Meanwhile (whilst Deygo was busy with Eris) Jodin, Mars, and RK were sitting in a derelict old building, talking. Jodin was attempting to surreptitiously gather information about Deygo and the two women without sounding too suspicious.
“So,” Jodin began. “You two are not from around here, that is obvious. I believed all of Etuua to have been taken by Libitina, but it is clear that the two of you have not been affected. My question is, then, where are you from to have been able to escape the effects of Libitina?”
“Well, you see… That’s the thing…” Mars started.
“Yeah, we can’t exactly tell you where we’re from,” RK continued, “because we don’t exactly know where we are.”
“You are on Etuua, of course,” Jodin said.
“Well, yeh, we know that,” Mars replied. “But we’re not from Etuua. It’s kinda hard to describe where you’re from when you’re most likely not even on the same planet. You have no frame of reference.”
“Or another dimension,” RK contributed. “That’d be something. We coulda been transported to another dimension. ‘Cuz, y’know, you read from the book and all.”
“I only read from the book, ‘cuz you said I couldn’t! So it’s your fault we’re here at all! If you hadn’t of…”
“Heck no! You’re the one who tripped on the floorboard and sent us through the freakin’ doorway!”
“Yeah right! It was your idea to go to the cabin in the first place! If it hadn’t been for that, we’d still be at home right now!”
“Yeah, sleepin’ in the freakin' yard ‘cuz you got us kicked out of the house by our own roommate!”
“Alright, that’s it! I’m gonna pound your ass!”
“I’d like to see you try!”
With that Mars lunged at RK and tackled her. “Damn you and your frickin’ stupid ideas! Stay in a haunted cabin!? What the heck were you thinking??”
“Well, if you hadn’t’ve gotten us kicked out of the house!”
“Me!? You’re the one who implemented the attacks!”
“You’re the one who told me to!”
Jodin was a bit surprised at how readily the two women had started fighting with each other, and decided he should do something to halt the quarrel before they decided to seriously hurt one another. “*ahem*” Jodin cleared his throat to get Mars and RK’s attention. They paused mid-grapple, both having a rather effective death-grip on the other. They turned their heads to look at Jodin, as if just remembering he was there.
“Yeah?” they asked in unison.
“If you two are done, shall we continue our conversation?”
The two women looked at each other, then reluctantly let go, moving back over to sit down, somewhat farther apart than before.
“’S your fault,” Mars muttered.
“Bug off,” RK retorted.
“Moving on,” Jodin said in a slightly exasperated voice. “Regardless of how you came to be on Etuua, how did you come to have Deygo as a guide?”
“He actually came to us the first night we were here,” Mars told him.
“And scared the heck out of me, I might add. But I beat him with a stick and Mars nailed him in the head with a rock, and all was well.”
Jodin smiled at this, picturing Deygo being attacked by two unaffected little humans. He found the mental image rather amusing.
“I see,” he said. “And he decided you should tag along after you assaulted him?”
Mars and RK were now getting more into the spirit of things and were replying more enthusiastically, their previous brief spat quite forgotten.
“Nah, he said that we weren’t safe on our own, and that we’d stand a better chance going with him,” RK explained.
“Did he now. That’s fascinating…”
“Yeah, and then he dragged us here and left us by ourselves with his dead family while he went off to finish some ‘business’,” Mars contributed.
“Hmm… Do you happen to have any idea what and where this ‘business’ might be?”
“Well, from what I gathered, he was here to get something very valuable. I got the impression he might be going to… what was it called again? Origin?” RK suggested.
Jodin nodded vaguely, looking as if he were in deep thought. Mars and RK began to shift restlessly after a moment or two of silence, not sure if they should say or do something or not. At length, Jodin finally looked up, a strange gleam in his eye.
“Well,” he said. “This situation is very interesting. I think it best that you come with me. Now sleep.” He put up his hand and waved it at Mars and RK, who instantly fell asleep. Jodin got up, levitated the two women into the air for easier travel, then exited the building, murmuring as he turned and headed towards Origin, "This is very interesting, indeed."
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