Chapter 5: You Must Enter the Tiger's Den to Catch His Cubs

[Ray of Meep]

Co-authored by: Ray of Meep (GM), CadetNewb, TheCountryWarrior, Wallflower

Solaris Lihana (Dawn Star System), Planet Lihana (Planet Vermillion Bird)

Outskirts of occupied Hillsong (City Cloud Watch)

One moon's cossing after the first meeting with the invader at Lake Obdurate's Solace (Lake Cloud Watch)

The night was espeacially dark with the two moons crossing paths today, as one obscured the other's shine, resulting in waning moon with a soft halo around it. The ground was cold and damp with the coming of autumn, the air nibbling at exposed skin for bodily heat. The three Aos Si waded through thinning vegetation in the darkness, before coming to a clearing: the extent of the invaders' footprint in this area.

Where the monument of Hillsong once stood were skyscrapers with several floors of light, making up the core of this new city. Further outward there were smaller buildings, then the suburbs. The three Aos Si could hear a gentle whirling in the distance, no doubt one of the great power plants that kept the lights on. What they currently saw were two to three story tall houses, all neatly placed together in blocks surrounded by streets, all of similar shape and form with minor aesthetic variance. On one block was a great greenhouse lit up from inside, revealing green vegetation grown in liquid and on stacks of shelves and along walls, in contrast to the red vegetation of the planet.

It was not the first time that Sai had looked upon the city. When she was younger, more withdrawn in her pain, her nan would take her out to see the sights of the nearby world. One of the ones that Sai, young and brash, demanded, was to see the human city.

It was a solemn sight then, though she scarcely recalled it, but what lingered was the sudden coldness that ran across her nan's face. That solemn stare of loss and remembrance. *"I remember when this was ours. We grew our house right over there." Try as she might, the young Sai couldn't tell where her Nan was pointing.

That was years gone, and her Nan left one night after being struck by one of her solemn spells. Sai cried that night, and many more.

Sai knelt hidden in vegetation, staring onward to the abyssmal blight of stone and metal and seemed to have fallen from the sky, piercing the flesh of the earth with countless spikes, a scab grown over and infested, splinters still growing.

Like a parasite.

"All that technology." Sai whispered as she pointed her one hand to the greenhouse. Imagine how well we could feed our people if we had that." The muscled arm retracted, and she cast her gaze back to the other two. The distant lights only slightly illuminated the scarred side of her face, which seemed nearly half blind. "I can't say I know you two whatsoever, but I'm hoping you'll have my back in this."

"It would feed our people quite well, I would say," the Ranger replied. Dressed in her armor once more, Amisra lead them on a specific path in mind towards the city of invaders. "However, I'm more concerned about your familiarity with shadow walking," she pointed out. Even though they had learned how to veil themselves through trial and error, as well as some toying with captured trinkets in the past, it was better not to get spotted by their constructs in the first place. "I'm hoping you'll be able to at least follow my steps?" she asked.

This was something Amisra had prepared for over years. She didn't want to fail now of all times.

Gwaed knew how to keep up with Amisra, that wasn't the issue at hand. The issue at hand was the Parasite Hub they were about to walk into. "I will not the be the cause of your failure." He paused. "At least in regards to stealth."

The walk into the suburbs was fairly unremarkable. The invader, seemingly true this his words, has called off the patrols that typically stroll along the streets, but tonight, there were none to be found. The roads were paved in a black, gravely substance. Periodic street lamps, tall and thin, bending over, illuminated the ground beneath like it was still day. The Aos Si made sure not to enter the perimeters of the houses, as any entrance would've alerted the residents, as Shi Cheng warned. Instead, they stuck to the sides of the roads while their bodies casted sharp shadows on the ground. After walking a few blocks and approaching the urban areas, the Aos Si realized that Amisra had no idea where she was going, despite her confidence.

Sai, despite her toned form, seemed quite adept at remaining hidden. The most that seemed to stand out was the ocassional shadow of a muscled shoulder. Dressed in dark clothing, hiding padded armor, she fit in quite well to the shadows. Her poncho draped over her missing arm, hiding it's presence, or lack thereof from immediate view.

Despite her larger frame, the elf seemed quite in control of how she appeared. She followed Amisra quietly, deciding that it wasn't worth it to retort to the offhanded comment.

As they approached, Sai slowly took in the appearance of the suburbs around them, anxiously shifting from foot to foot. It didn't feel right, too artificial, too forced. Even though they were outside sensors, it felt like they were too far out into the open. She frowned, trying to spot some indicator of whatever alarms existed. Did each building have it's own? Would it go off if a neighbor crossed it?

What a solitary system.

"I suppose a map of some form would have assisted. It's a much more abstract design once you're inside it." Sai mused. "I dislike these lights. Nighttime is supposed to be dark, not half illuminated as if to fool the people here."

"Their night sight is relatively poor," Amisra remarked, "But even so, we once had paved streets lit at night. It's only natural to have such things in a city, both to deter ne'er-do-wells, as well as to faciliate the life of the night," she pointed out. By this point, the ranger had swept back her hood to reveal her features, gracefully fanning her hair out having come without helm. "Truth be told, I am certain that we are being watched. However, I had asked for the removal of the sentries simply because they are displeasing to my eyes, and am loathe to so much as speak a word to them." Despite this admission though, Amisra continued to confidently stride ever onwards into the foreign city. "We are looking for a library, or 'túshū guǎn' in their language. Failing that, we simply knock on someone's door and ask for directions."

Gwaed was momentarily surprised at this boldness, and promptly lost the feeling of surprise. Of course she felt like she could just walk into the city. "I agree in regards to the sentires, however, I would be surprised if we were allowed to go too far in."

 

[Ray of Meep]

The suburbs were quite extensive, and carefully planned out. As the Aos Si headed towards the city center, they passed by a cluster of blocks that encompassed a hospital, store, and school. After an hour of walking, they came upon what seemed to mark the beginning of the urban area: the entrance to an underground railway system. Next to it was a large flattened space for the human's personal shuttles.

"I see the symbols for 'school' in that direction, however, should the campus be for children, it will most certainly be closed at this time and access to its library locked," Amisra noted. Of course, she had made certain to ask just the right questions far prior to now. "However, I had asked Shen what late night food options are available, and a 'convenience store' would undoubtedly be open." She didn't even consider their underground rail or the shuttles - they would undoubtedly require money she suspected. "These convenient stores often have only one person, but will be monitored by their constructs," the redhead smiled.

Sai largely found herself critical of the scenarios that Amisra provided, though she largely remained quiet about it. She couldn't quite see it working out as well as her companion seemed to invision. They were told specifically that the sentries would not be there, not that they had been given free reign. What if one of the civilians they had passed in their houses spotted them outside and called the authorities? Would they be so reasonable as to understand that they were allowed in?

...Were there rules that said they couldn't be allowed in? She hadn't known anybody to test the boundaries of the cities before, but she found it unlikely that the sentries under normal circumstances would let her people in as easily as they had just done. A spark of paranoia conjured the idea of betrayal, it being some elaborate hoax to goad them into the city so they could be apprehended, killed, or worse, and to further fuel whatever fire their next war machine was conjuring.

She shuddered, giving a side eye to Amisra. "What if the library also costs money?" She asked, refusing to yet slip into the non-native tongue. "I doubt many places here will let us in regardless, and I especially doubt that random people here will be as accommodating as our mutual parasite."

"Exactly my thoughts. What do you intend to do at this store of convenient placement? You have no Parasitic currency to my knowledge, and they will not let us just take something. What could they have that we would want anyway?" Gwaed was not thrilled to be in the city, but he was even less thrilled by the idea that they would just frivolously wander into buildings.

"During our studies, I had coaxed our dear 'friend' into mentioning the great advancements of his people's education system, including the small, inconsequential detail that they have free, public libraries," Amisra replied, her voice almost mocking of Shen. She of course, left out the even smaller detail of whether or not they were open during the night. "As for this 'store of convenience', I would hope that simply asking for directions would not cost money," she pointed out. "However, I am wearing my casual clothing underneath my armor," the wiley ranger added. "Prior to stepping into the store, I can simply stow my armor and weapons before making my entrance," the redhead smiled with mischevious intent.

Gwaed rolled his eyes, looking off into the city. "I would expect nothing less. The Library is no doubt closed as almost all else is, for the Parasites are only nocturnal when commiting genocide and being scum." His voice tightened with anger, however this time that was his own fault. "Among the three of us we should be able to interrogate the Convienence Parasite sufficiently, but that will mean little if the Library is dark."

Sai gave a small huff in return, not appreciating the idea of having to rely on her companions feminine wiles to seduce information out of the local populace. It would only carry so far, after all.

Still, she realized that temporarily stashing their armor might prove to be the best option for fitting in, regardless of the risk of losing it to thieves, whoever they may be. "Perhaps fitting in may be our best option." She finally mused. "Assuming we can find a safe place to hide our less fitting equipment in the meantime." She knew her clothes wouldn't be considered exactly standard, and her ears stood out, but with an eye patch going around her head she could hide her ears and accent one of things that may fit in better, assuming, of course, that a larger percentage of the population suffered some form of wounds, as the presence of their crippled assistant had suggested.

Still, the thought lingered that perhaps he was an outlier, sent to garner sympathy with his malgrown limb. "Perhaps posing as odd humans will do us better than strutting about as we are now."

"No need for any dour mood," Amisra began. "I've already thought ahead for this, and brought a duffel bag for my own belongings. The two of you can remain 'in costume' for the time being," she emphasized their part. Unclasping her chest and back plate before undoing her cloak, the redhead quickly made herself all too eyecatching. Though the dress she wore was modest, it sill emphasized her strengths. "I assume we will go to the Store of Convenience first then?"

Gwaed averted his gaze from her a bit too quickly, perhaps a measure of embarrassment crossing the features of the usually stoic Commander. "My armor stays on. Let us be off then, and hope this action will not create sudden diplomatic tension. More than is already in place."

Despite Sai's disagreements with the exact method of Amisra's appearance, she still glanced away with a murmur of something not entirely audible, though her refusal to stare in that direction while she changed was message enough.

"I can't say I'm fully on board with trying to seduce information out of whoever we run across." She admitted, still avoiding Amisra with her gaze. "Though you seem dead set upon it in such a way that I won't attempt to stop you. If you think it will work, by all means."

------------

 

[Ray of Meep]

The human convenience was a small affair compared to the much larger market complex that it shared a wall with. Light poured out from the establishment, a colorful, cloth-based portico covered the entrance. To the sides were flashing screens advertising human products, with animated human figures and carefully captured profiles of food, drinks, and what looks to be a cream of sorts that humans put on their skin, presumably bodywash.

Inside the convenience store were aisles of packaged food and drinks, the same kind advertised on the screens. Before the Aos Si could get a good view of everything though, a small creature caught their eye, yapping at them. It was a little brown thing, similar in form to the rock wolves, but much smaller, furry, with a blue collar around its neck. It kept a distance, yapping away with its tail straight up and swaying slowly and cautiously.

"Happy, stop." A lass sat at the counter, tapping away at a datapad flat on the surface with another propped up, displaying text and even weirder symbols. She looked to be in good, physical health, similar to the Aos Si, but defenitley smaller and weaker, wearing a jacket to stave off the chill of the night. She glanced up, and her eyes widened, recognizing the alien nature of the three Aos Si before her, before standing up and reaching for something under the counter.

"You you're---" The lass sputtered out.

For her, it was just another night, but in a single moment, everything was cast into doubt as she began to question what her eyes saw, what her ears heard, and what her nose smelled. To one side stood a scarred figure, her face scorched by fire, an arm long lost. But despite this, she stood with a dignity and poise that she had never seen in her life before. Her mind struggled for words, but could only settle on the thoughts that this was a warrior of the shadows. And to the other side stood a tall man, his shoulders broad and his face handsome like a statue carefully chiseled from marble. But the armor told her much, even in its well worn state. A knight, a master of the sword.

However, her eyes did not remain on these two, and inevitably came to she who stood between them. Like emeralds, this woman's eyes shined as though beckoning her into the crimson leafed woods with which her hair matched. Stepping foward towards the counter, the gentle smile upon this woman's face drew forth the question of how soft her lips were, while her gracefully garbed form dared her to ask how warm an embrace from such a woman would be. Coming to a stop at the counter, this noble woman spoke.

The sound of poetry eons old caressed the storekeep's ears as this woman gently spoke, her words as incomprehensible as they were beautiful to behold. Even as she smiled, perhaps even fully knowing that the shopkeep did not understand, the faintest of scents tickled her nose. Was it the almost warm, relaxing notes of pine? Or the relieving cool of mint? There were many questions, but Amisra was dead set on asking hers first.

"Remember to be nice," she reminded her companions in her native tongue, her gaze set upon the shopkeep as though she would a lover, all too aware none of it was understood. Having said that, the Ranger spoke, her words memoriezed with care for this very moment. "Is there a library that is open?" Amisra asked in the invader's tongue.

Gwaedcryf spoke naught, standing there like an immovable constant in the universe itself. He simply stared into the eyes of this individual, his eyes a dark blue ocean of possibility and the unknown, shoulders squared to her. His armor was worn, battered, as if a thousand wars had been fought in that suit alone, never a chance to stop, never willing to rest. A force of nature that knew no quarter and gave no ground, yet his features, for all their stony edge, dared to imply he could by chance be softened one day into a smile.

"The lib-library..." The human lass tried to muster a reply. She blinked, then shook her head. First, her hand came out from under the counter, revealing a handgun, which she set above on the surface. "Fuck! Hold on!" She exclaimed with expletives, with a mix of fear and excitement filled her voice. "You're elves! Real elves! How did you learn Mandarin? Why did you come into the city? Why do you want to go to a library, of all places, and why did you think a convenience store is the right place to look for directions? Do elves even have convenience stores?"

Sai cautiously raised her single hand, palm pointed towards her, eyes repeatedly glancing to the handgun. Sai herself seemed to lack whatever choreographed pose that the other two struck, having missed the que that the others had been hit by. Stepping forward, awkwardly interrupting the other two elves, she cleared her throat, a well practiced but heavily accented voice, methodically pronouncing each word filled the air.

"Yes, we are... Elves, as you say." She responded, immediately disliking the dark glint of the handgun, an awkward flash of her teeth betraying where her attention lay. "We are... Unfamiliar, with your city. Your language was not difficult, but there are not many... People, out to ask for directions." She explained at a tempo pace.

"We want to learn more, a... Library, is a common concept, though a convenient-store is, well, not."

"Right. Right. Of course." The lass nodded slowly. She looked Sai up and down, furrowing her eyebreows at the Aos Si's permanent injuries, but said nothing of it otherwise. "You still haven't my question though: why?" She paused, then gave a thoughtful smile. "How about this. You elves don't seem like the violent type, and if you got this far into the suburbs, someone let you in. Big government conspiracy. If you answer my questions, and let me take a picture of you three," She tapped her datapad, which had a small lens on the back. "I'll gladly tell you where the library is. I promise I won't tell anyone you're here; people are going to know about it sooner than later; I just want to say I was the first who made contact."

"A picture, yes," Amisra replied, her poised smile hiding her thoughts. The idea of infomration being sent and shared quickly was not a foreign one to her, and one that she had hoped for as a side objective. "Your people had been quiet for some time, and we suspect a change. We would like to read about this change," the Ranger explained to the storekeep. Holding her arms out and gesturing to herself, the redheaded Aos Si invited her over. "But come. Let us take this picture."

The lass' smile turned uneasy. "That won't be necessary." She simply raised her datapad up and aimed at the group. "No offense, but I don't want to get an elven virus or something from you three, nor do I want to have you contact a virus from me. I know basically nothing about elven biology. In fact, I really should be wearing a mask right now."

"Oh?" Amisra gracefully raised an eyebrow. Hands on her hips, she proudly leaned forward. "You don't want to say you were the first then?" she teased the young woman with a knowing smile.

Sai was clearly visibly less eager to accept the concept of being photographed than her companion was. Already, she stuck out quite badly, given her wounds and the fact that she was an elf in the human city. To say that she didn't trust the human to retain the picture until later was an understatement. "I... Suppose, a photo is fine." She murmured, though the uncertain way she spoke said otherwise. "Assuming, of course, that we receive directions." She restated, the reiteration being quite blatant in what she was trying to redirect to. "It would... Be unfortunate, if we were to continue wandering the streets in search of it."

"Right, right." The lass tapped her datapad, then went behind a closed door, much to the three Aos Si's confusion. A couple minutes later, she reappeared again, this time with a printed photo placed in a plastic frame. "This must be a big night for you as it is for me, so here's something to commemorate it." She then drew another piece of paper and started writing directions on it. "The one library that's open now is the one on the institute's campus. Just try not to startle my classmates too much over there."

Gwaed had nothing to add, not smiling for the picture, for even if he had known that is what you're supposed to do, he wouldn't have. He watched her like a hawk, but has long decided she wasn't a threat. If Ami wanted to to the talker, she could take the directions.

"We thank you for your assistance, and will remember this," Amisra graciously smiled in return. "Tell us, what is your name?" the redheaded ranger asked, curious. There was nothing to be done of course, but the courtesy would be observed. It was only fitting to, at the very least, pretend to care and go through all the proper motions. Anything else was rude and improper. Perhaps more importantly though, this was perhaps the most trivial amount of time spent for giving the proper impression.

 

[Ray of Meep]

"Sun Jiang Bao (Protect future, Sun being surname)." The lass replied.

"Then we will remember you, Sun Jiang Bao," Amisra replied, a pleasant smile upon her lips. "Farewell." Without another word, the trio of tall, graceful figures left. Where they stepped, the very ground seemed more pure, the air cleaner. The very way their skin almost seemed to glow, there seemed something special about them. But, it could have just as easily been the cleaning robot doing a good job, the air freshener cycling, or the digital adspaces rotating to something that wasn't completely and utterly obnoxious to look at.
"All is going well," Amisra spoke to the others.

"Wait!" Jiang Bao came dashing out the convenience store. "Do you have any money?"

"Of course," Amisra smiled. "But even then, if our money is of no value to you, I am certain that there are things that can be bartered for," she replied, thinking several steps ahead. Having spoken with Shi Cheng, the Ranger was certain that her culture was a lost curiosity to his people now. That meant that, so long as a trinket even looked remotely interesting, it had worth. Especially if she spun a good enough story for it. "Perhaps there are places at which we may barter things for your coin?" she asked. One thing was certain though, Shi Cheng placed value in that which was hand made.

'Artesian Craftsmanship' he had called it. And everything the Aos Si made was by hand.

"I was thinking I'd just give you some." Jiang Bao revealed a small, plastic card from her pocket and offered it to Amisra with one hand, careful to ensure no physical contact. "This should be enough to get a two way transit ticket and some food and drink. Must suck having to constantly hunt your food and cook it without all the niceties."

"Don't thank me." She smirked. "With the photo I got of you, the amount of people showing up at the store will more than make up for what I'm giving you."

"Self sufficiency is more satisfying than you would think." Sai stated, eyeing the plastic card cautiously. That... Thing, had money in it? "Though I'd imagine if you had grown up with it, you would be used to it as well." She didn't like giving idle comments to the human, but it was better to give at least some casual conversation to placate her. "I trust that you won't immediately send a curious crowd to corner us in the library?" She pressed slightly trying to keep the question light hearted, though it was hard to phrase it in such a way through a language she hadn't yet mastered.

"Oh! Of course not!" Jiang Bao chuckled nervously. "If anything, I hope you try to keep a low profile yourselves so you don't raise a big fuss!" She shook her head. "We really don't need that right now," Then looked at the Aos Si. "My guess though is that your pictures are going to get posted on social media pretty soon once you enter the city proper, so if you don't want attention, finish whatever you're doing fast."

"Of course, and thank you," Amisra replied. Taking the lead once again, she turned to leave. The words 'social media' did not hold much meaning to her, but she had a guess. "Once upon a time - " she began, once they were out of earshot of the girl, " - our people were able to communicate with one another in an instant," the Ranger began to recount the historical texts. "Not just mere messages. But images captured and taken in one moment, only to be sent the next. A storm of information, news, chatter and gossip. All non-stop and continuous."

Hastily written down as some sort of horrific calamity occured, they were less than complete. But the picture that they painted, the image they tried to make future generations aware of was clear. "Undoubtedly, she is using a similar system to our own," Amisra glanced at the hastily scrawled map, following it's simple directions. "Whether or not we must make haste as a result, I care not however." The redhead smiled at her companions. "I doubt they would do something as boorish as stop us from looking at their library."

Worse, was what it all meant - they had declined, and these 'humans' were now roughly where the Aos Si once were.

Gwaed nodded, still as stoic as ever. He wouldn't let his guard down, always scanning the periphery for enemies. "I doubt as much as well, yet we shouldn't assume they will be so kind as to not talk to us, interrogate us I mean. I just don't want to talk to them in general." The raven haired man looked upon the map, remembering fondly the days when communication was a simple manner. Or at the very least, the days when that wasn't such a distant memory of their people. This simply caused him to glare at the Parasites harder.

------

The three Aos Si returned to the entrance of the underground railway system, a small building. In it was a staircase that led downwards and a few human machines, with screens that read, "Tap to get started", along with a small logo and what looked to be the image of a human vehicle, sleek and aerodynamic, most likely the shuttle they were going to board. Besides the screens, there were also a couple of large dispensers covered by transparent plastic, showing off drinks and wrapped up food they contained.

Gwaed stared at the screen, unsure of his next action. His finger, rough with work and war, hovered over the button. "I am not hesitant. I am simply ensuring it's not a trap." He tapped the screen, waiting for either and alarm to sound, a gun to fire, or for literally nothing to happen. "There. I have sealed our fates." With a nod, he looked to the large dispensers. He wished to eat human food so he might spit it out in disgust, but didn't think too hard about how they worked, feeling up the dispensers for some nozzle or ANYTHING that might activate this confounded Parasite contraption.

Sai kept mostly to herself as they moved to the station, keeping her eyes open around them as they did so, half expecting for a crowd of either military to apprehend them, or a crowd of similar aged humans to swarm them like they were some exhibit to be gawked at.

She felt exposed as they entered the station, unfamiliar lights, signs, and structures that she couldn't immediately identify. It wasn't just being somewhere new, all of this was more than just foreign, it was absolutely alien. Anything they had that could be compared had already been destroyed, and such a thought renewed a fresh hate into her gut.

Stepping up awkwardly to the kiosks of food, she stared at the alien yet bizarrely foreign foodstuffs, she tried to read how the machines worked, but of course they seemed to be designed as if anybody who would encounter them would have more than enough experience with how they worked. "I find it hard to believe that we have not set off some alarm, silent or otherwise. I don't believe that the next humans we encounter would be as kind as to only flash their weapons at us like the first."

"It's all like stories from a book," the Ranger mused. Though they were all of good repute and esteem for bringing in vital sustenance to their hidden home, Amisra was known for a few other things. One of them, being the few, precious books that she had managed to save. And many of them mundane made, their pages without life. "We may gawk at their foodstuffs later, but for now, we must move forward," she urged the others on. Amisra's smile remained as faint as it was ever present, but when the others took the first step, she didn't so much as falter and took the next step after that, stepping through the device that had barred their way. She never did seem particularly fond of the few children that remained, and neither they her, but they shared a common interest. "It lets us pass if we have paid the toll," the redhead pointed out, seemingly unconcerned about their safety.

 

[Ray of Meep]

Stories of the past were like fantasy of the future for the Aos Si, such was their sad state of affairs, and fittingly, Amisra's ever-present smile took on a different light under the harsh glow of the florecent bulbs and LED displays. One that was very unkind.

Gwaed's finagling with the Parasite's contraption rewarded him with three plastic cards from its mouth, which allowed the Aos Si to pass through the transparent gates that blocked their way downstairs. The underground was a large tunnel that stopped where they currently were, but extended seemingly endlessly in the other direction. The Aos Si were standing on a platform looking over a trench with metal lining the bottom edges. Wires and the occassional cylindrical tank could also be seen.

Above them was a display hanging from a ceiling that said, "South Suburb Arrival: One Minute; Destination: North Suburb" in the invaders' language. Indeed, a faint roar could be heard in the distance that grew louder and louder.

The source of the roar arrived soon enough. It was like a long serpent, metallic, painted in pure white, and had a sleak, smooth head... or tail? Windows and doors lined its sides, doors that opened up, revealing its internal compartments. As the Aos Si ventured in they saw aisles of mostly empty seats, save for a single invader that was taking up an entire row to lay down.

The invader was disheveled with unkempt facial hair, black and grey, his facial features old and tired. He was wearing two layers of coats and pants with a hat over his eyes. A pair of crutches rested next to him on the floor, while the observant Aos Si also noted that underneath the clothing, one of invader's legs was more stick like than the other.

"Doors closing. Next stop: South Point Park." A voice came from seemingly nowhere as the doors shut behind the Aos Si. Then, the large mechanical beast accelerated forward into the tunnel, causing them to stumble backwards a few steps before regaining their footing.

Besides the invader, another item of note was a map on the inner wall. Following the lines on it, the Aos Si could see there were a few stops between them and their destination: the Cloud Watch Institute.

Gwaed had stood in the "subway" as it moved at unnatural speeds, staring at the walls and people. He gazed at the map, following the lines with his eyes. He spoke to his companions. "Are we to stop on the way and take in the city? We're already here after all, and the city seems mostly content to let us be."

It was something completely foreign, and that alone rose that idle fear in her gut that threatened to obscure Sai's otherwise firm resolve. Among these two others she did not know well, that kind of weakness was not something she could afford to be caught. From what she had seen of the two, she had a feeling that such hesitation would be preyed upon, as such events had happened before, though with other people in other places.

It came down the tunnel like a beast bursting forth from its lair ready to slaughter the intruder of its territory, swerving away from them as it diligently obeyed the instruction of the tracks below it. Its thundrous sound pounded in her head, and as it screeched to a perfect stop as if it were trained to, Sai found herself wondering if this was truly the result of pure technology. Something that looked so dangerous, so volatile and fragile running perfectly every time? How many people would stand aboard, fully trusting its ability to do the set motions every single stop of every single day? Her mind reeled of the thought of the kin of ingenuity that would be required for it, but knowing that the Parasites had made it eased her mind. If such short-sighted, hateful cretins could make it, then they too could surpass it.

All they needed was the information.

She stepped aboard with the others, her eyes cautiously scanning the pod that they had stepped into, instictively grabbing one of the verticle poles thats clear purpose was for balance when the barbaric tube lurched forward. "We've yet to run into any true number of the Parasites." She spoke in her native tongue, refusing to allow the downtrodden Parasite in on the conversation by confident choice. "I have strong suspicions against the idea that all of them would be so kind as the prior, and even she pulled a weapon on us." She reminded Gwaed. "Perhaps after we visit the library, we could cautiously take a look around. At least then we can make a hasty exit without risking the primary purpose of this visit."

"These linked carriages travel on a fixed route underground and make periodic stops," Amisra observed, seemingly unconcerned about the nature of the vehicle they were in. "However, judging by the use of the currency given to us, we are charged upon entry. It will not do us well to repeatedly enter and exit this carriage route repeatedly, as we do not know how much currency we have with certainty," the ranger pointed out. "I also remind you that it is night." Despite this though, she gestured to the other 'occupant' of their carriage as they lay there sleeping. "Do any of you realize what that is, and the signifigance of it?" she gestured to the human, palm up.

Gwaed looked to the sleeping Parasite, and rolled his eyes. Amisara got on his nerves at times like this, as if she knew everything about a situation. "He was tired? He hasn't a home to return to? I don't know. You mean to say most will be asleep? Because that was apparent, and yet we've met two Parasites so far, one of which met us with caution. Say what you intend to say, instead of dancing around your point."

"This one looks overly disheviled, if I had to guess he's either lingering at the bottom tiers of their social standings or is dejected from their society. Exile or incapable of continuing for one reason or another." She paused, staring at the figure with a cautious eye. "If I had to guess at what you mean, there's nothing helping someone of their stature. They have fallen this far, and no hands reach to help them up." It was a cold hate that continued to root and dig into her gut. "I see their disregard for life is not even focused at us. Any form of weakness allows them to step upon one another."

Amisra couldn't help but continue to smile as Gwaed became all the more annoyed, having wheedled and prodded at him over the years in such a manner. It was practically their routine now, but despite that, she had not tired of it, and he never changed. "This man is without home, and must sleep wherever he can find shelter," Amisra observed. "And already, we saw that the store maiden had to keep herself well armed," the ranger pointed out. "It's obvious that they cannot even trust their own city guards to do their job properly. Their society is potentially in shambles, though only our search in The Library will out the truth."

Gwaed knew she enjoyed his torment, had for the longest time. Despite his annoyance with her personality and the frequency of her pointed mental assaults on his most apparent of pet peeves, he had rarely ever thought to just leave her behind. That would be cruel, to her and to him. She was familar, somewhat understandable, he couldn't leave her. Therefore his hell was apparent, to be trapped following her along as she delved into the Parasite's den of decay. "Good then. Let them rot. Maybe they'll force themselves to extinction and the universe in it's entirety will be better off for it."

The mechanical beast started and stopped multiple times, before finally stopping at the Cloud Watch Institute's stop. The transit station seemed to be situated right in the middle of a large complex of buildings, with roads surrounding the station. The skylines were dominated by light pouring out of the invaders' high rises. It seems the architecture in this institute's complex was espeacially pretentious, with sleak angles and twisting geometry... not unlike that of the Aos Si, especially their city center monuments. The roads, both for vehicles and pedestrians alike, were lined with vegetation, except they were alien green, in contrast to the natural red color of the planet.

The well lit paths of the complex showed few invaders about in the open, all of them seemed to be young, healthy, but with hints of apprehension strewn about their faces. A male in bare minimum clothing was running with plastic inserted into his ears, while a pair of females were walking along with light backpacks and datapads in their hands, talking about a project of sorts. Judging by their eyes, it was apparent that they had not much sleep. Despite the three Aos Si in the open, none of them seemed to bat an eye, besides one weary glance and a raised eyebrow by a single passerby.

The library wasn't hard to find; multiple maps on screens dotted along the pathways made it easy, even without the lass' instructions. This building was more flamboyant than the others; it was a tall, helical affair, mainly glass, supported by hexagonal metal frames. From the outside, the Aos Si could see that, oddly, there weren't many bookshelves at all inside; only a single floor seemed to have any. Instead, it was dominated by individual rooms, public tables, and screens similar to those in the transit station.

 

[Ray of Meep]

"I remember, long ago - " Amisra began, " - that my city's head librarian lamented that there were so many books." The phrase itself was perhaps beyond odd, but to Gwaed, this was not unusual. Most of their people looked upon her like a godess of sustenance, but he knew better. "Many books, filled with fading magic. But also too many books with mundane pages." Stepping into the 'library', the Ranger didn't bother with the books first herself. No, instead, she began looking elsewhere first. The things that shouldn't belong in a collection of books. "They said, before their time, when we first stepped foot upon this realm, knowledge was stored as pure knowledge." She stepped into into one of the booths and tilted her head. "What does it mean by 'computer workstation'?" the redhead gracefully raised an eyebrow, now stymied. As strange as Amisra was, these beings were perhaps even more so than her.

Gwaed watched her journey from the door to the booths. Despite all he'd felt just moments before, lambasting her personality and how it grated on him, his feelings towards her turned in an instant to the sympathetic. He knew what she meant. He remembered the grand libraries his upbringing afforded him, books upon books of information. You could hold history in your hand, any subject in your palm. His heart panged with emotion, though he wouldn't allow it to reach his face. He followed her to the computer workstation, something he found he did often. He wasn't sure what it meant, following her about like a rock puppy.

"I suppose... these are Parasite books. Stored in their slates of information. It makes sense, but it annoys me, as does much of what they do." He tapped at the screen, using his limited knowledge of their language to try and decipher the machine's use. "It has no spirit, no warm feeling of familiarity. Just the ordinary cold Parasite way."

On the blank white screen in the center was a logo, then characters underneath it: "Cloud Watch Institute Database". Below it was an empty rectangle. tapping on it summoned a small, black, vertical flashing bar, along with rows of characters underneath, that seemed to wait to be tapped.

"The storage of pure knowledge is something foreign to these parasites. Though I don't know how they do it, if they have managed to compact their knowledge, it's something forceful and unnatural, much like the rest of their existence." Her eyes were cynical as she looked around, eyeing the green plants that they kept seemingly everywhere. "They wanted a new planet but could not abandon their old one. So instead the create a smear of their old ways, introducing foreign plants as if this will not create an issue of its own. How long till one of theirs begins to spread to the wild, causing more untold damage?"

She eyed the workstations cautiously, before her eyes turned about, looking for any Parasites who may be watching them. Though her companions didn't seem to have cared, the image of that store Parasite pulling a gun, though she had not used it, kept her paranoid. To her, that was an excessively positive meeting, even if it had compromised their presence. She felt that one of them, angry and hateful as their species had proven to be, would pull a weapon upon them, less inclined to wait for an explanation.

She didn't enjoy the idea of giving them the chance to hurt her again.

"I'd presume it works on the same touch principle as that underground system. Or perhaps we could as an employee for assistance." It was clear she had no intention of doing so, speaking entirely in their native language and coating the final comment in a tone that mocked the Parasites.

"To be fair, many of our things are cold now as well," Amisra pointed out. Though she typically took a hint of delight at proving Gwaed wrong - if only to poke at him like a cat - there was no joy this time. "It is simply how things are now." Reaching over, the ranger sought out the two symbols that she had gleamed from their prior lessons. "Lìshǐ, was it?"

"History," was what Amisra tapped on the screen and into the rectangular bar. Rows of text appeared, segregated into blocks as "Books", "Articles", "Journals", and "Videos". Under "Books" were multiple titles: "History of Humanity: Retrospective from a post-'together produce' party China", "History of the American Union: A Nation of Double Edges", "Through Ash and Blood: History of the Heaven Forged Republic".

As the Aos Si explored what the kiosks had to offer, they could hear murmurs of students studying at the various tables around the library. Some were directly within line of sight of the Aos Si. While none of them were looking at the party directly, their conversations were defenitley about them.

Sai, unfortunately, did not keep her eyes to the kiosk, instead entranced in her guard of the surrounding area. The murmurs weren't unusual, she had no doubt that in a place of study there would be plenty of talking to exchange ideas and concepts. However, that burning paranoia refused to smolder, and though she couldn't hear specifics she knew the whispers were about them. Her eyes, though imperfect, stared in the direction of the students, her face stern as she continued her watch.

"I don't like this." She admitted, her hand idling moving to rub at the stump of her other, which overcame with a sudden, unexpected ache. "They're very well aware of the fact that we're here." She murmured as she shifted, refusing the urge to pace as she felt her nerves tense. None of them were looking directly at them, but she could feel their burning eyes, like scavenger beasts waiting to ambush.

Though little had changed in her demeanor, the other two elves, if they took notice, would at least feel the immediate change in Sai. There was a tenseness, like someone was screaming in her face and she was restraining the urge to fight back. The sudden, overwhelming presence of whispering savages poking invisible holes in her facade of collectedness.

Gwaed recognized the tension in Sai's shoulders, he was feeling it too, perhaps to a more managable extent. He looked over the computer, and found little of import. "They will not attack, they wouldn't dare. I doubt their academic institutions would like them to fire into their locations, and besides," the faintest hint of cockiness entered his voice, face confident for but a second, "if they raise arms against either of you I will simply remove their spines and use their bones to kill the others. It would be only proper." Amisra would know these sorts of threats against the percieved threat were not uncommon. This time, however, he said it in one of their cities. He couldn't resist the chance to show off, again.

"It is only natural that they would gawk," Amisra remarked, her traveling cloak upon the table. The table itself was very clearly meant to be easily changed between sitting or standing, a good consideration for one's health. However, in her wisdom, the redheaded ranger decided to have the table lowered for those who woud sit, while she herself remained standing. Bending over the table, she ensured that the lesser beings behind her were enthralled and incapable of thought. "There are a selection of many different choices, regarding many different nations," she observed. Drawing upon her wisdom once more, her emerald eyes glanced over her shoulder. "Excuse me. Which nation is this?" she asked the lesser beings in their native tongue.

The closest invaders were a couple, a boy and a girl. They looked at each other with indescribable facial expressions. "Uhmm... the Heaven Forged Republic?" The boy replied.

Gwaed was horrified at the current turn of events, eyes widening in shock. Damnit, the bitch had shown up his threat by ignoring it and then completely nullifying it. He didn't want to exactly say what he was thinking, because it was a couple thoughts, but the second one and less powerful was annoyance. A hand lightly tapped his forehead, his own, as he felt this surge of annoyance and the other emotion.

"Is that..." The girl leaned into the boy's ear and whispered. "Is that one of the natives showing off her ass?"

"Shut up, they can hear you."

 

[Ray of Meep]

"Yes, I can hear you," Amisra remarked, her long, pointed ears deliberately wiggling for emphasis. "Which nation is this?" she asked again, quietly amused at the lesser woman's jealously.

"The Heaven Forged Republic." The boy repeated again. The girl went silent, seemingly unsure of what to make of the situation.

"Then I thank you," the redhead replied. Turning her attention back to the terminal, she made to tap the selection indicating the history of this 'Heaven Forged Republic', a name she found quite pretentious. However, she kept her feelings to herself and wondered if there was any self-justification for this. "Let us see what we find," she pondered aloud in her native tongue.

Meanwhile Sai practically stared daggers at the couple, as if they posed some form of threat, at least with her good eye. With that stern glare and marred face, it was a stark contrast to the booty shaking elf next to her. "You two." She spoke in that tempo pace she had practiced. "Why are so many staring? We are here to use the library, same as them." She spoke, as if she took offense to the attention, clearly aware of the answer. "Is there some rule against us?" She asked, suppressing her rising heartbeat that cried out to be out from their smothering gaze.

"Well, uhmm..." There was a flash of fear and confusion in the eyes of the invader couples. "Isn't it obvious? We've never seen your kind in person before, much less up close, or speaking Chinese. We thought the Great 'Qin' people already wiped you all out."

She narrowed her good eye at the couple at the mention of the 'Great Qin' people, as if the idea of giving such a title to those who had commited xenocidal acts offended her deeper, but she kept that on the backburner. "Fortunately their ability to to exterminate us proved not so boastful as they claimed." She responded curtly, turning her body, better revealing herself, and what she lacked. "Despite their efforts." She spoke with a strong accent, but the bitter distaste of her comment still rang through.

"We've learned your language, and have come to learn more." She thought of saying more, but decided that explaining anything that could be used against them was a poor idea, and rather sought to find more information from them. "Now, admittedly we've only run into a scarce amount of your people, as you sleep at night." She paused, glancing outside. "Usually." She admitted after a moment. "However, you see us for the first time and stare in shock and judgement." Her face shifted into one of judgement of her own, added unto by the scars on her face resisting the emotion. "I've been fired upon by your kind before. If you had to make an educated guess, do you believe we would face any form of resistance for simply being in the city built upon our own?" The way she spoke was odd, formed in a strange way, even for a second language. Phrasings and word choice resembled something else, something that sounded simple in Chinese, yet spoke of intelligence in something else.

Gwaed watched her monologue with an eyeroll, before realizing he might have done the same had he the chance. "The point, Parasites, is that you could never destroy us all, no matter how hard you try. Try not to stare too hard, she likes the attention." He turned from them, back to the computer, before looking to Amisra with a shake of his head, to express dissapointment in her, eyes briefly glancing past her... postieror.

"Forgive my companions," Amisra looked over her shoulder again, her eyes forcibly torn away from the most vital of information thanks to their antics. "Their mood is 'cloudy' given what has happened," she began to explain, slowly, carefully navigating through the morass of irrelevant history that these 'humans' had. "We were very curious about something regarding your people," the redheaded ranger turned back to the terminal. The dates and times of their system were largely meaningless without context to her. But there was something that they shared. The stars. Regardless of what system one culture or another used, the movements of the stars remained a constant, with which she could then use to determine year equivilancies. Having multiple of these 'tabs' was very useful. "What happened in...2199 See Eee?" she asked, a mischevious smile on her lips.

The pair's faces darkened, as dark as Sai's and Gwaed's. There was no two ways about it. It was sincere, and it was universal; it was grief. "Do we really have to?" The girl murmured to the boy.

"They should know." The boy replied solemnly, before looking back at Amisra. His face changed in reaction to Amisra's seemingly more positive attitude, now one of barely suppressed disdain. "Look up "Termination", and "2nd Century of Humiliation"."

The girl pointed to Sai, specifically where one of her arms should've been. "Many of our parents are like you."

Gwaed... wasn't sure how to take this information. He spent an entire section of his life dedicated to hatred and destruction, but what could he possibly do if his opponents were truly gone? he doubted he could find it in his heart to forgive the Parasite race, especially as they still lived in the ruins of their past city. He stared at them in confusion, before looking to the computer and looking up the suggested passages.

A few figures and phrases stood out.

"Within a few days, the entire central administration was dead."

"One in ten Chinese people of the Great Sun system died by the year the Heaven Forged Republic was founded."

"The survivors of the civil wars, mentally and physically scarred, were dubbed "The Scarred Generation"."

"Several key space command installations remain occupied by American Union forces."

Gwaed's eyes slowly moved to Amisra, and then to Sai. He had no words for this situation. Seems the Parasites had engineered their own destruction. And left the ashes... to their children. He wasn't sure what to say.

"Very interesting," Amisra casually remarked, meticulously taking in the details. She seemed curious more than anything else, but being fellow Aos Si, both Gwaed and Sai could tell that this aloofness was only surface deep. "So we have something in common it would seem," the redheaded ranger observed. Bent forward and back turned to the rest of them, the humans couldn't see, but the sharp, superior eyes of her fellows could. The bloodly glimpse of a smile in the monitor's reflection was so quick, one would question whether it was there at all. But, the unspeakable cruelty was vivid in their memory. "These 'Zhuli' they are called? The ones that hurt us both? What has become of them?" she turned to face the two 'humans', her expression cool and aloof once more.

 

[Ray of Meep]

"They became the Daqin Empire." The boy replied.

"No better than what China was before the HFR. They're in the Heaven system now, having killed all the humans there and probably most of your kind there as well." The girl grumbled.

"The other colonies?" Amisra's eyebrows briefly shot up in surprise. However, it was brief as her mask of distant curiosity was quickly donned again. "Could you two tell us more?" she gently pried, careful not to pressure these young creatures too heavily.

"Of what? The humans or your kind?" The girl asked. "How much do you know of yourselves anyways? Besides those on this planet, anyways." She looked up and down her. "To be honest, you don't look like the spacefaring type."

Gwaed had always wondered about the other colonies, spending nights of his childhood looking up into the stars and wondering. To hear the monsters that destroyed their people then moved to destroy more hurt him. As with most emotions, he squashed them before the Parasites before him would notice much. "We are not. The ability was lost long ago, but we were doing just fine. For a time." He blinked, and sighed. "I suppose in the long run, we know little of those lost in space." He wasn't sure how to continue, so he just stared at them.

The seemingly polite attempt at sympathizing with Sai seemed to do little to aid in whatever bridge the student was trying to cross. By the immediate narrow in her eyes and the increased tension in her broad shoulders, it didn't take someone well versed in the differences between elves and humans to figure out that the student had unknowingly chosen the wrong words. There was enough in common to grasp that twitch on her unscarred side of her face.

She listened idly for a moment, burning eyes glancing away from the pair as she listened to the irrelevant history. So the people who committed the atrocities were gone. It meant nothing, even if the group was still present, there would be the argument that it was the old generation who did it, or some other passing of the torch to pretend that atrocities happened somewhere else by someone else. It solved nothing, it alleviated no questions or purposes, the only thing it did was increase the weight of that burning coal that flared in her gut like a pulse of magma rooting through the frigid ground.

She didn't come here to make some bridge between humans and elves. If anything this proved nothing more than how truly untrustworthy they were. 'You were the enemy then!' They shouted, as if it justified the dead. 'But you have to forgive us, because it was actually the new enemy, over there!' Such short lived people, aching to make a difference that they would claw their way into each possible crevice of existence, just to snuff out whatever lurked their prior for objecting to such parasites nibbling at their heels, until something in turn nipped at theirs.

"And who followed them?" Sai asked, unwanted images pressing in her mind. Funeral pyres melting familiar faces and medical salvents that burned her nose as they cleansed her singed flesh. The fear as she screamed looking skyward, rocked by unnatural spasms of terror at nothing more than a shooting star. "Who sought justice against them?" She felt that she already knew the answer. "The fact that they still live tells me that either such attempts failed, or none tried." She spoke bitterly. "I'm not surprised. It's not even common knowledge that your ilk were unsucessful in their xenocide. I have little interest in your history when ours was erased and buried beneath these rocks."

The terminal spoke of foreign people, foreign human factions that rivaled and fought like it was all petty politics to kill and pillage land and people. There were other elves, but she almost found it humorous that it was such a minor footnote in the egocentric documents. Images of human ships meeting the shooting stars of elven empires briefly crossed her mind, but faded with the same irrelevance she was taught to ignore.

"What's more important is what we can share." The word came from her lips oddly, and it was obvious that she implied that the humans had more than enough to go around. "Your kind has failed to reach a hand of assistance, and so we must follow the avarice of the kindly serpent and reach for larger things." Her eyes, decrepit pits that burned with dark rings turned back to the two students. "How can we bring information back with us? I require information on technology regarding agriculture and medicine."

At this point the three Aos Si were garnaring more unwanted attention, between Gwaed and Sai's harsh words and Amisra being Amisra. Murmurs of the flamboyant Aos Si being too haughty for her own good; the male Aos Si turning from anger to resignation; and of Sai's current accusations. Then there were murmurs of admonishment, "They're aliens," assumptions that the Aos Si had little understanding of human emotion and vice versa.

The girl mumbled. "We're just students..." She was clearly upset, as if to say "We did nothing wrong."

The boy spoke up with a suppressed frustration. "There's a printer on the bottom floor that's rarely used, but you can get texts on paper. Alternatively, you can rent out a datapad for no cost should you return it. Based on what you want though, you'll probably need more than text and numbers. You'll need someone who actually knows what they're doing."

"Do not be so unfair," Amisra began in Chinese, her words cold and precise despite her ever present smile.

Gwaed wasn't sure what to make of anything right now. All these decades planning revenge, only for his revenge to have been taken without his understanding? All that was left of the Parasites that led the unnatural soldiers to them were the Parasites children, simply working in a university in the dead of night. All the hate in his heart was wound up and ready to explode, and yet the hatred now had no focus, if it was true that his enemy was gone. For once in recent years, Gwaed's face was... sad. He spoke in their native tongue, not wanting the Para... humans, to hear him. "Damn. Even those that live here, in the ruins of my home, see us as fairy tales of days past. Is that my legacy? Rage against a dead enemy, and an enemy that is out of my reach?" He looked back to the children, his Chinese sub-par, certainly, but for an alien lifeform it could certainly be worse. "Who would know what they are doing? Would one of you be able to help? If not, who?"

"Some scientists and engineers around the city, I guess." The girl replied. "Not sure who'd be willing to help. You three... well, frankly we're still in shock that we're seeing aliens in front of us."

Gwaed's eyes narrowed in annoyance. "You are the aliens." He turned back to the computer with a growl. "I will not be referred to as an outsider on my own planet."

The girl stuttered. "I... This is..."

The boy stopped his partner. "Noted. What do you want to be referred then from here on out? I have a feeling this isn't the last time we're going to see you."

 

[Ray of Meep]

"We are the Aos Sí," Amisra made sure to reply. "And please forgive my companions," she glanced at Gwaed and Sai. "They have been through...hardship," the redheaded woman politely stated. "We have learned much on our walk, and thank you," she curtsied, leaning forward ever so slightly as her emerald eyes watched. "We will take our leave and trouble you no more." Having said that, Amisra began to lead the way out, hopefuly forcing the other two to follow suite. She was less than pleased with their unbecoming attitudes, but, the most important details had been gleamed.

Gwead knew how she felt about his abrasive attitude and he'd eventually stopped caring as much about her holier-than-thou derision a couple decades ago, and so he did not immediatly follow her out of the library. He closed the tabs and did he best to deactivate the machine, eventually just leaving it there, still on. He turned to the students, his face unreadable. "Yes. Hardships is one way to put it. May you have a studious night."

He turned on his heel and followed Amisra out, shaking his head, slipping back into their native tongue with a face bordering on the lines between annoyed and angry. "Woman, do not apologize on my behalf for actions I am not sorry for. I commited no crime and offered no slight to those children, and yet you see fit to leave with telling them I am a damaged individual. You went through all I did, step by step. You have been through each hardship I have." He pointed a finger at her, and began stalking past her as he finished speaking. "Do not group me seperately from you."

Sai lingered a moment longer, watching the two others shift away back towards the outside as if the trip had sated what they wanted. She frowned, watching them argue with increasing disdain. They would walk away so quickly? She considered following them, before her eyes turned to the terminal once more. History was all they wanted, and so history was all they received.

Leaving now, however, spoke of something else to Sai than leaving satisfied. She wanted more, and leaving without it did little more than grant these humans the power of having won over her once more. There was no action, no performance or behaviour that would undo what they had done. Even all the support possible in the world could not fix what breaks within people. Without thinking, she had booted the terminals back up, quickly searching the indexes for a seperate topic.

Research on botany and local flora, how edible they were, how they best grew and the minimum needed to grow them. Poems and faint memories went by her head as the act of defiance left her alone as she continued. She knew, given how much could be in each paper, that she couldn't bring everything. There was not guarantee she could return a borrowed portable terminal as was suggested. Besides, given its free nature it was likely to be used to track them.

"I will not place lives in hands I cannot trust." She admitted, her one hand deftly moving through the terminals pages. They could afford missing pages. Why else would it be available? At the same time she knew better than to select only broad overviews, she needed experiments with details, and so she sought to find such examples, and 'print' them. They grew and hunted their own food, but what could they learn from this society? It may have laid her a victim, and no solution to that would ever present itself. However she could adapt, and she could take knowledge from it the same way they did any other beast.

The printing machine downstairs was a mysterious box looking thing with a smaller terminal on it. There were several slots in it, and by the time Sai walked towards it, one of the slots was already producing all the pages she requested. Picking the papers up, she could feel they were warm to the touch, almost with a hint of life present in Aos Si texts, before it all quickly dissapated, leaving her with black text and colorful pictures on the paper, but nothing more.

In the end, the ranger did not so much as deign the swordsman a reply, and he knew why - she believed him beneath her, and not worth the time answering.

"You have them then?" Amisra asked, curious if Sai had found even a hint of what she searched for. However, even as she handed over her sachel for her younger peer to use, the faint, icy chill made it clear that she was displeased. "Then we may fly and do our last, final task for the night," the redhead remarked. With the sachel handed over to Sai, she had removed the armor within and quickly donned it again, hiding herself once more. Despite Sai's own belief in the importance of these documents, Amisra seemed to simply not care for them in the slightest as she took the lead again.

Gwead remembered once again, all of a sudden, how to feel, and the first emotion he felt was absolute rage. He knew exactly why she didn't respond, the pretty fucking princess had seen fit to ignore him to make a simple infuriating point. His face moved back to what had become over the years a more natural-feeling state, angry, as he stalked behind her. "Oh my apologies Great Princess Nothing of the prosperous realm of Fuck-All, I forgot my station! Seriously woman, someday you will be put in your place and I will get to say 'I told you so.'" Despite his harsh words he walked beside her, for reasons he couldn't understand really, especially in a fit of anger, as good at anger as he was.

The process was strange and unfamiliar. Technology built upon the concept that anyone who used it at least had some pre-existing knowledge of how it worked, or how it was supposed to work. At brief moments as she strangely crossed through the library she felt like a fool, trying to fit into a place she had never experienced, though it did little to slow her, and only reinforced that anger that kept her moving.

Having retrieved the pages from the strange machine that she couldn't begin to fathom, she looked through a dozen of the pages before accepting that the larger stack had what she expected. She found herself thankful that it worked, given that she'd have no idea how to fix it if it ceased proper operations. Asking another Parasite for help was leagues beyond her if it would have come to that.

It would have only been a few minutes later that the out of place, solitary and one-armed elf finally exited the library without another word to its inhabitants. She had given them far more conversation than she intended anyway. Now she had something to study, something that could maybe help them. If it could increase crop yields by even the barest margin, then it would be something. Knowledge recovered, knowledge regained.

Papers clutched tightly to her chest, she paused as the satchel was thrust towards her without much care by Amisra, Sai having returned in the midst of the brewing conflict between them. She cursed quietly, awkwardly fidgeting about as she tried to balance the papers against her chest while she reached for the satchel, not trusting the bundle to stay together should she pin it to her torso with just her stump of an arm.

She lingered behind once more, settling to kneel on the ground, deft fingers opening it in order to slip the papers within, before sealing it and catching back up, saying nothing else, not even a thanks as her ill-matching eyes stared at the duo with a strange judgement.

"When I put myself upon the place I desire, that place will be grateful for my presence," Amisra offhandedly replied, unconcerned with their feelings. "In the end however, we are the Aos Si, and I expect you both to have a better showing," she gently chided the other two. "Neither so obviously hostile and sullen, nor bothered over pointless papers," the redhead continued. "More importantly, and as difficult as it will be, we must do one last task for the night before we retreat, and that is to verify this narrative we have been given," she instructed the other two, her voice calm and gentle despite the venomous words spoken. As far as Amisra was concerned, what she said was the truth, and there was no point fretting overmuch.

"The place ruled by you would revolt within the week, driven to madness by a superiority complex born of an abrasive personality." Gwaed gestured around. "If we're so great, why have we suffered similarly to the Offspring of the Parasites? Why have we fallen? We know of their history through their eyes, written on their electronic books. We know our own history. The two corroborate. Where else and who else can we seek to further verify this information, Empress of Emptyness?"

"And that is the difference between you and I," Amisra replied, unoffended at the rudeness far beneath her. "If their so called 'technology' ceased to work, they too would face a fate like ours and receed. Nevermind if it were in an instant, or over the ages." Like a parent patiently telling a child how the world worked, she didn't even deign anger at him being an option. By now, they had known each other for quite some time, and by now, he could well tell that she thought little of him. She thought him a fool. "As for where we will go, we may retrace our steps and see our first 'friend' to hear their story. Perhaps this is all a ruse or play on these humans' part?"

Of course, her attitude was to be expected. The arrogance of her house was infamous, as was their vaunted ability.

 

[Ray of Meep]

He knew this, he had known this, for decades he had known this, and still each time filled him with the same amount of anger. Speaking to her was an exercise in futility, though he couldn't help himself from time to time. Every other time he swore he'd just leave her somewhere and see how long she lasts, and when the time came he never actually did it. "What possible use could there be for such a ruse? Pacification? An attempt to garner sympathy?"

He knew, as he believed they all did, that they were paranoid of every shadow out of place, some more than others, but all to a moderately large degree. It was hard to write off the idea that this was all arranged, as unlikely as it would be they could place agents even in the most random of shops.

"You are concerned too, are you not? The ruse, upon ruse, upon ruse that we had to deal with when fighting their warrior-slaves?" she kindly reminded him, never seeming to anger. Amisra's green eyes turned upon Sai. "And what about you? Do you have the same concern? If not, we can simply call this affair concluded," the redheaded ranger offered.

"It would be a worthless ruse." Sai responded, shaking her head. "One far too complex for the likes of them, especially for how little it would give them. Make three miniscule elves think they share something in common with the Parasites? It changes nothing. Trying to cast blame onto 'others' while still treading on the graves of our elders." The look Sai gave Amisra was an obvious one, though she did not say it. It was firm dislike, perhaps malcontent.

"Letting us walk in like this shows they're willing to allow us into their society, but only on their terms. Of course they'll throw fits and pull their weapons the moment we behave poorly, as if they're the hosts, and we're the ones to have wronged them." She slung the bag over her shoulder, freeing her arm once more. "Though I expect neither view to matter when we can scarcely watch each others backs." She spat as she continued to walk ahead.

"This we knew. They wish us to become like them, to conform, to accept. If they want us in their society, they'll do well to let us continue to be ourselves. I agree, such a ruse as we have devised they would spring upon us is foolish." He sighed, looking back to Amisra. "Let us go home. This place holds many ghosts, from both sides, and now this third side, the children left behind. Fact checking is a worthy endevour, however such a ruse would be so utterly pointless on their part."

"Then let us go home," Amisra smiled.