Solo A Stack of Stone Part I

[Crylon Stonecraft]

70 Spring 520 Heading through The Outpost, Crylon followed along behind Sona. He had met her at the Meraki seasons past, and had enjoyed her company. She had a technical mind, working the sawmill in the Demesne, and so had more in common with the Isur than most humans. Crylon had wanted to visit the new purchase of the group, or more so of Kelski, and see the Riad she had bought. He was an architect, but tended to act more as a general repairman or contractor as needed about the place. Helping to design things on occasion, but mostly just helping maintain the building and such. And if he was to help with the Riad in such a capacity, he needed to know where it was. And so, hearing that Sona needed to stop by the market or bazaar as they called it locally, he had asked if he could tag along and see the new place. "Actually Crylon, this is just part of it. Though the main bit. It has most of the facilities, the living quarters, and such. There is also a shop with a workshop, but its not as big nor does it have as many parts like this place. Its a full on residence. Enough to put many other places too shame." Crylon smiled, knowing Sona was not one to parse words. "Ah well... Praps just one then, and can look... Other place, other time? Yes? If not so big, maybe not need much maintain." Sona shrugged, gently bumping into Crylon as they walked and smiling at the small Isur as she did in a joking fashion. On his softer side, not the one with the indestructible black metal gem arm, Crylon noted. She had clearly spent enough time around him to know better than that. "Whatever floats your... Or no, your boat sank, didn't it? Good job on that one, remind me not to go for a ride on anything you build till you learn some basic buoyancy." Crylon frowned, suddenly serious at the new word. "Boy... Buoy... Buoyancy? What that?" Waving him off Sona pointed forward, coming to a stop a few steps later in front of a building. "Remind me another time. I'll explain it. Basically its about floating. Anyways, this is the place. Why don't you look around, and I'll head off to the market. See you about Isur." Crylon waved in greeting, but did not look as Sona spoke. The woman gave a knowing smile and walked away, seeing where Crylons attention was. He had not looked away from the building since he had first looked, and clearly was processing and digesting as fast as his eyes and senses absorbed information from the Riad. For a moment Crylon did nothing, and then all of a sudden he began to move, sketching out the structure in his mind. If he was to repair and maintain it, first he needed to know what it looked like. And so he began to make a circuit of the structure, inspecting the surfaces: walls, roof, base, windows, openings, doors, outer structures, before heading inside. WC: 516

[Crylon Stonecraft]

Inspecting the structure, the first thing Crylon noticed was that most of it was made of stone. The roof was also different, at least compared to most he was used to. But, as he considered it more, that made sense. This was to stop sand and dust and things from coming in, not rain, since it did not rain in the outpost. And building a roof for that versus all weather including rain and things, well then that would require a different style of roof building. It was, he supposed, more important to block out the heat of the sun beating down on it than anything else. Particularly to keep the building from getting too hot in the constant heat of the area. Being in the shade and out of the sun was one thing, but the heat would likely permeate into the structure which meant material or shape that would deflect the heat by.... Something else to consider. As he looked around, Crylon noticed many of the roofs were flat, some quite simple and some fancier clay or stone tiles or shingles rather than wood or hay or such. Overall the structure was squared off, with plenty of openings like windows. He was slowly pacing along the structure when he suddenly stopped, seeing his way was obstructed. Suddenly the building ended, and the large outer wall of the Outpost rose above him. It was almost like... Either the building was built into the wall, or up against it, or the one side of the building was the outer wall and in truth it was a three walled structure up against the fourth being the outposts outer line. Turning about Crylon headed back the other way, making his way to the front of the structure and then around to the other side. He had an idea of what he would see, but still he completed his circuit of the structure as best he could. Soon enough his assumption was met with fact, the other side ended the same by way of the outer Outpost wall. Considering the overall structure, sketching it in his mind, he could see it was more of a rectangle than a square. An oblong shape sticking out of and part of the wall. He had now seen the outer most layer. Bits of the roof from the outside, the head of the structure, the outer wall, the skin so to speak.Now he needed to go inward, to see and understand the bones and flesh of the building. In this case, being protected within the confines of the Outposts outer wall, and a land free of rain, the outer area of the building seemed to Crylon's eyes more... Ornamental. For aesthetic or artistic sense, more so than any actual sense of defense or protection. The more he understood the buildings, the more Crylon felt he understood the place itself, something that had held true for most if not all of the cities he had visited. The Outpost did not seem to be an exception to his experience in this regard. WC: 513

[Crylon Stonecraft]

Having finished his outward assessment of the building, Crylon headed inside. The first thing he noticed was the walls and ceiling. It was at once familiar, and yet odd. It was like someone had mortared the ceiling and some walls in places, covering them in a smooth layer of mortar. He knew a bit about that, working with stone and mortar, but this... This was odd to his mind. He supposed there was a purpose to it, a reasoning of why it was done, but his experience in such material being limited to holding walls together, covering the entire wall or ceiling in it seemed odd. But then Crylon considered further, and began to see some possible reasons. It meant a flat surface, instead of a rougher stone or brick one. It meant it was uniform, which would make it easier to paint or adorn the walls compared to stacked stone. Stone seemed to be the main resource used, so he assumed it was stone beneath the mortar. He did have to admit though he was not sure, and anything could be below the uniform layer. As he was walking through another room within, a living space with furniture to sit or lie on, Crylon noticed the first downside. There was a layer of the odd material, but with a crack on it. He could not tell if this was from time or something hitting it perhaps by accident, but he could see a crack within the material of the mortar on the ceiling. Here, another spot on a wall, there was another crack which let him see the stone brick wall beneath. That settled his mind on what the material was underneath, but showed him even further that such material would need maintaining to keep its consistency over time. All it would take was a bump or a strike, and quite easily a chunk could be knocked off or a crack made. And now that he knew what he was looking for, Crylon began to see more smaller ones throughout the building. He would need to go off to the market and get some materials to fix it all, noting in his mind each one. As he continued his tour of the structure he noticed most were behind things which made them harder to see, or were in clearly lesser used rooms. So less neglect, and more of a situation of... Prioritization. Regardless, he could fix it easily enough. One by one Crylon went through each room, noting each type and its contents and any repairs needed. Two patios, partly open to the air, on the outer side of the structure. A large courtyard near the middle of the building with a pool of water. Two living areas including the slightly damaged one he had found. A kitchen full of cookware and things. A storage area with shelves and things to hold supplies. A large dining area with plenty of room for all of the Meraki to dine together. Three pairs of bedrooms, each pair sharing a small bathroom area. Seperate from that was three full bathing rooms, each with their own facilities for cleaning and other ablutions. A staircase led to a rooftop courtyard or some similar structure, open to the sky and letting one look out across the structures of the Outpost. And lastly two gardens throughout, open to the air and sun and well watered as was most of the plants in the domain. Each room was different in small ways, tiled or painted or covered in art to keep them distinct. Arches and shapes were abundant in their variety, making it hard for Crylon to keep the entire structure in his head. To reinforce it Crylon toured the structure twice more, each room, until he knew the entire layout and type of room by heart. WC: 640

[Crylon Stonecraft]

With a firm understanding of the structure in his head, Crylon headed to his next destination. The market. If he was to fix the cracks he would need the correct tools, materials, and if possible knowledge to do the repairs. Nothing major, just some cracks in the wall and ceiling mortar, but still needing the proper maintenance to fix it. Heading out from the building, Crylon spent a few moments orienting himself. He was... Here... The dovecote was... Here... From the dovecote the market, or bazaar as the locals called it, was over there... Which meant from his current location, he needed to go... That way. With the directions pointing in his head this made much more sense, and Crylon was able to figure out which way he needed to go. Not that the market was hard to miss. Due to its size it was harder to miss than to hit, so long as he had the right general direction. And next time he would know the way to go better and with less trouble. Heading off Crylon kept his eyes open, seeing the various inhabitants and buildings of the Outpost. Now that he had seen one building in depth, he could now notice far more things about the design and architecture of the city and its buildings. There was a good bit of variety he could see, but also quite a bit of commonality. But then, it being in the same space, with similar needs, it made sense that design would be similar. Stone, wood, smoothed surfaces with more mortar, arches, tiles, sprouted up like shoots in between the stone covered walkways and roads of the Outpost. Often Crylon liked to imagine on the individual scale each building was a living thing with bones and skin and such. But here in this city he realized that at the same time as the building was one living thing, like a person... The entire Outpost added up to one great collection, like a group of trees making a forest. Individually each was a tree, but together they made a forest... With such thoughts Crylon arrived at the bazaar, stopping to get one of the Keiss' attention. While he was learning more of the Outpost, the bazaar was far too big for him to learn of it in its entirety. The Keiss though seemed to as a whole know of it and its mercantile exchange, and had yet to fail in giving directions. “Excuse. Is need make repair on building. Is know where find... Uh, mortar, for crack wall, ceiling?” The Keiss, a particularly short human woman who still towered over Crylon, seemed to consider for a few moments before speaking. "Sure, I know of the area. Just head that way four rows, then turn left, and go another three rows. You'll find it." Crylon nodded, giving the woman an answering smile and nod, with a simple utterance of “Thanks” in response. Directions in hand Crylon headed off, following the direction turn by turn to find the building supplies he needed. WC: 509

[Crylon Stonecraft]

Turning into the area the Keiss had designated, Crylon knew he had found the place. There were all kinds of supplies for building from one stand to another One had various tools, hammers and pries and measures. Another had blunt implements, large sledges for breaking up stone and breaking down buildings. Stacks of cut wood, measured out by its dimensions. Some of an odd dark or light color he was not familiar with. One that looked more blue or silver than any other wood he had seen before, though in much more limited supply than the others. There were also other simpler tools. Baskets full of nails, simple and sold by the pound. Hinges for gates, doors, and chests. Thicker ones that were clearly meant to be protective and used to keep someone out or in, whereas the simpler ones where simply built for function. Bricks for forges and buildings. Stone blocks cut from a quarry. And beyond that various powders and things, some of which he knew and some he did not. Lime and sand where the basic materials used for making mortar, He did see that, along with... Other things... Crylon was not quite sure what some was, but knew what he was there for. Just the basic materials. Heading over to one stand, Crylon waved to the stall owner to get his attention. “Is need... Do repair, crack, break, on mortar. Wall. Ceiling. Of Riad. Is have to fix?” The man, a somewhat portly man with short hair, puzzled over his words for a few moments before responding. "Mortar? On the walls and ceiling? You mean stucco? If its for a Riad, its common around here, but I think you have your terms mixed up. Mortar is for between the bricks, holding them together. Stucco is for covering them, on the ceiling or walls sometimes. Same stuff more or less, just called something else depending on how you use it. As for your question, I've got the stuff for that. Suppose you want sand and lime?" Crylon nodded, considering his words. Common was the main language spoken among humans and the Outpost, though he did see the occasional Isur who spoke Isurian. Not many though, Still, the semantics here were interesting, as it appeared the material used was called something different depending on how it was used. Stucco for coverings, Mortar for binding together. But, apparently the same thing more or less. “Yes, is do. Need lime, and sand. How much is?” "Considering the weight, I can have it delivered to the place. Have it there tomorrow. Where is the Riad?" Crylon gave the Riads location to the man, along with dealing with the price. Not that he would be paying for it in truth, as the funds would come out of the Meraki's general maintenance budget. Such small repairs were figured into the general costs and upkeep for the property. Once it was all dealt with Crylon headed off, ready to take a rest and to mull over all he had seen and learned today. A good first step, he felt, in working on the Riad. WC: 520

[Alric Lysane]

Your Grades

Crylon Stonecraft

Skills

Architecture – 4
Interrogation – 2
Logic – 2
Negotiation – 1
Socialization – 2


Lores

Architecture: Different Climates, Different Roofing
Architecture: Methodically Mapping Interiors
Architecture: Priorities Vary By Culture
Bouyancy: Basically About Floating
Sona: A Technical Mind