[sound of colossus in the background]
Adrastea: Is this really the only option?
Pekko: No! No! You could die of thirst and hunger if you like…or you could eat your boyfriend…But blood is a little salty like.
Adrastea: Right…I guess there is nothing for it then…
[sounds of colossus getting closer]
Adrastea: Where is it? I cannae see anything…
Pekko: Wait for it to roll a bit…you’ll have to be quick…should be a group of big pussy looking warts…. Just under…there…there quick!
Adrastea: I see it…they look tough though…how am I supposed to pierce it?
Pekko: You didn’t bring a knife?
Adrastea: …No…I basically rolled out of bed to get here…I’m in my night robe!
Pekko: You know…I wasn’t gonna say anything…I didn’t wanna be rude…but I did think you were a little underdressed…No tools…That’s a toughie…it’s a shame you can’t-
Adrastea: [screams a battle cry] TUULEN TERA!
[Slicing sound Adrastea grunts as she pulls away the sacks]
Pekko: What was that? Some sort of wind blade? I nearly jumped out of my skin! You’re a caster!! I thought your boyfriend was the magic guy!
Adrtrastea: [grunting as she pulls the sacks across the ground] I’m a Vehlo…[grunt] Ravi was a…is a Dewin.
Pekko: Am I supposed to know what that is?…Vehlo means old man in the older tongues and…you don’t look like either of those things to me…
Adrastea: [sigh of relief and she stands up straight] I don’t know the first thing about casting. I can just do it. I can call upon the elements…it’s…pretty much entirely destructive… Dewins learn the art but can’t use the elements... they weave what is already there through craft and skill. But they don’t have our…destructive capabilities…
Pekko: You sound like you admire them.
Adrastea: In my experience Vehlo are only good for one thing…and it’s rarely a good thing…
Pekko: So…. that sack should have enough water for the travel I’d guess. And the fleshy bits… probably edible…but its gonna be a little gross.
Adrastea: [whispered] tuottaa liekkeja.. [sound of flame popping into existence] I’ll boil it for good measure…
Pekko: Nice! I’d cook the meat too…may get some of the…ummm..texture out…
Adrastea: Okay…lets not hang about then…how far is it to this ‘puddle’ you were talking about.
Pekko: pfffffft…how often do you sleep?
Adrastea: I don’t…I’m nix…I enter the dwam once a day though….for a few of hours…
Pekko: Silly me! Course you are…you’ve got her pointy ears…
Adrastea: Her?
Pekko: Who? Right…I don’t know how long a day is….but I reckon it’ll be a couple of ‘dwams’ or sleeps for you before we get there.
Adrastea: you don’t know how long a day is?!
Pekko: errrrr…it’s been a while…haven’t had to deal with that sort of thing here…
Adrastea: [unconvinced] Right…
Pekko: Shall we go then…sounds fun…bit of an adventure!
Adrastea: [sigh] Don’t use that word Pekko…Adventuring is for fools and mercenaries.
Pekko: Says the one who jumped through a portal to the endless sea! What would you prefer then? Quest? Journey? Mission? Escapade?
Adrastea: Objective- I’m trying to save my friend.
Pekko: That sounds like a quest to me! Quest it is!
[sounds of Pekko and Adrastea walking]
Pekko: [groaning with boredom] Eugh!....Eugh!....Euuuuuugh!
Adrastea: Are you alright Pekko?
Pekko: This quest is so boring!
Adrastea: We’ve only just set off!
Pekko: I know! and it’s already so boring! Can’t we do something else?
Adrastea: What? No! We are saving Ravi, remember.
Pekko: Can’t we just go back to Calineb and play a game or something?
Adrastea: Pekko…No! This is important, if you don’t want to come- you can go back… just tell me where to go…
Pekko: [childish grunt] Fine…Fine but can we liven things up a bit, please? I’m already starting to feel like the lost…
Adrastea: Okay…okay…there is a game we used to play with initiates at the Nymphaeum, you know, to get to know them.
Pekko: A game! Perfect!
Adrastea: It’s called Kabouter’s gold….it’s-
Pekko: Its two truths one lie, right?
Adrastea: Oh…you’ve played it before?
Pekko: Yes…but I actually just guessed from the...once again…super racist name.
Adrastea: Oh crap! I had never even thought of that…gods…the names are just awful, aren’t they?
Pekko: Right well, it’s better than nothing! Let’s go! Who is first?
Adrastea: Well…how about you go first. I don’t know the first thing about you, other than your name and that you like games!
Pekko: mmmmmm…nah…you go first. You can’t have all the fun!
Adrastea: Okay….fine…I have travelled to every nation on the north hub….I am over one hundred and fifty years old…I have three children…
Pekko: Right… I have no idea what the North Hub is or how big it is but…it seems possible…you look old enough to have had a few sprogs but you don’t look over one hundred…wait is that old or young for you lot?
Adrastea: [laughs] you think I’m old enough to have had three children!? But that I am not over one hundred years old? What kind of arithmetic are you doing there, Pekko?
Pekko: What? Are you saying? It takes you a century to push out a few kids? That’s one demanding courting cycle…who’s got the energy for that?!
Adrastea: Oh, my gods! You were alive before the fall! Of course!
Pekko: This again! Go on then- what is the fall?
Adrastea: It was the start of the Era of Silence…the god’s fell silent and soon after, La Tari was almost brought to ruin by the curses. First came the orphaning which threw the world into chaos, as all of our elders and leaders just kind of…I don’t know…how to explain it…they just kind of like…well… They turned into something like the lost…vacant, empty…
Pekko: What? All of them? At once?
Adrastea: That’s the story yeah…I can only vouch for my tribe of course…but after that came the wildland…a huge blight which spread across the land transforming everything it touched and making it inhospitable to life…it nearly swallowed the whole North Hub… but the Boundary Vanguard managed to hold it and push it back a little.
Pekko: hmmmm.
Adrastea: and then came the affliction.
Pekko: Affliction?
Adrastea: Yeah…before the fall people could just ‘push out kids’ whenever they liked…I read somewhere that it was actually difficult to stop people doing it! but now it takes years and years…sometimes so long that people just give up…withdraw…there are only so many coldborn and shortcarry people can take…
Pekko: That is some…really dark stuff…just awful…
Adrastea: Well what is your answer?
Pekko: Well that’s obvious now! You obviously don’t have three kids.
Adrastea: Correct! Your turn!
Pekko: Does your boyfriend know how old you are?
Adrastea: What … I told you he’s not my boyfriend…
Pekko: Tell him that, he’s the one making the lovey eyes at you all the time. He’s human, right?
Adrastea: Renfolk…we don’t use that word anymore…
Pekko: What? Why? Actually...I don’t care…whatever you call him, he’s a day fly right?…does he know you are old enough to be his great gran?
Adrastea: No…he thinks I’m mixed…there are not many pureblood of my kind left and it…well it never came up… I don’t see how this is relevant…I thought you wanted to play?!
Pekko: Come on! This is drama! Young man falls in love with a nix who wouldn’t just outlive him, but would outlive his children and grandchildren….great great great grandchildren even! It’s ripe with tragedy…
Adrastea: He’s not my boyfriend Pekko!
Pekko: Eugh! If you are going to be boring, I don’t want to play anymore…
Adrastea: Fine…I guess we will walk in silence then…
[footsteps continue]
-------------
[breathless coming to a stop]
Adrastea: it really is baffling not knowing how long we’ve been going…I can’t tell if its hours or days…
Pekko: How much water have you got left in that thing?
Adrastea: It’s still pretty full…it’s so bloody heavy!
Pekko: You’re holding up well all things considered. Obviously got a bit of grit in you.
Adrastea: Well…it’s not my first ‘quest’…
Pekko: I got that feeling.
Adrastea: Well…I guess we can stop here for a bit…do spirits sleep, Pekko?
Pekko: Spirits? Why are you asking about…right…no…no need. Part of the problem of this place I guess…no escape from the grinding horror of existence… sends everyone west eventually…
Adrastea: Well…I’d like to enter a dwam for a bit, if I could…would you mind…keeping watch or whatever?
Pekko: Sure…alright…you get some…shut eye…or…creepy open dead eye or whatever….
Adrastea: Thanks, Pekko.
Pekko: Not a problem….
---------
[Adrastea breathing very very slowly]
Pekko: This….is….insufferable…I am soooooooooooooooooo bored….sod it….let’s see what she’s up to…[mystical popping sound]
[Adrastea’s echoey footsteps as she walks around the Nymphaeum]
[Adrastea humming Weishenmeai happily]
[mystical popping sound]
Adrastea: Oh! Where did you?!
Pekko: There you are! Sorry to interrupt but it was just getting too much out there on my own.
Adrastea: Do I…? I know you from somewhere, right?
Pekko: Correct. What is this place? It’s almost as boring as out there.
Adrastea: This is the Nymphaeum…
Pekko: Right, well your dreams are dull let’s find something a little more interesting in this head of your’s shall we?
Adrastea: Dream?
Pekko: Lot of strong feelings about this one...yeah…let’s try there…
[Rushing noise]
[Sounds of battle again and burning buildings, screaming]
Pekko: This seems familiar…
Adrastea: [empty sad whisper] Nuurr….[hardened tone] I need to get to Daya! [begins sprinting away]
Pekko: oooooooooooooo! This is exciting!
[sprinting continues…Adrastea kicks in the door of a hut…there is a sobbing child]
Horseman: [scoff] and what are you supposed to be?
Adrastea: I am death’s whisper you piece of shit. [deep magical sinister voice] “meteori”
[sound of fireball flashing into existence striking the horseman and throwing him into wall…he falls to the floor in flames and screams as he burns to death]
Pekko: Woah! I did NOT see that coming!
[Adrastea walks up to the sobbing child and picks him up]
Adrastea: It’s okay…it’s okay….I’ve got you Ravi…I’ve got you…you’re safe…
Child: Where is mummy? They took her away…they…hurt daddy…he won’t get up…
Adrastea: Don’t look at him... don’t think about that…okay? Come on…come with me…I’ll get you to safety…you are safe with me….
[Adrastea begins walking away]
Pekko: Salt the Earth… What a fuckin’ twist…
[sound of slow apparition with ethereal scream ending with a sudden gasp of breath from Ravi]
Ravi: [screams of horror and pain and he runs around madly] AGHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH! AGH!!!!AGH!!!!!!!!
Ravi: [gasp followed by heavy breathing…breathing abruptly stops…series of long inhales without exhales….followed by one incredibly long (longer than human limits) exhale] What the?….CRAP!