feat: drafted forty-eight through fifty

chapters/chapter-27.md

@@ -46,7 +46,7 @@ Linsan's shoulders tensed. She wanted to snap back but the words wouldn't come.
 
 For a moment, it was temping but the old lady obvious didn't have a lot of money. A single cukdin might be an entire meal for her. Linsan shrugged and kept walking away. "I can, but not as well as my mother."
 
-"Oh, why would that matter?"
+"Oh, why would that matter? Is she important? Who is she?"
 
 Linsan waved and tried to escape the conversation. "Thank you!"
 

chapters/chapter-29.md

@@ -36,7 +36,7 @@ Linsan glanced at her case. It was scorched and dented. She had forgotten to sea
 
 Then she realized her arm was still around Brook's waist. Slowly, she relaxed her grip and stepped away. Her fingers ran along the lace before they parted.
 
-Brook looked at her, an unreadable expression on her face. Her cheeks were smeared with dirt and her makeup had run. It gave her eyes a smokey appearance, a hint of black and blue dusting underneath her eyes.
+Brook looked at her, an unreadable expression on her face. Her cheeks were smeared with dirt and her makeup had run. It gave her eyes a smoky appearance, a hint of black and blue dusting underneath her eyes.
 
 Linsan blushed. "What?"
 
@@ -90,7 +90,7 @@ Linsan leaned over. "A rather violent game in these parts. Two teams try to get
 
 Linsan shook her head. "No. She doesn't like that type of play. Actually, a playwright named Tabil in town."
 
-"I know Tabil, he had gone to a lot of Daddy's parties."
+"I know Tabil, he went to a lot of Daddy's parties."
 
 "He's also a leech and keeps trying to bed my mother. H-He also owned the Sterlig my grandfather made. They borrowed it."
 

chapters/chapter-40.md

@@ -5,6 +5,8 @@ teaser: &teaser >
 summary: *teaser
 ---
 
+> The hand of a craftman is more treasured than any tool on the table. A tool needs not years of training and practice. A blade can never be as sharp as the mind that wields it. --- Gregor Maldin-Cross, *The Art of Carpentry*
+
 Linsan sat at one of the tables in the public house. An array of tools and scraps of wood from around the village spread out around her on a tablecloth as she worked a thin knife back and forth to create a channel for the spline. It was tedious and precise work but also something she had been doing since she was a little girl.
 
 "Why not just wrap it together?" Brook asked.

chapters/chapter-41.md

@@ -5,6 +5,8 @@ teaser: &teaser >
 summary: *teaser
 ---
 
+> The nature of combative music is not the force of the notes but the way they twist and turn through defenses. But to know the song is to know how it ends, and no offense can conqueror if the end is known. --- Jaber Darsil, *The Inefficiencies of Military Music*
+
 Linsan's ears rang from Brook's latest concussion blast. Her hand dipped for a moment before she brought it up. "Almost. This time, remember it's one... two... three... clap. You want to clap just as I hit the high note."
 
 Sweat trickling down her brow, Brook signed. "It would be a lot easier if I could hear you play. Your hand gestures are hard to track."

chapters/chapter-42.md

@@ -5,6 +5,8 @@ teaser: &teaser >
 summary: *teaser
 ---
 
+> We can't always choose the fields our battles. The enemy comes when we least want it and never when we are prepared. Always be ready, even in the moment of your greatest weakness. Damn it, where are my fighting flowers? --- _The King of All Moles and Other Insignificant Accomplishments_ (Act 3, Scene 7)
+
 Linsan limped as they walked back up the road toward the public house. She had twisted her ankle one too many times and the dull throb rose up; hopefully there wouldn't be a fight in a couple of days until she recovered. She wiped her face, scraping off dirt, sweat, and grass from her cheeks and brow.
 
 Next to her, Brook staggered next to her. She had refused to take off her heels even in the grass. When Linsan had offered to help her, she claimed that they were both too hot but she remained within arm's reach.

chapters/chapter-43.md

@@ -5,6 +5,8 @@ teaser: &teaser >
 summary: *teaser
 ---
 
+> And if it wasn't for that stowaway, the entire crew of the _Mary Glory_ would have been lost. --- _The Ghosts of the Mary Glory_ (Act 4, Scene 11)
+
 Neither Brook nor Linsan slept well that night.
 
 For Linsan, the thought of heading out back on their hunt was terrifying. As she bobbed in and out of consciousness, nightmares gnawed at the edges of her thoughts. If it wasn't getting lost in the wilderness with a broken car, it was holding Brook's body in her arms as her best friend bled out. It felt like a hundred ways of failure beat against Linsan's thoughts and there was a hint of despair lurking her mind when she finally drifted to sleep.

chapters/chapter-44.md

@@ -5,6 +5,8 @@ teaser: &teaser >
 summary: *teaser
 ---
 
+> The Glasscoaster continued to be a viable mode of transportation for almost half a century despite the considerable advances in technology. --- Forsin dea Casin, *The Legacy of the Glass Vehicle Company*
+
 Linsan didn't realize how much losing the Glasscoaster had stressed her. Being in the leather seat felt like a comfortable bed and the heat filtering through the windshield made it hard to keep her eyes open. Underneath her, the rumble of the engine and the thump of pistons were a lullaby.
 
 She yawned and turned to the side.
@@ -65,7 +67,7 @@ Linsan leaned into the space between the seats. "I wasn't sure, so I found some
 
 "And my hammer?"
 
-"Um... no. But I did put some plies and stout shears in. Plus you can use my tools, but they're rather delicate."
+"Um... no. But I did put some pliers and other tools into the back. Plus you can use mine, but they're rather delicate and suited for maintenance of instruments."
 
 Miska chuckled. "Good girl. I guess I won't have to go buff after all."
 

chapters/chapter-45.md

@@ -5,6 +5,8 @@ teaser: &teaser >
 summary: *teaser
 ---
 
+> You ply your skill for a bit of coin just as I do for another. In the end, we have two bits to rub together and nothing more. But as one, we make far more than our hatred would allow separately. --- Linslar Gabon-Forst, *As Two Brothers Fight, A Tale of Choices Most Dire*
+
 Linsan sighed as she sat on a bench near one of the city fountains. When they arrived in _Sicmla Rihemlan_ early in the morning, she had high hopes they would be able to find Tilbin or at least confirmation of their destination with Palisis. But hours of walking through the city, asking everyone she could find, there wasn't even a hint of the murderers.
 
 She rocked her violin case back and forth between her knees as she leaned back. The sun painted across her face and she signed again. Despite the clear skies, it was a cool day and perfect for walking around town. But she was tired of chasing after Tabil. The feeling of being lost rose up and she groaned.

chapters/chapter-46.md

@@ -5,6 +5,8 @@ teaser: &teaser >
 summary: *teaser
 ---
 
+> No one knows how the world war would have ended if the guilds of machine had solved their conflict earlier. --- Ryochi nea Fameril
+
 Linsan didn't know exactly where she was going, but just knowing Tilbin was in the city gave her hope. She headed toward the south before she realized that Miska was leading the way. "Do you know something?"
 
 "There is only one mechanics shop in this part of town. A bunch of *bagatos* running a Piston shop."

chapters/chapter-47.md

@@ -5,6 +5,8 @@ teaser: &teaser >
 summary: *teaser
 ---
 
+> With magic capable of breaking everything, it is the unassailable rules that prevent our society from collapse. --- The Silver King, *The Mandatory Auditing Act*
+
 Linsan hurried down the road, weaving through the press of people. Her eyes scanned the front of buildings until she came up to the marble entrance to the _River Bank Trust_, the Ralonix location. She stopped at the bottom of the stairs to catch her breath.
 
 She wasn't sure what the bank could do or tell her, but it had been a while since she sent a note to her parents and Brook maybe inside since it was her father's network.

chapters/chapter-48.md

@@ -0,0 +1,80 @@
+---
+title: Sullen
+teaser: &teaser >
+    Brook struggled with the collapse of her life.
+summary: *teaser
+---
+
+> Only time can fade the sting of mistakes. --- Kormar proverb
+
+Linsan fought back the tears as she carried a cup of tea back to the Glasscoaster. The large mug had an obscene amount of sugar in it and the heavy cream swirled with every step. She even asked for a bit of whipped cream on the top though she didn't have faith it would do anything.
+
+They were two days out from _Sicmla Rihemlan_ in a small town on their way of Stone Over Moon Waters. The hot morning beat down on her back, cutting through her clothes and causing her skin to stick to the fabric.
+
+Miska rolled out from underneath the buggy. She wiped the sweat off her brow as the air around her wavered and shifted from her magic. "I fused the leak on the tank. We must have scraped against a rut and busted some seams. I had to use the last of our plates to fix it."
+
+"Will it hold?" Linsan asked quietly as she looked through the window to Brook.
+
+Her friend sat in the driver's seat, not moving. She had abandoned her usual finery and wore her simplistic gown without makeup, hat, or even her gloves. Instead, she looked plain and broken.
+
+"She can't take much more."
+
+Linsan sighed. Then she glanced at Miska quizzically. "The Coaster or Brook?"
+
+The blonde tugged her pony tail for a moment. The sweat glistened over her tattoos through the opening of her plain shirt. "Both, I think."
+
+Miska looked sad and shook her head. "She's getting caught in the winter cold and I don't know how to be her spring flower."
+
+The phrase didn't entirely make sense to Linsan, but it felt right. "I know, I don't either. I guess the only thing we can do is love her, take care of her, and let her know that we aren't going to give up."
+
+Linsan shook her head. "She's lost right now."
+
+"Then we drive."
+
+Linsan bumped her shoulder against Miska. "Thank you."
+
+"For what?"
+
+"You didn't have to come with us."
+
+"I did."
+
+"No, you really didn't."
+
+Miska grinned. "I wanted to. I've lived my entire life between four villages. People come and go but I never left. I always assumed I would end up rooted to the ground like Old Gab. But even she left the village once."
+
+"She told me."
+
+"I know, you were probably the brightest star in her twilight. The only one who understood music. She couldn't stop talking about you."
+
+Linsan blushed.
+
+"I wanted to hear what she heard. Just a song that filled my heart and kept me growing..." Miska sighed. "... just growing for decades."
+
+She smiled to Linsan. "Old Gab's oldest daughter died on the trip to Jamorel. She got broke her leg. The wound got poisonous and the healers there wouldn't help...." She gestured to her tattoos.
+
+Linsan didn't know how to respond to the sudden uncomfortableness. She clamped her mouth shut and ducked her head.
+
+"But she was listening to this play through the window of the hospital and it kept her..." Miska sniffed. "It kept her going. She made it home and never left again but she never forgot that song."
+
+"It was my mother."
+
+Miska wiped the tears from her eyes. "Old Gab let us know that too. We live in a small forest and the fruits never fall far. Our lives were intertwined and I'm honoring Old Gab by following you through the end."
+
+Linsan smiled sadly.
+
+Miska took a deep breath. "Might get a few new adventure for my skin during the process. But right now, we have someone who needs us badly and she needs to drive into that sun."
+
+She crawled into the back seat and settled into place.
+
+Linsan got into her seat and held out the cup. "I got you a fresh drink."
+
+Brook didn't look away from staring through the windshield. "Are you ready to go," she said in a low, monotone.
+
+"Come, have something to drink."
+
+"Are you ready?"
+
+Linsan fought back the tears. She swapped the drink for the still full one in the cup holder and poured out the old drink. Shaking it clear, she carefully set it in the back and shut her door.
+
+Brook mechanically turned on the engine. As soon as the pressure built, she eased it forward and accelerated as fast as the Glasscoaster could handle.

chapters/chapter-49.md

@@ -0,0 +1,162 @@
+---
+title: Screams
+teaser: &teaser >
+    Lost in despair, Brook drives dangerously fast as the sun sets. Linsan and Miska try to stop her but Brook won't listen to reason.
+summary: *teaser
+---
+
+> With my love bloodied on the ground, his life spilled out in a fit of my anger, I finally realize the mistake I had made. --- _Maiden, Mother, Murderer_ (Act 3, Scene 5)
+
+Linsan clung to the side of the Glasscoaster as it rumbled over the deep ruts of a road she could barely see. The sun had set an hour before and it was getting dangerously close to being dark for the speed they were going.
+
+"Brook, we need to stop."
+
+"There is a village ahead," came the sullen tone.
+
+"Yes, ten miles ahead and we aren't going to make it."
+
+"I have headlights."
+
+"You have one headlight," snapped Miska from the back. She was braced against both sides of the Glasscoaster. "You shattered the half of them when you lost control an hour ago and hit that tree!"
+
+"We'll make it."
+
+"Brook!" Linsan said. "Stop!"
+
+Brook frowned but the Glasscoaster didn't slow. It hit another rut and the entire vehicle twisted violently to the side before it began skip against the rough, dirt road. She grabbed the steering wheel and twisted hard, turning into the curve until it fishtailed back into place.
+
+Linsan whimpered as she braced her knee on the dash. "Please... please stop!"
+
+Brook's eyes glittered with tears as she shook her head. "We can make it."
+
+Ahead, the dusk was quickly darkening as the shadows stretched across the road. The single light from the buggy did nothing to reveal the deep ruts in the poorly maintained surface.
+
+"Brook, please."
+
+Brook sniffed as tears ran down her cheeks. She shook her head. "I-I can't."
+
+Linsan wish she understood how the controls on the car worked but she didn't think there was a way to wrest control. She dismissed it and then tried another tactic. Picking herself up, she knelt on her seat and leaned over to talk into her friend's ear. "Please... just stop. We'll make it."
+
+A sob.
+
+"I don't want you to get hurt."
+
+Another sob. Brook shook her head. "N-No."
+
+"Brook, I can't lose you. Not now, not ever. You're my friend." Linsan had no idea of the words were reaching into Brook's despair.
+
+The buggy nailed another ridge. The force shoved her back and she tumbled over the top of her seat and into the back. Her limbs caught among Miska's as they were jostled violently.
+
+Claustrophobic, Linsan flailed for a moment before she found some sort of balance.
+
+Miska chuckled. "Hi, there."
+
+Their faces were only inches apart.
+
+"You seem to be grabbing my tit."
+
+Linsan looked down. She had one hand braced against the back of the seat and the other was cupping Miska's large breast. Her knee had planted between the blonde's thighs. She gasped. "S-Sorry!"
+
+Miska grinned. "I'm honored to the say the least. You are a beautiful woman, but I really have no interest in getting into your panties."
+
+Linsan started and then chuckled. "That's good, because I don't want to be in yours either. I don't really go for women."
+
+The vehicle seemed to slow but Linsan couldn't tell if it was her imagination.
+
+"Oh?" Miska said while gesturing to Brook's seat. "You seem to like Princess enough. I know what a woman being pleasured sounds like."
+
+Linsan flushed.
+
+Miska gestured silently again to the seat.
+
+It took a moment to register, then Linsan grinned as she realized they were playing for an audience. "Well, when we were girls, she tried to kill me in the forest. I tried to hurt her back and the next thing we knew it, there was magic flying everywhere, punches thrown, and then our daddies made us behave." Gingerly, Linsan adjusted her hand so they were in less of a provocative position.
+
+"Did you kiss and make up?"
+
+Linsan chuckled. "Eventually." Her words were a bit louder than needed. The memory of their first night together as lovers made her squirm.
+
+"So you're say if I keep fighting with Princess, maybe she'll be interested in me?" The question was clear as was the questing look in Miska's eyes.
+
+Linsan cocked her head. She started to answer, playing a part, but then the Glasscoaster swerved violently and she abandoned her role for a moment to keep in balance. As soon as the buggy straightened, she grinned back. "It really depends, I guess," she said mimicking her mother's tone as she cobbled together lines that were popular from a number of plays.
+
+"On what?" Miska seemed amused but there was a flush on her cheeks that wasn't directed toward Linsan. She wanted Brook, more than Linsan could ever give her friend.
+
+"If you want to lose and have her be your queen or if you want to try conquering her kingdom by yourself."
+
+"You think you're smart, don't you? Have all the pretty words?"
+
+Linsan shrugged.
+
+"How do I have both? How can I lose and yet conquer at the same time? What if I just want to be her queen?"
+
+Brook's foot slammed into the floor of Glasscoaster and the brakes slammed into place. Both Miska and Linsan were pitched forward to the floor. The tight space ground their bodies together as the amusement between them crumbled.
+
+As soon as the buggy stopped, Brook reached back and smacked Linsan's head. "I am not a prize to be traded!" she screamed at the top of her lungs. Her door swung open and she bolted out.
+
+"Shit," Linsan said as she scrambled to free herself. It took a minute and some difficult positions until she was able to crawl over the seat and out the door.
+
+Brook was only a rod away, stomping in a circle. When she looked back, her cheeks were wet with tears. "I'm not a character, Lin! I'm not some play you can rattle off the top of your head!"
+
+"Brook---!"
+
+"No!" Brook stormed forward. "I just lost everything! Again! I had to give up my daddy! I just caused my family to lose their money and they don't even know why!" Her voice was shrill.
+
+Miska grunted as she tumbled out of the Glasscoaster. It was tilted against the ditch that ran along the road. One wheel bobbed with the movement.
+
+Linsan turned back to her. "We both lost something, you know that."
+
+"You lost a Couple-damned instrument that no one plays! I don't care how much money it is. I lost my dad! My family! My money! I lost everything!" With a snarl, she brought her hands together.
+
+Linsan only had a heartbeat to brace herself before the world exploded into a boom that tore the ground up and threw it away from Brook.
+
+She winced as a second one came, hammering into her and throwing her back.
+
+"Damn you, Linsan! Damn everything about you!" Brook screamed as she clapped again. The sharp sound punched Linsan.
+
+Miska grunted and stepped forward.
+
+"Rot in the ground!" Brook's voice cracked before she clapped her hands.
+
+Linsan tried to brace herself but she stumbled from the force that punched her.
+
+Miska stepped forward, her hair snapping in the wind. Her feet dug into the hard ground as heat shimmered around her.
+
+Brook's next clap shattered the window of the Glasscoaster.
+
+Miska stepped forward even as Linsan was shoved back.
+
+"Get away from me!"
+
+"No!" snapped Miska. She forced herself forward.
+
+Brook stepped back and clapped her hands again, magic bursting as it tore apart the ground around her.
+
+Clods of dirt and rock flew at Miska but the blonde shrugged them off as she did the waves of force that hammered into her.
+
+Linsan could only watched as Miska closed the gap.
+
+"Go away!"
+
+Another step.
+
+"Leave!"
+
+Miska was only a yard away.
+
+"I hate you!" Brook sobbed and spread her arms to clap again.
+
+It only took a single step as Miska came up to her. Her hands caught both sides of Brook's chin before she pulled Brook into a kiss.
+
+Brook froze, her hands apart.
+
+Linsan stared in shock, her face burning and her ears ringing.
+
+Miska held her close as she continued to kiss. It wasn't a tender embrace like on the stage but something far more intimate than Linsan could have ever given Brook. The air around them rippled as Miska moved with Brook.
+
+Tears glittered on Brook's cheeks then her arms fell. A moment later, she slumped down.
+
+Miska knelt down with her, cradling her body as they both dropped to their knees in the middle of the blasted field.
+
+A muffled sob rose up and then Brook wrapped her arms around Miska tightly.
+
+Linsan turned her head. This wasn't a moment for her. She cupped her ear to try drowning out the ringing and then limped around the Glasscoaster to see if she could find a better place to camp for the night.

chapters/chapter-50.md

@@ -0,0 +1,102 @@
+---
+title: Dancing
+teaser: &teaser >
+    While camping for the night, Miska has an idea.
+summary: *teaser
+---
+
+> I have longed for those moments when your beats shake the ground. My heart quakes as I yearn to join in and let it fill my soul with your sweet presence. --- _The Living Mountain_ (Act 2, Scene 1)
+
+Linsan sat on a rock as she watched the fire flickering in the makeshift ring they had made. The Glasscoaster sat only a few yards way, the side reflecting the light as she listened to the bubbling of a tea pot nestled in the coals.
+
+Brook sat on a log near Miska with her hands in her lap. They weren't touching nor were they moving away from each other. Her dress, stained and torn, fluttered in the breeze as she stared into the flame with red-rimmed eyes. Occasionally, she sniffed and rubbed her ruby nose.
+
+Miska sat on the ground closer to the flames. She wasn't bothered by the heat as she occasionally reached into the flames to adjust a log or stir the coals with a stick. Her loose blonde hair fluttered in the breeze and she had a foot propped up on a rock only inches away from the flame.
+
+The pot whistled and sputtered into the flames. The water splashed onto an iron pot that cooked their dinner and sizzled loudly before disappearing in a wisp of steam.
+
+Miska reached over and plucked the pot out. She grabbed Brook's mug and filled it up until the tea leaves on the bottom floated just below the edge. The top was almost black with the handful of leaves that would seep into the strong flavor Brook craved.
+
+Miska set the pot aside.
+
+Brook sniffed. "S-Sorry about that."
+
+Linsan gave her a comforting smile. "We all have our low points in our lives."
+
+Brook glared at her.
+
+Holding up her hands, Linsan shook her head emphatically. "I swear, that isn't a line! I don't know a single play or song that uses those words."
+
+"Really?"
+
+"I swear," Linsan said with a little doubt.
+
+A smirk. Brook shook her head and looked away. "Thank you for trying."
+
+Miska leaned over to look at Linsan. "Plays and songs really are your life, aren't they?"
+
+"They are. From the day I was born, my family was about the music. Making it, creating it, and performing it. Before the fire destroyed everything, there wasn't an day that we didn't have some music. My mother was famous across the entire country and she would have dad and I play her opposites to practice. Though, I could never sing like her and dad used his instruments to play her duets."
+
+"... but you are a far better dancer than she ever was," Brook said. "I've seen you."
+
+Linsan blushed. "T-Thank you."
+
+Miska looked back at Brook. "You can dance too though."
+
+"Not as well as her."
+
+"Show me."
+
+Brook pulled back and shook her head. "W-What? No. I can't do that."
+
+Miska pushed herself up to her feet. "Please?"
+
+Brook blushed. "I'm not good. Ask Linsan."
+
+"I don't want her to dance for me. I want you to dance for me." Miska stepped back and then forward. "With me? Dance with me. Right here and now."
+
+"W-With?" Brook looked shocked.
+
+Miska smiled. "Please, my queen? This is something that you and Linsan share. I have been listening for days to your beats shaking the ground and my heart. Every hour you were practicing in the village, I could feel it through my soles. Please, I want to see the woman who make the sounds that moved me."
+
+Brook blushed hotly, then she glanced at Linsan. There was question in her gaze.
+
+"Those aren't lines from a play."
+
+Brook scoffed. "Do you mind?"
+
+Linsan grinned. She shook her head. "No, Brook, I told you. I would be there for as long you need me, but I'll stand aside when---"
+
+Holding up a finger, Brook shook her head. "No. No more lines from plays from you. Not tonight."
+
+Linsan leaned back and lifted her case. "How about I just shut up and play something?"
+
+Brook's expression softened. "You really don't mind?"
+
+Linsan answered by opening her case and pulling out her violin. It only took her a moment and get everything situated.
+
+Miska pulled Brook to her feet. "Come one, dance with me."
+
+Brook giggled nervously. She pushed her hair behind her ears and then held up her hands.
+
+Miska stood close. With a smile, she slipped her hands around Brook's waist. "Now, my queen, dance with me?"
+
+With a frightened look, Brook looked surprise but then she lowered her hand to Miska's shoulders. It took her a moment but then she relaxed perceptually.
+
+Linsan rested her bow on the strings for just a heartbeat before starting a ballad.
+
+Miska smiled and guided Brook by her hips as they swayed in time with the music. There was a grace in her movements, something more than a dancer.
+
+Brook followed, mostly by letting Miska guide her. They slowly danced around the fire as the smoke and wind followed after them. Their footsteps were soft as whispers with the song coming from Linsan's violin.
+
+Linsan stood up, to move herself, but she made no effort to approach the two women. They were lost in each other's eyes and bodies, swaying with more than music in their minds.
+
+She watched them and wondered why she didn't feel any jealousy. She knew hundreds of plays and songs that focused on the rage and frustration that came from a lover stolen away, but to Linsan, it didn't feel like she was losing a lover but seeing a friend grow.
+
+It may have been the same question she asked herself about love. Just as there was no bitter fangs of jealousy or the impotent rage, neither was there the brilliance outpouring from her heart or the song that refused to fade.
+
+And still no talking cat trying to guide her through adventures of the heart.
+
+She decided it didn't matter. Brook was happy. Miska was happy. They found each other and still remained friends with Linsan. That, she decided, was more important than trying to force an emotion that wasn't there.
+
+With a smile of her own, she spun and danced with herself as her two friends fell further in love.