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When Reiley and me are alone and eating lunch in our hut, Reiley whisper that the new guard hut could also be Kima's hut. Kima just creeps the hell out of Bokyli, Vekalie and Queral. Even Koru is affected, but is too proud to admit it. If we ever have another captive we might threaten with having Kima eat that person alive. That feels insensitive and evil towards Kima, but yeah; I wouldn't want to be threatened with that. I need to inform Kima about it before though, because if I don't and she seems eager to eat someone? No-one will be sleeping well.
Still, the rest of our group will probably get used to Kima, simply because we have too, and separating Kima might be a bad thing, but that guard hut will mainly be for sleeping and Kima will take night shifts, so it's good if she have a more quiet place to sleep during the morning. Kima would still spend time with everyone each day, and they will eat together. Kima probably will like that guard hut and to live there, and it would ease the transition for future people moving into the community hut, and leave more room there too. There are three small rooms on that loft, and as it is, Koru have her own room while Bokyli and Vekalie share, so Queral have to share with Kima or Koru, and Koru is the obvious choice. If Kima moved out we would have a spare room there.
So after eating, we check the spot. I'll be tricky to get out there to work, but doable, and there will have to be a good side path from the cliff top as most of us needs to be able to easily reach the guard hut. The path should have some cover from arrows, and we can add a few crenellations along with the natural ones from the cliff itself plus some kind of railing, and add some camouflage and vegetation. Larger hanging vegetation will also help camouflage the hut and make the camouflage nets and such blend in better. The guard hut is a good idea and won't be more than 6 square meters inside, so quite easy to make, and since today's work on Xuela's hut needs to harden and set, we start to work on it. We just need to be careful about not dropping stone and stuff on our huts roof, as it might break the slates. I spent a lot of time and effort on that roof, and I don't want to see it damaged.
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"Arne?! Arne?!" Vekalie is shouting after me, so I answer.
"I'm over here!"
Vekalie comes dashing over the cliff and skids to a halt.
"Reiley sent me! There is a woman of Reiley's kind by the high fields, with Reiley and Koru. Koru is translating since the translation doesn't work between Reiley and Nilma, and they don't talk the same language like I do with Bokyli. Nilma woke up four days ago, and she is trying to find her way home like I was. She was up in the mountains and saw the catamaran sail along the coast to here yesterday, and she noticed the blue Star Fall during the night. She was spying on us today, and saw that Reiley where her kind while the rest of us were strange, but she could understand what we said. So she approached us, and asked to trade for food and if we knew how to travel to a couple of different Kingdom's. She said she is the sixth wife of King something. She seem desperate to get back home. Shall we bring her back here?"
Shit. Wow. Okay. That is a lot to process. I knew that catamaran were too visible. She is a Queen? Great. Just great. We've just gotten Xuela 'house broken'. Mostly. Of course they ask me to decide. Yeah, might as well. It's possible that Nilma is a spy from King's Camp, but then she is very new if Koru didn't recognise her. Or she can be from another camp we don't know about. Any new person we meet is a potential danger in several ways.
"Yeah. Bring her to the community area. I'll meet you there, and we need to clean up a bit, so please don't rush. Make sure she isn't armed, and bring some food and water to her."
"Will do. She only had a wooden spear, and some jewellery."
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Vekalie dash away. She wasn't even breathing hard from running from the high fields. That is so annoying. Time to kit up and get presentable. However this goes, it will be interesting. And here I was planning to soon meet them at the high fields before heading down to the harbour and test mount the sails on the catamaran. It's interesting that Reiley and Nilma can't talk with each other, but that will of course complicate any alliances within the same species. Damn alien bastards.
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I wait, sitting on one of the benches outside the community hut. Kima is guarding and making sure I'm safe. The two benches are simple but good, but this is the south side, and even with some camouflage netting, this is a fairly hot place in the sun, so we should make some kind of woven leaf roof for shade. I don't feel very Lordly, but I stand up and try to give a good impression as Bokyli signal they are coming. Reiley climbs up first, hurries over and gives me a quick kiss before she stand beside me and whisper:
"We told her about this world, the chosen, the spirits, translation and that blue light was a Star Fall, a kind of reward from the Spirits, and that we think it is probably impossible to return home. She still say she needs to get back to her sisters. Her wooden spear is badly made, and she hadn't even made a stone knife. A child should be able to do better. I don't think she have eaten since she woke up four days ago."
Vekalie have come up, and Reiley stops whispering before our guest comes up. She really does look like being of the same kind as Reiley. Same overall body shape and size. Similar face, ears, and hands, though another pattern on her greyish brown patterned body. Also no tail. She is just wearing a long armed green dress of crocheted lace, and some gold jewellery. Making that dress took someone a heck of a lot of time, and it's not made to be out in nature. Or to conceal anything. Don't look at her breasts or between the legs. Look at her face and eyes. Koru brings up the rear as they walk over to us. I can see Nilma's green-pink shimmering eyes quickly take in the surroundings, and her body have darker spots more than stripes, and her fur is likely grey. How old is she? The impression is quite young. Vekalie introduce our guest:
"This is Nilma of Clan Gremly, sixth wife of King Dukos. This is our leader Arne Svensson."
Nilma makes a kind of greeting gesture and bow. I greet her: "Greetings."
"Well wishes and greetings."
"Please don't think me being rude, but this is a strange situation for all of us, and being too stately in speech just becomes a burden, as there will be translation issues like phrases and expressions that doesn't translate right. Simple speech is better. Please call me Arne. What name do you prefer we call you by?"
"Nilma is fine."
"Please, sit down and lets talk, Nilma." I gesture at the other bench that is perpendicular to the first, but she waits to sit, so I do, and internally I sigh as she sits down after me. Probably some etiquette rule in her culture.
"I assume you have questions?"
"I apologise for being a burden, but I need to get back to my sisters. Is there any way?"
"As far as we know? No. Is there a small possibility in some way we don't know about? Yes. Sadly, it's likely that you will then return home months, years or decades after you left. Travelling takes time, and we're all likely to be so insanely far from our homes that you can't really fathom it. The reason you haven't noticed any time pass while being brought here was because you were in a type of magic sleep. You didn't notice time pass, but pass it did, and that I know for a fact. I understand the universe better than most who arrive here, and I came here with devices that measure time passing, and they all say a similar thing."
"How much time?" I can see how she is mentally bracing herself.
"Doesn't matter, since in that kind of magic sleep things become truly strange and time stretch. It's likely that the Spirits took you at the same time as they took Reiley here, since you come from the same world, and they woke up her about 50 days ago while you continued to sleep that magic sleep. Even if it is possible to get back, it might be years until we find that possibility, and we need to survive this dangerous world until then."
Nilma just close her eyes and takes a deep breath, and then another. Yeah, it's not easy being told things like this, and I can see that Vekalie is hurt by my words. She has been told a similar thing, but it's a hell of a thing to accept. At least Nilma have someone to tell her things and isn't alone in the wilderness without even a proper tool. Well, I did have three proper tools, just intended for a machine shop instead of wilderness. Awh shit, Nilma is starting to cry. I want to hug her and say she isn't alone, but I don't know her social norms, and Reiley might not like it.
"We all understand that this is devastating news, so cry all you want. There isn't much privacy here, but we can leave you fairly alone."
Through her sobs, Nilma manage to say: "Thank you."
So I gesture to Reiley we leave. Of course Kima comes along.
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