Superhell: Zelgadis

[polyglotti]

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[polyglotti]

Here, I'll be right back.

[She is going to be running around a bit! First to go get Kitty, and then to stop by one of the burger places for a plain hamburger. Then she comes back.

Kitty is riding on her shoulder and is attempted to get to the burger as she arrives.]

Here! Just take the bread and toppings off, and this should be fine for your cat. Did you think of a name already?

[hardrocklife]

[When she returns, the kitten has started exploring around the seating area, with Zelgadis watching to make sure it doesn't venture too close to the fire. He takes the offered burger -- an action that prompts the kitten to begin a series of demanding mew! mew! mew!s while he separates the meat from the rest of it.]

... No. Not actually sure if it's a boy or a girl.

[polyglotti]

It's hard to tell when they're this small, we only knew for Kitty because she's a calico. You'll probably have to wait until it's a few months old. But there's names that work for both boys and girls.

[hardrocklife]

[At last, Zelgadis sets the meat down. The kitten pounces on it, as if it needed to be subdued, and begins to gnaw on the edge of the patty.]

I see. I've never really thought about it...

I always lived on the road. I could never take care of an animal like this.

[And there's the ever-present question of, well, can he? If he returns to life, goes back to his old lifestyle...]

[polyglotti]

A cat is a perfect companion for the road though! You have to do a bit of recall training to make sure they don't run off if they get spooked, but they get attached to their people really quickly and will stay right with you. Cats are really lazy too, so if you train one to ride on your shoulder then they'll stay right there while you travel.

[hardrocklife]

They are?

[He studies the kitten thoughtfully.]

You ever take yours traveling?

[polyglotti]

We actually found her out in the wild during our travels. It wasn't too hard to teach her to stay close to the team, she was very little when we found her.

[hardrocklife]

[He now gives Kitty an appraising look. So it's possible...]

You're a traveler yourself?

[polyglotti]

Only recently. It's my first expedition, actually.

[And she died on it.]

But our team leader has done it before, and I've been learning a lot from her!

[hardrocklife]

She sounds like a reliable person.

[polyglotti]

[I feel the need to say that the team leader is functionally illiterate because she refuses to read anything ever, and is thus questionably reliable. But this is Tuuri describing her, so.]

She has her moments. I can think of nobody better to rely on to avoid an attack or ambush.

[hardrocklife]

[that's valid. zelgadis has followed lots of questionable people.]

What sort of expedition was it?

[polyglotti]

[Unfortunately for Zelgadis, Tuuri is all too willing to nerd out about her job.]

We were going out into Old World settlements to look for books that have survived over the last 90 years! Our goal is to bring those books back and preserve the knowledge in them.

[hardrocklife]

Really? [A hint of genuine surprise and interest.]

Your journey may in some ways be similar to mine, then. I've also been searching for lost knowledge.

[polyglotti]

Really?

[Oh, she's excited now.]

What kind of lost knowledge were you looking for?

[hardrocklife]

Lost records of magic, science, and medicine, knowledge known only to gods and demons... Anything that may lead to a cure.

[polyglotti]

[She pauses for a moment there, because. Well.]

We're looking for a cure too. Or a vaccine at least, if we can't find a cure. Though I guess it's for a different disease than what you're dealing with, huh?

[hardrocklife]

[A nod.]

I imagine so. If a vaccine would suffice, it must be a transmissible disease you're concerned about.

[polyglotti]

Yeah. Once you catch it, it's fatal in 100% of cases. Some people are immune to it, but if we could find a vaccine then we could protect everyone.

[hardrocklife]

I see... That's a tough situation to deal with. I wish I could help.

[zelgadis, going around the world and finding cures to all kinds of other diseases, going "nah that's not it" and throwing them away immediately]

[polyglotti]

[Zelgadis...]

Ah, well, it is what it is. Even if I didn't make it, I'm sure the rest of my team will.

[hardrocklife]

... Hope so.

[..... He glances down at the kitten, who seems nearly done eating.]

... What do you think of "Aqua" for a name?

[polyglotti]

That could be a good name. For the color of her eyes?

[hardrocklife]

[A nod.]

It was carrying a compass when I found it, too. Got me thinking about an old woman who showed me the way, once.

[polyglotti]

[A compass...]

Do you still have the compass?