chalk

[alicornucopia]

In Paraasilan, Esmaar, a pair of roommates are about to break a rule that, compared to the one about running in the corridors or even the one about unlicensed teleportation, is there for a good reason.

In unison, they complete their shared spell.

~~~

with Adarin (Aestrix)

with Ekador (kappa)

with Brilliance (kappa)

with the admin (kappa)

with Teah (kappa)

with Katran (lambda)

with Hall (kappa)

with Joy (kappa)

with Kalinda (Christy Hotwater)

Comments

[alicornucopia]

"I'm a dragon," says Kaylo. "Just how many offworlders did Korulen summon?"

[lookingforwardtoit]

"Not sure who that is. Keo's the one who grabbed me," she says.

[alicornucopia]

"Keo did? Why?"

[lookingforwardtoit]

"To get a local opinion on Downside, I guess. What're you busy revolutionizing?"

[alicornucopia]

"...I'm inventing the summoning circle to allow stable traffic from here to there. You're from it?"

[lookingforwardtoit]

"I am from it!" she confirms. "You must be Kaylo. Admin said she found you charming. What's your secret?"

[alicornucopia]

"...I don't know that I've actually been called charming in recent memory, so I have no idea. I was looking for Korulen because she used to live in that room and instead there was a person in a circle and she wanted my input on dragon related things and I said I would invent this thing. Also I need to talk to a Sand Dusk Chanter, which I'm not looking forward to, because the library doesn't have any decent references on their little culty spells."

[lookingforwardtoit]

"Little culty spells?"

[alicornucopia]

"They worship the source of wizard magic, only - you called her the admin? I didn't catch her name - anyway she says it's actually aware, might want to talk to it, and while I think considering it a deity is still ridiculous the Chanters are the state of the art in making it say anything. I'll probably have to invent more on top of that but at least I can try to build on whatever they've groped their way towards in the blinding light of being a cult."

[lookingforwardtoit]

"I'm not sure she actually has a name," says Eights. "You are really aggrieved about these cult guys, huh?"

[alicornucopia]

"Religion in general is irritating, Chanters in particular get on my nerves because they're pretending to be academic and drive perfectly good class discussions off the rails."

[lookingforwardtoit]

"We don't get a whole lot of religion Downside. Not none, but not much."

[alicornucopia]

"Got all kinds of it here, and they'll run around out of their minds about it when they hear you exist."

[lookingforwardtoit]

"Fun and excitement," she says dryly. "They'll get used to it. Everybody does. Although I guess this'll be the first time this many people have had to get used to it at once."

[alicornucopia]

"Don't tend to get billions of newbies at once?" he asks wryly, crossing something out and flipping to a chart in the back of one of his books.

[lookingforwardtoit]

"Not so much! I mean, I won't say it's never happened, but definitely not in the last twelve thousand or so. —Years. However many come in at once, we still get 'em one at a time."

[alicornucopia]

"Well, she's restructuring, Elcenians are gonna be able to get people out at will, I'm gonna get my mom and dad back."

[lookingforwardtoit]

"Good for you," she says, apparently sincerely. "I don't think I'd wanna go back at this point even if I could, but if your world's this new I doubt your parents are even awake yet and they definitely haven't had thousands of years to get used to the place."

[alicornucopia]

"Even if they didn't want to come back I'd make them change their will, but I'm expecting the not awake yet thing."

[lookingforwardtoit]

"Change their will?"

[alicornucopia]

"They put this cutesy little clause in it about how my aunt gets all their money if and only if she funds all the education I can stand first. They didn't count on the fact that I hate my aunt. I could have passed the tenth tier tests five years ago probably, but I'm stalling because I have no money and I'd rather yell at her on a crystal every couple months than get cut off."

[lookingforwardtoit]

"Seems like bad planning," she says. "Hope it works out okay."

[alicornucopia]

"Me too."

FURIOUS INVENTION!

[lookingforwardtoit]

[alicornucopia]

"...Do you need something? Translation spell so you can read the cafeteria labels or something?"