Curiosity did what, now?

[lurkingkobold]

The kobold's research cave is coming along nicely, after her previous adventure - the floor carefully flattened (by teleporting stone out) and softened (by teleporting sand in); the permanent portals to Deva and the cavern's exit, currently closed to anyone who doesn't know the passwords, but marked off, with spaces set aside for several more portals; her experimenting supplies tucked away behind further portals in her workspace; a small cache set up for her new translation necklace and any other magical items she might happen to find in her travels.

And, now, another portal, leading to another new world. She double-checks that she has her traveling gear - translation necklace, teleporting ring, twine - completes the spell, and peers through.

Comments

[last_one_out]

"I'm an Aluvai, and I have no idea," he says. "I just appeared here from where I was before. It was very surprising."

[lurkingkobold]

The elves seem alarmed at the latter half of this. The leader addresses one of the others: "Quill, go back to the village and tell the others - Petal and his apprentices first, and then see what the council wants us to do." The addressed elf nods and turns back up the path while the leader dismounts, landing with practiced ease and the steadying help of his spear. "I'm Swiftness Wintercloud, and these are Goose, Dusk, Hare, and Thorn, of the Saffron Fountain." He indicates the other elves in turn as he speaks, then bows.

[last_one_out]

"I'm Elarron Kevarsin," he says, and returns the bow. "Do strangers often spontaneously appear in this forest? Nothing like it has ever happened before at home."

[lurkingkobold]

"No - that sounds like foreign magic, I've never heard of anything like it. Can you show us where you appeared?"

[last_one_out]

He looks doubtfully back along the path, then shakes his head. "I'm not used to finding my way in a place like this, and I think I've gotten lost a few too many times to find where I started."

[lurkingkobold]

The elf nods. "We should bring you to the village, then. Not all the wildlife here is as well-behaved as Blueberry." He pats the bear's flank affectionately. "Do you ride?"

[last_one_out]

"I do, yes, but I'm only familiar with goats as riding animals."

[lurkingkobold]

The elf glances speculatively at the bear's saddle-less bulk, but concludes, "It's not too far to walk. Dusk, you're with me; Goose, you take Hare and Thorn and go check for tigerfolk - we were assigned to the south bend of the river, but check the eastern bit, too, Lizard's team was assigned there and you know how they are. Don't engage - if they're setting magic traps we want them alive, just report back and we'll get a trapping squad to follow up."

Goose nods, and Hare and Thorn fall in behind her and they set off down the path. Swiftness makes no move to re-mount, but starts walking, and the bear and remaining elf follow. "Can you tell me anything else about the trap that brought you here? What you were doing right before you appeared?"

[last_one_out]

"Nothing exceptional," he shrugs. "Went for a walk in one of the wilder parts of my family's holdings, got attacked by a giant snake, and then before I'd figured out what I was going to do about the giant snake, here I was in this extremely brightly lit forest."

[lurkingkobold]

"...extremely bright? You're from the underdark?"

[last_one_out]

"I don't know what you mean by the underdark, but it doesn't get this bright where I'm from."

[lurkingkobold]

"The caverns," he gestures, "underground. I've never seen them, but the traders are always coming back with stories of the latest wonder or monster the dwarves have found down there."

[last_one_out]

"Oh. No," he says. "We have caverns where I'm from, but I didn't live in one. We just don't get much direct sunlight."

[lurkingkobold]

Swiftness considers this, and concludes "Huh. And are giant snakes common, there? I'm a little concerned that the trap that caught you was meant for the snake, instead - not that we can't handle a monster if we need to, but we've already had one attack here recently; if there's going to be more, we'll want to be prepared."

[last_one_out]

"They're reasonably common, yes. Was the other attack also a monster...? I was under the impression that monsters were very rare in the sunlit lands."

[lurkingkobold]

"No," he sighs, "worse, someone took an axe to one of our trees. In our own forest, I can hardly believe it."

The bear, walking beside the elf, reaches its head over to whuffle his hair with its nose, eliciting a sad smile and a pat on the flank.

[last_one_out]

"...I'm not sure I understand," he says. "There aren't really trees at home like you have here - I've heard of them, but I've never seen one before today."

[lurkingkobold]

The elf blinks, and considers this for a minute.

"Trees are alive, like all plants, and like all living things they're sacred. But trees are special beyond that - trees can live forever, if they're protected, and trees and elves are the only things in the forest that can. To take that potential and end it for a bit of fire or some trinkets is a tragedy."

[last_one_out]

"Oh." He considers this. "Yes, I see what you mean."

[lurkingkobold]

Swiftness nods, and pats his bear, and walks on in contemplative silence.

[last_one_out]

Contemplative silence all round then.

[lurkingkobold]

Yup.

The path joins with others a few times as they approach the elves' village, and Swiftness makes no effort to give Elarron an opportunity to memorize the pattern of turns.

Eventually, they arrive at the village, which is bordered by a hedge twice as tall as an elf and full of imposing thorns and poofy clusters of tiny yellow flowers. The path leads to a break in the hedge, where two elves with spears are stationed; the bit of the village that's visible through the gap consists of long huts that appear to be woven from living plants, shaded by the trees growing here and there throughout the clearing.

[last_one_out]

Elarron does his best with the route. His memory is good, and his ability to navigate in the sunlit lands is much better than he lets on, but he's still not sure about a few of those turns and branches.

The thorny hedge brings a smile to his face. The unfamilar style of flowers just seems to suit this unnaturally bright forest so well.

[lurkingkobold]

Swiftness doesn't appear to notice, but leads them into the village and past a few fields of crops to one of the huts. (Dusk, meanwhile, leads the bear and her cat off to join a pen full of miscellaneous animals.)

[last_one_out]

Elarron follows along, looking around curiously and listening to all the interesting sounds. He is careful to keep out of people's way and avoid stepping on or bumping into anything that looks like it oughtn't be stepped on or bumped into.