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]

"That... would be much appreciated, thank you," he says. "I'm very confused."

[lurkingkobold]

"About?"

[last_one_out]

"It sounded like Rain thought I might attack someone, and I don't understand why, and I don't understand how Swiftness reacted when I tried to ask."

[lurkingkobold]

She nods, unsurprised. "Rain worries," she explains, "and Swiftness feels..." after a moment trying to find the word she wants, she gives up, with the absent wave of a hand. "Doesn't like being doubted. And then Rain worries more." She takes a moment to contemplate the back wall, and then adds, "they were fighting about you this time, but it wasn't really about you, it's the same fight they always have."

[last_one_out]

He relaxes somewhat over the course of this explanation.

"Hmm. Okay. Thank you," he says when she's finished speaking. "I understand a lot better now. I still think I might be missing something, but I'm much less alarmed about it."

[lurkingkobold]

Dusk nods with a small grin. "I'll have River come. Rain will be back?"

[last_one_out]

"Yeah," he says, nodding.

[lurkingkobold]

She nods. "River will help with him. Anything else?"

[last_one_out]

He considers, then shakes his head. "Can't think of anything. Thanks for your help."

[lurkingkobold]

She nods and bows with another grin, and leaves.

Elarron is more or less on his own, for now; the mages are paying enough attention to him that he wouldn't get far if he tried to leave, but they're otherwise occupied with their casting.

[last_one_out]

He finds a place to sit that isn't in anyone's way and isn't too brightly lit, and sits there, and thinks over everything that's happened and what he might want to do next.

(And considers how he's been acting, and how he can stay as close to the truth as possible while maintaining necessary deceptions. He thinks he's been doing pretty well at appearing to be the sort of person who is maximally convenient to have show up as an unexpected guest from another world. Hopefully he'll be able to 'find out' about the ways local magic is dangerous soon, and deliver a suitably awkward and uncomfortable apology/deflection to Rain.)

[lurkingkobold]

After about ten minutes, a new elf pokes her head in the doorway. "Dusk said there was a new person in here?"

She scans the room, eventually spotting Elarron. "Oh, you are a new person! Hello!" She crosses the room and sits across from him. "I'm River, I'm sort of a jack-of-all-trades around here; I'm afraid Dusk didn't tell me much about you, just that I should come meet you."

[last_one_out]

... Elarron decides that he likes Dusk.

"Hello," he says, smiling. "I'm Elarron. I appeared unexpectedly in this forest a few hours ago and people think I'm probably from another world. It's been a confusing day."

[lurkingkobold]

"Wow, I can imagine." She scans the room again. "And let me guess, Petal is at the council trying to talk them into opening another trade route, and Rain is off someplace panicking about otherworldly titans, and meanwhile nobody has bothered to figure out what you can eat or where you're going to sleep."

[last_one_out]

"...That sounds about right," says Elarron. "Although I'm not sure what a titan is."

[lurkingkobold]

"Oh, they're big stompy monsters, kind of like a dragon or giant but they're all different. We're well-defended here, though, nothing to worry about. So, what kinds of things do you eat?"

[last_one_out]

"Well - I don't know, what kinds of things do the people here eat?"

[lurkingkobold]

"Elves eat mostly fruit and grains. Tigerfolk eat mostly meat; they can eat a few kinds of fruit but it's not really good for them. And then the animals eat all sorts of things, so we have a little bit of everything on hand even if we don't need it for ourselves."

[last_one_out]

"Aluvai eat fruit and grains and meat. Other things too, but fruit and grains and meat are fine by themselves."

[lurkingkobold]

She nods. "I'm planning on making corn chowder for dinner tonight; I can make enough for two if that will suit you, or I can ask around and see what else we can come up with."

[last_one_out]

"That sounds fine to me. Thanks."

[lurkingkobold]

She nods with a grin. "Sounds good. As to where you can sleep -"

"Shell's old workshop is still free," interjects one of the mages.

River blinks. "And what if he needs something during the night?"

"He can ask the guards. Unless he'd rather tell us what the ring does."

"...oh." River considers this, and then nods reluctantly. "I suppose that's where you'll go, then."

[last_one_out]

"...What?" he says, blinking confusedly.

[lurkingkobold]

It takes a moment for River to get her bearings again. "Magic can be dangerous. You seem nice enough, but nobody is going to want a stranger with unidentified magic walking around unsupervised." She seems a little bit apologetic, but mostly unsettled under the veneer of friendliness.

[last_one_out]

"...I... think this might be a different-worlds thing," he says. "Magic doesn't really—do that, at home. It wouldn't make sense to think of something like the—the ring as dangerous." (He is visibly uncomfortable discussing the ring, in a way that suggests someone trying unsuccessfully to relax a strong expectation of privacy around an extremely personal subject.)