Ivoryrose, or Ivy for short, was finally ready to take on tougher 18 hour mining ventures. She took her pay, politely said her farewells, and wandered off in deep thought towards Western Thanalan.

A few weeks ago Ivy had heard whispers at the Miners’ Guild about a cart which magically followed its owner. However, as she was only there to purchase some ore rather than gather it for that particular venture, she didn’t stick around long enough to hear more. But now the time had come to seek out the truth for herself, and she believed it was hidden in the Copperbell Mines.

With this cart Ivy planned to outshine her fellow retainers who had brought Yazi back useless things like overweight cats and tiny yetis, but which she for some reason adored. Ivy instead wanted to acquire mountains of precious ore, which in her eyes were far more valuable, especially in gil!

“Argh! Curse the Tw-“

Ivy wasn’t paying attention, so caught up with gil signs for eyes, she’d literally stumbled into the mines. But before she could gather her bearings she saw movement ahead. She quickly jumped to her feet and hid behind the nearest boulder, peeking around the side for a better look.

In the distance was a light, casting several moving shadows. There were too many to determine individual shapes, but they all seemed very short.

“Lalafells, perhaps? They couldn’t be Hyur children, those rumours were debunked, right? Or… No, please don’t be spriggans!”

As these thoughts rushed through her mind, her eyes caught a glint. It took her a moment to register what she was seeing, but there it was, a cart moving of its own accord and without rails! It was another moment before she realised just how small it was.

“Surely the light is playing tricks with my eyes? Why, that’s practically miniature!”

She must have said that last part too loudly because suddenly she heard rustling and grumbles coming towards her. Without another thought or glance towards the approaching silhouettes, she ran as fast as she could towards the cart, grabbed it, ran back out of the mines and hid behind the beams of the entrance. And then there wasn’t another sound, from her or the miners, for what felt like an age.

When she thought it was safe, she quickly set back to Ul’dah. Although there was still a few hours left before she expected to be summoned, Ivy was exhausted and had lost a lot of motivation from the disappointment of such a small cart, so decided to rent a room at The Hourglass for the remainder of the night.

When the inevitable ring of the summoning bell came, Ivy put on her best smile and decided to just hand over the miniature minecart so she didn’t appear empty handed. To her surprise and relief, her employer loved it.

As Ivy departed on her next venture, she spotted Yazi running in circles, laughing joyfully as the cart followed behind her.



Words: 500

Character Name: Yazi Fairhammer
World: Cerberus
Prize Choice: Ahriman Choker