“You know what this is?” J asks the gnome, stepping up to it with her hands on her hip, to stare directly into the foggy glass plate covering its presumed face.

  More pops and hisses, which Allia translates as “Yes.”

  “But you won’t tell us anything about it?” J asks.

  The darkness around the towering metal figure shakes in a way that does not require a translation.

  J sighs and pinches the bridge of her nose. “Fine, if you come with us, will you at least inform us if we’re about to do something dangerous with it?”

  The darkness pauses to consider before a series of complicated sounds emit. Allia translates. “Yes, but, if we prove ourselves incapable of handling it safely without their help, then they will confiscate the orb from us.”

  “Are you saying that they think they’re dangerous enough to force us to relinquish it?” Emil asks wryly as he leans in the doorway, his sword prominently displayed.

  The darkness almost seems to lessen as the gnomes responds with sounds that almost resolve into something almost resembling words in a strange, amalgamated way. “It would be best for both of us if you did not resist,” Allia translates, glancing questioningly at the gnome in a way indicating that their meaning would be just as obscured even if the words were clear to all.

  “Great,” Alex says sardonically, “our bomb failsafe is another bomb.”

  “Why can’t they just take it now?” Sarrah asks, prompting nervous glances throughout the room.

  “…Well,” J says, very reasonably, “we need it to find the others before the demons do. Unless you’re willing to hope the gnomes will take care of it?”

  Alex wrinkles his nose in disgust. “Nobody wants that.”

  The gnome hisses, translated as “We least of all.”

  “What will happen if you do?” Sarrah asks, but they just shake no (though they’re unable to move their head in its fixed helmet, they’re able to move their body in such a way as to indicate a negative).

  “Forbidden knowledge. Right.” Allex says with a growl. “Well, I say we say thanks, but no thanks, and kindly ask our guest to leave if they’re not going to help.”

  “But why?” Allia says with tilted head. “They’re so nice. There’s no reason to be rude when they’ve been nothing but pleasant to us.”

  Everyone stares silently at Allia, unsure how to react to her treating the gnome’s ominous hissing and forbidding shadow as ‘pleasant’.

  “Perhaps,” Sarrah says after a while, “you’ve been doing a worse job translating their intent than you thought?”

  “Hmm?” Allia says, tilting her head. “Yeah, probably. I guess I’ve been focusing too much on the meaning and not enough on the tone. Though I thought it was obvious from the body language that they’re very sorry about the tension and will do what they can to help, even if they didn’t say that exactly.” The gnome hisses. “See, they agree with my assessment and promise to help how they can, so long as it doesn’t violate their rules – which I really want to talk to you more about. They sound fascinating.” She directs the last part to the gnome.

  Alex and Emil look nervously at each other, then shrug. “Fine,” Alex says, “the gnome can stay. Just make sure they know not to get in people's ways.”

  “They understand,” Allia says after a few hisses. “They also apologize for the tension their presence causes and acknowledge that the strife between our peoples are not wholly warrantless, so they will try their best to soothe it in this instance of it.”

  Stolen content warning: this content belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences.

  “Right… well, we’ll leave you to it then,” Alex says and hurriedly leaves. Emil smirks after him and makes a playful half-bow to the guest, then vanishes in a purple flash.

  “Great!” Allia says excitedly. “Now, I suppose we should show you around. How do you eat with that on anyways?” Hisses. “Really? That’s fascinating!”

  There’s a glimpse of Sarrah glancing worriedly at J as they leave, but Allia pays it no mind as she drags the towering gnome through the ship on the tour, ignoring stares from everyone else as she does.

  As she finishes, she starts asking questions, such as ‘where do you live’, ‘what do you do’, all of which is answered with hisses and other sounds only she can understand.

  “So why does everyone seem tense around you. I thought that was just a superstition everyone had moved on from.” Hisses. She laughs. “But that was a thousand years ago. It’s not like humans didn’t have a part in it too. No reason to carry a grudge on your ancestors.” Reply. “Really!? I had no idea you could live so long. Were you alive…. Forbidden, right. Well, I don’t think people who respond like that know about your longevity. I mean, at least I didn’t, and I’m not wholly ignorant on the subject. Alex probably knew, though. He’s expected to know about political stuff. I’ll give him the benefit of the doubt at least. You won’t tell me about what happened back then?”

  They shake no.

  “Yeah, I guess maybe it’s best we don’t know. Knowing humanity, the catastrophe would repeat if the knowledge spread.”

  A series of hisses more complex than any before, which startles Allia.

  “Oh… You can tell?... Well, anayways, I guess if you put it that way… Thankyou, it’s very kind of you to say that. You don’t know how much.” Her voice cracks, and she wipes a tear from her eye before quickly regaining composure, almost as if the displayed emotion hadn’t happened.

  More hisses with a sinister feeling to them.

  “No, she um… she doesn’t see things that way… Please don’t mention this to the others. They can’t tell.” A short hiss. “Thanks… Anyways, I think that’s it for the tour. Make sure you let me know if you need anything. How long will this effect last?” Hiss. “Oh, good, that means I get to translate you for a few more days. I’m looking forward to it…” She smiles pleasantly then spins away, but stops suddenly. “I might have a few more questions about… well, you know. I’ll try to ask them before the others can understand you, but I need to compose them… it’s complicated, you know.” She rushes off.

  Sarrah spots her on her way to her room and intercepts. “Hey, so um… that gnome was something, right. Do they all wear suits like that or what?”

  “Yeah, Vivinar said it’s to both protect them from our environment and our environment from them! Fascinating, right!?”

  “How do you say such ominous things with a smile like that?” Sarrah asks, noting the result of Allia having fully composed herself on the way there.

  “Hm… well, they didn’t say it in an ominous way, I guess.”

  “Not in a… Allia, what do you hear when they speak?”

  Allia scrunches her face in confusion. “I mean, just a normal voice. It’s kinda pretty, actually. Really smooth, and a little deep, but not too much. It’s soothing.”

  “Soothing?” Sarrah repeats, dumbfounded. “You’re saying you don’t hear hisses and clicks or anything like that?”

  Allia laughs, “No. That’d be weird, wouldn’t it?”

  “Right… back to the environment stuff. It’s not like… you know, a miasma thing, is it?”

  Allia shakes her head emphatically. “I didn’t get that impression. I mean, if Vivi was a monster, then they wouldn’t be harmed by a lack of miasma, right? It would just be an optional sustenance, right?”

  “Yeah, I didn’t mean they were a literal monster.” Sarrah makes a complicated facial expression as if thinking about and rejecting the explanation in the span of a second.

  “Then what did you mean?” Allia says, crossing her arms sternly in a way that takes Sarra aback.

  “I don’t know.” Sarrah shrugs. “It’s just that shadow around them certainly seemed like how deep miasma is supposed to look.”

  “Shadow?” Allia asks, perplexed.

  “You didn’t see that either, eh?” Sarrah says with a sigh.

  “No, all I saw was a pretty brass suit with interesting features. There were a few symbols, but it seemed mostly mechanical. It’s fascinating. I wonder how it works.”

  “Right,” Sarrah sighs. “Well, if you trust them, then I suppose I’ll give them a chance once whatever that effect J mentioned wears off.”

  “Why not sooner? I can translate. They’re easy to get along with, and I hope you’ll like each other.”

  “Allia,” Sarrah says with a frank expression. “I cannot stress enough how unnerving the gnome is visually and audibly to the rest of us. J said we should acclimate even through the walls. Until then, I’ll just stay clear.”

  “Oh,” Allia says, clearly disappointed. “Well, okay, if you’re saying it’s really that bad, then I believe you. It’s just so odd that such a nice person could have an effect like that on people.”

  “I guess I’ll just have to take your word for it for now. Looking forward to when I don’t have to.”

  “Yeah,” Allia smiles, “me too. I’m sure you’ll both love each other.”