Gifts From Below

Flash_Guardian is hard at work at the center of the island now, hauling bundles of wood to the sides of the clearing and stacking them neatly. He seems to be making good progress, though there is plenty more wood to move and stack. He seems to be making some rather peculiar noise as he toils, thumping out a rather jazzy, upbeat rhythm in a percussive fashion ... beat-boxing, some would call it? In any case, it's kinda catchy.

Glyniss_McMasters pauses at the earth bridge...scanning the land leading to the island glad its low tide before stepping onto the slippery soft ground...limping with care over this stretch of land....muttering about building a damn bridge

Flash_Guardian rather unceremoniously dumps another load of wood on the ever increasing pile. Cannon was correct, it seemed ... this was going to be more than enough wood to complete the dojo. He picks up a piece that seems to have strayed a bit too far from the pile, tossing it on top, a cheery smile lighting his distant face. He seems to have something rather enjoyable on his mind.

Glyniss_McMasters reaches the other end of the land bridge saftely....though her boots were muddy....looking up she heard the faint singing of Flash...eyes drifting to the spot Cannon had recharged himself..seeing him absent nodding she turned and begun limping towards where she could hear Flash

Glyniss_McMasters whistles as she approaches the camp site one thing her papa had taught her was to let yourself be known before entering a camp...never surprise them if you dont want to be shot at

Flash_Guardian pauses suddenly in his work, seemingly caught up in his percussive musings, having found a particular good beat. He repeats it once ... then twice ... then again, but with hand motions to accompany it - two quick jabs, a sort of wave and a thrust. He continues to involve himself in this new catchy beat, now adding foot motions and slight variations on the theme - jab, jab, swirl-spin thrust, sidestep turn, rock back spinning fist, hop and uppercut ... side to side, jab, jab, swirl, flick and kick! And all to a steady rocking beat, with those same percussive sounds that Flash seems so skilled at making. He seems completely unaware that anyone is approaching.

Flash_Guardian hears whistling ... his beat ends abruptly, leaving him awkwardly between motions. Slowly he pivots, turning to look in the direction of the whistler and easily spotting Glyniss. He makes a rather embarrassed noise, bringing his hand up to rub the back of his neck, cheeks going a little red. "Oh, umm ... hi, Glyniss," he greets her innocently.

Glyniss_McMasters limps to a stop....as she comes into the clearing....a grin bursting across her features as she rises a hand and finger flicks the brim of the stetson...." Well....howdy Flas'...don' yer loo' a sigh'"

Flash_Guardian looks like he's been caught singing in the shower. He straightens himself out and dusts himself off, trying to make himself look more presentable for present company. His wings from the other day seem absent, back to his normal form and appearance with red cape trailing behind and dangling from his wrists as always. "So what brings you back here?" he calls over to Glyniss, heading over to collect a few more pieces of wood to throw onto the pile. "Or do I need to ask?"

Glyniss_McMasters shrugs her shoulders....." Yer aske' fer hel' didn' yer....an' yer akno' I ca' do manua'...shoo' I adon' reala' on magi' yer akno' tha'"

Flash_Guardian nods to Glyniss appreciatively. "Well, the work right now is pretty simple, for the most part," Flash explains, picking up a few more planks and stacking them in his arms. "Just gather up all these planks, boards, and beams, move them off to the sides and throw them in the piles where they match." Another decent sized load fills his arms, which he proceeds to carry back to the wood stacks. "Doesn't matter to me if you can or can't use magic, either. In truth, I'd rather prefer that as much work as possible gets done by hand ... I want this place to look as authentic as possible, not like it was artificially sculpted." He tosses down another load of long 2 x 4 boards onto a pile. "Not shooting for perfection here ... just well crafted, functional, and pleasing to the eye."

Glyniss_McMasters nods...limping further into the area...grinning as she begins collecting the fallen wood....okay she couldnt handle as much as Flash probably...but every little bit helps right....a soft hum emitting between her lips as she limps from one place to another...collecting and then sorting

Flash_Guardian lends an interested ear to Glyniss's humming as he works ... not quite the same music he had been working to earlier, but interesting all the same. He does have some things on his mind, however, and conversation always makes work seem to go by faster. "So, Glyniss," he mentions, picking up another load. "I've been thinking that maybe I should do some kind of ground-breaking ceremony. I mean, that seems to be the custom for a new building. What do you think?"

Glyniss_McMasters bliks stopping her whistling as she turns looking at him..." Yer mea' wit' cutin' ter ribbo' an' stuf'....mayb' hav' a kind' part'?" her brows knit thinking about this as she then begins walking to a pile and dropping the wood she had in her arms

Flash_Guardian nods to Glyniss. "Something like that, yeah ..." Another armload of wood is dropped noisily onto the pile. "And maybe we can get me a shovel or something ... nah, nothing like that. But a party would be great, if we could get enough people together for one."

Glyniss_McMasters nods slowly....." Wel' I gues' yer coul'....sur' be a goo' wa' ter advetis'"

Flash_Guardian grins shamelessly. "I'll take any excuse I can to get news out about this dojo. And getting to see my friends all together would be a nice bonus, too."

Glyniss_McMasters limps away bending down hefting as she pulls or tugs at the wood getting it into her arms...a fine bead of sweat on her forehead..." Mayb' yer mak' a hea' of ne' friend' too.....yer kno' mayb' Kad' giv' it a go on hi' guita'..ge' it agoin' wit' a swin'"

Flash_Guardian chuckles at the rather amusing notion ... what party would be complete without music? And for a commencement like this, the louder the better. "Not a bad idea, Glyniss! Heh. Rock the island ... no, Rock the Redfang! Even better!" Flash seems thoroughly delighted, grinning ear to ear.

Glyniss_McMasters looks at him and cant help bursting out laughing at the cat thats got the cream.....

Flash_Guardian keeps busy with the moving of the wood, now throwing aside some stray branches and remnants of trees as he digs out a few more buried boards. "You know," he considers, "after yesterday, that odd fellow has me rather curious. Cannon, I believe he called himself. I mean, I wonder just why he was being so helpful. Do you think he has some sort of interest in the dojo? Or maybe he was just trying to be nice." Flash shakes his head. "Somehow I doubt the latter. Nobody expends such a great deal of energy like that if they're just being friendly. Well, nobody I know, anyway."

Glyniss_McMasters drops the pilled wood she had into the sorted piles...glancing at Flash...." Wh'.....ain' ago' muc' fait' in folk' hav' yer....shoo' I thin' folk' kind' hel' co' it make' 'em fee' rea''' goo' ter do it" limping over to the furthest section pulling at a plank...

Flash_Guardian pauses to reflect for a moment, holding a few branches under his arm. "Yeah, I guess you're right," he agrees. "I mean, I'd do the same thing for somebody else if the situation were the other way around. And it is for a good cause, after all. Still ..." Flash furrows his brow, thinking back to the time when Blue disappeared into the heavens. "I just ... from what I've seen of him earlier ... he seems ... I don't know. I guess I'm just curious about him, that's all. He's a rather unusual character."

Glyniss_McMasters nods stopping as she drops a pile of wood lifting a hand to swipe of her stetson and mope her arm across her forehead....the welt on the neck standing out vividly now...more so by the work producing a sweat...." Hi' ajus' tryin' ter fi' in lik' ter res' of u'....can' faul' hi' ter"

Flash_Guardian makes an odd face, but grins and continues his work. "Well if he was trying so hard to blend in, I'd say he blew it after yesterday." Flash whistles and shakes his head. "That was some light show. I don't think I have any kind of power that would compare. Except maybe my Facturba," he explains, considering. "Though I can't pull that manuever off anymore." At that, Flash frowns and sighs sadly, tossing an armful of branches aside.

Glyniss_McMasters chuckles softly slapping her stetson back on her mope of hair...." Wellll' critte' we al' hav' ou' alimit' yer kno'....soo yer aplanin' ter wor' her' all ada'...?" as she goes back to working...never a one for being a slacker if she could help it....glancing at the piles of different wood getting larger

Cannon arrives. Was it an inconvenient moment? No flashy entrance today. He just appears, suddenly enough to startle anyone who was already looking in that direction, and not any particular spot... just random-like.

Cannon has that bracer of his on today, the one he has been seen wearing just once before. It appears to be just an excuse to have a jumble of complex technology attached to his wrist, and indeed the technology of the bracer appears quite alien by any familiar standards in the keep, being as it seems part organic, part synthetic, and incredibly complex. Its purpose isn't defensive of course, but rather to enhance Cannon's abilities in directions that don't directly involve energy manipulation, or rather it uses him as a power supply and simplifies other processes for him.

Flash_Guardian had his back to the clearing, so did not notice Cannon's sudden arrival. As such, he reaches down to pick up some more boards. "I don't know ... probably not all day. You know what they say, all work and no play ..." Another armfull of wood gathered, he stands and turns back to the larger pile of wood, stopping suddenly as he sees Cannon standing there. "Oh. You're ... back," Flash states simplistically. "Hello again."

Cannon glances about. His immediate interest in finding out how the work is coming along, what the resultant framework is looking like, the construction of particular parts etc etc.

Jaia-Asumoto felt the sound of waves lapping against the shore of the island beach, but only perceived it vaguely. The world was dark, and her mind still lost in the dreamy nether, until light began to creep through her eyelids. Moving her arm up to shield her eyes, she sat up slowly as she woke into the world once again. She had slept comfortably for the first time in many days, since the sacking of the village. She was redeeming her honour; so perhaps taking her own life would not be necessary. Her kimono was the same, grime stained, sky blue. Ichijmond was still sheathed, but held firmly in her left hand, as she would not part with it in many circumstances. She had not removed her sandals as she slept, and frowned lightly as for a moment...she could not remember where she was, or how she got here. She had been wandering in a daze for the past few days, so recollection was very sketchy...but she knew she was on an island, and if her memory served, it was inhabited. Standing slowly, straightening out her kimono, --

Cannon turns his eyes from the centre of the clearing back to Flash. "Hello. Is all progressing smoothly? I am fully recharged again today and await instruction for anything else you need help with."

Glyniss_McMasters nods absently to Flash....by now the hefty work was pulling a little at her aching bones....shoulders and arms hurting mostly..it had been a looong time since she had worked on the homestead...head darting up and turning as she looks to see who had turned up...a slow smile starting to appear

Cannon 's eyes catch upon the pile of rocks not so far off. "Ah. Stones you found near the surface? Would you like those reshaped into workable construction units?"

Jaia-Asumoto -- she would make her way steadily down to the shore from her patch of sand bleached grass. She would stand in the water, and watch as the water rippled, and subsided, but long enough to get a good look at herself. Cupping her hands, she moved to wash her face, removing the filth from her bronze complexion, blinking as her mind was brought even more clearly into the world. For a moment, she would stand up straight, as the memories, and the shame would fill her mind, glazing over her narrow, brown eyes. She would blink away the memories, and stand slowly finding that she had several days left to redeem herself...or lose her life. By now, tales of a legendary village, hidden from the world being destroyed had begun to move along the coast of the mainland. Gossip carried quickly, and she swore she to herself she would find it's source and eradicate it before her time. Turning from the sea, she would begin to progress through a thin tree line, seeing a clearing not that far away. She recognised it as the way --

Flash_Guardian stands there holding his load of wood, considering. "I take it you had a good night's sleep, then," he reasons, nodding to the man and noting his unusual bracer with a brief yet inquisitive glance. "Well at the moment Glyniss and I are just getting things organized ... plenty of fallen branches and tree tops all over the place after yesterday." Flash ticks a few goals off on his mental list. "I suppose after we get this mess straightened out, we should find some way to mark the ground for constructing a foundation. I was planning on using some of the smaller fragments of wood laying around, staking them into the ground to make an outline." Flash glances over to the rocks, shrugging. "I ... really hadn't given much thought as to how the rocks could be used. If you can think of a use for them, go for it."

Jaia-Asumoto -- she had taken to get here. Sighing slowly, she would make her way into the clearing, and directly into the sunlight. She was still a little groggy and tired to tell what time of day it was from the position of the sun, but she could feel it against her face. Her left hand gripped the sheath of Ichijmond, katana still contained inside. She would slide it through the sash where she would normally keep it, and continue to move forward to make an observation of her location...and how long it would take her to find something worth eating...or fighting, if that were the only way to redeem herself.

Cannon nods. "I do not know much about construction of such buildings, but would not a stone foundation be stronger than a wooden one? If there is not enough rock there I can aquire more easily enough. I do believe this island is formed on a batholith, meaning there is a good supply of rock directly beneath us."

Cannon 's mind seems to visably process some other thought for a moment before suggesting. "The building's construction could also be fused directly to the batholith itself, supported by stone corners and ensuring that it would thus be considerably more difficult to dislodge?"

Flash_Guardian nods in agreement to Cannon. "We won't need a foundation for the entire building," he clarifies. "Just for the north, south, east, and west wings. And I guess for the circular walkway that will connect the four outer wings of the building." Flash dumps another load of wood onto the pile, rubbing at his headband, which had gotten rather sweaty over the course of the work. He gestures to the 100 ft. radius circle of bare earth. "That's all the foundation we'll need for a training area, really. Bare earth makes for a softer fall. Just enough foundation there to stand a few sturdy support beams for the roof will suffice."

Flash_Guardian catches sight of more movement, raising his rubbing arm to peer underneath it. He blinks his eyes, as if unable to believe what he is seeing. "Jaia?" he whispers to himself, staring at the disheveled young woman. A moment more of staring before he calls out to her more audibly. "Jaia!"

Glyniss_McMasters shakes her head a little letting the men chat not really listening seeing as most was way over her head....instead she continues to work with clearing the wood...sorting it out putting it in its repective piles limping back and forth...the metal creaking as she bends etc...as always being followed by its sound

Cannon stands still for quite a few moments, calculating exactly how many pillars of rock he will thus have to make. Enough to anchor the perimeter four sub-buildings which should then hold the central area in check. Circular walkway? Wouldn't that just be a surface path. Perhaps he misinterpretted. Time to get to work anyway though, and hope that he wasn't doing it wrong.

Cannon walks over to the pile of rocks, and gets to work arranging them into piles. Every few moments he pauses, eyes flickering, trying to get an approximate analysis of the relative masses of each of the piles. Ideally, each pile has to be equal in mass and weight.

Jaia-Asumoto she would continue to look at the sky, somehow lost in all its infinite depth. She was finite, and soon that would run out and as she kept reminding herself, without redemption or purpose. She would begin to move into the clearing at a steadier pace then she had been for several days now, her strength gradually returning. She had taken a bath a day ago, thankfully but still that had not been at her own urging as she had lost her very train of thought and emotion during that time. As she felt all of it return, it had become slightly overwhelming...and she could feel the pressure cracking at the back of her mind again, as it had the night her village burned to the ground. Her civilians dead, and her samurai defeated along with herself some distance away. Why did she have to lead them all from the village? She should have left some samurai behind...but she had been more foolish than she had beleived. Her armour was still in an inn some distance away, but her sword never left her side. Sighing heavily, she --

Cannon manages to make 16 very small piles. Its not exactly perfect, but provided he can get each stone root deep enough he'll be able to draw upon the supply of rock beneath, heat it sufficiently that it can be reshaped, and fix down the base structure of the building where required.

Cannon starts at the first pile. He crouches by it and cups his hands over it. Pulses of light would only be seen close up running out along his arms as his palms turn pure white and start to radiate a very focused amount of super-concentrated heat. As eventually the stones begin to melt, Cannon essentially scoops them up and starts to shape the glowing mass into a javelin-like shape. It takes awhile, but eventually he stops applying the heat and lets the length of stone cool, moving onto the next. This could take a while.

Jaia-Asumoto -- would release her emotion into the wind, but the sorrow, and pain of loss was still there...no matter how hard she tried to erase it from her heart. Her eyes would always hold that slightly pained expression, where ever she went, but she would always remain that calm complacent creature. Her silence and train of thought was interrupted by a voice, which called her name...It was also familiar. But here? So far from where she had last met the voice...in what could best be described as the middle of no where? She would nod slowly, and smile and call back...although her demeanour would not change, "Flash?"

Jaia-Asumoto makes it ICly, that she ran away...wishes she had more time to think of an exit, but she doesn't. OOCly waves to Flash, Glyn and Cannon before giving them assorted hugs.

Glyniss_McMasters pauses...head turning to look over at Flash eyes following the direction he was looking in a brow rised ...she just bearly heard the name he had uttered..her gaze having drifted over what she could see of this newly arrived female...eyes going back to Flash before returning back to her task....it was obviously someone else that he knew...wondering to herself just how many people Flash people must know...

Cannon reshapes the other 16 piles of rock into the same long, thin, pointed shape. Since its a one-at-a-time affair it does take quite a while, and it also seems apparent that Cannon's skin has turned black everywhere but his hands now, absorbing any excess energy that might escape. This is taking quite a bit in its own way, and he can't afford to waste any. Eventually though, after what seems like an age, he has fashioned all of the piles of rocks into near-identical javelin shapes. Convenient.

Flash_Guardian blinks as Jaia seems to run off unexpectedly. From what he had seen, something definitely wasn't right with her. No point in pursuing at the moment, though. For now, if Jaia needed his help, she would know where to find him. "Well," he says, turning to Glyniss, "I'm up for some lunch. How about it? I've got some foodstuffs over where I've camped. Nothing special, just the basics. Cheese, jerky, bread, dried fruit ..." A glance is spared to Cannon's work with mild curiousity, reminding Flash of his earlier concerns.

Cannon recalls the blueprints in his head. He'd committed the design and measurements to memory, which is just as well. He wanders across the general area to a much more specific point, namely the southwest corner of where the 'Fire' room should be. Once there, he puts the rest of the stone spikes down, holding just the one, and plunges it vertically into the ground. He gets it surprisingly deep, leaving just a slight point sticking out. That done, he does the same for the northwest corner of the same room, then the northeast, then the southeast. With those four in place, he moves to what will be the 'Metal' area, and starts to repeat the process.

Glyniss_McMasters nods limping over and dropping the wood in a pile....casting a sideglance in the direction the female musta taken...once more wiping her arm across her forehead removing sweat from it pushing the setson back a little more on her head......" Sur' thin'...yer go' a drin' agonin' ter too?"

Cannon does the same for all four outer rooms, but not the centre 'Earth' area of of yet, because he was told not to set foundations for that. It makes sense afterall since its in the middle, and bounds with the foundations of the other four rooms, right? Eventually, all sixteen stone spikes have been plunged into the ground, and Cannon moves to stand right in the middle amongst them. He works surprisingly quickly, and doesn't seem to be tiring at all, much like a robot you might say. Its at this point though that his method if anything becomes even less orthodox. He starts to key commands into his tech-bracer. They aren't complex and don't take very long, but when he is done there is a slight distortion flicker in the air...... and what appears to be a garden trowel appears. Things could be about to get quite rediculous.

Flash_Guardian nods. "Provided you don't mind water, there's plenty to drink," he says, making his way over to where his bedding and bag are resting currently, easily seen from the clearing. "You'll need it for the jerky," he adds. "It's pretty thoroughly salted." Flash stops, something still nagging at him. He looks to Cannon once more, then back at Glyniss. "You mind if I meet you there in a minute?"

Cannon walks to just one of the points, the one he started with incidentally. He gets on his knees with the trowel and starts digging. Its a very precise kind of digging, and he seems to be forming a line between two of these stone spikes, or rather some kind of earthen gutter of sorts. Very precise all the same. He'll continue this until he reaches the other side, and would carry on between the next two, but for Flash getting that look like he is about to intervene.

Glyniss_McMasters nods having taken her stetson off and was slapping it lightly against a thigh as she limped behind him..." Shoo' yer ago ahea'.....I ain' needin' someon' ter hol' my han' contarr' ter belie'" as she continues onwards to the bed pile and camp....

Flash_Guardian chuckles. "Perish the thought, Glyniss." With that, Flash swiftly makes his way over to Cannon, nodding appreciatively at his handiwork ... he could almost picture the stone foundations between the stony markers. Upon reaching conversation distance, Flash looks curiously at the busy man. "Cannon?" he asks. "May I ask you something?"

Glyniss_McMasters sighs softly as she slaps her stetson back on her head....reaching down for the canteen of water slowly unscrewing the top before tilting it to her lips taking deep swallows from its contents feeling the cool water glide down her throat as it quenshes her thrist

Cannon stops what he is doing and looks up at Flash. Right now he looks more like a gardener than a weapon of mass destruction or living power-station ... He doesn't seem to mind greatly though. "Yes?"

Flash_Guardian wrinkles his forehead, giving Cannon perhaps a more thorough inspection than perhaps he has before. "Why exactly are you helping me construct this dojo?" he asks. "I mean, it's not like I don't appreciate your help, monumental as it has been so far. I'm just ... curious." He folds his arms at his chest, gazing at Cannon as he awaits his response.

Cannon replies, quite simply: "Because I want to."

Glyniss_McMasters wets her lips looking away from the other two...before taking another looong deep swallow from the canteen....glancing down at the food parcels.....smiling as she screws the top back onto the conteen....the water had tasted good...clean and refreshing

Flash_Guardian bears a mild grin. A simple question has yielded a simple answer. "Alright ... just as long you realize that I'm not holding you to anything. Glyniss and I are going to get some food, and then I'll come back and join you." With that, Flash nods and heads over to his belongings to snag a bit of food. He sighs to Glyniss wistfully. "Guess this won't be a ground-breaking ceremony after all," he says, grabbing the cheese and a knife to cut himself a slice or two. "Perhaps a grand-opening party would be better."

Cannon nods, and returns to his work, which he is doing rather effectively. Precisely why he is digging these earthen 'gutters' beneath the stone spikes isn't entirely clear yet, but as he continues it does seem to start making more sense. Cannon digs out these channels along what will be the outer walls of the different dojo-sections, and in this case he also includes the earthen central section. Only the inner walls in each section aren't catered for here. From above, it would look very much like the blueprints, minus the details.

Glyniss_McMasters jumps a little as Flash gets close somewhat lost in her own thoughts as she had been ....looking about quickly as she finds a place to park lowering herself onto the small rock surface....leg stretching out locking loudly in place...." Wh' yer sa' tha'..jus' cos ter ain' a lo' of folk' abou' terda' don' giv' up hop'...." she chuckles softly " Hop' spring' enterna'"

Flash_Guardian cuts a couple slices of cheese for himself, setting the block and knife back down onto the bedroll and reaching for some of the jerky and bread, taking a pair of slices for himself. In this manner, he seems to have made himself a rather unusual sort of sandwich. "I can't have a groundbreaking ceremony," he explains, taking a bite, "bekov ve grouwm iv awreay brokeh." He nods with his head in Cannon's direction, chewing and swallowing. His eyes go big and his lips pucker slightly as he tastes the salty jerky, eyes dropping to the canteen Glyniss is still holding.

Cannon eventually finishes his digging. Its worth noting that all along the sides of these channels is the earth that was dug from them, rather haphazardly scattered. It doesn't seem to be of great concern immediately, or rather its about to be dealt with. Cannon moves to stand in the centre of the design. There is a brief moment of concentration as he stands bolt-upright with hands together, humming. Quite abruptly, with a short and deep sound, a small shockwave emanates out from him, expanding like a dome around him, visable only because of its effect. Its not incredibly strong, rather like a very short gale which blows all the dirt away from the centre point but leaves the stronger structure intact. Its result, unintentionally, is that all the soil which had been dug out ends up in a haphazard ring around the area, having been carried by the shockwave until it ran out of power. At least the central area is clean now.

Glyniss_McMasters looks down at her hands dangling somewhat between her legs as her arms rest on her thighs...mostly to the ground as she speaks softly Hope is the thing with feathers....that pearches in the soul.....And sings the tune without the words....And never stops at all.......And sweetest in the gale is heard.....And sore must be the storm....That could abash the little bird...That kept so many warm.....Ive heard it in the chillest land....And on the strangest sea....Yet, never , in its extremity....Its asked a crumb from me." glancing up at Flash's muffled words....chuckling as she shakes her head offering the canteeen to him.." Yer mama neve' taug' yer ter no' spea' wit' yer mout' ful'"

Cannon gets to the real tough stuff now. He starts keying in rapid commands to his tech-bracer, and considerably more than he took to summon the trowel (which now lies off to one side). As he stops keying the commands, the magnitude of what he is planning to do becomes a little more clear. His skin goes fully black again and he crouches on the ground on one knee, pressing his palms to the soil. it looks rather like it did when he levitated up a hemisphere of the earth to make a pit, but he isn't doing that now. Something else happens: that being the spreading of his photosynthetic membranes. Its quite a sight, and one might think it this time more like the hatching of a butterfly from a chrysalis rather than a clover. As he is crouched there, the membranes spread themselves out wide, mostly black in colour, but closer up veins can be seen running all along inside, forming distinct patterns like butterfly wings. Why he would be doing this isn't totally clear until the next stage, and Cannon actually announces it.

[Cannon ] " Warning! Ambient temperatures will be rising shortly. Do not approach the construction site! "

Flash_Guardian just grins at Glyniss, hearing some sort of burst sound out from the construction site, Cannon still hard at work apparently. "I said," he clarifies, taking the canteen from Glyniss, "the ground is already broken. Cannon's busy digging out room for the foundation as we speak." He eagerly unscrews the top of the canteen, taking a deep, thirst-quenching swig. "Ahh!" He wipes the excess off with his sleeve, setting the canteen aside. "Water straight from the source," he says proudly. "Elemental plane of water, that is. You can't get any fresher." An eyebrow is quickly raised before Flash helps himself to the rest of his sandwich, hearing Cannon's warning.

Cannon 's body, somewhere in the darkness beneath those massive energy-collector membranes, starts to flicker with pulses of light. Each runs rapidly down his arms and through his hands apparently into the ground. Sure enough, though normally Cannon's spreading of the membranes results in a state of winter nearby, the ground does seem to be heating up. All of a sudden it is seen, visable flickers of light at all the points where the stone spikes were plunged into the ground. Slowly but surely, molten magma appears to be bubbling up around the spikes and gradually flows out along the channels that Cannon just dug out.

Flash_Guardian cranes his neck in the direction of the clearing, watching the proceedings ... things were really heating up, it seemed.

Glyniss_McMasters twist a little looking back over the site brows knitting....things were shaping up faster then she thought it would....." Yer recko' hi' oka' bac' ter on hi' ow'..?" smiling as Flash clarifies what he garbled out...

Cannon stays absolutely still, but the pulses keep going from his body into the ground, apparently melting the rock underground enough that its escaping via the nearest viable routes... which Cannon had conveniently set up beforehand. Pretty soon, the entire channelway has been filled with the magma and the level is slowly rising, nearly bulging out of the defined areas. Thats when the pulses of light stop. The moment the bio-weapon stops putting energy into the ground, his membranes really come into effect, and a loud hissing is heard as the remaining latent heat is sucked right out of the magma back into himself. The result is that it all reverts rapidly to solid stone.

Flash_Guardian nods, intent on watching. "I'm sure he wouldn't be putting himself at unnecessary risk," Flash says, taking another bite.

Glyniss_McMasters reaches absently for a peice of bread and cheese.....jerky not too much to her liking having tasted her fair share when out

Cannon 's membranes start to fold back inward as the stone is cooled back down to lower than ambient temperature and surprisingly frost had just started forming on the ground which moments before had been scorching hot. He doesn't move quite yet though, not even when the membranes have fully folded themselves back into his pylons. In fact, those same pylons start to pulse gently the next moment, and Cannon is seen once again rapidly keying commands into the bracer. Theres more to be done from where he is right now it seems.

Glyniss_McMasters takes a bite of the strong cheese....the jerky bringing back memories of her childhood....." So ...emm....yer agonn' hav' a plac' fer traveller' ca' ares' up ...?"

Cannon glances momentarily up at the sky, watching the passage of the clouds ever so carefully. He is still tapping the screens on his bracer rapidly. This would have to be very precise if he was to manage all of them with one shot. And...... he fires. Some kind of four-thread beam blasts from his pylons straight into the air. It seems to unthread as it rises, the four smaller beams separating out, and then each separating out into another four. Somewhere far above they seem to bounce off a passing cloud and come straight back down again. Cannon's hands are back on the ground now, pulsing the same way as when he brought the magma up. The beams, now 16 in number and needle-thin, slam down perfectly vertically right into the 16 corner-spikes he formed earlier.

Grale the water near the north shore of the isle would begin to boil and churn, a figure slowly walking up from the depths, clad in deep red Red dragon scale armor with black scales appearing due to his new "gift". He stands an even six feet tall with long black hair and creepy bright red eyes. He stands there on the sand, looking to the nearby shrine with interest

Cannon 's entire body is pulsing in various ways as magma once again erupts up, but now through the cornerspikes that have somehow been made into tubes by the beams from above. A very complex process seems to be going on though, as Cannon's body has turned such a shade of deep black that even light seems to be having difficulty escaping it at all. As the magma flows upward, it seems to be turning instantly into more stone around the outside. The result is that sixteen pillars of solid stone seem to be building themselves all around the central focus. It leaves one wondering what kind of calculations would have been required to achieve such an effect.

Flash_Guardian quickly finishes the rest of his sandwich, washing it down with another drink from the canteen. "Yep," he says proudly, reaching over to his bag and pulling the blueprints out once more to show Glyniss. "The uchi ... or house, in japanese," he tells her, pointing to the layout of the proposed secondary building with a finger. "The side building will serve as living quarters for students, instructors, and guests alike. Beds for sleeping in, a kitchen and mess hall for meals ... even a common room to sit and relax in." Flash tilts his head as a thought strikes him. "Hmmm ... guess I should put some bathrooms into the design as well ..." He looks over the plans for a moment, then shrugs. An outhouse would not be so difficult a thing to construct. Indoor plumbing would be nice, though not a necessity.

Glyniss_McMasters chuckles leaning over peering at the plans they still didnt make much sense to her as they hadnt the first time she had seen them...but Flash's eagerness was not easily hidden bringing a smile to her face....." Gues' yer though' abou' ter critter' thes' folk' ar' agonn be on....ain' all agonn' be acomin' on foo'..."

Glyniss_McMasters brows knit a little....an idea entering her mind.....licking her lips before she puts it in words...her words slow unsure of this area" Flash yer sai' thi' plac' is fer ...learni' ter figh an' suc'....a kind' templ' thingi'..?" she looks about her trying to work it out first in her mind before voicing it

Cannon raises his hands suddenly. The pillars slow in their building and eventually come to a stop. Everything is still for several moments before Cannon's skin starts to lighten several tones gradually back to its normal grey. He relaxes visably as he straightens up, turning his arms a bit to re-loosen muscles, then looks about at his handiwork. The dojo-to-be now has a basic stone framework formed of stone bases to the outer walls and sixteen solid corner pillars that were cooled so fast that they have become solid obsidian in places, especially toward the middle where Cannon himself was (the outer ones would be verging toward Basalt).

Flash_Guardian makes an awkward face. "Err ... I guess some stables would be good ... but first things first." Looking back, he sees the construction really starting to take shape. "Guess I'd better get back into the thick of things and help out. No sense leaving all the work to Cannon, there." He sets the blueprints aside, excusing himself and making back for the clearing, careful not to move anywhere that was unsafe at the moment. He simply stands, surveying Cannon's progress and planning what Flash's next move should be.

Cannon turns and walks, casual as you please, over to Flash and Glyniss. He stops before them: "Stone foundation and corner framework complete. You can build with wood on that base now?"

Glyniss_McMasters frowns as she watches Flash move away....another time she guesses...pushing herself up as she munches on a juicy piece of cheese.....the loud click echoing somewhat....a little behind Flash now before stopping as she sees Cannon approach them

Flash_Guardian looks over the foundation and stone columns, eyes twinkling happily. "Excellent work, Cannon," he compliments. "That rock looks pretty strong, too. Never would have thought to use magma like that." Flash ponders for a moment, his own highly intelligent mind at work. "So that stone must have come up from below ... you mentioned that we're standing on a batholith ... is the foundation connected directly to larger stone formation underground, then?" He cannot help but admire Cannon's handiwork, nodding his head in appreciation.

Cannon nods. "Connected at no less than sixteen points directly to the batholith beneath, which itself appears to be several miles deep at least and not lacking in breadth either. It would take severe tectonic activity to shift this foundation."

Flash_Guardian does offer a glance back to Glyniss. "Sorry," he tells her, apologizing for his distractedness. "But to answer your question, yes. This will be a fighting school first and foremost. But teaching others to fight is never a dojo's sole purpose," he explains. "It will also be a place to seek enlightenment and inner peace. A place to gather and visit, seek help, friends, or information." Dreamlike visions seem to flit about deep within Flash's eyes, a hopeful smile marking his face.

Grale walks south, the air around him seems to be just a little warm, such is his curse. Truly, he likes and prefers cold weather, but that can't be helped now. As he nears the site of construction, he notices that they are harnessing magma and acyually using it to build. A small smile fleets across his face for a moment or two...

Cannon speaks up with a rather odd comment here: "Then you will need some kind of reliable timekeeping device?"

Glyniss_McMasters blinks she had accepted the fact that Flash hadnt heard her....and whatever it was he ad Cannon were talking about wasnt making any sense to her...shrugging slightly at his answer deciding to ask him later...as for the prsent things looked busy

Flash_Guardian turns his attention back to Cannon for the moment. "The dojo's roots go deep," he says, nodding in appreciation. "Very impressive." At the mention of a time-keeping device, his brow furrows. "I suppose a clock of some sort may be useful, true," he says, thinking. "Though in truth, I didn't think we'd be holding to any schedule more rigid than the position of the sun overhead would oversee." His attention now moves to the foundation once more, and the piles of wood ... and as he gazes, he sees another newcomer standing now at the edge of the clearing, a darker figure seeming to look on with interest of a sort. The man was too far away for a proper greeting at the moment, so Flash takes it upon himself to close the distance, striding in the man's direction.

Cannon smiles a little, and mutters: "Perfect!" to himself. His job with the dojo itself it seems is complete, but perhaps now he is getting overenthusiastic. He has another plan in mind, and wanders off to stand just to the south of where the building will be. He looks around him, carefully taking note of the sunfall from all directions, where the dojo will be standing and where it will cast its own shadows, and more specifically the shadows cast by the two spires which name the island. This will require very complex calculations, perhaps even more complex than Cannon himself can deal with. He considers returning home to ask his 'mother'. She would be able to do it in an instant, but that rather defies the point. He wants to do this bit himself.

Grale crosses his arms and waits for the man to make his way over. He stands ominously, almost like a statue, the only part of him moving would be his hair in a slight breeze, his red eyes looking the oncoming figure over

Glyniss_McMasters shkes her head as she limps away from the two men having decided nothing is getting done that way and at least they know what they are talking about...and so...limping the clicking of metal as always following she begins heafting and lifting wood and begin sorting and shifting the cut timber to its appropriate pile...

Flash_Guardian at last approaches with easy earshot of the armored figure, looking him over also. "Good day, sir," Flash greets the man diplomatically, nodding his head slightly. "What brings you to this island, if I may ask?"

Cannon stands at about the right point, and starts tapping away on his bracer again. This time he doesn't bother putting his hands on the ground, but lets his feet do the work. Quite regardless of whether its wanted of him or not, he starts his little project with plan to have it done in a very short space of time. His feet begin to glow white, which is perhaps the best indication that he is about to do something requiring a lot of heat. It happens. It happens alright. Still casually keying away on his bracer, Cannon manages to bring up yet another plume of magma, but something is very different this time. It seems to keep flickering and reshaping as if invisible forces are striking it in very precise ways. Despite the fact its bubbling liquid, its shape and movement seems to be manipulated beyond its own freedom, and Cannon is still frantically keying away. Slowly but surely, the magma appears to be forced into a very bizarre arrangement of spikes, arches and flat surfaces.

Grale he shifts his footing so that he is more comfortable, his face showing a friendly smile "A good day to you as well, good sir. Actually, it was the seismic activity that drew me here. You see, I have a certain.....connection with the element of Fire, and it was giving off a rather amusing call, saying that it was being used to actually build. So I decided to take a look."

Cannon 's project seems to gain more detail by the moment, and he continues tapping away, glancing every other instant at the structure that is still trying its best to just fall into an amorphous mass of liquid rock. Its probably something to do directly with the technological interface device on his wrist, but Cannon is managing to shape it...... and quickly enough it has come to a complete stop. There is a sudden flash of cold in the area that Cannon doesn't seem to even notice, but its enough to put an instantaneous layer of frost on all plantlife in the vicinity. The magma itself is instantly reduced to pure obsidian, instantly frozen solid in the shape it was forced to. With that, Cannon stands back. He looks at what appears to be a small stone circle from various angles, examining it extremely closely. His pupils keep flickering as he maneuvres himself around this bizarre yet not unaesthetic arrangement of stones, as though analysing to check all is ok.

Cannon peers up to each of the spiretops either side of the island, then very carefully and with squinted eyes looks toward the sun. Eventually he glances back to his rather shiny creation. Ever so carefully he reaches over it with one finger and makes a series of rapid motions with one fingertip, somehow carving in markings to the surface of the stone in precise places. This is by way of ensuring it is correctly callibrated. Within moments he is done, and steps back to admire his handiwork. Exactly what its supposed to be, he hasn't explained yet of course.

Flash_Guardian nods, the man's explanation seeming to make sense. A glance is shot behind him to Glyniss, seeing her return to work. Somehow he felt there was something unfinished between the two of them, but perhaps it would have to wait. "Your call told you true," Flash explains with a nod. "Cannon here has been busy using the magma to lay a most impressive foundation for the dojo I'm planning to build here. Speaking of whom ..." he says, not bothering to finish his sentence before glancing behind him, hearing more magmatic processes at work. He looks in the direction of the strangely shaped stony architecture that is currently taking shape ... his curiousity overtakes his feet as he finds himself walking in that direction now to take a closer look.

Grale decides to follow, his arms still crossed on his chest. His eyes look to the new addition with an interested expression. He walks up to it, wiping a bit of melted frost from his nose, but his attention seems to stray to the ground beneath him, and that of the entire area, where the magma was used "Um, I hate to be the bearer of bad news, but I think we have a problem..."

Cannon takes a few steps back, then turns his head to look at Flash. He doesn't need to be asked, and is eager enough to tell what he has made. "You are to be telling the time by the passage of the sun? That is why I have constructed this. It uses an enhanced version of the same principles on which both sundials and stone circles are made. It has the dual function of indicating not only the time, based on either the position of the sun or moons at any time, but one can also determine the date from it, as it doubles as a lunar calender if you learn how to use it correctly. I have callibrated it correctly to ensure its accuracy, but this accuracy will need to be recallibrated on an annual basis to compensate for tectonic shift and extraplanatary effects."

[Cannon ] "At noon every day, and midnight every night, it should reflect a brief and concentrated flash in a northerly direction, precisely into what should be the entrance to the dojo."

Flash_Guardian nods in comprehension and wonder. "I've heard of ancient civilizations building these kinds of time-telling devices," he comments in a low voice, "though never anything this complicated. And I'm sure it must have taken them months, maybe even years to build!" He shakes his head in absolute wonderment. "Cannon, I don't know what to say ... it's wonderful. Thank you." His eyes continue to wander over the weave of obsidian, taking in its smooth and shiny contours in a pleasant fashion.

Cannon is breathing. Its not usually so apparent. Cannon prefers to keep his normal-being aspects toned down most of the time, but he does appear to be breathing quite heavily at the moment. "I overheard you earlier mentioned you got water from an elemental plane thereof? May I enquire as to the coordinates of said dimension? I presently require a heavy intake of water. I appear to have ran out."

Cannon has forgotten to take a few things into account as concerns his little stone circle though. One of these is that clouds might interfere with its working. Another is that any leaves or birds that happen to deposit anything on it in certain places might mess up its functionality temporarily. i.e. it needs to be kept clean and clear, or its readings will be off.

Flash_Guardian quickly heads off in the direction of his bedroll and bag without a word, moving at what a normal human would consider beyond human speed as he does so. In mere moments, he returns holding the canteen and offering it happily to Cannon. "Drink all you want, it'll never run dry," he informs Cannon helpfully. Flash looks the structure over once more, pondering what manner of maintainance this obsidian clock will need in order to remain functional and accurate.

Cannon nods thankfully, opens the canteen, puts the neck to his mouth and tips back. Seconds pass. A minute or so passes. He seems to be downing a fair amount of water, but eventually he stops. Thankfully its not apparent how much he has drunk, though if you get any calls from angry water elementals any time soon you'll understand.

Cannon hands the canteen back anyway, and.... glances about. Thats about it really.