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The trip in the carriage had been mostly quiet, but there had been some talking. 

As polite as Liu was, he was not the most trusting sort. Esther had not realized that the fae of this world were like the ones from old myths. In truth she’d have been happy with a general overview of how familiars worked, but it seemed it was much more personal than she had realized. Even though they were all working together, they were all still strangers. But it was interesting. Esther had thought Liu was a soulless construct that a powerful necromancer could build easily. But if Iberis Odhir created him with that level of self preservation, he must have been difficult to make. That, or Liu simply had a mind like any human and was more than a mere construct. Either way, it wasn’t something he was going to share. No point prodding him further, less she become an irritation.

Another surprise, Vetreus was much more talkative than she thought he’d be. Of course she expected him to talk, but that he was so much more forthcoming than Liu was a surprise. It was just a surprise that Liu had been the one the encourage withholding information for safety and here Vetreus was talking about what felt like some personal family drama. It sounded like he was a bastard, which meant her earlier remark had been much ruder than she had intended. But it was hard to be sorry. Vetreus understood the risks of acting like legitimate nobility, and the Jester’s earlier retort was a consequence of that. This was something he seemed to understand too.

She had hoped that the little dragon would answer her question, but it seemed that Vetreus had a handle on how much talking the little one could do and gave a quick response in her stead. Just as well, probably.

And the newly arrived continued to say nothing. Were they really going to have to call her Crumbs now? It wasn’t a horrible name, and it did fit the girl that was falling apart at the seams. But still…

Griselda inquired about how Esther was sitting. [color=74c3a2]"Hmmm?"[/color] She looked at her back. [color=74c3a2]"Ahh! No, little one. There is plenty of room in this carriage to accommodate my wings. I just haven’t done a lot of sitting is all."[/color] Having something pressed against her back was not a feeling she was accustomed to yet. She typically slept on her side, and miraculously was still the entire night. 

But that was in the carriage, and now they were officially working.

Severin was, predictably, just as confident outside the meeting room as he was in whatever this was. He was still going on about cults, and talking like they were the only possible explanation for this. Though the way he spoke made it seem like it was the only natural conclusion. [color=74c3a2]"We’ll find out soon enough, I suppose."[/color] 

With Severin and Liu confidently taking the lead, Esther fell back to Vetreus. [color=74c3a2]"Everything seems a lot more dangerous than it looks."[/color] She said, realizing how dangerous it already looked. [color=74c3a2]"Those vines have a paralyzing agent in them, but the entire forest seems like it wants to eat us alive. Those mushrooms release hallucinogenic spores, too."[/color] Esther really wanted to pick one of those glowing mad caps and stick it inside Liu’s skull, but it was a rudeness he didn’t deserve and far too risky given the circumstances. [color=74c3a2]"And this is just a hunch, but there are necrotic and chaotic life energies in the soil. I would not be surprised if the forest animates its former victims to defend itself."[/color] Ester started to walk after the others. [color=74c3a2]"But be cautious around the vines. I don’t like the way they move as we approach."[/color]