist to create a picture of the scene Illiad woke up to. It would be HILARIOUS.
Thank you for the link for this mate. This was absolutely worth the now three reads I've had of this page, and the entirety of chapters I got through earlier. :)
I can assure that this is more or less exactly as I see Ziggy in my head as well when it is I write her. Especially her behaviour towards the crystal and the awkward moment of being caught dancing. Couldn't have done it better myself. ^_^
As for this story in general, I must say I find it captivating, and it keeps me hungry for the next parts so I can learn more of the secrets, like for example what the deal with Karma is further down the line. Mysterious sorts are fun to read about.
I feel honoured that you added one of my characters to such a good project, and despite the words above I really don't know what to say except thank you to the both of you. Both for the inclusion in such a fine piece of work and the work itself, which I can assure you I will follow.
If you have the need/want to use her more, you are free to do so as well just for the record. Seeing that you capture her essence this well makes me feel safe putting her in your hands. ^_^
Well worth making an account to say to you. And yes, I am the actual Blitz Boom that Randimaxis spoke with about this. Considering what were going on, I couldn't just read this without making a comment and sing my praises after all, now could I? :)
Oglevy apologizing? Yes.
We were ALL young once; we thought we knew everything - then, adults would prove to us that we didn't know nearly as much as we thought we did... and sometimes, that would affect us a bit, but for the better - we realize that our actions hurt others, and we want so badly to make amends. This was Oglevy's attempt to do so after he gained a new-found respect for the Trojan, after witnessing the tussle in the caverns. He might be a brat, but he's NOT a demon-child; he's just kinda spoiled.
Ziggy returns! I wanted to make sure to mention that she absolutely DOES fly in that zig-zag pattern; Blitz Boom's idea, and one I thought was utterly adorable.
Oh, hey - Taps! You wanna know more about her? Heh... NO SPOILERS. *wink*
I enjoy watching things escalate; a love story being among the top ten.
Illiad and Silver do make quite an adorable couple, do they not? The way Silver tries to be charming and comes off cute, not to mention Illiad's chatter as he babbles in her presence. Awkward, goofy love is some of the most fun love to write about.
The idea for Silver's backstory came on a whim; it started by thinking of the Jimmy Stewart classic "It's A Wonderful Life", and making the lead character and his wife just like Silver's parents... which would make Silver as Zuzu. Modified it on the spot, worked the rest out as I wrote.
I have no idea if my description of Hopper #6's issue is even scientifically valid... but it sure SOUNDS good, doesn't it?
Chuck List's accent is a bit of a pain to write, as I have to write it out normally, then go back and RE-write words to look almost phonetic on the page. In fact, the model I hear in my head for Chuck's voice and speech patterns comes from a surprising source: Bugs Bunny. I always loved that Bronx-y accent, so I simply pinched it for the character. Call it my tribute to the late, great Mel Blanc.
Chuck, Knee and Redd are the quarry's three foreponies. Chuck was most qualified when it came to Luther elevating a worker to forepony; Knee just seemed to 'be the right stallion for the job' (due to his mental talents); Redd is... a special case. If I had more room for Redd in this story, I'd elaborate... but que sera sera, eh?
The straw dog part was fun; I simply recalled how I liked my hot dogs from when I was a kid... though I won't go NEAR those things now; have you SEEN what goes into a hot dog? BLEAH. No thank you.
Don't hate Luther for what he did to Dax; the reasons for his actions will be explained later on.
I really tried to help define Dax a little more here. When I started writing him, I crafted him after a young version of myself - as we are all apt to do when first creating new characters - but I made sure to make enough differences to make him his own being, so to speak. I subscribe to the idea that characters should be multi-faceted; someone should never be able to second-guess EVERYTHING someone might do, right? As it goes, Dax might be lonely, but he's strong-souled and good-hearted - a heckuva combo, if you ask me.
More about the mysterious Harcourt later... but this is Dax's version of him, as he remembers his brother being when he left the quarry. Has time and experience changed the eldest Blackwater child for the better? Is Harcourt worse for the time away from home? Is he deceased, leaving his family to eternally wonder where he may have disappeared to? No spoilers.
It was during this part of the story that I truly began to find a great deal of admiration for Illiad's story-telling skills. I mean, before was grand fun, but this? This was quite in depth, truly fascinating how the Scales of Balance come into play, and Luna's separation. Plus, actually getting to meet Selena was really cool - I do likes me some supernatural stuff, and this was right up my alley.
I'm a Classic Rock fan, and I really had a bit of fun coming up with the band names; I also LOVED how Illiad commented on The Beetles.
The part about this chapter that saddens me is how Dax has such a crush on Luna, yet he KNOWS he's not good enough for her. It doesn't stop his desire - the heart wants what it wants - but he has enough brains to know how things are in Equestria's version of 'reality', and that he feels like the only option he has is to yearn for her; he may as well want the moon, for all he considers. So very sad to me, but excellent story material.
And so - the truth revealed, the treasure recovered, the alien presence departed for the stars. I did the best I could with this arc, and splitting it into a dual event only came to my mind when I was already a third of the way into the story itself! Sometimes, the mind sees a change, and the heart (and keyboard) must follow.
Before participating in A Cultural Exchange, I had only typed backwards here and there, as a lark; I had to literally teach myself to do it fluidly. When I started using it for the guard, it took me two hours to write JUST his lines out; by the time I reached King Arcus' tale, I got it done in under twenty minutes. However, I concur with Illiad - the backwards writing is DONE.
Poor Redd; I told you folks, he knows he's whipped when it comes to Illiad.
Oh, and that cryptic line in the beginning about leaving someone in a bad frame of mind in their dreams? No spoilers.
It occurred to me that Vylia was simply coming off as a social pony, much like Rarity; this chapter throws that comparison into sharper relief by showing you a better idea of her... hobbies. You ever hear about that one old lady in town who seems to know everything... and I mean, EVERYTHING? Vylia Blackwater is that woman's daughter, and follows in those hoofsteps rather well...
... yet, for all her ways, she doesn't seem to have any REAL friends. Part of why she dragged him out to begin with; somebody to talk to who doesn't already either loathe or fear her. When I think of Vylia's personality, the closest inspiration I can grasp is Bette Midler's character from Hocus Pocus... just a touch nicer.
A touch.
Little by little, I've been trying to put across the idea that ALL the Blackwaters are actually caring and good - it's simply buried under their personalities, except for Dax, of course. Vylia began this story as a foppish, difficult-to-like type; by now, perhaps it's a bit more obvious what her true feelings are. I actually could feel myself channeling a bit of Diamond Tiara for her, but at the same time trying to keep her from being absolutely too sappy. I hope I made that balance well enough; apologies to you if I haven't.
I was actually a little saddened by this; here I'd been hoping to see and hear more about Illiad's family... yet it ended in embarrassment for Vylia, and just awkwardness for the Trojan's folks. I couldn't help but cringe as I read through the above chapter... and I helped WRITE it.
And notice... the entire time, Vylia had nothing but praise for her hosts; being a Blackwater is rough. {: /
As I've been writing out the Blackwaters, I've been trying to show evidence that they are definitely related; there are a number of things that the Blackwater children do that the parents could be traced to being the originators of. In any decent family, you'll find something like that. There's a good bit of Vylia in Dax - this chapter is where I showed that best, in my opinion.
Poor Illiad - he came here to make one friend... and it looks like he'll be going home with more than that - ALL Blackwaters.
How are you able to update so fast?
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Most of this story was written long before I worked up the courage to post it here, soon though we'll be catching up to where I've been writing and updates will be a bit less frequent.
Silver was only meant as a nifty side-staff character in The Blackwater Quarry RP; I never really intended for her to fall in love... maybe a fling or two with some of the other characters that came through the RP... but when Illiad started showing a vested interest in her, it changed my entire outlook on Miss Studs.
Instead of the love-clueless shut-in I had been working her towards, I decided that love conquers all - even presumptions on one's own character. So, I began expanding the idea of her personality in my mind to include the possibilities of her falling in love. A LOT of her hemming and hawing comes from some of my own personal experiences, but she certainly handles it better than I once did.
Still, simply by Illiad's choice in her, it has helped me to expand her character further - with potential for further yet.
Silver's just adorable, isn't she? But oh, having to change the world? Such a tall order... can she do it?
And she and Illiad playing among the stars was such a vivid image in my mind - it was amazing to write, and even more fun to watch it come together between two writers. Once again, I am so thoroughly glad I started this; it's quite a grand tale.
As I've said before, EVERYONE at the Blackwater Quarry has a story... even the butlers.
I spent much of the story creating connections as I went, but this one was one of the few I'd managed to have in my head from the very beginning. I was influenced by the whole 'the butler did it' mentality; what if they actually HAD done it? Or tried to, anyway - Vylia IS a very sharp mare. So now, Illiad knows the truth about them, as well... plus, he finally knows how to tell them apart.
As for Silver's speaking in the beginning of this chapter, I thought 'luffew' was freaking adorable - garbled yet unmistakable.
Dax's impression of his father is QUITE uncanny... as you shall soon see. Perhaps one would say he did too good of a job...
The statue of Serious Black was carved by a loving granddaughter, and he would be the one considered to be the Founder of the Blackwater Family; even though in his day and age, they were simply the Black Family. But that's another tale.
No matter how much you may poke, prod or pressure, I shall NEVER reveal what the thing with the pearls was about. Never.
The whole 'Pink-Slip' incident finally makes sense, I hope - and I also hope it proves that Luther isn't as cold and heartless as one might believe him to be. When I came up with the idea, I wanted something that would make the reader angry with Luther at first, then slowly turn to sympathy as bits of the truth kept getting revealed. I certainly hope the end result was as worth it for you to read as it was for us to write.
And my vest is full of Grape Jelly.
*Reads story description*
*Follows link to prequel*
Wait... what? Why does the sequel have more chapters, way more than the original?
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Well, The Blackwater Quarry is listed as the prequel because it comes chronologically before A Cultural Exchange and because I haven't written A Poniad Part 1 yet which is the true prequel.
Also, The Blackwater Quarry is written entirely by Randimaxis while this one is written by him and I.
In short this one is longer because it is more fun to write and can stand independent of the prequel.
... and I have trouble maintaining focus when I write.
The majority of the reason I'm able to help with this story is BECAUSE of Illiad's responses to me; on my own, I simply get washed away with whatever next project pours across my mental riverbed. The story's already in my mind - it's the transference to physical words that takes so long...
Anyway, so Taps is like a Transformer; more than meets the eye. More on her later, I promise... but for now, just keep in mind that EVERYONE at the Blackwater Quarry has a story behind them, and they're all more than they appear to be. The truth is coming, I assure you... can you handle the truth? *chuckle*
Chastized by Dax Blackwater - shame on you both, Taps and Illiad. Shame on you both.
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As I was editing that chapter I realized so many other good points Illiad could have made, but it would be unfair to Taps for me to rewrite his dialogue to add them.
Maybe I'll blog post with a better response to all of Taps points against Troy.
... or maybe Taps should show up again sometime... and they should get round two.
After all, antagonistic allies can make for some interesting entertainment!
Special Agent Steel Wheels...
From the first time I watched the 'Slice Of Life' episode, I was intrigued with the idea of Special Agent Bon Bon, and what kind of secret organizations Equestria might have had. So, with much thought, I slowly came up with the idea of there having been three of them at once; Bon Bon belonged to the creature division (as per her scene in SoL), and Steel Wheels belongs to the artifact division. (I toyed with the idea of calling Bon Bon's division 'The Zoo' or 'The Menagerie'.)
Taps/Wheels was one of my original beginning concepts for the quarry - that this massive vault of magical artifacts exists beneath a gem quarry is just RIFE with possibilities... and I'm glad it turned out so well.
Maybe a a future date, I'll write Taps' FULL story... but for now, simply soak in the Special Agent goodness.
*chuckle* And yes, she feels about as annoyed with Illiad as he is with her... though there's still one or two things about Taps yet to be revealed. Stay tuned...
Rallying the Blackwaters behind Illiad was something I'd been working towards since he first showed up at the quarry; since the ball started in MY court, so to speak, I had to not only create a place where Illiad could exist and thrive, but I had to begin putting together a beginning point for Dax as well.
With the entire family pitching in, here in Illiad's hour of power, it shows a solidarity that moves mountains. And throughout the story, he's spent time with each one - and made a difference, as well. I saw this moment, in a fashion, in my mind when I started introducing the Blackwater family - and it turned out to be IMMENSELY satisfying to write. This was that "let our powers combine" moment - and Illiad Easle makes for one heckuva Captain Planet. *chuckle*
I love it when a plan comes together.
When I originally came up with the concept of Havoc, I wanted to make a draconequus who could match Discord in power levels, yet was just downright damn SCARY.
Enter Havoc.
I wanted to give a mere taste of what a draconequus could be like to handle in battle, and Illiad at his most powerful (yet) was the perfect foil for him. It gave me a chance to cut loose a bit, showing what a creature with such power might be capable of. Now, if Taps hadn't been there, or if Mr. Easle hadn't had the Blackwaters backing him up... well, this fight would have potentially gone FAR worse for him... and the quarry... not to mention all of Equestria.
I'd say the evidence was quite clear as to WHY he'd been stuck in the Jinx Stone. It's origins, however, will remain a mystery that only Taps truly knows the truth about.
For now.
Stay tuned.
When Illiad mentioned an aside, I was a bit lost as to how to proceed at first... then, it occurred to me that Illiad had given his own opinion on everyone in the quarry, and he'd managed to touch the lives of each one of the Blackwaters in some significant way. Someone who comes into your life for a week and changes it forever should be thought of... and I decided to have each of the quarry crew give their thoughts on everyone's favorite Trojan.
It was fun, describing Illiad from multiple mindsets - and it was also a chance to REALLY show Illiad what his interaction in my little world really did for all those involved. I figured that the kindest thing that could ever be done for ANY character is a moment where EVERYONE loves and appreciates them.
I'd say Illiad got his moment.
This, to me, was practice for scenes that WON'T have Illiad in them... as well as a chance at some exposition on Redd Handid, who turned out to be something different as well. Eh, you know how it goes by now, that quarry mantra: NOTHING is what it seems to be.
I like the concept and Illiad's portrayal of Selena; each time, I get a sense of a godlike entity that exists yet doesn't exist... a lovely song with a melody, yet no notes... an exquisite play with no actors. It's surreal, the sense of her being there; Illiad's story of how she came to be appealed to me, and got me interested in Illiad's sense of storytelling... which is QUITE good.
All in all, I'm normally not one for pseudo-gods; Illiad tells a great story, and he balances and works with his characters to make them acceptable and believable - regardless of the apparent power levels present.
Gee... Illiad balancing things out. What a surprise.
A casual run-down for a casual day; this chapter was pretty much getting a bit of SoL for the quarry - just some of the usual goings-on here.
'Slurry' is actually a REAL thing; during my time operating a Street Sweeper, I was assigned to the airport; they were building a new runway, and it was my job to keep all the cement dust clear. When it mixed with the potable water the sprayers used, it became this nasty-looking gray stuff that smelled weird and looked weirder. I had to dump the tanks at least twice a day, and spray them out afterwards, because slurry CAN harden... surprisingly fast, in fact.
The entire Quick Wit thing was completely ad-libbed; I wanted to interject a funny story that both Dax and Redd could relate with - and there it was. I didn't even think about it... I just typed what came to mind.
Technically, a LOT of this story came out that way.
And yes, a Cliff Notes version of the Blackwaters... mostly because I keep getting the sinking feeling that I'm never going to get around to finishing my own story. Besides - this one's FAR more fun.
Again, Illiad proving that Silver Studs is absolutely adorable.
I really wanted to expand on the story of the Blackwaters thmselves, but... I happen to be one of those sub-branches of humanity known affectionately as a 'lazy cuss'; hence, I have a difficult time motivating myself to finish.
With this story, I have Illiad - and that makes it ten times more fun.