Aleph rubbed her wrist where Elsie had grabbed her a bit too hard.

It had left a red mark in her skin matching the layered texture of the alien’s gripper. From experience she was certain that was gonna bruise some interesting colors.

Also from the pain it might also be a sprain in some of her carpels but it didn't hurt bad enough to actually be a concern. She’d just ease off on it for the rest of the feast, maybe get whatever the alien equivalent of an ice pack was?

Or some kind of poultice.

Elsie had been very sorry about it but explained how she was about to scrape off some kind of very cool lichen.

She shrugged and turned her attention away from what she had honestly thought had been some brown splatter of food. But apparently super pretty alien decoration or something?

Who was she to complain?

Omega hovered a bit worriedly but she didn't bring along much first aide in her soul shares. So at this point Aleph, and possibly quarti were actually the medical experts of the trio.

All the aliens- All the people, Elsie and Pylo were staring at her.

Elsie had stopped talking. Even Squidgie was making a ‘concerned’ face in that strange pictographic style of hers.

Aleph laughed and smiled brightly waving off the worry. They all still treated her like she was made of glass or something.

“It’s alright Elsie, I’m just a little bruised and will be fine in a few days! Weeks at most. Maybe be a bit gentler next time you see me doing something stupid like that?”

That apparently was not entirely trusted, Pylo and Elsie shared a look. Wait, that was probably for HER benefit so there was some kind of Siren Whatever Elsie was going on (huh, Elsie never volunteered giving its species. Was that rude to ask?).

Anyway her stomach even though it was half full with delicious (and this stuff was great!) food already gurgled as she could SMELL the heady aroma of cooked meat, spices and tangy marinade.

She waved off the worrying of Elsie and Pylo with only a little wince from forgetting her wrist was a bit sprained. Looking around for where the delicious smell was coming from.

There! She was pretty sure that was it over there, they were.

Kind of plain looking. Gently drifting and lightly charred spheres. Each easily two or three times across as one of the people with their arms spread out.

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She gave those near her a few glances then gaped as it got closer.

That was big.

At least twelve meters in diameter.

And from the way it was veiled in steamy swirling clouds like some ethereal fire suggested it was hot.

Hot and by the smell delicious!

The other great masters had perked up, much of the tables had been nearly stripped clean of all the ‘snacks’ except for the delicious crispy cake kind of vegetables.

Huh, that was a bit odd. Did they bring those just for the terrans? Because if they did there was far too much.

The hearts and the fried and crispy rings of meat were incredible. She’d not eaten anything but what they could grow in the hydroponics for years!

And then here there was what looked like a sphere of nothing BUT meat.

She had to swallow hard to clear the saliva from her mouth before it crawled down the wrong tube and choked her.

Squidgie spoke up gently.

“Ma’am do try and remember there are a great many courses, try to sample them and let yourself digest. There will be plenty of time for more.”

That was kind of cruel. But good sense, she would try.

The Hospitilator himself took up a great cylinder longer then he was and then plunged it deep into the massive orb.

The juices pooled and oozed free into floating goblets and the smell changed even as she was watching and breathing it in. With a twist and pull the blade came free and then in a deft slow spin the cored out sample was released around Aleph and the other terrans in a ring of floating cooked sections of MEAT.

Or at least that's what she thought before she saw it. Because the smells that now pooled vaporous scents all around her was making Aleph a little dizzy.

There had been STRATA to that seemingly lightly charred mass. Sauces, things that smelled a lot like cheese, savory and sweet gravies, a multitude of grains and textures to the layered cooked flesh. She could spot speckles and patterns of what she guessed were herbs and seasoning of some kind.

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It was all wonderful and she could even taste it on the air.

Aleph could not really help herself.

And it’s not like the people seemed to consider being dainty a particularly important part of feasting.

She stuffed her face with wild abandon and made a pretty good impression of Quarti’s first bite of that heart thing.

Squidgie watched on with a kind of strained smile and seemed to be saying something but she was a bit too enamored with the way every single layer of material was its own unique and yet enriching and complementing flavor. There was creamy, almost soupy kinds of custardy things that were almost like butter and crunchy cheesy things. Sharp spicy bitter crumbs and kernels and then pungencies that honestly had almost been forgotten.

The last time Aleph had tasted anything like it was on Terra. It was not exactly the same but even where the flavor was strange and exotic she could appreciate the hints of things she’d not gotten to her palette with all the hydroponic grown produce.

It was only after Aleph had to stop from feeling a bit over stuffed and bloated that she could properly appreciate the translation for what she just ate as the Hospitilator praised her.

“Ah! It is good to see you enjoy the efforts of that Compost Loaf. Its core was laid down by my father when I was just not even out of my mother’s brood pouch. And I worked with seven other apprentices on the mid layer. To see the humble early efforts of my family brought such esteem is a great gift.”

Aleph considered, then ultimately decided that whatever they called it that had been FAR too delicious to bother her.

She just would not think too hard about what that implied until she was not on the verge of bursting.

A glance over at Quarti and Omega showed they had not quite pigged out anywhere near as bad.

Which seemed a bit wrong somehow.