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NEAR THE BASE OF THE WATERFALL - LATE MORNING
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Doc Plume sits on a mossy rock near a calmer portion of the pool at the waterfall's base. Their bare feet a dangling down into the cool water and their pants are appropriately rolled up just under the knee. Doc otherwise is wearing just an undershirt with their duster, hat and boots set neatly on the rock beside them. They're just gaze at and around the waterfall, taking a few moments to relax after a hectic first few days in town.
Nesseth walks into view along a small trail leading around the side of the waterfall's base, a trail that meanders alongside the stream the waterfall feeds into. He stretches his arms luxuriously as he walks, clearly at ease on a day off, then smiles warmly and waves at Plume upon seeing the gryphon also enjoying some relaxation time. "Hey there, Doc. Good to see you again."
Doc Plume twitches their tail at the sudden presence behind them, then turns and waves. "Oh, hello again Nesseth. On patrol?"
Nesseth shakes his head. "Nope, not today. Got myself a day off, but my legs still expect me to do a lot of walking." He tilts his head, "You've got the day off too, I'm guessing?"
Doc Plume nods some. "Needed a break. Had to leave a note saying where I was in case of emergency, of course." They sigh. "The town doctor is never really off duty, right?"
Nesseth steps over to the edge of the stream and takes a moment to roll up the legs of his pants, then dips his feet into the cool waters. "No, unfortunately not, especially in a frontier town like this." He smiles, "Still, it's thanks to you that the rest of us can keep going."
Doc Plume smiles with their eyes before gazing down at their reflection in the water. "Well, I knew what I was getting myself into, I guess. So far nothing too hard to deal with... That kobold with the metal arm came in yesterday, but other than a mild concussion, he was surprisingly unharmed. Just a few cuts and bruises."
Nesseth chuckles. "You mean Strix, the kobold inventor? He seems surprisingly resilient, but if he's been doing it for a while I guess even explosions become easier to withstand." He tilts his head a little again, "How's that wolf pup whose arm you had to fix, by the way? The mom seemed kind of hysterical when I left that day..."
Doc Plume shakes their head and smiles. "Kids are really good at bouncing back. Once I got the bone set and splinted, they were pretty happy again. The mom was still worried, but I saw them in the market the other day, and apart from the sling, you couldn't tell that the kid was hurt the other day."
Nesseth chuckles happily. "That's good to hear. If he bounces back that fast, I wouldn't be surprised if he's able to use his arm again within a few weeks, instead of a couple of months."
Doc Plume leans back a bit, bracing their hands against the rock. "Well, kids are growing fast, so that makes them heal fast..." They look over at Nesseth. "Of course it varies by species and metabolism. In the case of exothermic reptiles, more warmth will make them heal faster..."
Nesseth flashes a toothy smile. "To be fair, warmth also makes us super lazy, so that might have a hand in it by making us more willing to just relax." He blinks, taking a moment to rub his chin thoughtfully, "Actually... maybe the laziness on hot days is just me. Ah, well."
Doc Plume looks Nesseth over and ponders. "Ah, are you exothermic then? Usually the bigger ones are endotherms."
Nesseth chuckles. "Don't worry, Doc, I'm just pulling your leg a bit. Really hot days do make me lazy, but that's just me being... well, lazy. Don't feel like doing much when the alternative is getting crispy and dried out like a strip of jerky, you know?"
Doc Plume gives a cawing laugh. "Fair enough... though there's nothing wrong with a good strip of jerky..."
Nesseth nods in agreement. "Oh yeah, jerky's good, especially while out on patrol. Something easy to nibble on while walking, flavorful, cheap and pretty filling."
Doc Plume laughs again. "Kept me going on my trip here, at least." They look around. "Of course, mention meat around some of the herbivores and they have a fit..."
Nesseth hums. "Mmh, yeah. It's one of the first things I learned back when I joined the Explorers Guild. If you're a carnivore or omnivore and need a snack while out on any sort of trip with herbivores, you eat the snack when no one else is looking."
Doc Plume lies back fully, looking up at the sky. "They're lucky we don't just start eating the roadkill. I mean, something is going to eventually..."
Nesseth leans back a bit on his arms as well, making himself comfortable. He can't help but laugh a bit. "I can only imagine the reactions if someone brought it up as a suggestion for food on a patrol or something. Weird looks and probably some retching at the very least."
Doc Plume shrugs. "I'm part carrion bird. It doesn't seem weird at all to me. I guess that's what makes me a good surgeon." The look over at Nesseth with a smirk. "And no, I don't snack on my patients."
Nesseth nods. "Fair enough. You'd have a good knowledge of anatomy just by natural reasons." He lets out a singular laugh and smirks in turn, "Well, I wouldn't mind so long as the part you're snacking on isn't attached to my body anymore. You might have trouble getting past the scales, though."
Doc Plume snorts, holding in a laugh. "Probably helps that most of the bits I take out of folks are diseased, so not exactly appetizing..." They roll their neck around. "Also the fact that when I'm working I can just forget to eat. Back during final exams, I think I went about half a week without a meal and didn't notice until someone mentioned it."
Nesseth raises an eyebrow at that. "You went several days without food during your exams? I knew medical exams were tough, but yikes..." He pauses, "Or... were you just that focused?"
Doc Plume shrugs. "I'm mostly just fur and feathers, and I was surviving on tea and strong coffee for those days, so I guess I felt full, just not with actual food."
Nesseth: Huh... I guess when you put it that way, your body doesn't need as much to sustain itself? The only times I've gone without eating for more than a day are when I've gotten really ill to the point I couldn't eat...
Doc Plume closes their eyes and spreads their wings out on the rock to just sun themself on the rock as they talk with Nesseth. "Yeah, pretty much. It's easier to remember when I'm on a regular schedule, though."
Nesseth nods as he looks up towards the top of the waterfall, just enjoying the light sparkling off of the light mist floating around the edge of the cliffside. "I can't imagine your exams lent themselves to a consistent meal schedule at all... But, here, you can set your own times. Well... aside from emergencies, anyway."
Doc Plume leans their beak back more, getting some sun on its bottom and their throat. "Yeah, well I should be through all the folks who've been waiting for a doctor by the end of next week, so my schedule should lighten up a lot then."
Nesseth slowly slides backwards on the grass until he flops onto his back as well, now just kind of happily looking up at the sky. "It should, yeah. Despite what it's been like for you since your arrival, we don't actually get seriously hurt that often. Most of the time, the small nicks and cuts are easy enough to just slap a bandage on and call it good."
Doc Plume kicks their feet in the water and smiles. "Pretty much what I expected. It'll give me time to continue my studies, see if I can do more to improve overall health in town. That's part of the reason I was out here, just making sure the water source was good and seeing what sort of native plants were around that I could maybe use."
Nesseth smiles up at the sky as he continues to relax. "Native plants, huh? If you need any help gathering plants, I could maybe be an extra pair of hands for you. The patrol group I'm in usually goes a little ways out from the walls of the town."
Doc Plume shakes their head. "Not yet, but in a few weeks maybe." They give a little croaking yawn. "So what brought you to Respite Falls?"
Nesseth stretches his arms out again, then folds his hands over his belly, his fingers laced together. "I was part of one of the Explorers Guild's expeditions down this way. The town just really kind of grew on me during the expedition, so... when the day came, and the Guild was packing up to leave, I was one of a few folks that decided to stay behind."
Doc Plume lets out a sound of acknowledgement. "And where are you from originally?"
Nesseth stifles a bit of a yawn before answering. "I'm Orelan, from one of the smaller islands in the archipelago."
Doc Plume nods and sits up, swishing their feet in the water more. "Fair enough. Not many reptiles up in Glacier Bay, where I'm from."
Nesseth chuckles a bit. "Not too surprising. Pretty sure if any of us from Embercoast went to Glacier Bay, we'd be frozen popsicles within a couple of days of arriving."
Doc Plume gives another cawing laugh before they roll over onto their front and spread their wings out again. "Fair enough. At least my fur is white... if had dark fur like my cousin, I'd probably be melting right now."
Nesseth nods, smiling. "A lucky stroke, that. We can't have a puddle for a doctor, after all." He laughs again, "Though... I do wonder how some of the others in the town handle the heat when their fur is so dark."
Doc Plume looks over to Nesseth. "Well, the wings help to beat the heat too, if I spread them out like this...."
Nesseth leans over a bit to look at Plume's flared wings. "Ahh, that helps with heat dissipation, then? That's actually really neat to know."
Doc Plume: Mmm, yeah, it basically lets more air get to the body of the wings, helping them to cool. Not in warm sunlight like this, though.
Nesseth chuckles. "I bet it helps warm you back up if you're too cold, though, doing that in the sun."
Doc Plume closes their wings and settles them on their back before rolling onto their side. "Pretty much. I'm not used to this much sun, but I could grow to like it, as long as it stays out of my eyes during my work anyway."
Nesseth shifts up a bit until he's leaning on his arms again. "I think you'll be okay, unless you're out and about studying plants. Though... maybe a wide brimmed hat would help that for the better part of the day."
Doc Plume picks up their flat, wide brimmed hat. "You don't say. You've obviously never been in a northern summer where the sun sits real low for a long time."
Nesseth chuckles softly. "Yeah, no... the furthest north I've ever been was around... Westport, I think, and even that was just a short stop around late Spring or so. Even that short stop threw me off, because the sun made me feel like it was the dead of Winter in Embercoast."
Doc Plume nods. "Yeah, fair enough..." They let out a clacking yawn before sitting up again and starting to put on their leather boots. "I should get back to town before I fall asleep here and get eaten by a mountain bear or something."
Nesseth takes a moment to listen to their surroundings, the frills on his head flexing a little as he makes minute adjustments to the tilt of his head. "Probably not a bad idea. But no worries, Doc; there aren't any bears or anything nearby." He stretches and sits up straight again, "I should probably head back soon, too."
Doc Plume finishes putting on their boots and stands up. After a quick stretch, they put on their hat and drape their coat across their left arm. "Shall we then?"
Nesseth clambers back onto his feet and takes a few seconds to lace up his own boots. He nods with a smile as he stands back up again. "Yup, I'm good to go!"
Doc Plume walks back to town with Nesseth, continuing their conversation as they go, the two slowly becoming friends.
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RESPITE FALLS MARKETLACE - NOONISH
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Brunilda walks about the stalls, the big elephant trying to find the best ideas to maybe slightly enrich her... incredibly dull diet, but not having much luck finding interesting things in big enough amounts. Sighing, she drops some coin for a bucket of carrots and starts to turn away from the stall without looking around too closely.
Maybelline is dressed in more casual fashion, her sun cloak drawn up again to keep the heat out as she wanders through the market, still mostly taken aback by an 'outdoor market', as she definitely needs food in her house, she supposes. Starving to death isn't exactly fun or quick.
Brunilda fails to look around and nearly steps on Maybelline before stopping herself: "Ack! Sorry, sorry, Sorry!"
Maybelline spins around, hood falling back off her head as she hisses a bit at the larger person out of instinct before she gathers her senses and stands up straight again, "Ahh! No, no... it's fine... I should have kept moving."
Brunilda steps back: "No, I should look where I'm going." She lowers her voice, muttering a bit: "I swear I'm going to just step on someone one of these days. Too used to having only creatures my size around all day."
Maybelline reaches her hands back to pull her hood back over her head, frowning, "Yeah, yeah. It's a big creatures world, after all. Don't worry about it. I'm used to dodging around folks."
Brunilda looks at the smaller creature: "You shouldn't though, just because I'm big."
Strix: "Strix demands explanation!" in the market,Strix is arguing with one of the vendors "Strix's shinies are the finest!" The vendor gives a long suffering sigh 'I don't need something that will explode in my store!'. Strix makes a few angered yips "Not all of Strix's shinies explode.." He pauses "There is the..." Snarl "..the.." another growl "STRIX WILL RETURN. THEN YOU WILL NOT EXPLODE!" He storms away from the stall, swearing at the vendor in an impressive diversity of languages.
Maybelline shrugs, "Appreciate that, but it's not exactly realistic." She glances towards the other noise and sighs.
Brunilda blinks and looks up at the shrill combination of noises coming their way, lifting her hand up: "...hold that thought." She steps towards the small kobold and looks at him a bit sternly: "...everything okay here?"
Maybelline sighs as Brunilda walks away, talking more to herself, "Now, see, things like this are why the big folk dismiss us..."
Strix: "Strix has been maligned! Insulted! Degraged! That Shtriga won't buy Strix's shinies! Says they explode! Strix's shines don't explode" Strix pauses "Unless a notStrix drops them, throws them, or they heat up, or cool down" A thoughtful pause "Or if Strix does any of those things! But Strix puts warning labels" Another pause, and another quick addition "Unless Strix forgets" Strix stamps his tail "Then Strix will make a ..a..NOTEXPLODESHINY! Then that Imbunche will pay!" Strix, truly an exemplar of the under 4' class of people.
Brunilda blinks at the fast tirade of words she mostly understands: "...so, you're selling things that explode and are surprised when people don't want them?"
Strix: "The Exploding is the best part! Strix not understand the problem! Strix teaches care, dillygents, and stern resistance to blunt force trauma!"
Brunilda raises an eyebrow: "I am not entirely unfamiliar to blunt force trauma, you know. But I am worried if you are causing a ruckus here."
Strix: "That when Strix gets him with explode, or when explode hits Strix against wall. Strix built up a tolerance" Nodnod "Strix seems you have righter size friend. Strix approves. NotStrixi grow too tall. Strix not know why. If too tall. Need more food. Can get less preShiny"
Brunilda looks at Strix evenly for a moment, then just nods: "...I'll pretend I understood that and it wasn't meant as an insult."
Maybelline finally follows after Brunilda, tilting her head at Strix. "Too tall? And... preShiny?"
Strix nods "Yes. Only small insult meant. Strix think getting too tall mostly accident" He nods again, to Maybellnie "Yes. Need a Preshiny to build a shiny. Preshinies somethimes also Shiny, but less shiny Shiny"
Brunilda gives Maybelline a quick 'did you understand that?' glance, but then just nods at Strix: "Well, as long as you can refrain from harassing our vendors here..."
Maybelline gives Brunilda a noncommital shrug, feeling just as confused, "Preshiny, to build a shiny. Shinies that explode. I can definitely see why the folks here might have a problem with that."
Strix: "Strix ties to see that some minds are closed and narrow. Strix wants to open them" Strix grumbles "Strix will make notexplode shiny. Strix will show them all!"
Brunilda nods slowly, lifting a hand to scratch herself on the neck: "...okay. I guess, go... on?"
Maybelline taps at her leg in a bit of a nervous tic, "I was hired to this town to literally prevent explosions. I think they're very anti-explosion here."
Strix: "Strix will need to guide all the GLORY of the ExplodeShiny. Anti Explosionism is be too fought at every spot!"
Brunilda blinks, then holds up a hand: "As long as that spot is outside the town limits, I don't care what you explode."
Maybelline takes a step back, making a mental note to never let Strix near the town generator, "Hey now, I have nothing against explosions... but usually an explosion means something is broken. But if what you're building is intended to explode, that's fine."
Strix: "Strix considers explosion valuable added power of all shines. Yes"
Brunilda sighs a bit and nods slowly: "Added valuable... you know, whatever floats your boat."
Maybelline gives Strix a nervous looking thumbs up, "Yes. So long as it's somewhere safe, and not in the middle of town."
Strix: "Strix doesn't have boat" He mutters under his breath "...Strix must make boat. Explosions at back could make it go faster. Also Paint it red. Yes" He yups at Brunhilds "Thank you Toobig! Strix is inspired!" Strix waves a clawed hand idly "Yes, Yes, Strix will be careful. Good Explosions. Won't explode Elder's supply of dragonfire. Or Elder's away tent. Or Elder's best hat. Or Elder" He crosses his arms "If not want explosions. What does notStrixi want?"
Brunilda blinks at the tirade of words again: "...right now I am just fine if you go do your... boat-thing, away from the marketplace?"
Maybelline blinks, "NotStrixi? Me? Uh, I just came here wanting some food. Good old non-exploding non-shiny food."
Brunilda nods at Maybelline: "Yes. That."
Strix: "Many are notStrixi. All people. Except Strix. Strix must go now. Strix cannot make boat here. There's no water. Obviously" Strix flicks his tail, and vanishes into the crowds again, only mildly jostling anyone that dared get in the way of the Strix.
Maybelline chuckles nervously, "Obviously..." She glances up at Brunilda in confusion.
Brunilda looks at Strix go, then turns to Maybelline: "...quite. I was told this town attracts the eccentric, but..." She idly scratches her neck, frowning ever-so-slightly.
Maybelline huffs out a breath, "There's more in the town like Strix? I... need to buy some more locks for the generator. It's bad enough as is..."
Brunilda blinks, then looks at Maybelline: "...how much of the rumors are true, then? Regarding the generator, that is."
Maybelline reaches up to scratch at her neck. "They're not not true." She sighs, "It's still working... somehow. But there's a ton of missing parts, broken parts poorly repaired, and just a general lack of maintenance. I'm compiling a parts list to order when the next supply boat makes it here. Even then, getting those parts will takes months."
Brunilda winces, scratching her neck nervously: "That... that does not sound encouraging."
Maybelline slumps slightly, "It's not..." She quickly straightens, putting her hand to her chest in salute, "But damnit, this is my job, even if it's not what I wanted, and swear to keep the thing running."
Brunilda starts nodding, then blinks and looks at Maybelline: "...I think I understand." She lowers her voice: "Because... well, I signed for this guard job. And will do it honorably, even if it at times bores me out of my skull."
Maybelline sighs, looking up at Brunilda, "I should be living the good life in some big city, instead I'm here in the middle of nowhere. The word doesn't bore me, but the rest of this town..."
Brunilda sighs, glancing down with a rather understanding expression: "I used to be able to go to good restaurants and the big museums and galleries after work. Here I just..." She shrugs, glancing around the marketplace.
Maybelline blinks at the elephant, then glances away, "Err... yeah. Me too. Museums and... art."
Brunilda talks more to herself than the stoat: "So many things to look at and wonder in Ondonga, but here... Hmmh."
Maybelline nods, speaking aloud in much the same fashion, "The faster I can get the generator up to snuff, the faster I can get out of here and onto a real job."
Brunilda lets out a deep sigh, more towards her own thoughts at this point.
Maybelline closes her eyes, then just shakes her head and sighs, "I uh... I'm May, by the way." She extends a hand, then realizes how stupid that is considering the size disparity.
Brunilda kneels down, smiling as she carefully takes May's hand: "Brunilda. Just recently started as a town guard here. And I meant my comment about us bigger ones being more careful."
Maybelline gives Brunilda's hand as best a shake as she can manage. "And I really do appreciate that. I just started here as the new ICEE-Generator Mechanic."
Brunilda nods, letting go of May's hand and getting back up: "I believe you'll do a great job. I am of no use when it comes to that stuff, that's for sure."
Maybelline shifts back to be able to see Brunilda without leaning her head back quite so far, "I'll do my best, one way or another."
Brunilda nods, smiling: "We all do, I hope." She looks at the direction Strix went: "...well, for a given value of 'best'."
Maybelline glances in that same direction and growls lowly, "Between all my missing parts and the explosion happy figures in town... I'm guessing there's a lot of reasons why it's in such bad shape."
Brunilda nods slowly, scratching the other side of her neck: "You do have your work cut out for you."
Maybelline hums, "So do you, I reckon. Boredom punctuated by explosions. I uh... wish you luck?"
Brunilda gives a soft chuckle: "Think I'm going to need it." She nods at the stoat: "Take care, I reckon."
Maybelline waves, "Uh, take... care. Yeah, take care!"
Brunilda smiles and waves before she heads back to the previous stall to pick up her sizable bucket of carrots, being more careful about where she's stepping again.
Maybelline watches the Elephant go, then shakes her head and wanders off to get food of her own before heading back 'home'.
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WATERSIDE - LATER THAT AFTERNOON
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Strix: The water is on fire. That's the most notable point, spreading out over the surface of the river is a fizzling orange fire, trailing behind a roughly hammeredintoashapeofaboat sheet of metal, on which there is some ..something bolted to the back, the something being the source of the fire as it propells the craft. It's small, only just big enough to hold Strix, who is cackling as the 'boat' skips over the surface of the water "Strix is now
Strix: Master of Water! No River shall escape my grasp!"
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THE THIRSTY MINNOW - EVENING
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Brunilda is sitting at the only table in the bar big enough for the armored pachyderm, idly munching on a big bowl of salad while staring at nothing as her mind wanders.
Nesseth ambles into the bar, looking quite at ease after a nice day off from patrol duty, and makes his way to the bar counter where he orders himself a cool drink and a small (meaty) snack.
Brunilda looks up at Nesseth entering and gives him a small nod and a smile.
Yengrisk follows after Nesseth, happening to come visit the bar again at the same time.
Nesseth waves with a grin in greeting, though his eyes note the pachyderm is still wearing her gear. "Hey there, uh... Brunilda, right? I take it you just got off of work?"
Brunilda nods, motioning at the free seat: "Yep, just got off." She gives a small wave at Yengrisk as well.
Yengrisk waves to the two with a smile as well, and heads to the bar to order appropriate greenery for a growing yak's diet.
Nesseth grabs his drink and snack as it slides to a stop in front of him and joins Brunilda at her table, looking perhaps a touch too small at a table meant for folks taller than him by a couple of heads. He manages well enough, though, and give Yengrisk a cheerful wave as well once he's settled in. "Hopefully nothing too chaotic happened today?"
Brunilda shakes her head, leaning back on her chair and lifting her glass in her hand: "Nothing of much note. Saw a small kobold getting angry at the market vendors, but the situation dissolved itself soon enough."
Yengrisk wanders over to the table with their meal. "Might yak join you folks, yes?"
Brunilda nods at Yengrisk with a smile: "Sure."
Yengrisk grins and settles into a seat, finding this one much better suited to their frame than the stool he was balancing on last time.
Nesseth tilts his head. "A small kobold? Did he have a metal arm, by chance?"
Brunilda blinks mid-grasping more salad, then nods: "...yyyeees?"
Yengrisk ohhhs. "Yak remembers seeing small lizard with shiny arm, yes? Talked about fire a lot."
Nesseth nods a bit as he nibbles on his snack. "Then that'd be Strix, something of a resident kobold inventor, or so he told me when we first met the other day." He chuckles a bit, "He seems... a bit eccentric."
Brunilda lifts a hand to her temple and groans: "Figures. I kind of hoped he was just passing by or something..."
Nesseth shrugs. "I dunno, I've not seen him around town before, and I've been here for a bit, now. He might be a new arrival, or he just hasn't been quite so active with his experiments until now."
Brunilda takes a sip of her beer, then sighs: "I hope so. Some of the stallholders are irate enough without someone trying to force-sell explosives to them."
Yengrisk nods along to the conversation. "Yak has caused very few explosions."
Nesseth chuckles. "And that's probably a good thing. Magitech explosions aren't fun to clean up, from what I hear."
Brunilda nods: "From what I've seen, things tend to get messy quickly."
Yengrisk nods knowingly. "Magic energy can get out of control quickly, yes? Yak has horn rings, thinks they help control it, but.." They shrug helplessly. "Whatever is known, none will tell yak, yes?"
Brunilda blinks at the Yak's explanation: "No one will... tell you?"
Yengrisk nods again. "Yes, none will tell Yengrisk! Yak has tried asking, but... magic is secret, yes? Dangerous, not for public to use. But yak has magic anyway, and yak wants to use it."
Nesseth gives the yak an odd look. "You're able to use magic, but... no one tells you about it...? I thought you were from one of the magic research facilities back in Orela?"
Brunilda leans back on her chair: "That sounds... weird. I would think the Powers That Be would love another natural magic user among them."
Yengrisk turns to Nesseth and shakes their head. "If only! Yak... just knows, yes? Can feel it in the air and in horns, but does not know how to find others who will teach yak. Thought maybe frontier would have research outpost too, yes?"
Brunilda glances at Nesseth before turning back to Yengrisk: "Um... I think this bar might be closest to a 'research outpost' here..."
Yengrisk awws, and slumps a bit in their seat.
Nesseth shrugs. "If there's a research outpost, it's likely still getting set up by the scholars. I've not really heard anything in that regard, myself. But, then... I can't use magic, so..."
Brunilda shrugs a bit helplessly: "Yeah, me neither. It's all... well, magic, to me."
Yengrisk sits back up a bit, and takes a breath. "Well, yak cannot explain it well. Yak can just feel it, yes? Is like... explaining color to a dog, yes?"
Brunilda takes a sip of her beer: "I suppose."
Nesseth nods. "Makes sense. Can't explain a sense to someone that doesn't have it."
Nesseth pauses. "...For as much sense as that sentence made, anyway..."
Brunilda lets out a small laugh: "Didn't."
Yengrisk giggles a little. "Yak probably understands, anyway. Yak will have to keep looking. Must be someone who knows magic out here, yes?"
Nesseth hums and nods. "Probably, if you look around a bit."
Yengrisk oooos. "Maybe little lizard fellow knows magic!"
Brunilda shrugs, fiddling a bit with her now-empty glass in her hands: "Yeah. I've only been here a week, so I couldn't tell." She blinks a couple of times at the mention of Strix and magic: "Uh..."
Nesseth rubs his neck. "Well, he is an inventor with a magitech prosthetic arm, so... maybe? Just... please don't make things explode more, if you do go to him, okay? One guy messing with explosions is fine, but more than one is asking for trouble..."
Brunilda nods as she waves for another pint: "Yes... uh, just be careful with that guy."
Yengrisk nods to both, and returns to their food for the moment. "Yak will be cautious, yes?"
Nesseth nods. "Please do. I'd rather you and Strix not get hurt if at all possible."
Brunilda leans on the table a bit: "Or you know, anyone."
Nesseth smirks at Brunilda. "I figured that was implied, at least."
Brunilda gives Nesseth a look: "If I've learned one thing, it helps being obviously, unmistakably clear."
Yengrisk grins. "Not to worry, yak is best at magic, yes?"
Nesseth chuckles and nods. "That's good to know. That means explosions are less likely."
Brunilda gives Yengrisk a slightly dubious look, but nods: "One hopes so, certainly."
Yengrisk finishes off their meal, with an eager look in their eye, and smiles as they get up to leave. "Wish Yengrisk luck, yes? Yak will try to find wee lizard fellow."
Brunilda nods slowly: "Luck you are going to need, I think..."
Nesseth nods. "I wish you luck, then, and hopefully you can find the research outpost, if there is one."
Yengrisk grins, and waves as they head back out into town to seek help.
Brunilda turns to Nesseth as the Yak heads out: "So you're part of the Guild that originally made this place possible, hmm?"
Nesseth nods, waving at Yengrisk as they head back out into the town. "Well, used to be, but yeah. I'm not a founder or anything, but I was with one of the early expeditions while the town was still in its early stages."
Brunilda smiles: "I guess you could tell me a bit about this place, then? The other Guards here aren't really much for small talk... or any talk."
Nesseth nods. "I could, sure. Most of the guards here are probably on rotation anyway, so I doubt they'd be able to say much. The tech here in town's kind of old, compared to stuff you've probably seen in the capitol back on Orela, but..."
Nesseth spends the evening chatting with Brunilda about whatever comes to mind, and he does his best to answer any questions she has about the town, all while the two enjoy their respective snacks and drinks.