[Entertainment Hall - Ejra Demori's Fantastical Emporium]

Kel squeaked. "No hugging! Do not with the hugging!" He waved his arms in emphasis, though there was enough obvious care with the gestures - and not just of the sort that anyone took when moving in powered armor - to make it clear that he was putting on a bit of an act. Or at least, it would have made it clear if the shvuim-style grin on his face hadn't already done so.

Assuming a position midway between Selina and Demori, he looked at the latter. "Thank you, zer," he said. "If there's anything she needs to pay you, I'd welcome paying it myself." There was a certain look in his dark gold eyes - or at least the one facing the merchant - to make it clear that serious haggling over a price would not be appreciated. Not that Kel expected any; Demori had seemed like a very nice old human so far.

[Market Hall - Tevarian's Booth - Somlan Erris, Zachary Jackson, Tevarian T'jok]

"Yes, that sounds excellent," Tevarian said, taking the coins from Somlan, "any others strike your fancy?"

[Temple Aeorinin]

"We have made all necessary accommodations with the local organizers," the man said.

"And using warped space, this temple occupies much less space than it appears to," the woman said, "and don't worry, there are no side-effects."

A moment later, a man could be seen walking briskly towards them from the other side of the temple. He looked surprisingly ordinary, with brown short hair, blue eyes, and was wearing plain white robes.

Upon arriving, he said, "welcome! Sorry I wasn't able to greet you earlier, but we've been very busy today. I'm John Anactria, one of the interpreters here at the temple. It is a great honor to have you with us." He held out his hand for a hearty handshake, if Joseph were so inclined. If he did, he would likely notice that the man's skin felt normal, although a bit cool to the touch.

Market Hall - Food Court (Nazerno, Dimi, Rey)

Dimi watched as a portal appeared at a nearby table. A grey-skinned woman walked through it, and then the portal disappeared.

"What're you lookin' at, boy?" Nazerno demanded suspiciously.

"I was just thinking, Master, that this is a fair of people from many different worlds, with differing levels of technology."

"Yeah, and?"

"Perhaps we should seek out someone with higher technology to aid us." Dimi looked at the other table, and saw the green-skinned woman still seated there. Furors had an instinctive ability to visually assess the combat abilities of others, and he sensed in her a great deal of combat experience. He pointed her out to his Master. "I think she might be a useful ally, Master. Perhaps we should introduce ourselves?"

Nazerno looked at Dimi warily. Like most Azikathi, he still believed that Zinji were naturally incapable of independent thought, so he regarded any suggestion from Dimi with the greatest suspicion. Still, he didn't have a better plan. "Fine. But I'll do the talkin'..."

Dimi covertly rolled his eyes as they got up and made their way over to the green woman's table.

"Well, hello there, my good woman!" Nazerno called out as they approached. "We were wonderin' if you could help us. See, we've come to this here fair in search of a dangerous criminal who's kidnapped a sweet innocent girl and is no doubt in the process of subjectin' her to all manner o' deprivation-"

"I think you mean 'depravity', Master..." Dimi murmured.

"That too. 'Tis truly tragic. Have you by any chance seen a large dark-skinned woman runnin' about? Possibly wielding a sword all inadvisably?"

[Temple Aeorinin] (Joseph, John, ???)

"Well that's a relief." Joseph half said, half murmured, "I think I've been warped plenty." Even so, he couldn't help shooting a sneaky glance down at his arm. To his relief, it looked just as normal as a pitch dark and vaguely reptilian (or was it amphibian?) arm could.

He was still a little overwhelmed by the sight of the temple, but did take notice when John approached, guessing at who the man might be before he had actually arrived. Joe glanced down at his feet, pulling them closer together, and at his arms, clasping his hands near his waist. He now wished he had splurged on an outfit that looked just a little more formal, even if it was cheap in reality. Instead he had gone for cheapness that looked cheap; an amateur mistake, really. Still, he could hardly have known that a pair of enlightened green beans would approach him in his depressed slump and invite him to come to their fancy pants temple. All he could do was wear it well and look his best elsewhere.

Once he was done fidgeting in place and John was upon him, he put on a reasoned smile and lowered his large eyelids slightly in that quaint look that all self-assured people seemed to wear. It was a good move too, considering that his presence at the temple was supposedly, 'an honor.' An honor??

Nevertheless, Joseph accepted the mans handshake offer—though he was a little unprepared for the handshake proper—and said, "Well, I'm...mm happy to be here, Mr. An- mm- ahem- Anactria." It was only half true, but then, it was also only half false. And most of the sentiment's falseness simply stemmed from his own lingering confusion with the whole situation.

"I was, uh, told that you wanted to ask me some questions?" Joseph continued, alternating between looking the man in the eyes and just staring at his chin.

[Temple Aeorinin]

"Ah, good," John said, "also, Alex and Alex, you may return to observing, I can take care of our guest from here."

"Then we shall part ways," Alex(M) said to Joseph.

"Good luck on your journey," Alex(F) said.

They both walked out of the doorway, back into the fair's walkway, the door shutting behind them. From this side, at least, the door still looked like a normal door. For any doors in the temple, as long as Joseph is walking out, they will open for him automatically if he gets close, including this one.

Once they were gone, John said to Joseph, "sorry if they were a bit cryptic with you, they are much better observers than greeters. Also, while yes, we have some questions, I promise not to spend too much of your time. Speaking of which, I think a side room should do nicely." He walked over to a door on the right, motioning for Joseph to follow.

The door opened as soon as John approached it, revealing a small room, with two swivel chairs across from each other next to a central table. "Don't worry, we don't judge anyone - and always feel free to not answer if it is too uncomfortable," John said, motioning for Joseph to enter the room.

If Joseph were to enter the side room... "Please, take a seat," John said, walking up to a recessed cubby on the wall, "would you like anything to drink or eat before we start?" Once Joseph was inside, the door would close behind him, although with a small rectangular one-way window, through which one could see the interior hall of the temple.

[Temple Aeorinin (Side Room)] (Joseph, John)

The creases in Joseph's lizardy brow deepened slightly when he finally heard his escorts' names, but otherwise he made no comment, simply nodding to each "Alex" in return.

In regards to their being cryptic, Joe just shrugged, saying, "It's nothing I'm not used to. It seems like everyone around here has got these big tangled up secrets, and none are too keen on sharing." Or maybe what he thought of as secrets were just things that were commonplace in other existences, things that wouldn't normally need explaining. Surely Joseph was guilty of that himself.

He followed John to the side room, trying to get a good look at the large whatever-it-was sitting near to the lockers as he went. He almost asked about the temple's other inhabitants, as they seemed very strange in comparison to John and even the twin Alex's, but it didn't seem like the right time, or Joseph's place, to bring it up. Besides, they were hardly any stranger than what else he had seen wandering about the fair outside.

"If you're going to be asking me about what I think you're going to be asking me about," he began as he stepped into the room, "then I should be able to answer fine. I don't feel too uncomfortable about it, anyway. For the most part. It's just a matter of what I can remember and all that; I didn't exactly know that this was going to be test day."

Joe approached one of the chairs, though he moved slower and slower as he grew nearer to it. He glanced at John, waiting for the guy to turn away before quickly sitting down, and just as quickly adjusting until he could find a position that was comfortable. Sitting in most chairs with a large tail was something he had yet to gain mastery of, and in this case Joseph couldn't just slouch like he normally did. When John asked him about food, he was perched nearly on the edge of the chair, his tail resting behind him in a position that, while not quite comfortable, seemed doable for a fairly quick questionnaire. More importantly, it allowed the rest of him to sit upright, looking prim and proper in his cheap T-shirt.

"No thanks, I kind of ate not too long ago." In truth, he wouldn't have minded having a bit more to munch on, as he hadn't really eaten well in the past few days, but his raging self-consciousness always seemed to keep him from being too openly needy, even to his detriment. However... "Actually, I wouldn't mind just some water if that's- y'know, all right."

Market Hall (Food Court) (Nagako, Tamara)

"Is there any guarantee she'll be back here, though?" Nagako asked, raising an eyebrow, "Wouldn't it be a better idea to try and actively find her rather than just wait and hope for the best?" She shrugged, before following Tamara over to the table and sitting down opposite from her. "Whatever you think works, I suppose."

She was a little taken back by Tamara's latest batch of questions, or rather barrage of questions. "Slow down a little, please," she asked, holding a hand up, "One question at a time. I don't think my mind can work that fast."

[Food Court (Nazerno, Dimi, Rey)]

Rey's first reaction to the arrival of the newcomers was to glare. She'd just been about to get up and go looking for a drink, and these two had to show up? But her second glance was more thoughtful; both of them had the same almost-but-not-quite human look as most of the other people she'd met at the fair so far today.

Why's it never almost-but-not-quite orl? Weird.

As she listened to the old man's kind of rambling speech, she kept her reaction hidden. Fragging vague as his description was, it could have been about the girls from the hotel - whassernames - Noba and Lihiri? Something like that - but the rest of the description didn't match. Put that together with the vaguely criminal feel the old man gave her, and it left her not really feeling like she wanted to tell these two anything.

Still, no point in not seeing where this went. She put on a bland look. "Yeah, I might have seen somebody like that, but I have this terrible condition that gives me lapses in my recent memories, makes it hard to tell. I know sometimes it can be treated with large amounts of currency..."

[Temple Aeorinin (Side Room)]

"We try not to have any secrets here," John said, "oh and water sounds fine." A glass of water materialized inside the recessed cubby John was standing next to, which he picked up and brought over to Joseph.

Sitting down across from Joseph, John said, "consider our resources at your disposal, if you change your mind on wanting anything else. Also, feel free to raise the back of your chair if that would make you more comfortable." The chairs they were sitting in were swivel office-chair style, and there was a lever behind the back of the chair which could raise and lower it. However, instead of a single bar holding up the back support, there were two thinner bars on each side, so when the back was raised, it made a central space, probably reasonable for placing a tail of some sort.

"And before we get to the true questions," John said, "I would like to know - what do you know about the Will of the Multiverse? Nothing is a perfectly reasonable answer, and I'll be happy to explain if you're unsure."

[Temple Aeorinin (Side Room)] (Joseph, John)

"I will, uh- thanks." Joe said, smiling, though with a lingering hint of nervousness. It took a few seconds until he actually did bother to investigate the chair's back-raising mechanism, and a few seconds more until he had settled on a good position. In the end, he was more comfortable, and was able to sit a little more like a normal person would, but that didn't stop the slight burning sensation in his would-be cheeks. Just something he had to get used to.

He paused before answering John's question, drumming his fingers against the tabletop and frowning in thought. He glanced up once, then twice, before finally answering upon a third glance. "To be perfectly honest, I'm not entirely sure what the 'multiverse' even is, let alone what its will is supposed to be. So, yeah," he shrugged, "nada."

Market Hall - Food Court (Nazerno, Dimi, Rey)

"Hells, ain't that an interestin' coincidence," Nazerno said, "Dimi here has similar affliction!" He lowered his voice to what he assumed would be outside of Dimi's hearing. "It's a racial thing, y'see. If these poor, stupid Zinji could grasp that they been workin' fer us fer centuries, why, they might start thinkin' they been enslaved."

Dimi rolled his eyes. She's asking for a bribe, you idiot, he thought. "Please forgive my Master," he said, "He is not used to conducting business with sophisticated people. We are looking for a woman named Nioba, who has absconded with a Zinji Avatar named Lihiri. Nioba is an enemy of our government, responsible for the grievous mutilation of one of our most valued citizens..."

"The hell're you doin', boy?" Nazerno demanded.

Dimi ignored his Master. "And with the Avatar at her command, she is capable of great destruction." He offered up his most winsome smile. "Our government will, of course, pay very well for the capture of her and the Avatar." He reached into Nazerno's pocket and stole a handful of his most valuable coins. "Consider this a down payment. Now, do you have any information that could help us?"

[Temple Aeorinin (Side Room)]

"I suppose I could start with the Muliverse, then," John said, "originally, when people saw everything around them, they called it the Universe. Which is perfectly fine until people started traveling beyond and between universes, and came to understand that there's more than one of everything. So now, the Multiverse is the term for all universes, dimensions, and everythings out there. Some people call it redundant, but since different universes can be quite diverse in their laws of physics and other properties, the Multiverse is a useful term to describe all of them together."

"And as for the Will of the Multiverse," John said, "that is both the name of our organization, and what we are trying to interpret."

"Since time immemorial, people have wondered why. Why we are here, why everything exists, and why things happen the way they do," he said, "we try to figure that out. We attempt to explain the unknown - so that others may go about their own individual lives and fulfill their purposes in peace. To accomplish this objective, we understand and analyze any data we can, to find the largest theories, explanations, and interpret what all of existence tells us."

"So that is why we have brought you here," he said, "as since you have traveled to so many different realities in such a short time, you may have glimpsed some of the Multiverse's plan for you, and by figuring out your piece, it will help us to understand the puzzle of all existence."

"Does that make any sense?"

[Food Court (Nazerno, Dimi, Rey)]

Rey was really glad she'd kept her initial reaction to these two hidden; it made it much easier for her to keep the same bland expression even as she had far more reason to drop it.

Slavers. Hells-shitting slavers, ones who weren't even bothering to hide it. She'd never paid much attention to the whole idea of species commonalities, but ever since the Occupation, if the orl had had anything that crossed all nations and cultures - Clanner or not - it was this: all slavers, personal or national, need to die. It wasn't something Rey thought about very often, since there was so little need for even the sicker individuals out there to engage in the practice with tech being the way it was, but she should have figured other worlds would be different.

She avoided reaching for her guns, though, and instead reached for the money. She had a feeling she could take them - especially since it was only really the old man who'd be a problem; the kid might well be neutral - but it'd be rude at best and seriously problematic at worst to start a firefight in the middle of a market. Besides, she had a better idea.

"Oh, yeah, I've seen those two. Hells, more than seen them - we, uh, we didn't get along very well." She tapped her glasses, grinning slyly. "If you want - and if you're willing to pay more than this 'down payment', of course - I could... arrange a meeting. Well, more like a meeting of sorts - specifically the sort where you two and me are the only ones who know about it. If you understand my meaning."

She yawned; it wasn't an act. She'd been awake for an awfully long time by now. "Though that might have to wait for tomorrow. But you have the look of a patient man, and I'm pretty sure they'll still be here then."

[Temple Aeorinin (Side Room)] (Joseph, John)

Joseph took a long, slow swig from the glass of water around midway through John's explanation, though his eyes were trained on the man the entire time. By the end of the explanation, Joe had one elbow on the table, his head propped up on his hand, and his claws drumming against the side of his face, which itself was rather taken in what looked like deep though.

"Boy... sounds like a handful." he said, raising his brow for a brief moment. "Or maybe a 'mindful' would be a better term for it. I mean," he squeezed his eyes shut, holding his hands up on either side his head, "I think I get the overall idea. I think. It's just really... very... far out there. You know? Or maybe you don't, since you're some kind of an expert on all of this. I mean, I have a hard time interpreting what I want to eat for lunch, let alone the meaning of everything everywhere and then some places besides. But I guess if I'm just giving you information, answering questions and all that, then I should be fine."

He sat back a bit, head shaking slightly. "Still... seems like a- a, uh, pretty big undertaking." Actually, it seemed more like an impossible undertaking, but Joseph wasn't about to question the guy who could make glasses of water appear out of thin air. Clearly he was doing something right.

[Hotel, Lobby]

As Nore and Solin left, Adrien turned to address Nioba. "It seems the two of you are intent on getting some rest. I don't know what our chances are of finding our mark alive after today, but I have no intention of giving up so soon. Whoever he is, he might have some idea of how I can get back to-" He hesitated. "Back home." Adrien folded his arms.

"... Also," he began again, sounding a good deal more reticent, after several moments of awkward silence, "I didn't exactly get the chance to check in when I arrived. I assume the two of you have a room?" He let the question hang, not quite sure how to continue, or if he even should.

edited 19th Jan '15 7:50:12 AM by Gault

Market Hall - Food Court (Dimi, Nazerno, Rey)

Dimi smiled. "Allow me to confer with my associate for a minute." He switched to the Azikathi dialect and turned towards his Master. "Keep your voice level, old man," he said calmly.

"What in the Nine Hells are you doing, boy?" Nazerno demanded, taking great pains to keep his voice from betraying his fury.

What am I doing? Dimi wondered. It occurred to him that he was actually enjoying Nazerno's consternation. It also occurred to him, noticing the woman's barely hidden disgust at Nazerno's words that he had a very rare opportunity to rid himself of the stupid swamp-fried fuck who'd been bossing him around for... well, more years than he would care to count. "I am attempting to get us back on the trail of our prey, Master," he explained. "I've read this woman's body language, and I am satisfied that she is sympathetic to our cause, and feels no loyalty to our targets. She will deliver the Vyzobian and the Avatar... as long as we pay her and you let me do the talking."

"Boy, if you're trying to pull something..."

"I would be more concerned about the possibility that I am not pulling something. Because it would pain me terribly to see you get flayed alive by Jidra were she to find out that you lost track of the Avatar of Suffering because you had so little confidence in your ability to control your own slave."

Nazerno stared at Dimi for a good long while. "Fine. We'll try it your way. But if this goes badly..." He let the threat hang unfinished.

Dimi turned back to Rey. "Apologies for the delay. As I've said, my associate is not used to doing business like this. We are prepared to pay any price, and will be happy to wait until tomorrow. Shall we agree to meet again tomorrow morning?"

Cloud Gate Hotel - Lobby (Nioba, Lihiri, Adrien)

Nioba stared at Adrien through narrowed eyes for a good minute, then mentally reminded herself that he may not have thought out the implications of asking to room with two women. "Lihiri and I have a room, yes. No offense to you, but after a long day like today, I think we'd prefer to have some alone time. Much less chance of getting sucked into any more crazy shit."

"Other than the crazy shit that normally follows us around, she means," Lihiri added.

"Yes, we're used to dealing with that kind of crazy shit. There's usually no bombs or high-tech guns or goddess-damned sentient fucking poison dragons attached to that kind of weird shit and oh goddess, I'm starting to talk like Lihiri."

"There's bound to be a room available for you, though," Lihiri assured him. "The interior of the hotel is much larger than the exterior, as it would have to be to accommodate all the thousands of visitors to this fair. I mean, it stands to reason..."

edited 28th Jan '15 2:26:03 PM by StrixObscuro

[Temple Aeorinin (Side Room)]

"Yes, it is extremely 'far out', and quite possibly an impossible task to finish," John said, "but we serve our followers with many smaller discoveries along the way, and mostly by ensuring they do not have to worry about these issues, as we're working on it for them. And we each work on interpreting small parts, eventually adding to the greater understanding."

"That being said, perhaps we can glimpse a hint of the plan from your experience," John said, "feel free to take your time answering, throw out any wild theories or guess, and saying you don't know is always fine too."

"So, my first question is, do you have any idea why you are traveling between these disparate realities?" John said.

edited 20th Jan '15 12:19:19 AM by Sonzai

[Food Court (Nazerno, Dimi, Rey)]

Aw, shit. Shit shit shit.

Rey'd known going into the fair that her translator wasn't going to be able to do much good for most of the languages she ran into. That didn't make it any better seeing the kid take cover behind the language barrier. She tried following their emotions for any signs that they were suspicious; human (and near-human) faces might have freakishly small eyes, but it wasn't like she'd grown up in the back of nowhere She could read them well enough. The old man certainly didn't seem happy, but it wasn't like he'd ever been giving off peaceful signs.

She kept her face bland throughout the whole thing - it wasn't like this was her first time bluffing people or anything - and was rewarded by the kid agreeing to her suggestion. Either he'd gone in for it, or he wasn't loyal enough to his boss - no surprise there - to make a fuss.

"I'm not a morning girl. Make it noon and you've got yourself a deal. I expect you'll want to wait on talking payment..." she paused, as it sunk in. Any price. Did he really say... Fragging hells! Her thoughts about the kid having the more common sense of the duo went completely away, at least if he wasn't setting the old man up. If I was serious and into merc work more for the money... wow.

"Um. Yeah, so I figure you'll want to wait on talking payment until after I've delivered. I know I would. If there's nothing else, I hope it'll be a pleasure doing business with you two gentle-beings."

[Temple Aeorinin]

Within the temple, the dimensional watch station, as well as anyone within that possessed similar powers to it, could most likely detect space-time beginning to subtly alter directly in front of the door leading from the side room John and Joseph were in.

edited 19th Jan '15 11:49:31 PM by nrjxll

[Temple Aeorinin (Side Room)] (Joseph, John)

Joseph shook his head, his saddened eyes softly focused on the center of the table. "Three... or four- maybe four months ago, I had no clue, not an- a what- an inkling that any of this even existed. Other realities. Other worlds. People trying to piece the whole thing together, you know? I don't think it's a commonly known thing where I'm from. At least, I'd never heard of it 'til it all got thrust upon me one day for some reason. I think if I knew why any of this was happening, I'd be a much happier guy." His large eyelids lowered slightly, "Buuut I don't. I don't know what started it, I don't know what keeps causing it, and least of all do I know how to make it stop. I don't even know if it can be controlled, unless you say it can, 'cause then... well, I mean, you're the expert."

He glanced briefly up at John, then back down at the table, letting out a heavy sigh. "So, yeah, that's an 'I don't know' for you. Maybe the 'Will of the Multiverse' thought that my old life was too boring and decided to take a few liberties with it."

[Temple Aeorinin (Side Room)]

"Sorry to hear that," John said, "but perhaps we can find out more by fitting the facts together. Think back to when you traveled between realities, did you notice any sensations, emotions, or feelings?"

"Also, was there any similarity between the places you've been visiting," he said, "for example, were the others you met mostly visitors as well, or were they mostly natives, and you were the only guest?"

John received an encrypted communication, <Dimensional Watch: Class 4 space-time anomaly observed one meter from your room's entrance.>

"Oh, and we may be getting a visitor, are you expecting anyone?" John said, looking at the door.

[Temple Aeorinin (Main Hall)]

Meanwhile, having received a similar communication, the large sumo-frog near the entrance partially awoke, and opened its right eye in the direction of the door, watching to see what happened.

In addition, the floating person in the hall hovered closer, looking at the door as well. She was about 5ft/1.5m tall, hovering about 2ft/60cm off the ground, and was dressed in ethereal, glowing white robes, which seemed to defy gravity. Her body and hair appeared to be made of light itself, and her eyes were like windows into space, if one were to look closely.

Also note that while the Dimensional Watch Station itself is secure, and protected by anti-teleportation and spatial-jamming technology - the rest of the temple has no resistances whatsoever.

edited 20th Jan '15 1:09:38 AM by Sonzai

[Temple Aeorinin (Side Room)]

"No, I expect he isn't," a cracked, reedy old male voice said, "what with the way he managed to somehow lose an item that only happened to be his guarantee to returning home!"

Between instants, the space-time distortion by the door had transformed into a tall bipedal being completely shrouded in black robes, gripping a a long grey staff in one hand.^note Full description here. It shook this at Joseph. "Very fortunate for you I've gotten somewhat used to that sort of thing, young man, and having been keeping two eyes on you just in case. Honestly. Sapient beings these days."

It shook its cowl exaggeratedly, before turning it to point in the direction of John. "And you, sir, are wasting your time with this interrogation. Don't you think I've already asked him all this, for Our sake? Inasmuch as there's any great 'purpose' to this - and really, what a foolish notion that all is - it's little more than one of the multiverse's little jokes."

Exceedingly advanced detection methods (I'm pretty sure the dimensional watch station has these, but I don't know about John) can determine that the cloaked figure is actually a projection from somewhere else, albeit a largely tangible and physical one.

[Temple Aeorinin (Side Room)] (Joseph, John)

"I don't remember there being any sensations, no." Joe answered, raising his eyes to John and shaking his head slowly, "And the only emotions I can think of were just... well, I guess it kind of depended on the situation, you know, where I was coming from and where I was going—but sometimes I was upset to find myself in a completely different place than I was before, just as I was feeling a little settled and all that. But other times it was kind of a relief, a- uh, a lifesaver, even." He clasped his hands together, lowering his gaze towards them. "But I never noticed it happening until a little while after it had already happened. Sometimes it happened while I was asleep. Sometimes I go into a room and I close the door, and then I open it back up, and although the room is the same, the place outside is something else entirely."

He idly poked at the tabletop with one claw, his large mouth set in a light frown. "Kind of feels like I'm being tricked. One thing though; I'm always alone when it happens. As for the other people... it kind of depends too. It seemed like earlier on there were a lot of other folks who, like me, had been yoinked out of their own places and times, although..." his brow lowered in hard thought, "I don't think it was always so sudden for everyone else the same way it was for me. Anyway, I also met up with people I recognized, not from my own world, but from another similar instance, although it was a longer while ago. And as I've said, that was only the first few... wait- wait wait wait, a visitor?"

Joseph looked up just in time to see the cowled old guy with the staff materialize right at the door. It took him a few moments to realize that the thoughts that were just now beginning to stir in his his mind were already coming to life before his eyes, and even after reaching that point he didn't quite know how to feel. He might've stood up in excitement, but he wasn't really the standing-up-in-excitement type. He also might've said something in his defense when the cowled figure—brusque as ever—called him out on losing the card, but, well... that had been his fault somehow. He might also have asked why the old guy needed Joseph to say his name if he could so easily keep an eye on him from wherever he had gone, but that thought had been lost in the overwhelming uproar of the moment. So instead, he just sat there, looking as surprised as a guy with such a lizardlike face could.

[Entertainment Hall - Ejra Demori's Fantastical Emporium]

Ejra chuckled at Kel's obvious body language, but shook his head and waved his free hand dismissively.

"Nothing at all, nothing at all," he said, tossing the book blithely back over his shoulder like a finished fruit rind. "A free sample, as it were. I trust you'll keep old Ejra in mind should you find yourself in need of spells or artifacts! Ah, do be sure to eat something and drink some water," he added, leaning sideways to look at Selina around Kel. "Something sugary, I think. As I understand it, this accelerates your metabolism a bit, which can tire you out quite without warning. Nothing too harmful, but I wouldn't go exerting myself too much without a snack."

[Market Hall - Tevarian's Booth - Somlan Erris, Zachary Jackson, Tevarian T'jok]

Somlan's expression and posture were uncharacteristically shifty. "Ah, my girl," he said. "Back home. She's, that is, a soldier, like me, though she's more the stabby-hitty type and I'm the hand-wavey spell-slingy type."

At T'jok's question, Somlan gave a last look at the prism as he pocketed the gemstone, but shook his head. "Nah, nothing that doesn't outweigh my little bag of coins. I thank you for this, though," he said, patting the pocket where he'd deposited the gem.

He inclined his head respectfully to T'jok, then did the same for Zak. He stood there for a second, looking like he was about to say something, but then he just said, "...Ah, I should go find the Vizier. He's probably crouched in a corner somewhere gnawing on a lamb shank and glowering at people." And with that, he made his way off into the crowd.

And there's my characters disengaged—Ejra will be unoccupied whenever Selina and Kel move on, which sounds like it will happen soon.

[Hotel, Lobby]

Adrien returned Nioba's stare with a searching expression. Then, suddenly, he seemed to realize something. Adrien nodded once, saying, "Fair enough." and reached a hand back to pinch the back of his neck. "I suppose I'll have to make do. Accommodations are sure to be better than I've had for the past- oh, how long was it?" He winced. "Four days? Nevermind." He shook his head. "So, we'll meet in the morning again, I take it? As much as I want to find that man, I have to admit I'd be in much better shape to do it after a night's rest."

[Markethall-Tevarian's stall]

Zak noticed Somlan's discomfort with the subject. "Something... wrong with that?" He asked. Though he was too late, as Somlan had already left. Shrugging, he decided to move on.

edited 21st Jan '15 6:31:17 AM by TroPartner