Evening.
If it offers any consol8tion, I was the final one transformed 8y that wretched affliction, whatever grotesque alchemy had reshaped the others. Precisely 8ecause of this, I had the foresight and the fortune to amass a rather extensive collection of compromising material. It wasn't until the Orphaner, humili8ted in 8attle 8y a human half his size, turned his now, possessed attention toward me that my reprieve ended. He came at me with reckless determin8tion, while I plunged into the sea, trusting in my strength as a swimmer to carry me 8eyond the reach of the other fools. 8ut he had changed. With newfound flight, he descended like a ravenous sea8ird spotting a 8ag of chips from the pier, circling with predatory glee. Undeterred of his illumin8ted pursuit, I dove 8eneath the surface to dodge his swiping from the sky, dragging the fight into ocean. There, 8eneath the churning foam, we clashed, a struggle neither land nor sky could claim. And yet, even in that alien element, where his seadwelling a8ilities gave him the edge, he could still not 8est me. Though my lungs 8urned and the dark water pressed in, I landed a 8low, a precise, forceful strike to his face that shattered his focus and 8ought me the precious seconds needed to reach for air. Of course, what followed after… well, that is another story entirely. All in all, I am well. I am currently listening to Ella Fitzgerald to unwind the night. Yourself?
Any landdweller should have a tunnel system leading out of their hive under the floor8oards. What did you do, exactly? Show them the hereticalsym69ls? That would do it.
If you are going to 8ark, then I may as well pet you.
An impressive tale, I must say. May8e not one for the ages, 8ut even I can enjoy the irony of the Orphaner 8eing 8ested 8y you even in a heightened st8te of magically enhanced ecstasy. I'm pleased that you were a8le to keep track of the majority of the event while still in your right mind. Even if 8y some happenstance there is some o8scure loophole that Crocker didn't account for the in the non-disclosure agreement, an accur8te recollection of events is important. After all, for however stu88ornly it keeps turning up, the lollipop juju's effects are a rare sight to witness. I shan't inquire to the after, I can surmise the details without it. I'll just say that depriving yourself of your palmhusk 8efore succum8ing to it was clever. I would've done the same. As for me, not much of importance. I've returned to my study of Alternia pre-apocalypse. I haven't honestly given it as much attention as I should have since I was more captiv8ted 8y ancient history.
A reply was unexpected, she must 8e ancient in your time, and her eyesight likely failing as much as it was in my own era. I would wager it was likely from her staff. One should never level criticisms at her from an address she can easily retrace. The only way you are getting out of this is if you have heavy artillery around.
Many tales aren't worth the ink to record them, and this one certainly will not grace the pages of my journal. A word for the wise, an non disclosure is only a valid agreement for those who sign it. You shall find no fingerprints of mine on that document; the Orphaner's are. He is the lia8le party, not I. Ha. So, that's why you're here. You're seeking a inform8tion as per usual. You expect me to narr8te the experience of Alternia for you?
Of course I do. You are speaking to a woman who commandeers a man-o-war. Ever fired a cannon?
Not at all. It was merely a st8tement of what I'm up to. I didn't ask you to do or say anything, though if you were compelled to share any crum8s of knowledge of your own free will, I wouldn't refuse. I just want to make it clear that I demanded nothing from you. I had a feeling I wouldn't have found any trace of your signature on any kind of document. The plus one flies under the radar once more.
That's the spirit, some ash in the lungs will do that fiery soul some good. Do you have a sylladex, or a transportaliser?
The inventory system you can summon items from at whim? Do you own one.