I really wish Teuila hadn’t just asked that question. I glance around nervously, waiting for the genre-savviness shoe to drop. When no colossal enemy plummets out of the sky towards us, I breathe a sigh of relief.
Daffodil coughs, politely demanding attention. When we turn to face her, she begins walking back to her abode while she makes small talk with Teuila. I’m not exactly excited at the prospect of dealing with another city on the verge of destruction, or whatever calamity Daffodil was alluding to. Maybe it will be economic calamity because the fish began to spawn less or something? Oh wait, things don’t just spawn here. We’re not on Can’Z’aas anymore. Regardless, that’s probably wishful thinking. If I hadn’t had Luni take the shop with her, I could probably still manage to cheat the shop system into producing infinite wealth and goods with evolution duplication. Though I wouldn’t want to subject Teuila to the sort of pain I went through when trying to change forms.
Actually, come to think of it, I don’t want to go through that pain again. I think I’ll stay cherubic Reggie for my time on Rayileklia, unless something drastic changes with our connection to our previous magic powers. I glance at Teuila, she looks almost entirely human in this form, and her dress is lovely. Having sort of grown up together in a short time, being used to her being a bare otter, it’s almost odd to know this is her preferred clothing. We were either naked, or in Valkyrie under-armor-clothing, or in Valkyrie armor, for most of our lives. Right up until we ended up in Eimsas, the human frontier-town of Geawerene. This outfit mimics the dress that we bought for her from Betty’s stall in the slums of Eimsas.
Speaking of clothing and gear, I’m lucky I was able to drop as many things out of my inventory as I did, when I was messing with it earlier. It’ll be harder and harder to access when I can’t picture or remember what’s stored in it, or what order it will be in, in my mental interface, since the interface is basically defunct. What I summoned so far was mostly leaf-leather stuff like sacks, or the makings of a lean-to tent. There’s also the large amount of coinage and gems, my few magical items, and weapons. Hopefully the coins or gems work to pass as currency on Rayileklia. We likely won’t be able to sustain ourselves otherwise, without getting work.
I shudder at the idea of trying to work some profession in human society while trying to find enough time to seek out answers about how to get back to Can’Z’aas. My Earthling memories depict how energy-draining professions can be. We’d be lucky if we could dedicate any time to searching for answers. Worse, if it weren’t a traveling profession, we’d be out of luck once the leads ran dry in whatever town we were working in. We could spend an entire life going nowhere, learning nothing.
Daffodil asks a poignant question, “If you plan to aid Autumn Brook, do you know how you would travel? Not even a fool mudcamps without covering on Rayileklia. Even us old-timers who are used to the rains of pains wouldn’t last a night with it tearing us down.”
I check the pile of leaf sacks that I had left at the outside of Daffodil’s home. They don’t seem to have worn down much, if at all, in the rains. Hopefully it’s that simple, just putting up my leaf-leather tent. Eventually we may have to replace it with some Rayileklian leather. I’m beginning to regret not getting the magical soap stone from Luni before she left though. Lil and Lu don’t have to stop anywhere muddy, with Lil’s ability to almost endlessly glide. Teuila and I will be covered in mud even partway through our first night of camping. Te nudges me with a raised eyebrow. Oh, right, the question.
I respond, “I’m hoping it’s as simple as setting up my vines and leather leaves as a partial tent. Though the mud itself stings slightly as well. I’m not sure what to do about that.”
Daffodil wrings her hands before explaining, “Many of us cannot travel without a cart, or the makings of an entire shed. I own no cart, but I know the trip to the ferry, and am patient enough to await it, even if it runs a day late. The ferry is not scheduled this far out for quite some time yet. I fear that I’ve only returned recently, so the Ferry will be rounding all of Lake Siempre before returning. Quite the long haul. My returning recently is why I would even ask that you aid Autumn Brook. You may be able to make it before the week is out, if you have a solution to mudcamping. Their next dealing with the Colossi comes at the week’s end, and Harriet is ready to no longer suffer their, hm, actions.”
My breath shudders as I quail ever so slightly. There’s the other genre-savviness shoe. With a name like the Colossi, I assume it’s several colossal, hostile creatures. I heave a sighing breath that I didn’t know I’d been holding. Daffodil raises an eyebrow, probably trying to parse if my breathing is in reaction to any particular part of her statement. I wear a weak half-smile to try to show her my appreciation for her candor.
Teuila asks, “Well, how far is it? You said a few days of mud camping? Where exactly? I’m a little worried that you sent Mat in the direction of the city. Honestly, more for Mat than the city, for once, but I don’t want him to spoil any hospitality we could have possibly received.”
Daffodil eyes Teuila up and down before answering, “As I said, three days ma kai mudcamping. Maybe a single day on an excellent horse. It is hard to press a horse for its best speed anywhere that isn’t one of the cobblestone paths however.”
Teuila prods, impatiently, “Sure, sure, that’s fine, but where is ma kai exactly? Give us directions, and I’ll handle transportation. Probably, maybe.”
A case of content theft: this narrative is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation.
Daffodil half frowns at Teuila’s rudeness, “Facing out of my home is directly south, if you turn halfway right, you’ll be heading southwest. It’s easiest to head southwest to the River Caioh, cross it, then head west to River Siempresuelo, and follow it all the way to Lake Siempre, then travel around the lake’s southern edge. One small brook of the lake has a large village built around it, that will be Autumn Brook. One might call Autumn Brook the capitol of Aasimovia, or at least southern Aasimovia.”
Teuila nods along, then repeats, “So, directly southwest, hop one river, west from there, follow the next river we see west until a big lake. Thanks Daffy. Come on dinkerputz, we’re burning daylight, I think.”
Daffodil questioningly mouths the nickname Daffy as her face contorts. Daffodil and I both start to object, but Teuila is already hauling me away. Te calls back, “Thanks again for all your hospitality! We’ll do our best at Autumn Brook, promise!”
I tug on Teuila to stop after she has dragged me probably half a mile. I gaze into her eyes pleadingly and she finally relents. We collapse into each other’s arms and sob our hearts out. Teuila couldn’t bear expressing her deep sadness in front of Daffodil. I could tell Teuila needed private time for us to express our emotions. This is too much. A whole new world, already parted from half of our inner circle, and Lucky. No way home that we know of. The ever-present threat of a soul-stealing emperor, and the ever-present rains of pain. Teuila had been riding a bit of a high since she realized we weren’t dead, but the weight of everything had been piling up on her as her realizations grew. When it all really dawned on her, I could see her physically bottling up and suppressing the emotions around Daffodil. Te got more anxious and impatient by the minute.
Teuila’s far more sensitive than she’ll ever let on to most others, not that she doesn't want to. The brash, permanently upbeat facade is a comfort meant for others as much as herself. The pain she feels at being cut off from our psychic bond is almost visible as she clutches at her chest while wailing between sobs. She was so jealous of the psychic link that formed when Lil, Lu, and I almost died on the Night of High Water. There were so many hurts that struck her, one after another. Jealousy ate at her, and played her like a game. Green-eyed envy would be rather apt. Eventually, when Teuila joined our bond, she was so excited that she bowled me over, despite the state I was in. Later, when we went through an ordeal that temporarily cost us our bond, she thought I had taken that bond away from her. After losing it, Teuila snuck away to cry beneath the waterfall. She thought I had deemed her unworthy to keep the bond.
Now here we are, she knows I didn’t take it away from her. She knows it isn’t a question of worth. We don’t have access to our bond, or most aspects of ourselves that relate to Can’Z’aas. Teuila never told Luni just how upset she was that Lu had been missing for so long, or how much she had missed her little sis. She tried to fill that void by enjoying hunting with Linti. I’m sure her feelings for Linti, and her enjoyment of hunting, are both genuine, but Te was obviously leaning into it more and more without Lu around.
We’ve been as close as two people can be, and we thought we were dying together. Now, we’re stranded on another world, and though we’re holding each other, we feel more isolated than ever. Will we ever get home? Will the family be alright? Did Linti survive while evacuating the Nagas? Did they make it into the barrier before it activated? It would have taken several hours to activate it even after the energy flow had hit it, so Linti had the travel time necessary. Still, that just leaves us wondering if the settlement even lasted against the encroaching enemies long enough for the shield to activate. It was really down to Jazharn, Sofu, Adom, and a few of the other most powerful human mages, and some of the innately strong fairies. Most of the human mages were more useful finishing construction of the shield. At least, compared to being sent against things that were immune to their spells.
Oh Jaz. You became a part of our family. You fell in love with Dreams of Days, and asked me, me of all people, for communication and flirting advice. The two of you may become the basis for a sign language that breaks the communication barriers between our species. I’m so impressed with Jazharn, above pretty much any other surviving human. That level of openness, love, and kindness shows that our species can coexist. Not just peacefully, but happily.
But was it all for naught? Is our world even still in existence? The soul which supposedly housed it has disappeared. I’m sure Teuila is having similar distressing ruminations as we hold each other while on our knees in the mud. I hiccup from not getting enough proper oxygen flow while sobbing, for too long. I end up gasping down a drizzle-filled breath, and choking as the stinging-wet hits the back of my throat. As I cough and sputter, I turn my face away from Teuila momentarily.
Teuila slugs me roughly in the shoulder, “Maroonaloon, don’t drink the acid rain ya dingus.”
She laughs weakly as she hiccups between sobs as well. I wear a meager half-smile as our tear-filled gazes meet.
I finally ask, “Te, Te, what are we doing? Why did I agree to this instead of following Lil, or seeking out leads on how to get back to Can’Z’aas? We didn’t even get an explanation from Daffodil about these Colossi.”
Te shrugs, “Hey, long run, or short haul, you try to do what’s the most right for everyone. You saddled Lu with secrets that carried us through the timeline that saved our family, and maybe saved as many other people as possible along the way. You wanted to deliver a dagger, remember?”
I perk up as I’m reminded of my self-imposed quest. I’d nearly forgotten that Autumn Brook isn’t even our intended final destination on this leg of our journey.
Te continues, “Even if it’s a short little quest, maybe this Taylynn girl, or Selunie or whatever, maybe they’ll have answers about Aces. Answers about Aces might lead us to answers about souls, and maybe Can’Z’aas. I guess, maybe. I’ve always let you do the big plans, you and Lu. You don’t need me to justify them.”
I nod half-heartedly as I stand, dragging Teuila up into my embrace as well. This proves difficult, as she is much taller than me in our current forms. Te laughs at the height disparity, and slings me, and all my packs, over her shoulder as she jogs along south-westward. That ridiculous strength of hers isn’t just physical though, it’s also of character.