| Logs |
2026 October 12
| Goblin Town |
| Realms |
Retired
| Reality Fault |
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| Realms: Goblin Town Logs |
If You Are Going To San Francisco
After they've paid off their ride, they're at the top of Lombard Street -- which is indeed as pretty as Cinnamon described. Marcus looks around in fascination; it is indeed gorgeous. San Francisco is not a city he really thought he'd ever visit, because it's not his territory and none of the other councilors hold meetings here, so he's drinking it all in. He's especially doing so because he's got Cinnamon here to bring all her infectious joy to it. Shane casually moves along with them, seemingly just strolling, but his friends -- if they bothered to think about it -- would recognize that he's watching out for mischief as much as he's drinking in the beauty of the place. He keeps his arm around Cinnamon much of the time... his left arm. It lets him keep his "sword" arm free. Cinnamon herself carefully picks her way down the zigzagging pretty brick street, occasionally stopping to exclaim happily over some of the street gardening that fills in the non-street parts of the hillside, and often pausing to take snapshots with her phone. "Wow, peeps, isn't this nice?!" Since it's late June, the flowers aren't the colorful riot of spring, but they're still lovely, and the thick greenery provides a nice foil to the blooms.
Thorn hasn't been to San Francisco before, but he's enjoying the experience. One of the most famous cities in the country, it's filled with dramatic slopes -- how do people drive down those hills, let alone up them?! -- and lovely architecture. When the little touristing group leans just the right way, too, they can see all the way down the extensive hillside to the still-foggy bay below... which means the ocean itself isn't quite visible yet. The sun is just starting to warm the area, so the fog is wisping away on the higher reaches, but it's still fairly thick over the water.
Marcus is fascinated with the gardening and the flowers, moving along almost dreamily. He smiles at the way Cinnamon documents the beauty of the place on her phone, and agrees with her, "It's beautiful. It reminds me a little of some of the European trods. Apparently there's at least one Oak trod in Paris that takes great pride in its gardens."
Cinnamon blinks in surprise at Marcus, "A trod... in Paris?!" Her voice is intrigued.
Shane grins, "Yeah? Maybe we should check it out sometime. I've heard the Paris enclave is amazing."
Marcus smiles, "I misspoke -- the trod is near Paris. There is, however, an enclave, as Shane says. The trod is actually reached through the gardens at Versailles."
Cinnamon laughs, "Oh, how cool -- I'd love to go, Shaney, if they wouldn't mind!" She giggles, whirling to look excitedly around herself, "I wonder if there's an enclave here! It'd be an awesome place to have one, I'd think!"
Thorn says, "I'd be surprised if there wasn't an enclave here, to be honest. It's a vibrant city." By this point the little group have slowly worked their way down past the eight switchbacks to the next cross street. Cinnamon pauses to take a shot up Lombard simply because it's so pretty... then she cheerfully announces their next stop: two blocks that way to all the breakfast cafes near Columbus Avenue!
Shane's brows go up, "Sounds like a remarkably public place for a trod entrance."
Marcus nods, "Public, but not unsafe," then looks surprised at Cinnamon's speculation, "You didn't know? There are several small enclaves in this area. I believe there's one in what is called Chinatown. A lot of the Asian spirits and peoples travel through there to get to other enclaves. There's one in..." He rubs his forehead as he tries to think of the name of the town.
Cinnamon grins excitedly at Marcus, "No, how would I know? Or... maybe I should be asking more: how do you find out!"
Marcus ahas! "Berkeley! There's a small enclave there. I found out by researching old maps at Currier's. There are maps of the enclaves on the various continents. Of course, old is relative. The enclaves on this continents are largely babies compared to the European and Asian ones."
Cinnamon grins a bit ruefully, "Well, while Berkeley's enclave may be very cool, we won't be able to see it today -- it's across the bay!" She adds in quiet reassurance to herself, "Maybe on another visit." Then she brightens, "Oh! Old maps at Currier's, okay -- I'll remember to do that next time we journey around!" A moment later she muses thoughtfully, "I wonder if Elias's maps are good for enclaves too?"
Marcus' eyes are bright and he smiles, happy to have something Cinnamon wants to know; something that makes her smile, "There's another at a big university here, but I don't know where it is in relation to where we are. I'm sure we can come back on another visit... and Elias likely has maps of enclaves. He has a lot of knowledge squirreled away. He's a teacher at heart."
Shane nods at that, "He is." He does, however, wonder how Marcus knows that about Elias.
Thorn adds, "It depends on how recent they are? Unless enclaves tend to last for a long time and new ones are rare?"
Shane nods again, "Enclaves either disappear after a few years because they couldn't get a foothold, or they stay around for centuries."
Cinnamon beams happily as she looks around while they walk, "If you peeps want, I think another visit would be awesome!"
As far as Marcus is concerned, any visit anywhere in close proximity with Cinnamon is a good thing, but what he actually says is "Breakfast sounds lovely."
Thorn nods thoughtfully to Shane, then smiles to Cinnamon, "Oh, definitely! I'd be curious to see the enclave here -- but Hawai'i first -- and breakfast!"
Once the little group reaches the restaurant area they were aiming for, Cinnamon happily wanders a bit, trying to figure out which cafe to visit. Of course, when she finds the one with an all-you-can-eat breakfast buffet special, her eyes light up, "Ooh, how about here, everyone?!" The four of them pay the (semi-exorbitant) price, then line up for the buffet. It's actually really nice: flowers and cottage-core decorations on the walls, and an enormous spread of food with enough selection for even a hungry little dragon! Cinnamon chatters excitedly to her friends about how wonderful the bacon and sausages smell, and oooh yummy pancakes! -and the salad looks nice and fresh, and she thinks she'll pass on the porridge and cereals for today because those blueberry muffins just came out of the oven, mmmmm! -and and and...! She sighs happily once they're all seated in a booth together, setting down her heavily laden tray and beaming at her friends, "Doesn't this all look amazing?! What a lovely beginning to our vacation!"
Shane, being Shane, gently maneuvers things so he's sitting on the side of the booth next to Thorn and across from Cinnamon, leaving Marcus to sit down next to Cinnamon. It leaves Marcus looking a little dumbfounded, actually. It wasn't so long ago that Shane pulled a whole different trick to keep Marcus from sitting in this exact position. For a heartbeat, Cinnamon looks faintly disappointed... and then Marcus sits down next to her, and she blinks at him, "Um... oh!" She's easily distracted -- mostly because she doesn't want to admit to herself that she gets tingly sitting next to him as well as Shane! "Orange juice! Where'd you find that, please? I'd like to get some too!"
Marcus smiles, "There were some pitchers... let me get you a glass." He slips out of the booth with a beaming smile, happy to do something nice (even though small) for her.
Shane smiles across at her and reaches to squeeze her hand, "You picked a great place, acushla."
Cinnamon says, "Oh! You don't have t-to- uhhh..." Cinnamon blinks after Marcus's rather attractive 'departure' -- wowsers does Marcus have a gorgeous smile! Uhhmm... she blinks distractedly at Shane a heartbeat later -- what'd her asthore say agai- oh! "Oh, uh, th-thank you, Shaney!" Then she sighs a bit to herself. Really, even if they are both wearing those lovely snug jeans that let you see just how nice and firm and, er, uhhhmmmmaybe she shouldn't go there what was she thinking again?!
It doesn't take long for Marcus to return with the glass of orange juice... and yes, he's wearing jeans today. It was Shane's recommendation. In fact, Shane's quietly orchestrated a lot of what Marcus has done today, without Marcus quite realizing it. Cinnamon thanks Marcus a bit bashfully for the orange juice, including an apology for not getting it herself! After reseating himself with a smile, Marcus eats with the cutlery he's begun to carry with him basically everywhere he goes, tidily cutting up his food with it and nibbling almost daintily. "Are we going to Alcatraz next?"
The little dragon has a long, thirsty slug of the orange juice before she gasps happily, licks her lips, and replies without a clue as to what effect that has on her sweeties, "Oh! Um, after breakfast, let's see... ah, right! It's about a mile walk to Pier 33 where the ferry is, and I've got digital tickets for us all already thanks to Spicy, so yeah! Alcatraz next!" Shane is happily eating his breakfast and half-watching Cinnamon, making sure she's still comfortable and smiling quietly to himself as she talks. He likes listening to her voice.
Marcus nods and unconsciously touches the messenger bag he brought with the bread and honey in it, "I'm curious about it. It's interesting to me that a prison has become a tourist attraction."
Cinnamon thinks about that as she consumes a long rasher of bacon... then muses aloud, "Maybe it's... sort of a mythic place now for us?"
Marcus looks intrigued, "A mythic prison? Interesting. Of course, mythic doesn't always have to mean pleasant. To humans, trolls are mythic." Thorn shivers a little, remembering his first meeting with someone... not on Coblyn Street, but associated with it. He finds himself on occasion wondering if that troll was all right, surviving albeit without a support group of some kind....
Cinnamon says thoughtfully, "Well, no, I mean more, umm... like, we remember the ones that got away? Even if they didn't in reality? Like have you heard of the Birdman of Alcatraz? We may not even know what he's remembered for, but... doesn't the phrase itself kind of sing?"
Marcus nods slowly, "I see what you mean. It was meant to be inescapable, yes?"
Cinnamon nodnods to Marcus, "I think so! Like: a stony castle on an island, surrounded by shark-infested freezing ocean, and a city on the shore where escapees would stand out like sore thumbs, you know?" She hesitates, then adds, "Honestly, I think when the indigenous folks took the place over as a protest a whiles ago, that was another mythic happening too... don't you think?"
Thorn says, "If that were the case -- and it might very well have been -- there are other mythic happenings that surely happened. The Ghost Dance, for example."
Marcus considers, dabbing at his mouth with his napkin, expression thoughtful, "I'm interested to see what this place is like, then. I admit I'm nervous about the ferry, though I suppose the ride out there won't be long?"
Cinnamon shakes her head, "I, um... don't know?" She pauses to tap on her phone for a bit... then brightens a moment later, "Oh, good! Okay, Daki-chan, the ferry ride is about 15 to 20 minutes in good weather, which it is today. Also, it says here," she starts reading aloud, "The entire experience (including the ferry ride, time on the island, and return) typically takes 2-3 hours." She looks up and beams hopefully at Marcus, "Is that okay for you?" She adds, "Part of the trip is about half an hour to check in as well, of course."
Marcus smiles at the nickname, and nods, "Sounds good to me. I was afraid we'd be on an iron ferry for an hour or something."
Shane nods at Thorn, "I've heard about that. Read about it, too. I've wanted to ask Sparrow about it, but I'm halfway afraid to."
Cinnamon blinks puzzledly at Shane, "Wait, why would you be afraid to ask?" -- then she blinks distractedly at Marcus. A heartbeat later, her eyes widen in horror, "Oh, crabcakes, absolutely not, schatzie -- that'd be a horrible thing to do to you!"
Marcus smiles and squeezes her hand briefly, "I've been in a car that long before. I can survive it. It's just not pleasant, and you were so excited. I'm glad it's just fifteen minutes, though. I'm curious about the island."
Cinnamon frowns at that, "Well... w-well, we just, um... we'll just have to be sure to use aluminum cars from now on!" She looks unhappy for a moment as she considers... then says firmly, "Daki-chan, just because I look thoughtlessly happy is no excuse for hurting yourself!" Sternly she adds, "Okay?!"
Thorn sips his orange juice, apparently unconcerned or not taking notice of the shenanigans going on. It amuses him to no end the way the three are being. Marcus is still smiling and he takes Cinnamon's hand again, squeezing it, "Okay. I'll speak up in the future." Shane hides a wince in a gulp of his own orange juice.
Cinnamon looks relieved as she smiles back and gently returns the squeeze, "Okay. Thanks, Daki-chan." After that she goes back to her breakfast, chatting happily with her friends.
Shane just shakes his head amusedly. Instead of calling Marcus out, he says, "I'm afraid to ask because I'm afraid he'll have the true story of it... and that story is going to be painful."
Cinnamon listens attentively to Shane even as she keeps eating... then swallows, sighs, and nods, "Yeah. I admit I d-don't... really like asking stuff like that. I don't like making my friends sad, you know? But... every once in a while I feel like I really have to ask -- so I know just enough to not be hurtful, at least."
Shane nods, "And Sparrow -- well, Sparrow's the repository of a lot of his peoples' lore. He's not the only one. But being the councilor also means he's taken on more than just, y'know, who he is. He knows a lot of stories."
Cinnamon nods at that, then finishes off the last of her tea. A deep and well-fed sigh later, she beams at her friends, "Okay! Up for the one mile stroll to Pier 33?"
Marcus finishes his last sip of juice and bite of food and pats his mouth again, tucking his silverware away in its little bag, "Absolutely."
Thorn grins and nods, neatening up his place before standing, "All set!"
Cinnamon happily loops her arm through Shane's as they all stroll companionably along the sidewalk. Shane, once again, keeps Cinnamon close. She might not notice him doing it, but he keeps her on the inside of the sidewalk closest to the buildings as they walk. No matter how indestructible she is, he still always moves her into the protected position. She's not the fighter, after all.
Cinnamon doesn't actually notice -- mostly because Shane is generous with hugs and touching, and that's still a great and gleeful delight to her! She's still wrapping her head around one guy thinking she doesn't suck. It hasn't even occurred to her that a) there might be more than one guy who feels that way, or b) even past the guy simply putting up with her presence, which she's still internally squeeeing over, he might even consider her worth cherishing and caring for! Marcus, on the other hand, does notice. He's walking with Thorn and he laughs as he realizes that he himself has put the healer on the inside position because, again, Thorn is the healer and Marcus is the one with a pair of silver daggers in his sleeves.
It's still morning, so still pleasant and cool... and there's a subtle downward slope as they approach the Pier. It's charmingly... 'pier-like,' with arrogantly opportunistic seagulls calling back and forth as they perch in lines or float overhead, waiting for their chance to take a dive at some unaware tourist holding food. There's a bit of the scent of the ocean -- or at least ocean and docks that could use a good rinse-out -- and the big, slightly wallowing ferry is moored securely at the dock. Best of all, the boarding line isn't too bad, since it's still relatively early in the day. It takes slightly less than the 30 minute estimate to check in and board, and Marcus may be aware that Cinnamon is watching him Very Intently as they do so! Marcus is, therefore, Very Careful what he touches when they get on the ferry; he finds a place to sit where he's not going to touch the railings.
Thorn is also watching Marcus carefully, though trying to make it unobtrusive once he realizes Cinnamon is keeping a close and slightly more obvious eye on the elf. Cinnamon would, of course, hotly deny that part of her watching is just how nice his derriere is! Though she'd likely follow that with a hot blush and a guilty glance at Shane... she sighs in relief as Marcus seems fine so far! She settles next to him on the sturdy plastic benches, and smiles, "Good to go, then? Look, that's Alcatraz there, see?" Thorn too looks over, seeing the concrete structure on the relatively small island. He shivers a little -- he's changed his outlook a bit since he was in the National Guard. He hadn't realized how much prisons make him uncomfortable, but at the same time, it's fascinating. He's seen the place in a number of movies; he wonders how accurate those movies are.
Marcus nods and looks out that direction. His hand moves of its own accord and wraps around Cinnamon's, looking for a way to ground himself. He's safe here and the ride is short, but he can still feel the chill of all the tons of steel of the ferry beneath his feet, "I can see."
The wind picks up as the big, heavy ferry sluggishly chugs away from the dock. The engine noise smoothes out into a steady low rumble once they're in open water, with the steady sea wind and relatively small amount of chop causing an even, not-unpleasant sway as they travel. The trip really is a short one, the island fortress looming ever larger as they approach. Cinnamon blinks, then beams happily as Marcus takes her hand, and she gives him a gentle, hopefully-reassuring squeeze as she happily shares what little she knows of the island's storied past, "-and so since he was effectively suborning all the guards and stuff with his bribes and money, the government finally got tired of it and sent him here -- which I guess was quite the shock, since the Alcatraz director was renown for his impeccable honesty! So here's where he spent the rest of his sentence, which serves him right, I say! Awesome, we're here! Once we're docked we can hop right off, okay, Daki-chan?"
Marcus listens intently because he doesn't want to psych himself out on the short trip from shore to island. It's a lot of steel, but he's not going to be close to it for long, and Cinnamon's voice is soothing. He keeps his eyes on her face the whole time, fingers tight around hers. Shane watches and smiles, murmuring to Thorn, "Fuckin' adorable. He's like a spooked colt or something."
Thorn smiles. "All three of you are adorable together," he says quietly.
Shane blinks at Thorn, then chuckles a little, "Good. Be a bad thing if we fit together badly. She's pretty taken with him, and what she wants, I want for her." He thumps Thorn lightly on the shoulder. "If he hurts her again, I'll probably break his arm, but I think the nose taught him his lesson."
Cinnamon quietly makes sure Marcus can be among the first to disembark once they dock, if he wants. She's learned over the years how to sort of wriggle her way to where she wants to be, and she can brace and block rude folks with the best of them since discovering her dragonhood! So when the ramp is attached and the chain dropped, Marcus is among the first in line. Marcus does his best to walk normally off the boat, but he does sort of... stalk his way down the ramp. The elf is just a little peaked when they make it off the ferry; he closes his eyes and takes several deep breaths once his feet are back on mother earth. From his satchel, he produces a honey stick and a small piece of bread. Cinnamon patters worriedly down behind him, circling around to check his face. Anxiously she asks, "How're you doing, schatzie? Are you okay? Do you need to sit a bit, or walk, or what?"
Marcus smiles a little, holding up the bread and honey, then nibbling them, "This'll fix me right up. It's mostly in my head, anyway." This time, Shane doesn't even flinch, so it may be true. Cinnamon smiles in relief, waiting for the other two to rejoin them before they all head on up the path to the old, weather-battered former prison.
Thorn steps off the boat, looking around much like a tourist -- he doesn't have to act like one, for that matter, he really is one here. He arches a bit of a brow at Marcus's comment about an established, severe allergy to cold iron as being "in his head," but doesn't say anything else -- merely stays near to his friends. He's glad Marcus is taking care of himself there with the bread and honey. The little group straggles up the path with the rest of the tourists, sun warming their backs even as the chill sea breeze dances around them. After checking in and receiving their self-guided tour headphones, the ferry-load of tourists starts to dissipate throughout the old concrete fortress.
Nearby, someone else notices Marcus with his bread and honey and comes bustling over, smiling. He's dressed in khakis, a polo shirt, and heavy hiking boots; he looks human... mostly. "Are you okay there, son? That ride can leave you a little, uhm... seasick." The man's skin is deeply tanned and his hair is nearly shining white, with eyes so brown as to be nearly black.
Cinnamon glances over with slightly protective suspicion, surreptitiously testing the air by licking her lips. Shane can tell if the guy is for real, but she can help too, she thinks: is this guy a supernatural? The... man? -is barely five feet tall; he doesn't really 'taste-smell' as exactly human. He smells... well, he kinda smells like rocks, like he spends a lot of time underground -- but he doesn't look dirty. In fact, he looks quite dapper and clean. Shane looks the fellow over and smiles, "Seasick is one way to put it..."
The little man lowers his voice to reply, "Iron sick is another. Great lump of steel, that ferry. You're okay, though, lad?" His shirt has a little patch embroidered on it identifying him as a volunteer.
Cinnamon blinks curiously, "Rocks... huh. May we ask who you are, please, sir?" Thorn relaxes a little when the man mentions 'iron sickness.' He perks his ears curiously, resisting the initial urge to reach for his journal. After all, it's rude to take notes on someone you've not been properly introduced to yet.
The little man smiles, "You can call me Rory!" He offers his hand to Cinnamon, "I do volunteer work here on the Rock: look out for the tourists. Answer questions. Keep people from getting into trouble. Help people find things."
Cinnamon smiles as she shakes his hand, "Hi, Rory -- call me Cinnamon, please? And that's Thorn and Shane and Marcus. Thank you for your concern. How are you?" She figures she might as well run forward guard to give Marcus a bit of healing time, after all... and let Rory say whatever he needs to. A heartbeat later she blinks, then adds in sudden worry, "Do you get iron sick too?"
Rory offers his hand to the men in turn, "I'm good! I'm dandy! It's good to see more than just the normal folk on a tour! Not often we see someone needing bread and honey after the ride, though!" Marcus waves his hand again, self-deprecatingly, and Rory continues, "Me? Oh, no. That'd be a shame. I like working out here too much, and I have to come on the first ferry every morning! No, no. Besides, us brownies never did have a problem with iron like the high fae." He looked around a bit to make sure the other tourists had moved off before he said that last part.
Cinnamon brightens, "Oh, a brownie -- cool!" She beams at the small man -- how nice that he's her height! -- then adds curiously, "What's a high fae? Is that like... a tall one, or something?"
Rory smiles, "Well, most of them are tall, but it's less that they're tall and more that they're the strong ones. The sidhe and such, you know!"
Cinnamon says, "Huh! Thank you for explaining, then, Mr. Rory."