D.E.M.O.N.S: Getting Summoned Weekly isn't so Bad

— Kat —

It was around half an hour later of Kat doing nothing when Lily contacted her. [GOOD MORNING VIEATNAM!]

*That is an old reference.*

[I don’t care it’s a classic.]

*It’s also just after sundown.*

[Look, it just popped into my head ok? What are you doing?]

*Honestly? Nothing. I finished a quest to find this lost girl and now I’m sitting around while an old man and a crazy jungle woman fuss over her wounds.*

[Excuse me what?] Kat pushed the relevant memories over towards Lily so that she could see what was going on. [Huh… well that’s a thing. Really not sure how to feel about that because it really seems like those are real wounds.]

*EXACTLY! I already had that existential crisis. How things on your end? What’s Hedera and Weaver up to?*

[Well Weaver passed the fuck out. Not sure when exactly but she’s got dozens of webs all connected to her fingers and stretching out the windows… but she’s collapsed on the table and not really moving. Oh she’s still breathing I checked that but she’s doing literally nothing else.]

*That seems a bit awkward. She was so animated earlier in the day… and what she just collapsed at some point after you went to sleep?*

[Yeah. I think maybe the excitement was just a bit too much for her. Or at least, that’s how I suspect Thyme is trying to play this. I mean… Thyme could just be busy but I’m pretty obviously moving around and Weaver IS still breathing. Not a thing Thyme would need to bother with if they didn’t want to.]

[Anyway! In an effort not to try and get too meta about how the tournament round is set up. I’m just going to assume that after a good chunk of proper food for the first time in a long while combined with that energetic talk she had with Hedera it was all just a bit much. Though it does also mean that, while I’m awake… I’m not entirely sure if I can leave or not. Like… did Weaver leave that door open? Could I even find it? Best to just wait but obviously I’m not going to wake her up.]

*That’s fine. It’s nice just to be able to chat with you again. As you saw… I was a bit concerned with how things played out and what they really meant and how to feel about it etcetera etcetera. I’ve gotten over most of it, or more likely… pushed it into a nice little corner to worry about later. Maybe ask Thyme about it once this is all done.*

*Let’s not focus on that though, as I said, already shoved into its own box. What’s Hedera up to? Is she still asleep?* Lily pushed a picture of a sleeping Hedera over the link. It seemed that after Kat had left Weaver had made up a tiny hammock for Lily and a normal sized one for Hedera. Somehow, the elf had managed to half roll out of it, with an arm and most of her head hanging off the side a tiny puddle of drool on the ground beside her.

[She’s very much still asleep. Absolutely dead to the world. I’m tempted to put her back into the hammock properly but I don’t know how light of a sleeper she normally is. Obviously I didn’t wake up when Weaver collapsed onto the table but Hedera might have. Heck, I’ve got no idea when she ended up like that. I got to sleep really quickly. Perhaps a bit risky… but aw well.]

*I think Weaver would’ve protected you… and even if not, Hedera should know that if you suddenly got sent to medical I’d be able to feel it. Then I could return and seek vengeance through gratuitous violence.*

[Yeah fair enough. How did the discussion with the mayor go?]

*It didn’t really. It was a short chat that basically just set another meeting for tomorrow. Not sure why… but then again Weaver is offering a chest for what amounts to maybe thirty minutes worth of effort. I was expecting some sort of intermediate quest but perhaps being forced to stick roughly around the town is considered the real payment? I’m not sure. The quest I just did netted my more than enough orbs to make up for the time I spent on it.*

[Could be? Plus we’ll have to deliver more later so it’s possible that we’ll be slowed down at every turn. I could see it being a way to make sure we can’t really participate in the rush for the middle… or perhaps we can teleport there once it opens up? Maybe a day latter then ideal but perhaps we get moved right to one of the important pieces?]

*I could see it. No use speculating too far into the future when we’ve got right now to worry about. What do you think I should be doing? The baker was pointed out as someone a bit weird so I could head right there… but I got waylaid on my way there once already and I’m not sure if I want to investigate them or ask for a quest.*

[No reason not to do both. What’s making you hesitate?]

*Well it’s actually more about if I want to keep hanging around here. I’ve been paid and theoretically I can just leave… but the kids are still asleep, the older two are still fussing and I feel like there’s more to do here. Perhaps taking Char back across the lake, or you know FINDING THE BOY’S PARENTS.*

[Wait you still don’t know what his name is?]

*Not at all and its pretty late. I’m surprised I’m not able to hear people running around town asking about him… but I can’t make anything out if there is. Plus, Merric and Char don’t seem overly concerned. Though Char might be that way because she just doesn’t care. Surely Merric after how worried HE was would at least want to inform the other family right?*

[Perhaps… but I’d assume he’s either not thinking about it at all or he’s intending it to be a bit of punishment because he ‘blames’ the family for letting the boy take her out. Then again… not ideal but it could be that the other family doesn’t know and doesn’t care. Heck, maybe Merric recognises the boy and knows he’ll be better here.]

*Right but do I ask? They’ve cleaned and dressed all the wounds from what I can tell. Now they’re just doing little touch-ups here and there to avoid talking to each other. Or maybe waiting for me to leave? I doubt it’s that second one because they’ve made no indication they’d want that but like… do I really want to keep waiting around? It’s just that I was promised a dinner.*

[Why does that matter? You’re normally not one to go too far out of your way for food and we’re decently well stocked up.]

*The food is not at all the point… but the fact that it hasn’t been offered yet has my wondering if the current ‘quest’ is over or not. I mean… look it’s poking into meta territory again but I just don’t know how real this is all meant to be. The fact that I haven’t been offered that part of the reward could mean the quest is still ongoing and there’s something else I can do here to get more rewards or another linked quest afterwards.

But that’s assuming they haven’t forgotten about the food entirely. We established those were real injuries and the meal was potentially just a nice afterthought not the actual reward. So now that they’ve paid me maybe they expect me to just head out? Though once again no idea what’s going on with the boy. I don’t think he’s just a Thyme clone either so… that’s a real kid and we have no idea what’s going on with him and his family.

So I’m sort of reluctant to move on those grounds as well. Maybe if I knew the quest was ‘done’ I wouldn’t be worrying so much about him? I mean he has been treated and the few cuts he did manage to pick up either have a salve or bandage over them and he’ll come out of this much better then Elly. Just… I dunno. I feel weird sitting here. I don’t want to be wasting time but I don’t want leave either I suppose.*

[Well the way I see it you’ve got two, or maybe three options. You could just crack open the food and let the smell of it call everyone over. You could ask if everything will be alright if you leave, or you could specifically ask if the boy needs to be returned to home and offer to do so on your way out. Or you could just set a timer. Like… wait another thirty minutes before leaving.]

*Hmmm… I’ll think about it.*

[Well only think about it for 10 minutes then. Otherwise no decision is going to get made]

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