Several Hours Previous:

"Radiance Bath," Juserin began, "You grace me with your presence."

Bath straightened up a little. "To bear witness to your home is a pleasure all its own," he replied, inclining his head slightly. "Why have you called me here?" Odd that he didn't ask for Lisa; she's the nice one.

Juserin sighed, as though composing himself. "I have many sons and daughters," he explained, turning away semi-dramatically. "Adopted, of course; they're all kursi."

Bath looked on impassively. Sons and daughters, kursi...reminds me of Lisa's aunt and uncle. "Are you intending to send one of them along with us to Earth?"

Juserin looked mildly startled by the proposition. "Why...yes."

Bath smiled. Why else would he bring up the matter of his adopted children mere hours before our departure? "Your child will take the place of another verdora. Tell him or her to be at Valiance Cavern by 7:30 Standard Illudis Time." That sounds about right.

"Yes, ahem, well...this son of mine, his birth parents...they are quite troubled."

"...Do you wish for me to help them?" The parents?

Juserin snorted flippantly. "Oh, no. However, they have had a rather...deleterious influence on this son's development. With regards to father figures...he's had very few. None, actually."

Bath suppressed a chuckle. This verdora has two fathers, and no father figures? "But aren't you his father?"

Juserin sighed, shaking his head dejectedly. "Alas, I adopted him too late; he doesn't see me as a father."

As in...you took too long in finding him. "Your words suggest that you think I have the power to solve this problem." Bath gave Juserin an icy, impassive look, as though the verdora were no more than an insect. "I believe Asil and I made quite clear the limitations of COTD two days ago." Bath referenced one of the first major uses of the glass spire: a meeting between a team of quasi-wasps and Juserin's officials. "This being the case, you should understand that we affect the material world, the physical. We have no domain over the immaterial, such as issues pertaining to relationships." Bath raised a questioning eyebrow, inviting Juserin to explain himself.

"Of course," he said hastily, "I don't want you to be a father to my son. That would be..." he coughed lightly into his veil. "Interesting. No, I simply want you to watch out for him: Now that you have some grasp on the circumstances of his background, I hope this task will be easier."

Bath smirked. "Asil and I will keep him in mind. Is that all?"

"Yes, Radiance."

"Excellent." Bath's human body fell apart into strips of ribbon that almost instantly subdivided into thin squares; this makeshift confetti burst, flying everywhere. Accompanied by the smell of iron, the flesh and blood confetti display was, on a fundamental level, deeply unsettling.

I'm never giving up bad cop to Lisa, Bath thought. It's too easy,

---

"What is going on," Bath murmured to himself, looking furtively around from a pair of eyes manifest in the air. He couldn't see anything from behind his veil, which had slid up over his eyes.

"Rise."

Bath tried, and failed, relying on a well-placed tendril of essence to prevent himself from slipping and face-planting unceremoniously on the sand. This insufferable robe...

"My name is Eyrin, Prince of Eyrus. I am here to listen to your grievances. I will moderate, and will forcibly pacify anyone at my own discretion."

Why is he staring at me? Bath wondered. Oh, is that the kursi Juserin sent? He immediately manifested a mouth behind Lisa's ear. "Did you send the little verdora kursi my way?"

"Probably," she replied, speaking under her breath. "If he asks about your shell, say you're wearing a piece of miranite. It's an extremely rare mineral that masks a sapient's shell. Honestly, I have no idea what this kind of masking looks like, but I'd be shocked if this verdora knew."

"What kind of jewelry?" Bath asked helplessly.

"That's what you ask..." Lisa grumbled back. "Just make it a bracelet. It's a purple stone, by the way."

"Thanks."

Bath returned his full attentions to Eyrin, who was currently sitting down atop a mound of dragonleaf-covered sand. Eyrin seemed to be waiting for something, not that Bath had any idea: He simply followed along with the other verdora, who were presently self-organizing into three horizontal arcs around Eyrin's makeshift chair. After a moment, the entire fleet of verdora sat down, apparently signaling that the grievance proceedings could commence.

"Present your grievances," Eyrin said, looking over the verdora like he was their king. Bath suppressed a snort. The irony of this little prince lording over him was mildly hilarious.

Enjoying this book? Seek out the original to ensure the author gets credit.

One of the verdora stood up, her head inclined politely. Eyrin pointed her way. "Speak."

"The humans don't talk to us," she said, voice meek.

"All those giving support to this grievance, stand."

Only two stood. Frowning, Eyrin gestured for them to be seated. "The grievance is dropped. Further grievances?" Three verdora stood. Eyrin chose one, commanding him to speak.

"The humans talk to us disrespectfully," he stated, giving the previous grievance-presenter a smug look.

"All those giving support to this grievance, stand." Bath watched mutely as more than seventy of the collected verdora stood, their heads all inclined to the ground, veils draping over their chests.

Eyrin nodded. "The grievance stands. All willing to testify, stand, and deliver testimony." Twenty verdora stood, all looking, to Bath's critical eye, incredibly prudish.

Who did Juserin send with the vanguard? A legion of old nobility?

Eyrin stopped, as though recalling something he had forgotten. "Before we commence, will one verdora volunteer to record the testimonies?"

Bath's eyes bulged out of his head. He stood up, then said, "Thaddeus volunteers." I have no idea what they're going to say, but based on all the posturing so far...it'll be worth rewatching.

Eyrin inclined his head, giving Bath a fixed, appraising stare. "Thaddeus is selected. Start the recording." He then selected one of the standing verdora. "Present your testimony."

The verdora cleared her throat. "I was waiting in line to go through the portal," she said, "when three human males looked at me, said a vulgar greeting as though we were intimate friends, and asked if they could touch my mane."

The gathered verdora all bristled, as though greatly shocked. Many also gave sympathetic looks to the testifying verdora, as though telling this story would reawaken her memories of the traumatic incident.

Eyrin called on another verdora to testify. "A pack of white, long-legged, long-eared, short-armed sapients encircled me and tugged on my robe and veil," another female verdora reported, sniffing pitifully.

Eyrin continued to call on verdora to testify; hearing the testimonies of peers, soon fifty verdora were standing, all riled up and revving to implicate the foreign sapients in some treacherous business.

This...I have no words. Bath sorely wished Lisa were here with him. However, having a video recording on his chip reader was good enough.

A male verdora stepped up onto two legs and bowed; the gesture looked as though it belonged in the court of a noble. "I believe I speak for all of us," he began, "when I say that the female humans are insufferable." His eyes flashed with anger; he paused to close his eyes and regain his composure. "The human women say that we are 'cute,' and wonder if our manes are soft. They try to pet us. One small human female claimed I bore resemblance to her dog, Booboo." He took in a deep breath. "To humans, dogs are nothing more than pets. Moreover, Booboo likes to..." he paused, as though stuck on the next word. "Chase his tail." A silent gasp rippled through the gathered verdora, their incensed eyes blinking rapidly.

Next, a particularly tall verdora walked into the middle of the circle unsteadily, almost as if he were on a boat approaching a swelling tsunami. He bowed deeply, his forehead almost reaching the ground. He then boomed in a boon-augmented voice: "Prince, this is most unacceptable!" He coughed once, then proceeded to speak in a whisper, saying, "Three humans heckled me for not knowing the names of their gods. However, as far as I know, this information is not a matter of public record. They then proceeded to mock my limited understanding of the concept of gods, and religion."

After hearing several more testimonies, Eyrin gestured for all standing to sit down. "This is more than enough to make a case. I shall present your testimonies to the leaders of this expedition and demand the inappropriate behavior of the foreigners be rectified."

That's literally never going to happen, Bath thought to himself. These testimonies are ridiculous.

Bath nearly jumped in place when Eyrin called him out. "Thaddeus, see me after these proceedings to transfer over the recorded material." He then refocused his attentions on everyone else. "For now, all are dismissed."

I never realized learning the verdoran common tongue would be so useful, Bath thought. Then again, I never imagined myself impersonating one of their nobility. Speaking common verdoran was the only way to integrate himself into their community: the verdora would recognize if he used a translator to communicate.

"A pleasure to make your acquaintance," Bath said, voice saccharine, "I am Thaddeus house Clanemic of Illusta."

"A pleasure." He smiled, then frowned only a moment later. "I must ask...what are you using to protect yourself from my mental abilities?" Though he phrased this as a question, Bath had the feeling answering wasn't optional.

"I have a bracelet," he began, "of miranite." Before Bath could continue, the prince cut him off with a harsh, un-princely snort.

"Don't lie," he said. "Nobody would announce to the world they have miranite unless in jest."

"I wouldn't dare to conceal such a possession from a prince, and a kursi, no less," Bath replied.

Eyrin's laughter stopped. In its place arrived a steely cold that reminded Bath of the air he himself cultivated. "Don't test my patience," he menaced. "I am intimately familiar with the effects of miranite on the sapient shell--"

Oh shit.

"--and I know that whatever you are using is not miranite. Though, perhaps...something far stronger." He now gave Bath a quizzical, searching look, his head cocking slightly to the left. "For now, I'll let this go. However, don't lie to me again."

Bath nodded. "Yes, yes. Here is the recording you requested," he said, redirecting the conversation.

Eyrin nodded once, sharply, his veil creasing against his twin maws. "Excellent; start the transfer."

Transfer...um... Bath pressed a tentative gloved hand on his chip reader, which was conveniently woven right into his robes. I wish I could use these freely, even when changing form, he thought, lamenting the need to keep to one shape. How do you do this? He stared at the chip reader's holo display helplessly. Recording with the chip reader was simple, as the device had a clear "record" application functionality. But transferring the recording locally?

"I must confess..." Bath began bashfully. "I don't know how to transfer files between chip readers."

Eyrin's eyes widened slightly, his skin turning a slightly darker shade of blue. "You don't?" he asked, voice small. "You're from Illusta, and you don't know?"

"Well, I say I'm from Illusta; however, I'm actually from a small village fifty miles out. We don't...we generally forsake the communication technologies of the cities."

Eyrin's skin color returned to normal, his gaze softening. "In that case, let me assist you. First..."

Bath nodded along as Eyrin gave him a step-by-step guide to transferring files between close-by chip readers. He doesn't fit the profile I expected, the alleged troubled son sent away by his father. The patience with which he was instructing led Bath to wonder just who this "prince" was before Juserin adopted him.

"Sent," Bath said, smiling. "Thank you, Prince."

"A pleasure," Eyrin replied, an appraising glint still present in his eyes. "Until the next."

"Until the next." Bath bowed respectfully and walked away, rejoining the contingent of kursi once again sitting in a circular formation. As their errant chatter and gossiping entered his ears, he sighed, sitting down and folding his gloved hands into the sand.

I still don't know how Lisa talked me into this...