Jeb's Home.

"So I hereby pledge my service and offer supplication unto you o' great one!" The Chief declared as he knelt before Jeb.

Jeb was... more than a little uncomfortable to say the least.

"What exactly are you doin'?"

"I am doing as the humans of this world seem to do. The magic of this world is quite... aggressive. So my reading has uncovered that in order for humans to do magic they offer bonds of supplication and service to deities, spirits, and their own ancestors. As a way of doing magical feats."

"But how does that relate to me exactly?"

"Well... you are not human. You obviously posses power that no human can wield. So in order for me, or others for that matter, to do magic of any kind without dealing with the draining penalties, we would have to offer up our supplication to you! Or to another being with similar powers."

Jeb was still coming to terms with the whole, not being human, thing. The last thing he wanted was people forming a cult around him too. It already weirded him out that his own Ma has a cult that worships her like she's... nevermind.

"How does it work exactly?" Jeb asked.

"Well, it should be pretty straight forward, though the practices appear different on the surface, they are all the same. Some bowing and offer of suppli-" The Chief was explaining before he perked up and ran from the room calling out that he would be right back.

"Please don't tell me you're goin' to start doin' it to?" Jeb pleaded as he turned to Ruby, who was enjoying watching Jeb squirm a little too much.

"Do what?" She asked far too innocently as she crawled towards him very slowly and deliberately.

"Please don't." Jeb pleaded once more as she climbed on him and stared into his eyes.

"Please will you accept my offer of supplication o' great one?" She teased him as she shuffled on his lap.

"Not funny." Jeb said as he picked up the kobold and flung her to the side of the bed with a squeal of surprise and delight.

The Chief returned, out of breath and with... an apple.

"Please receive this offering as a token of my supplication!"

The Chief set the apple down on the nightstand as Jeb watched with increasing embarrassment and discomfort. Just gonna rip the Band-Aid off, Jeb thought.

"I accept your offerin' and your supplication."

With that Jeb grabbed the apple from the nightstand and took a bite. Then the three waited, and waited, and waited.

"Is somethin' supposed to happen?"

"I'm not sure? From the pictures and text that should be enough?" The Chief said unsure.

The Chief turned away from the two and moved his claws into a position he had done a thousand times before. Jeb watched as the kobold spoke in a low voice and waved his hands about as a portion of the air in front of him began to take solid shape!

But it didn't last as the Chief broke it off, looking far more winded and tired than a moment ago.

"I don't understand. It should work given my research."

Jeb was about to make some comforting words when the Chief hobbled away, muttering to himself as he tried to piece together possible solutions.

"Think he'll be alright?"

"He will. He'll figure it out. We all will." Ruby declared as she hugged Jeb from behind.

He was glad things have returned to normal. Minus the knowing he wasn't human and now had to deal with a possible forming cult. Other than that things were nice again!

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Ruby held on for a moment as Jeb stood up, but let go and fell back onto the warmth of the bed.

"As much of an experience, that I would rather not repeat, this was I still have stuff to do."

Jeb kissed Ruby on the head and made his way downstairs. He still needed to finish up the carport, he thought. Though the idea that magic was still very much a thing interested him. It's one thing to hear about it, it's another to actually SEE it happen in front of you!

So Jeb stood in the living room for a moment. He then held out his hand like the Chief did.

"Higgitus figgitus!"

Nothing. He tried a few more popular phrases, but after more than a minute of looking like a jackass and several kobolds and salamanders watching him, he gave up and returned to his original plan. Of course none of those would work, Jeb thought as he went outside. If any of them DID work then something would've came up by now in the news. Boy turns cat into toad, more at 9.

Jeb went over to the shed and opened the door, only to find about half of his tools and stuff missing. He groaned, he was so worried about the kobolds messing with his stuff in the house that he didn't even think about his stuff in the shed!

The lawnmower was gone, probably scrapped by now, several sheers and other garden tools were missing. As was the tin of roof tar, some paint, nails. Looks like he'll need to go into town again. He still needed to just to refill his food stores.

"Wonder if they found any metal in their digging?" Jeb thought aloud as he closed the shed. If they could start making their own tools then maybe he could get his back... hopefully.

Maybe he could get some fertilizer for them and get started on some sort of agriculture. It wouldn't be no squirrel but anything was better than starving. Growing stuff in a cave system was tricky though. While it was better insulated, it also lacked natural light and only certain things could be grown naturally. Like mosses and fungi. He wasn't sure how the kobolds liked either. Though they've been a bit more leery of mushrooms since some got hungry enough to chow down on some poisonous ones. If it wasn't for his own know-how, and modern medicine, as well as their own resistance to poisons and toxins it seems, they might've died.

Well, MORE would have died. Some weren't exactly trustful of him early on, and some were already getting sick when they first got to his place. Apparently they had quiet, and out of the way, funerals while he was off at work or elsewhere. But since then they've been more careful around the various flora of Appalachia and have come to him several times just to make sure something was edible.

He still felt like he was dealing with kids sometimes, kobolds coming up to him with a fern or some grass wondering if it was poisonous or edible. He's even seen the Chief collecting snips and starts of stuff between his research into human religion and magic.

Jeb got into his truck and drove to town, unaware of the black van parked within the shade just down the road a ways as it watched his home.

Dr. Obermann watched anxiously as Jeb's truck drove by. Seated next to him was Agent O'Doyle as he watched Obermann like a hawk.

"You are clear to go Obermann. But remember-"

"Yes, yes, I know! Samples only!" The doctor said as a string of curses in German followed shortly after.

He watched the monitors of their observation posts, waiting for a good target. But there was too much light outside and the kobolds were more keen-eyed and awake. They would have to wait until dark came in order to get a chance at an isolated kobold to collect samples.

While they did that, Jeb pulled in front of Skeeter's and entered the store as the door chimed.

"Hey Skeeter, I'm here for a few-"

"How are ya?!" A voice that Jeb didn't recognize called.

Jeb looked over to where he would normally see Skeeter. Only to find a shorter person with a heavy beard instead.

"Uhm? Is Skeeter here?"

"Well met!" The dwarf called.

"Yeah... hi? Skeeter?"

"Watch yer back now!"

"Was that a threat?" Jeb asked before a voice from the back of the shop called out.

"Don't mind him!" The voice came as another short bearded man hurried up to the front of the store.

"He isn't used ta talkin' with humans in yer tongue!" The dwarf apologized.

Jeb looked between the two.

"So who are you and where's Skeeter?"

"Oh?! My apologies! I am Daine! Son o' Blaine! Son o' Kaine! At yer service!" The one dwarf declared with a bow of his head.

"Jeb. Son of Sam. Son of... Sam. At your service?"

"Well met!" The other dwarf called.

"Who's he?"

"This is Baelin!" The dwarf replied simply.

"Is he not a son of someone?"

The dwarf laughed a hearty laugh.

"O' course he is! But it is only proper that he would be tha one ta declare his ancestry!"

Jeb waited for a moment in awkward silence. Eventually the other dwarf chuckled a bit.

"It's alright lad! Once he's used ta speakin' tha Common Tongue he'll greet ya properly!"

"Alright, well nice to meet you Daine and Baelin. But where's Skeeter?"

"Right! Skeeter has signed a contract with tha Clan Olrin!"

"Doin' what?"

"Makin' tha thundersticks exclusively fer us!"

"But what about my order?"

"Oh not ta worry lad! We're workin' ta honor his word ta ya!" Daine declared as he led Jeb to the workshop.

"Safe travels!" Baelin called out.

Jeb entered the workshop after Daine, and was met with a flurry of movement and noise as machine that haven't been worked with in years were whirring to life as the same bearded folk worked and watched over others as even smaller folk rushed around working on smaller sections of parts or delivering messages or corrections from others.

"Holy hell."

Skeeter looked up from one of the workbenches as he heard Jeb's voice.

"Hey Jeb!"

"Hey Skeeter. What's all this?"

"I guess you could say that I've been hired out."

"How does that work?"

"Me, and some helpful types loaned to me by these folk, work on gunsmithin'. While I'm doin' that, they help run the store while I'm busy."

"When did this happen?"

"A few days ago. Some of those new comers came by wantin' to start somethin'. These guys showed up and said they'd handle security for me. In exchange for that and watchin' my store, I make guns exclusively for 'em at commission."

Jeb could tell the town was changing just on his way over. But he'd think Skeeter would've been one of the last to change. Yet here it was, a new face at the front of the store and him working back here with dozens of others.

Jeb felt... uncomfortable. Like it made his skin crawl that things were changing so much so fast. He kinda thought that the town would stay more or less the same while he went through his own thing. That was just how the town was. Now even his family's closest friend was changing. Not that it was a bad thing, it just felt... wrong.

"You here for your order? Because of all the help I managed to get most of it done already!"

"I didn't really come for that, though I'll take what you got done. I just came by for some food and tools and a couple other things."

"Tools and a couple other things I can do. But I haven't been able to get through to my supplier up in Pittsburgh for a food shipment. Everything I got is either expired or damn near enough to it."

"That's fine. Just some stuff to finish my carport will do." Jeb said as he started to get fidgety.

He left the workshop quick like and grabbed the few things he needed as Baelin rung him up. Jeb paid and hauled the stuff to his truck as Daine and Baelin hauled out the rest of Jeb's order. Jeb muttered a farewell to the two as he sped off towards home as Baelin called out.

"May tha road rise ta meet ya!"