“You’re certain Lefty can’t be persuaded to attempt the Drink Tabernacle? Perhaps during his leisure days?”

This is how Pedra started her conversation with Ol Blu. She didn’t even bother with a greeting. No “hello” or “how are you today”, just straight to business as usual. The kicken’s ears twitched as he suppressed the urge to sigh.

“I’m certain.”, responded Ol Blu. “He’s quite content here. Made a lot of friends. He wouldn’t want to alienate them by seeking kingly glory.”

Pedra frowned ever so slightly. “You mentioned my offer? Surely an adventurer of his stature would find cash to be sufficiently motivating?”

This time Ol Blu did sigh. Pedra just didn’t know when to give up.

The deepun polymath had approached him as he sat comfortably on a padded pillar in a corner of the God Dam’s gigantic library. His new historians friends had placed it there, just for him. They were so kind. He had just finished up a riveting discussion with one of them. They were talking about the island of Tiss, which had been destroyed in the Great Thulhan War. Ol Blu had been around when that happened you know, though thankfully he was living with pentoids at the time and…

Well… anyway… the point is I had just finished the conversation when suddenly Pedra appeared from around a bookshelf. She moved with a timid quickness that was almost stealthy, not unlike a predator hunting prey. She might have surprised Ol Blu… if not for the fact that he could smell her approaching. (sigh)

The most charitable way to describe Pedra, would be to say that she was a brilliant mind… which was burdened with a body. When it came to physics, chemistry, and engineering her knowledge was unrivaled. She could solve complex mathematical problems with ease and design mechanisms that made other academics gasp in awe. She had been the God Dam’s primary architect, responsible for many of the techniques used to construct such a massive structure.

And yet she always wanted more. The woman was intensely curious, to the point of obsession. She was constantly reading and researching and experimenting; always seeking new knowledge wherever she could find it. Positive traits to be certain… but they came at the expense of, well, everything else in her life.

When it came to basic bodily maintenance Pedra was unwilling or unable to put in the effort. Her fur was perpetually messy, she had a distinctively unwashed odor, and she often skipped meals, which left her decidedly thin for a deepun. Her social life was practically non-existent as well. The woman had no time for parties or feasts, no time to make friends or form relationships. Often she didn’t even find time to sleep! The woman worked day and night, taxing herself until she passed out amid her papers.

It was a frankly unhealthy work ethic, and it put her at odds with most of deepun society. They believed in hard work to be sure, no one could deny that; but they believed just as strongly that people needed recreation and relaxation. Allende had taught them the importance of finding balance… of not letting your ambitions lead you down the path of destruction. That was a big reason why the deepuns had the schedule they did. A day for work was always followed by a day for leisure.

But for Pedra every day was a work day. Relaxation was a waste of her precious time. The other deepuns looked at her with distrust and muttered that she wasn’t right, but they couldn’t deny her tallent. She was a prodigy, who had made untold contributions to deepun civilization over the years. Her unusual ways were tolerated because she was immensely useful… and also because her ambitions were entirely personal. She only seemed concerned with satisfying her own curiosity.

I firmly believe that if she had ever stepped out of line, ever shown the slightest bit of charisma or waded into the realm of politics… that the council would have banished her; prodigy or not. It was clear to everyone that she lacked the balance Allende had taught, that she was firmly on the path of destruction… but so long as it was only the path of self destruction, they were willing to look the other way.

It was perhaps one of the flaws of deepun society. Pedra was extraordinary in many ways. Had she been born in The Capital or even a backwater like Opprobrium she might have been able to leverage her natural brilliance to become wealthy and powerful… but here in the land of the deepuns she was an outcast. Her excellence was as feared as it was praised, her talents both an asset and a liability.

And despite how socially inept Pedra could be at times… she realized this all too well… which is exactly why she wanted Lefty to explore the Drink Tabernacle and remove the Clavis Imperium hidden inside it.

For you see, among Pedra’s many obsessions, The Drink Tabernacle was paramount. She had grown up in the Master Dam, hearing about the technological and magical wonders that were hidden inside. As a curious young girl she had wanted nothing more than to explore its halls, and that desire had only grown stronger with time. Even now, as a mature woman, there were elements of its construction which eluded her understanding, and that hidden knowledge drove her mad. Especially because she could see the dark form of the Drink Tabernacle right outside her window. It was right there, in Lake Allende, taunting her, begging to be explored and examined… but she could not.

I mean, physically she could. It might have been dangerous. There are currents and traps and rumors of a deadly beast, but the biggest threat to adventurers was simply drowning. The tabernacle was an underwater labyrinth after all. Even if you knew how to reach the center, where the Claivs Imperium was said to rest, it was theorized that it would take fifteen minutes to swim there. This made it functionally impossible for humans, thulhans, and pentoids to survive the journey… but like every member of her race, Pedra could hold her breath for nearly an hour.

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No, the thing holding her back was not physical danger… but social pressure. The Drink Tabernacle, like all the tabernacles, was a symbol of kingly ambitions… which went entirely against the deepun way of life. Anyone would have faced heavy scrutiny for entering the structure but for an outcast like Pedra… it would have meant certain exile. And though she wasn’t deeply connected with her people, it was the only home she knew. She might not fit in at the God Dam, but she would struggle to survive anywhere else.

So… if she wanted to explore the tabernacle and uncover its secrets… then she would first need to rid the structure of its political significance. That meant removing the Clavis Imperium from within. And while she obviously couldn’t do that herself… she could encourage others to do it. If an outsider were to come along… perhaps a young human adventurer… and claim the Clavis Imperium for himself… well that would solve all her problems.

Ol Blu had managed to piece this together over the course of many conversations; both with Pedra herself and his new academic friends. He understood the strange deepun woman and exactly what she wanted… and he had no intention of helping her.

He was happy with his new life. The God Dam historians treated him better than perhaps anyone else in his long and storied existence. They were intelligent enough to know that Ol Blu was a rare and valuable creature… but compassionate enough to still treat him as a person with rights and feelings. Here, among the deepuns he was not owned by anyone or bound in servitude; he was truly a free man.

Blu was subject to leisure days! Just like every other deepun. The historians knew he possessed unparalleled, first-hand knowledge of the distant past; and they were eager to hear him tell it… but if it was his day off, and he didn’t want to recount the horrors of the Dark War for the hundredth time, he didn’t have to! He could play stones instead! Or read a book! Or have someone tell him a story for a change! Oh what a wonderful time it was…

Oh… and Lefty was happy too.

He was enjoying the God Dam just as much as Ol Blu, perhaps even more! And the kicken was not about to uproot all that just to satisfy a weird woman’s obsessive curiosity.

Blu was just about to say all this to Pedra, more or less, when suddenly a door slammed… which is not something that usually happens in a library. More than a few people gasped.

There were hurried, almost stomping footsteps headed in their direction, marching with a gait much longer than any deepuns. Ol Blu turned just in time to see Lefty heading right towards him. The boy looked awful. His hair was messy, his shirt was torn, and he was breathing rather heavily. His face was red with embarrassment and his cheeks were glistening with fresh tears that had yet to be wiped away.

The old kicken was about to ask what was the matter, but Lefty spoke before he could even get a word out.

“Blu, I want to leave.”

Ol Blu was stunned.

“You… what?”

“I want to leave Blu. The God Dam. I want to go. I don’t care where. I just don’t want to live here anymore. I’m. Done.”

“I… lad… this is… What about your friends? What about Amor?”

Lefty’s eyes went wide for a second, his jaw going tight as he scowled.

“I don’t want to talk about her.” He said, as if trying to shout behind his clenched teeth. The young man sniffed, another tear rolling down his cheek as he tried to hold back a sob.

Ol Blu’s face softened as he realized the implications. “Oh lad… I’m so sorry… did something happen between you two?”

“I SAID I DON’T WANT TO TALK ABOUT IT!”

This time Lefty did shout, his voice echoing through the library and drawing the attention of everyone nearby, before they realized this was a personal matter and turned back to their books.

Ol Blu took a deep breath. He had been around a long time and seen his share of failed relationships. Why, the kicken had even been in a few himself, back when there were more of his kind around. He knew how to handle this. He and Lefty would talk it out, and by tomorrow the young man would be feeling much better about whatever had happened. He was about to speak… when the smelly deepun standing next to him stepped forward and cut him off.

“Hi. Hello. Pedra.” She said, offering her fist up for a bump and then withdrawing it before Lefty could even respond, as if the gesture was a mere formality that didn’t need to be completed.

“I need someone with your skills. I’ll pay you cash to explore the Drink Tabernacle. We can leave tonight. I have a camp already set up, way out of town, no one from the dam will bother us.”

Lefty looked the strange woman up and down. His breathing slowed as he took in the words and thought about them for all of a second.

“Deal.” He said, holding out his first. This time Pedra met it with her own.

“Wait lad I-” Ol Blu started to say before being cut off again.

“Excellent. Thank you Mr Lefty. Happy to be working with you. I’ll gather my things and meet you by the front entrance. Bring as much as you can carry. I have a squirrel.”

Pedra bumped his fist again and made her exit, the deepun’s fur perking up with excitement as she walked quickly towards the door.

Ol Blu was speechless as Lefty turned towards him and reached down to grab the kicken off his pillar. “Come on Blu, we’re leaving.”

“Whoa whoa whoa! Slow down there lad!” Blu said, making his young companion freeze.

“I like it here! I’ve got friends! And Plans! I’m not sure I want to just up and leave without…”

Blu paused as he saw the expression on Lefty’s face. It had softened. All the rage from moments ago was gone, and he was left with nothing but profound sadness. There was a deep sorrow in his eyes, fresh tears streaming down his cheeks as he pleaded.

“Please Blu…” he said, his voice almost a whisper.

“Don’t leave me too… you’re the only friend I got…”

For a moment Blu thought back to that night outside the Food Tabernacle when Lefty had freed him from his prison. He remembered pleading for help, and then looking up from a dark, cramped box, to see the face of a young man, asking if he was okay.

Now he was looking up at that same face, but this time it was asking him for help…

Ol Blu couldn’t turn him down. Not after all they had been through. He took a deep shuddering breath.

“Alright lad. I’ll join you. Let’s go ahead and get your things.”

At the time, I remember thinking that we could just come back in a few days. Lefty would calm down, this thing with Amor would blow over, and we could both return to our new lives. The Drink Tabernacle was nearly impossible anyway. We’d try. We’d fail. We’d give up and go back home, to the deepun paradise we had both come to love…

Oh how I wish that was how things turned out.