With Sundance giving Sue a psychic hand to help her get back on her feet, the party could get going, Joy left somewhat confused at what was going on until the psychic in the room made an effort to pass the knowledge about the upcoming feast to her, the little creature left torn between being thankful for that information and still being rather obviously afraid of the tall fox- instead choosing to cling to the just as tall martian.
Two little critters keeping as close as possible up to Sue as she hobbled onwards sounded like a recipe for someone getting bonked with a crutch, but Joy and Spark alike seemed to be pulling it off without any incidental injuries.
"Sho, thish feasht, how will it look like?"
Sundance glanced back at Sue from her spot at the head of their little party, giving her a soft smile before trying to lay it out-
"Well, from our perspective, those who can help the Elders and cooks in bringing the food to all the hungry mouths, those who can't take a seat somewhere comfortable, and once the meals are dispensed out, the show begins."
Sue had to wonder whether she'd fall into the former category even without a busted leg to hinder her, what with her physical arms being rather feeble and mental arms still being quite underdeveloped, to put it extremely lightly.
"The show?"
"You'll see~"
Sue wasn't sure how to respond to the tease, but if even Sundance wasn't giving her a straight answer, then it was probably gonna be a spectacle she didn't want spoiled. Though, one detail did stand out to her afterwards-
"Are yhou not on the Eldersh Counchil?"
"Not anymore. I've already had my share of bickering in this life."
She didn't really think of a position like that as one that someone could just leave, but she supposed it only made sense in hindsight.
In not too long, they had arrived at the plaza bordering the edge of the woods, seeming to be filled with all manner of creatures just as densely as it was this morning, though more concentrated to only one half of it, the other looking like it was intentionally being left empty. Tables were spread evenly across the worn down grass, with empty spaces in between being taken up by groups of creatures sitting in circles, most of them looking like their anatomy wouldn't have let them use a table all too well to begin with.
Though, there was that one famous painting of dogs playing poker, so what did she know anyway.
Spotting 'their' table turned out to be much easier than expected, mostly by the virtue of Comet already sitting there, presently being distracted by the ghostly prankster that had spooked her yesterday, Hazel if her memory still held, through the process of repeated acts of peek-a-boo involving the intangible one phasing their face through the bench the infant was sitting at.
Comet seemed to be loving it though, at least if his elated squeaks were anything to go by.
"Oh, there you all are! And here I was starting to think I'd have to go grab you all- how's Crutches doing?"
Even when she could understand it through Sundance's aid, Hazel's voice was still as creaky and whispered as she remembered it, not to mention spoken much faster than she thought it'd be, to the point where she had almost overlooked the moniker she had apparently been granted- but only almost, getting ready to speak up for herself before Willow unknowingly cut her off-
"She's doing all good Hazel, and you know full well that's not her name~"
"Yeah but it's not like she's telling us her actual name any time soon eh?"
Alright, now was her moment-
"To the contrary, she told it to us perfectly well, it just took a bit of help.
Not the time Sundance!
"So her brain's not broken then eh. Pop was starting to guess that with it all- what's her name then?"
"Shue!"
The urgency, and also unknowingly volume with which she'd said her name made her two adult companions glance over at Sue with a mix of confusion and concern, the newcomer clearing her throat and speaking up again to save face-
"U-um, m-my name ish Shue."
"...'Sue', eh? Quite a weird name. You from somewhere far?"
You have no idea.
"She is, but that's not the best of moments to chat about that Hazel- is Poppy still cooking at her kitchen?"
"Dunno Willow, prolly. She said Solstice was gonna come over once they were both done, though... y'all are here and can look after the bowlcut, so I'm gonna go check up on them~"
The spook getting an excuse to get away from the crowd was more than enough of her to get a move on, taking a moment to pull one last funny face on Comet, stretching her facial features far beyond what ought to be anatomically possible, taking Sue aback slightly- though considering nobody else aside from Joy really minded, the little one sharing at least some of her surprise at the sight, it was probably not an unusual sight here, somehow.
The professors at the biology department would probably be willing to kill to get some of the locals here under an X-Ray.
With that out of the way though, the band could get seated, Joy taking a seat right beside Sue on account of being practically glued to her, Spark curling up on Sue's lap on account of also being practically glued to her, Comet wanting to also scramble in there on account of liking this familiar looking stranger, and the two adults taking the bench on the other side of the table.
Not before snagging Comet with them though, two little ones were already plenty for their guest to serve for as the emotional support adult.
Despite the roughness of the bench, the arrangement was more than comfy enough for Sue, both hands getting lowered for Spark and Joy to be affectionate with, the vulpine child also taking her time to extend her affection towards the... not vulpine one, wanting to make Joy as comfortable here as possible, despite all the strangers around.
Judging by all the groups and other tables around them still having plenty of empty spots left for those who hadn't arrived yet, they still had some time before the whole thing were to kick off, providing an opportunity to sate some more of Sue's curiosity if nothing else, one that she'd loathe to miss out on.
"Sho... what ish Hazhel?"
Despite the simplicity of her question, it seemed to not have gotten interpreted right, both Sundance and Willow looking rather uncertain.
"What do you mean Sue? 'What's up with Hazel' or...?"
She'd need to phrase it in a more clearer way, but was unsure how- asking about the species both felt even more detached than her original question, plus it was unlikely to actually clarify anything. After all, she might have known what the creatures she was inhabiting the body of were called, "Forest Guardians", but had not a clue as to how either their magic or their weird red extremities worked.
Guess she could play even dumber than how she already no doubt came off.
"Oh it'sh jhusht like, she'sh kindha like a ghosht with how she goesh through shtuff..."
"But Mrs. Hazel is a ghost!"
Spark's cheerful clarification felt like it bluescreened Sue's brain, the assertion of the ghost like creature turning out to be an *actual* ghost somehow managing to take her completely from the left field, despite her having thought to have already braced herself for any further insanity this place might throw at her.
As her mind tried to hold onto a piece of wreckage to not sink, it eventually arrived at the possible answer of the little fox just meaning something else by 'ghost'- maybe it was just a species name, just a very weirdly perfectly fitting one, and didn't actually mean what she thought it meant?
That didn't sound particularly likely, but she wasn't about to give up on an opportunity to preserve a bit more of her sanity.
"U-uhm, like... ghosht ghosht? Camhe bhack fhrom the deadh and all-"
"Mom told me that it's very rude to ask something like that..."
What.
An answer like that wasn't doing her mind any favors, Sue looking up at Sundance with an unspoken 'help', the vixen herself looking about as unsure about the ongoing situation as Sue was, though certainly wanting to give her an out- both to deal with the awkward situation and to hopefully learn some more about the world Sue originated from.
"Well, Sue didn't know sweetie, she's from very far away."
"Ooooh. Really!?"
Spark was somehow even more excited than before, turning to look back up at her and standing on her hindlegs, the silly sight helping in melting through any residual embarrassment.
"Y-yeah! R-Rheally fhar away... I-I've n-never s-sheen a ghosht..."
"Really!? But they're not that rare... and you knew what a ghost was already?"
Awfully perceptive for a fire enchanted fox cub that didn't even come close to clearing her knee.
"Well, I've h-heardh of them, bhut thought they were jusht a myth, a shcary shtory y'know..."
"Noooo, of course not! There're many of them in the village, and even more in the woods here, and most of them are even nice!"
Sue wasn't too sure whether Hazel fell in that category, but the reassurance that her soul wouldn't be eaten by a wild undead spectre was reassuring- though not enough to offset the initial shock at ghosts apparently also being real here, as if deities, fox shaped heaters, brain magic martians and plant people weren't enough already. Though, on the other hand, it's not like they didn't fit in with other fantasy wildlife.
"Uh-huh. Are they... dead?"
"Some are, yes, others just hatched like that already. There's no real difference between them, and it's considered... very rude to ask."
Well, at least she knew now with Sundance's clarification- even if she was also now aware of the faux pas she had committed, part of her wanting to burn up in embarrassment. At least it didn't happen in front of the very being that would probably be offended the most- something, something, silver linings and all.
"O-oh. Shorry..."
"It's fine, do not worry Sue- after all, no way you could've known."
Sundance's expression was warm enough to reassure Sue on this, enough to make her sigh in relief shortly after, Joy holding her hand close to her non-toothy parts after having noticed her anxiety helping plenty as well.
"Though- not like Hazel hasn't been relatively outspoken about having come back from the dead herself."
Willow's input made Sundance briefly tilt her head with an 'I suppose' expression, leaving the outsider even more confused about it all, a confusion that the medic picked up on, continuing shortly after-
"It's all a rather sensitive issue... a lot of prejudice against ghosts that have returned from the dead, painting them as wanting to drag others to the afterlife, or torment the living out of spite. Hard to shake off for many. After Hazel arrived here, many accused her of having come back from the dead, and she eventually snapped and admitted it, and now wears it as a badge of pride in a way."
So seems the ghosts she knew were still here- with the teensy tiny distinction of there also being non-undead ghosts, apparently. The question of whether they would count as alive is one that Sue considered asking for a moment, before tossing it aside, both because of not wanting to make her faux pas any worse, and because of not having any idea about how she'd even word it.
"Uh-huh. Sho, was Hazhel shomeone elshe here before she... died?"
"No, we don't think so at least. Personality didn't really match anyone who had recently passed around that time. Believe me- I was under mentorship of my uncle at the time, a part of what we did at the time was prepare the dead for burials, we got to see everyone that kicked the bucket, heh."
"Whouldn't she rhemember?"
"Here's the thing- she wouldn't. The returned ones don't get to keep any memories of their past life- from what I heard from Poppy, Hazel's oldest memory is just finding herself sitting on top of a hill, under a cloudy sky, with no recollection of who, where, or even what she were."
Sundance's explanation made Sue shudder at the thought- her own arrival was plenty traumatic despite being far less drastic than that, to try to imagine it with no recollection whatsoever, not even of her own name on top of everything else made her want to give the spectral prankster a hug, despite their less than stellar initial meeting, and her getting the impression that Hazel probably didn't like her all that much thus far.
"Thatsh's horrible..."
The fiery fox nodded, not blind to the parallels between Sue's case and Hazel's, stretching a bit to reach across the table and lay her paw on Sue's shoulder, the limb feeling really, really warm, close to uncomfortably so, but just managing to avoid that threshold.
"It is- but eventually, she found us and look at her now, you wouldn't have guessed what had happened to her. It's all gonna be alright Sue."
"Yeah! Mrs. Hazel is doing good, and once your leg gets better you will too Sue!"
Spark's enthusiasm combined with her mother's reassurance forced a smile onto her face, the tiny ear-fluff fox getting her head pet for all it was worth, the resulting half barking half giggling feeling like balm to Sue's soul.
"H-heh, t-thankh you Shpark."
Lil foxy's resultant toothy grin was almost as precious as her giggling, though slightly marred by some of said teeth looking way sharper any they ought to for any creature this cute.
"Oh, oh! Where are you from Sue?"
"I told you Spark, she's from very far away-"
"Yeah, but what is it like there? Oh, oh, is there anyone like us there too?"
Sue was unsure how to respond, for multiple reasons- there was the issue of keeping the truth of her origins secret of course, and while she trusted Willow and Sundance to keep that knowledge to themselves, Spark was another case entirely. The little fox came off to her as really talkative from what they had interacted together thus far, which was adorable most, scratch that, all the time, but not exactly preferred when dealing with a secret that could sway the public opinion away from her if it were to be leaked to the rest of the village.
But perhaps the even bigger issue was trying to convey the truth with how uncomfortable it was at times, especially when it came to similarities between the obviously intelligent inhabitants of the village and... at the very least not obviously intelligent animals from her homeworld.
The rest of the group was very keen on hearing about where she'd come from though, even beyond Spark's unmistakable enthusiasm, her sixth sense letting her to pick up on others' more subdued interest. Heck, even Joy wanted to hear more, curious about the mysterious faraway land her newlymade friend had come from, clinging closer to her hand and looking up at her wide eyed.
Comet was the only one that didn't care either way, just happy to have company and to be snuggling into Sundance's very warm fur, expressing his approval with a high pitched squeak.
"It'sh... quite shimilar to here, in mosht waysh at lheasht. There arhe many dhifferent creaturesh there, shome shimilar to the kindsh I've sheen here, bhut... more mundane."
"Mundane? Like, Normal?"
Sue could tell there was some further implication behind Spark's word choice, but couldn't determine it from her mood alone, prompting her to try to give a hopefully not too offensive example-
"Lhike... t-there are s-shome creaturesh there that are shimilar in appearanche to you Shpark, jusht... without the whole, uh... fire thingh."
Or sapience for that matter, which was probably an even bigger deal, if less obviously supernatural.
"So Normal then! That sounds boring."
It didn't take more than a couple moments for Spark to realize her own oops, turning towards the medic before her mom could even give her the look-
"O-oh, sorry Willow!"
"Oh it's alright sweetie, I get that. Though~ with that in mind, is that true Sue? Does the land you hail from really only have Normal types?"
They corrected themselves shortly afterwards, maintaining the story for the little ones-
"Except for Forest Guardians that is?"
A truthful answer would've been something in the vein of 'what in the world is a Normal type', the most straightforward answer would've been just a flat out 'yes'- Sue decided to go a step beyond though, playing dumb some more in hope of getting to figure out just that bit more about how this weird world worked.
"I-I thinkh sho, bhut I'm not shure about what 'Nhormal' meansh there..."
"Whaaaaaat? But it just means-"
"No no Spark, that's a fair question, especially if Sue hadn't had a chance to interact with too many outside of her own kin."
Sue took the cue, nodding along eagerly-
"Y-y-yeah, I've o-o-only lhived with other F-F-Foresht Ghuardiansh b-before..."
Thank goodness Solstice wasn't around, else she might've had a hard time not laughing at such an obvious lie.
"See Spark~? Well, Sue, you might've noticed how Spark and Sundance have a particular affinity for fire and warmth, yourself, Solstice, and Sundance all have the gift of psychic senses, Hazel is a ghost of course, you and Poppy have a special connection with the Moon- that's what some call 'types', though it's a very vague description by necessity. Most everyone has a type or another, or even two- but some just don't, and don't have an affinity for anything in particular- and they're bundled together as the 'Normal' type."
"But what about-"
"Yes yes, there's a bit more to it than that, but let's not overcomplicate it for Sue now."
Sue slowly nodded, the concept making some sense to her- the two fire foxes weren't the only fire themed beings in here, she was quite sure of it, so having a trait like the 'type' to bundle them all under was reasonable, at least at a glance. Several different kinds of... well, superpowers, and those without them, poor schmucks that they were, were the 'Normal' ones.
Considering the apparent power level of everyone else around, that sounded like it'd suck a whole lot.
"O-okay, yeah, t-there arhe o-o-only theshe Normal typesh where I'm from. K-k-kinda shad rheally..."
In another world, all these critters from her planet could've been sentient beings in their own right, potentially able to communicate with each other and have their lives be more than just a panic fueled fight to survive and pass on their genes before a brutal death...
"Eh, I'd say it's not that bad, personally~ though yes, that situation does sound peculiar and hard to imagine. But~ now I'm also curious about you Sue, what did you use to do back there?"
Oops.
Though, if Willow, whom she saw use whatever healing magic it was on her back at the clinic, also fell under the umbrella of 'Normal', then maybe that whole group stood much more of a chance than she'd originally thought.
Somehow, this question turned out to be even more difficult to answer than the first one, this time due to the limitations of the village's technology- sure, she could say that she was, or is still, a computer science student at a local university, but she'd have to then spend ten hours explaining every word of that sentence, including all the other words and concepts needed to make sense of her original answer in the first place, and all the words needed for those explanations in turn, and so on and so on, working her way up from basic concepts the rest of the group was likely to already intuitively grasp.
The feast still might not have started by the time she was finished though, but best not press her luck.
"Itsh... v-very hard to deshchribe. I c-can shay I wash shtudying how to ushe a cherthain kind of v-very c-comphlicated c-contrapthion. F-for c-c-counthing, a-and o-other thingsh..."
'Other' was definitely the load bearing word of that sentence.
"Hmm... something like an abacus? I recall a few settlements using those in my travels, and I even think one of the recent arrivals has brought one with themselves- completely beyond me how they function though."
"U-uhm, y-yesh! K-kinda l-like t-thoshe, b-but m-m-more c-compleksh."
Sue let out an internal sigh of relief at managing to worm her answer into something at least somewhat coherent, but wasn't done yet, spotting an opportunity to redirect the conversation away from herself for a moment at least-"
"D-did you use to t-thravel a lot S-Shundance?"
"Oh my gosh you have no idea Sue! My mom traveled around the world for years! Right mom!?"
Sundance chuckled quietly at her little one's enthusiasm, moving one hand (or paw?) in a scritching motion, the minor application of her mental magicks helping transfer her affection over towards Spark at the other side of the table.
"I suppose that's not a wholly inaccurate way to describe it, but 'traveled' makes it sound a lot more structured than it really ever was. I never had some grand plan to 'travel around the entire world' or anything like that- I just wanted to wander until my legs fell off, see everything there was to be seen, everything and everyone, figure myself out while at it."
Sue could relate to that a decent bit, to the underlying desire at least- she never was in a position to just be able to let go of all earthly attachments and hitchhike around the planet for a year or two, even if she often found herself daydreaming about it every once in a while. Hell, even if she were to finish her studies, she'd need to save up for a good few years afterwards just to afford a week-long vacation, let alone anything more than that...
She used to consider it more seriously just a few years back- she was about to wrap up high school, dad was still around, she was ready to take in everything the world had to show her, and then... he wasn't anymore, and any frivolities like that took a back seat to making sure she could manage to propel herself through college while not taking on too much debt.
Didn't even really have any time to mourn, just had to grit her teeth and immediately get down to holding on...
"Sue?"
"O-oh, sh-shorry. Jusht... g-g-ot l-lhosht in thought. I... defhinitely k-know what yhou meant t-there, and can r-rhelate a lot."
"And haven't been able to explore like that yourself?"
Not until now at least.
"Y-yeah."
She didn't want to be questioned why on the spot though, attempting to swerve the conversation back-
"B-but it'sh alrhight. I-I'm curioush though, w-what g-ghave you that... dream I guesh ish one way to chall it, and what did you shee out there?"
The redirection away from herself was not exactly subtle, but Sundance wasn't about to try and make a fuss about that- she couldn't blame Sue for not wanting to talk about her life too much, the action more than likely only reminding her more and more acutely about being stranded in a world unlike her own, away from home and family.
And even beside that, it'd just be rude.
"The 'why' question is much simpler than the 'what', because it wasn't really my choice."
Sue blinked, the reveal painting Sundance's supposed travel in a wholly different light.
"Whait, what? Where you khicked out?"
"Essentially, yes. It wasn't an act of cruelty though, or at least not an act of explicit cruelty, just rather how my kin... did things, out in the deserts. Females were kicked out of the nest after they evolved, and were supposed to fend for themselves- hunt, build their own nest, look for mates, to give them experience and wisdom needed to be in charge of their own brood later on."
The newcomer felt Spark huddle closer to her on her lap as her mom went into how their kind did things, Sue hoping to Duck that poor little Spark wouldn't end up being subjected to something like that herself. The whole thing gave Sue a whiplash and a half- for how very human beings here behaved and felt to interact with, this revelation more than anything reminded her that they weren't humans, and that their animal-ness extended beyond just appearance.
Still, it's not like Sundance's parents didn't have the exact same awareness about what she was doing, unless the sapience of creatures here only extended one generation in, making it even more vile- it wasn't just animalistic instinct, it was conscious choice.
Sue was so weirded out at the prospect that she ended up not noticing the usage of that 'evolve' word, for a while at least- she would really have to bring it up at some point, through probably not now.
"H-how chould th-they do thish to you?"
"It's just... how things used to be done. The conditions my kin live in out in the desert are unpleasant to put it lightly, dens are cramped and food is scarce. Hard to sustain a whole brood, so compromises had to be made. Brood mothers have the final say on everything, and that level of responsibility requires grit and experience in surviving on their own- at least that's how my own mother used to justify it. It's heinous, no two words about it- but that's just how things were, probably still are out there, though you won't see me trekking back there to investigate."
Sundance took a deep breath, shaking the mental muck off before continuing.
"I wasn't interested in settling down though. The desert sands weren't particularly fascinating in their own right, but I knew that vastly different places lied beyond, so I kept going, I wanted to see that another world. Every so often I ran into someone else of my kin, another nest- they couldn't take me in of course, but it was a common custom to offer a night's respite at least, and for brood mothers to share any wisdom and knowledge they had. And, well-"
The fox mother smirked as she flicked her arm upwards, a stick about as long as her forearm sliding out of its hiding spot in her thick, red fur, and out into her grasp, its tip catching flame immediately.
"Flames might not be a solution to every problem, or even many problems- but they make for a very effective repellent from most anything mistaking you for easy prey, especially with a bit of knowledge on how to apply them."
"Oh oh oh, mom can you show Sue-"
"Probably not the best idea for me to try showing off right before the main event sweetie, don't you think~?"
"I- I guess..."
The rest of the table giggled at Spark's enthusiasm being slightly deflated like this, Sue not hesitating to make up for it with some more diligently applied pets.
"Besides, I never was the one for strife. I know a flashy technique or two, but most of those are only ever useful in a life of violence, and I-"
Sundance blew off the flame at the tip of her stick before sheathing it as swiftly as she had presented it in the first place, its hiding place effective enough that Sue couldn't spot it despite knowing full well it had been resting alongside Sundance's forearm all along.
"-chose a different path. It took me a few moons- the desert was horribly vast after all- but eventually I made it over to more and more grassy lands, and eventually, even forests. Got to experience how well a good berry could taste and never looked back afterwards. And if even most desert dwellers did not want to risk having a bite at me, you can imagine how much less alluring that proposition became once everything around me became flammable."
A chill went down Sue's spine at the thought- of course, she didn't suspect Sundance of being ever willing to resort to aggression like that, but even just trying to imagine the sheer damage she could do if she did was unnerving, not to mention even more humbling on top of everything else here.
Hopefully her lessons, be they with Sundance or Solstice, would end up covering self defense in not too long.
Or better yet she'd get to go back home...
It was hard for the fiery fox not to sense Sue's desire, but she decided to keep on weaving her tale to void drawing too much attention to Sue's downturn in mood-
"It let me travel freely and relatively safely if nothing else- not to say there weren't occasional fools who had tried their luck, but any brawls tended to end in a matter of moments with one side running away with a bunch of freshly charred fur. I saw many settlements, though most of them tiny compared to this one, even back then."
The change of subject helped Sue shake the moment of dread from before, eyebrow raising at the prospect of there existing more places like this- many more from the way Sundance phrased it.
"Sho there are m-mhany more townsh lhike thish?"
"Oh no doubt- though ones as large as this one tend to be few and far between. This town and the Central City- where me and Solstice just got back from- are the only two any sort of real vicinity, to get anywhere else you're looking for a weeklong trek, if not longer. The other settlements are much more modest, and mostly don't let outsiders in permanently, more so several families just banding together to share resources and watch each others' backs than anything else. Still~ they're usually welcoming, if briefly and at arm's length. Plenty have unique spiritual traditions, which was the other thing I wanted to explore and witness."
Sue thought back to the Duck shrine, wondering how that one stacked against other religions of this world- especially with the added element of Duck being real to some extent, at least as far as her dreams implied so far. Of course, they also implied that the Night Father was real too, which probably made monotheistic religions something of a hard sell here.
"W-what didth you shee?"
"Almost anything you can imagine, really. Worship of one deity, worship of multiple, worship of all of them, worship of none. Beliefs in uncountable numbers of spirits all around us from times untold, in an upcoming end of the world, in the natural order, in cessation of the natural order, in reincarnation, in hells and heavens of myriad forms. Much too much to try to summarize, and thoroughly humbling, one and all. I was never particularly devoted in my worship of the sun, but seeing it all made me relax it further to an extent. Nobody really knows why we're here and what awaits us after death, so might as well be kind to one another, and to ourselves. An afterlife may, or may not exist, but this life sure does, so why not make it a pleasant one?"
The insights weren't anything extraordinarily deep, but they were reassuring.
"H-heh, I-I khinda thought that you wh-whould've fhoundh shome deeper truth or shomething..."
"Oh there definitely are deep insights to be had- but the deeper the insight, the more specific it tends to be, and as far as general guidelines go, being kind and not doing to another as you wouldn't want done to you are are the ones I've grown to appreciate the most over the years. I've heard more than one truth so stabbing it made me want to incinerate the person I was talking to over the years because of how painful yet piercingly accurate it was- but none of those would mean anything to anyone not in my position at that time."
Sue's resulting look made her quickly follow up with-
"I- I never actually did that just to be clear."
Okay phew.
Sundance couldn't help but chuckle at that- if it was someone more familiar with her, she might have been a bit offended by someone presuming something like that about her, but in Sue's case it was more than forgivable, especially with the girl having no prior experience with other fiery beings and Sundance's prior soft brag about how fearsome she used to be.
Once Sue had managed to calm her heart down a bit, it became easier to take Sundance's words in more thoroughly, and yeah, they largely made sense. It's not like she herself knew just what kind of deep wisdom she expected to hear- maybe the golden rule was more profound than she had originally given it credit for?
"Okay... n-now I'm curioush, what wash the wheirdesht religion you've sheen in your travelsh?"
"'Weird' is a very subjective metric you know... I'm sure I was the weird one for many people I got to talk to, though I can't deny that one place in particular was particularly memorable for me."
The whole table was listening in closely, from Sue and Joy ready to hear that recollection for the first time, to Spark wanting her mom to tell it again, to Willow not remembering the details all too well, to Comet just reading the room and keeping himself quiet and comfortable in Sundance's hold, letting out a bubbly squeak at the moment of sudden silence.
"I take you're not too familiar with the Allfather Sue, right?"
The name strongly reminded her of the abrahamic deity, making the once student want to reply with a tentative nod- still, she couldn't be sure if that was quite it, making her opt for the safer alternative of full ignorance, shaking her head instead.
"Allfather, Allmother, the Ancestor... quite a few names for it, but what they have in common is that they refer to the deity that is said to have populated the world with living beings. How they did it is highly variable of course- I've heard tales about them creating life from dust, from mud, from salt, from their own wishes or even by breeding with themselves. A lot of variation on that particular point. Most often depicted as a small, pink creature with a long tail."
"Do you really not know about Allfather Sue?"
She was unsure how to answer to Spark's question- Sundance's brief description did indeed make it sound even more like the monotheistic deity, though she also had some recollection of other religions' creation myths, so it was really hard to know for certain. Won't hurt to ask.
"I- mhaybe? They alsho chreated the resht of the worlhd, rhight?"
"Not typically, most many-god faiths I've seen do assign that feat to another deity. So, that place I mentioned did have a faith centered around the Allfather, but according to them, they are an evil deity."
Evil creation deity was a new one.
"How sho?"
"Their logic is rather sound on this- if Allfather did create all the creatures, then they did so deliberately, with a plan, which included the circle of life, the hunter creatures and the prey creatures, and so on. This, according to that faith, which from what I remember was mostly held by typically lowlier, 'prey' species, makes the Allfather evil, profoundly evil, because they would've had to know about the unceasing fear and uncertainty they were sentencing most of their creations to, yet decided to go through with it anyway. They are responsible for the world's suffering, caused by the circle of life."
Sue found herself nodding along for now- the idea was outlandish enough that she'd need more than just a moment to really chew on it and find out whether it truly made sense to her or not, but wanted to hear the rest of it.
"And as such, they worship another deity, whom they call the Usurper, because it is destined to usurp the 'throne' and reign over mortal beings. According to them, this Usurper would bring on a new era, one that can scarcely even be imagined right now, one where the circle of life, and the subsequent suffering has been broken and ended. Even its form is reportedly beyond comprehension, an evershifting mass of sunset sky mixed with midday sky. The details are tricky to wrap one's head around, but they're not the most memorable aspect- that'd be the chanting, I was hungry, tired, and had stumbled upon some of their ceremony- they invited me over and promised food afterwards, but until then, we were to chant, chant for their deity to come, 'Arise Usurper!', 'Arise Usurper!'. It was... surreal."
"Did they at least give you the food afterwards?"
"Oh yes, they did Willow- they were relatively hospitable at it, though I opted to get going as fast as I could the next day, it all just gave me the creeps after a certain point."
Yeah, if it was Sue in her place she would've probably been worried about what, or who, that group would end up having as their next dinner...
"Why did you stop traveling mom?"
Spark was supporting herself on the table with her forelegs as she looked up at her mom, all the recollections so far sounding cool enough to make the little one wonder why one ever stop.
"Why did I end up stopping? I don't think there's a single, simple answer... part of it was exhaustion no doubt- I had been wandering around the world for over a decade by then, almost a decade and a half- I was tired, both physically and mentally because of having to look out for myself constantly, I felt like I had learned enough, and perhaps most of all, I finally wanted to be able to meaningfully contribute to a place where I could spend the most of my days and settle, to give back what I had gathered up to that point. So I reached back, mentally going over every single memorable settlement I had visited in my journeys, sorting out which of those would be most likely willing to let me stay for good, and which I had felt the most at ease in, and decided on one decently sizable village by a small river, back in the south~ and by the time I got back there, it had grown a lot since I last saw it, and now it's plenty bigger than that still~!"
"To this day I don't know if I really remember when you visited us for the first time Sundance or if my ailing memory just made it up after you brought it up, but by the Moon do I remember when you arrived for the second time."
"Oh oh oh, what was mom like then Willow? Did she do something cool!?"
"She looked like she hadn't slept in a week beforehand and the moment we seated her down and gave her something to eat she dozed off and slept for two days straight."
Sue tried and failed to hold in a loud chuckle at that- sure didn't think that herself from the last semester would have so much in common with her newlyfound mentor, or at least her mentor's past.
"Yes, that whole time period was a blur, but it's hard to forget just how profoundly exhausted I was, and how much a reprieve just having somewhere safe to rest at was- one that I would never want to deny from another being, no matter their kin or type."
The indirect jab present in Sundance's response went over heads of everyone but its direct target, Willow sighing as Sue took her sights on them, the mention of the chubby medic having been here all along piquing her attention.
"H-how lhong have yhou been here for W-Willow?"
"How long~? My dear, my family founded this place!"
Now that was an interesting twist.
"Rheally?"
"Mhm~! Well~ I suppose if you get down to the nitty gritty of it you can partially attribute it to someone else as well, but that's the gist of it, indeed."
Spark might have heard this particular story enough times to not be as curious of it anymore- but that couldn't be said about Joy, the little big maw creature getting up to peek over at Willow from behind the table, Sundance holding in a smile at the smile while avoiding looking over at her directly to avoid spooking the little one.
"I had to spill my beans Willow, I think we have the time for you to go into more detail than just the gist don't you think~?"
Sundance's tone was playful as she winked towards Sue, tilting her head ever so slightly in Joy's direction, the once student seeing with her eyes what her sixth sense had hinted at, reaching down to hold the curious one closer while avoiding the toothy part of her, Joy briefly wincing at the sudden touch before relaxing into it with a bit of embarrassment.
"I suppose we do, yeah. So~ a long time ago, before even my grandparents have hatched yet, my clan had a modest dwelling here. Basically just one large burrow and a small wooden structure on the outside- we weren't proficient craftsmen, and, well, I suppose it's not that much of a surprise that we didn't really have enough collective strength to put together a larger wooden or stone shelter."
Sue couldn't help but chuckle inwardly at at least one of her earlier hunches getting validated.
"We took pride in administering healing to anyone who came, staying neutral in any conflicts that may have arisen and trying to compile all the medical knowledge we could. Part of it was tradition of course, one started so long ago that the bones of anyone that saw it take form have long since become dust, and the other was us being rather easily pressured into doing so- we're bad craftsmen, but we're even worse at fighting, including any real self defense that would discourage someone from messing with us for good."
"If only you had someone soft spoken yet carrying a flaming stick to stand up for you back then~"
"Well, we do now, better late than never. But at the time it was a real issue, in a very real way we were at the mercy of the woods to not send someone mighty with a vendetta our way. Fortunately, that wasn't gonna be the case forever, thanks to Granite's forefather."
Sundance took the initiative to point out who was being talked about, Sue's attention getting psychically drawn to a group sitting a couple dozen meters away around a small firepit, the gray creature with four arms getting unspokenly singled out for her, their anatomy so similar to the human one barring the extra pair of arms and head that Sue had to do a double take.
She might not have known how to redirect Joy's focus in the same way that hers was, but she could point well enough, lightly tapping on the back of Joy's front head before pointing out the being being talked about, trying to keep it on the down low as to not draw too much attention to herself in case someone from that group was looking- though considering the sudden uproar of laughter that soon took over Granite and the rest of their group, intense enough to leave the four arm humanoid slapping the ground with three hands and startling Joy a bit, they probably weren't paying too much attention to their group.
"Thank you Sundance. Sadly, their forefather's name has been lost to time, but not his actions- he had stumbled upon our little shelter in need of aid after getting poisoned, which of course we administered. In return, he vowed to repay us in time once he had completed his pilgrimage to I believe it was a sacred mountain, which he was in the middle of. We were used to promises of repayment like that, most of them never acted upon, so understandably we didn't expect much once he'd departed. A moon passed, then another, then a few more- I believe it had been almost two years since his original visit, but he did eventually come back, with a mate no less, and proclaimed that he was settling down near us and had taken it as his life mission to serve us and help our cause."
Sue was a tad dumbfounded at that, an eyebrow raising on its own- there was being thankful, and there was voluntarily offering oneself into serfdom...
"Shoundsh... rather drashtic."
"Oh it absolutely was, we were just as dumbfounded as you are. Took a while to actually get an explanation out of him, he was so dedicated to working hard that he never sat down for long. Essentially, he had ventured towards this sacred mountain in search of guidance from the spirits, help in figuring out a virtuous deed to dedicate his life towards, and as he sat meditating on its peak, he arrived to a conclusion that our little clan was the right choice."
"Didn't he already want to help?"
"Yes Spark, but apparently that realization elevated it from maybe building something for us once as a thanks to permanently settling down and helping us expand. And help us he did- that building you sleep in Sue, supposedly it was one of the first to be built by him after he'd settled down. More space helped us grow and expand, and even more importantly he made for a very effective bodyguard, letting us become much more independent. Of course, we still healed all who came, but now could afford to be more outspoken, and take actions to ensure that our woods would become safer for everyone. And from there on... people kept coming really. Much easier to establish a village like that past a certain size, you'll have many travelers come by it and some will decide to settle down. Years passed, people kept coming, we kept expanding, carved out a decent clearing that we're only now finally filling up, continued to gather our knowledge and pass it down the generations-"
Willow took a deep breath, chuckling to themselves lightly-
"And now there's just me left."
Wait, what?
"W-what dho yhou mean, only you?"
"I'm the last of my clan Sue. Once I'm gone that'll be it for us."
The casualness with which Willow said that was chilling to an extent- for a moment she thought it was a sorrowful resignation, Willow simply admitting the inevitable, but the medic truly didn't seem to be all that bothered by what would in most other circumstances be a harrowing realization, remaining as upbeat as ever.
"Bhut how?"
"We kept growing for a while, but there's only so big of a clan you can get to if you want to avoid mingling with close relatives. And with more people coming, that wasn't an issue since we could pass our knowledge on, train other medics, and ensure that our mission lives on even after we pass. All things end- that's just how life is, and considering everything I'd say we had a pretty good run, wouldn't you say Sue?"
She was genuinely unsure how to answer, the prospect of accepting one's demise so calmly completely alien to her, the occasional trains of thought centered around death that occurred to her in bed having to be exorcised with some hot cocoa and putting on some amusing video to distract her from her own mortality. Even brief forays into that subject threatened to send her into panic attacks, while Willow just... didn't care.
"I- I guesh. That'sh shtill a bit shad though, ishn't it?"
"In a way it is I suppose- but at the same time, the sorrow of a loss is counterbalanced by the joy of giving something else a chance to grow instead, life just keeps on going after all."
Guess this was something she'd be taking to bed with her tonight, and without a pleasant distraction to draw her mind away from such a difficult topic no less.
"I guesh I never th-thought of it like thish."
"Makes sense! You're still young, whole life ahead of you, little point to coming to terms with one's death just yet- barring something tragic of course. And speaking of things ahead of us~!"
Willow looked away from the table as their expression lit up, the reason not hard to figure out at all- food was on its way!
Oh and Solstice too.
The other martian approached slowly, each hand holding a bowl of freshly roasted treats with a few more floating in front of her, suspended in her magic, glowing eyes made that much more eyecatching in the increasingly dimming light of the sunset as she carefully moved it all over onto the table to the tune of Comet squeaking excitedly at his mom being back.
"That ought to be most of it- apologies for the delay, there was a mishap at one of the kitchens and it took a bit longer to get everything prepared, but we should be ready to start soon. How are you all holding up?"
Solstice leaned on the table to catch her breath from the hectic rush of getting the feast ready, her little one's excited squeaks making her magically reach over, pulling Comet out of Sundance's arms and into her own, ruffling his hair much to his delight. Joy did huddle closer to Sue at her appearance, but continued watching closely afterwards, seemingly less weary of her compared to the more fiery of the psychics.
"We're doing alright~ we were just telling Sue about the history of our village and Sundance got to reminisce about her travels for the hundredth time."
"Sounds like her alright."
Sundance couldn't keep herself mature enough not to stick her tongue out in response at that, sending the rest of the table giggling.
"As if you can resist telling people your own story either~"
Solstice rolled her eyes at that, the sight slightly unnerving considering their size.
"Touche. I suppose if Sue wants I can be swayed into telling it again after the show~ but first, mind lending us a hand Sundance? We're wrapping up handing out meals and a couple extra pairs of hands would help a lot to get the thing rolling."
"You got it."
The vulpine mystic slowly got up from her seat, the carefulness of her movements confusing Sue for a moment, further amplified by a couple tiny trails of smoke coming from the wooden furniture after she'd finished her ascent, Comet being begrudgingly left in Willow's lap as his mom had to leave him for just another moment.
With the two women gone, Sue had a good opportunity to take a closer look and sniff at the food getting left in their wake, the display making more than one gathered tummy rumble in anticipation. Grilled berries looking almost like steaks, thick, almost meaty looking stews, browned and spiced pieces of root veggies that looked almost like fries, even ice cream- or at the very least something similar looking, smelling sweet and fruity and radiating cold.
Her observation of the treats ahead was interrupted by Spark's excited barking, making her realize rather acutely that with Sundance gone, she wasn't exactly gonna be understanding much of anything being said, the realization chilling even despite the safety she was now in.
The actual conversation between the little fox and the medic was rather amusing though, thankfully. Spark's initial utterance, a question most likely, was responded to with a firm squeak from Willow, the cub trying to seemingly bargain a couple more times before she was rejected every time, ending up laying down on Sue's lap with a small grumble and a rumbling of her tummy.
Sorry Spark, we all have to wait, which means so have you~
The once student's pets helped her feel better thankfully, as did Joy joining in on them, even if hers were much clumsier and only covered the bridge of her snout on account of a much more limited reach. Humble as they were though, Spark did get noticeably happier at seeing Joy join in and doing more than huddling close to Sue- even if the location of her pets made her sneeze not too long afterwards, a handful of sparks being thankfully redirected into the air.
As much as Joy was taken aback at the sight though, it did made her giggle, the sound rather hoarse, but adorable all the same.
The rest of the wait went uneventfully thankfully, the encampment quickly growing quieter and quieter as the sun set and the last dishes were handed out, even the occasional firepits getting snuffed out in not too long, tension downright palpable in the air, more so than in any concert Sue had ever attended in the past.
Even Sundance and Solstice kept quiet as they snuck back over to the table, shuffling silently through the dark as they took their seats, the mayor sitting down beside Sue after grabbing her little one from Willow.
"W-when'sh it ghonna shtart?"
Sue couldn't help but whisper without even thinking about it, the mood getting to her with every passing moment, green hairs standing on edge.
"^Any second now.^"
The telepathic nature of the answer was overlooked in the heat of the moment- but what most definitely couldn't be overlooked was the plume of flames that had erupted all of a sudden in the middle of the far side of the clearing, the light making Sue spot Joy desperately trying to stand on her toes to see over the table in the corner of her eye, the maw child getting picked up into her arms shortly afterwards, weighing more than Sue had expected, but not enough to dissuade her from the idea, especially as the show finally got going.
The flames burst into a five armed shape at their apex, raining embers that lit up the modest, raised stage, the distance making it hard to make out too many details of the two beings that stood on each end- one was red at the bottom, white near the top, and humanoid, while the other was much bulkier, blue with with whitish accents, the large tail making it hard to determine their exact body structure-
Neither did them suddenly charging at each other but at that point Sue was too preoccupied to care anymore.
As they began to charge, she could make out a horn at the front of the blue one, helped a lot by that same horn beginning to glow bright purple, looking ominous if nothing else- though that display was matched by a flurry of burning kicks that the red one began to dish out, brilliant flames leaving long lasting tracers in the air as the blue one dodged and weaved much faster than it size would hint at it being capable of doing.
Burning kicks mixed with swings of the purple glowing horn before the red one suddenly jumped back into the shadows, a different creature leaping back out in its stead, a smaller, mostly white one with one visible red part, and immediately getting to work, launching a volley of glittering shards of- wait, was this ice?- over at the blue one, it's dodges continuing before it reciprocated with a spout of a purplish liquid, causing the white one to fade out from where it stood, disappearing into thin air-
Before reappearing all around the blue one in several places at the same time, surrounding them, each individual clone laughing quietly to itself, cacophony filling the air for a brief moment before the blue one stomped the ground with all its might, causing it to outright erupt all around itself, demolishing the stage it was standing on top of as well as all the white ones around it, the tremors making all the dishes on their table ring just a little bit.
Sue was utterly transfixed by then, too focused to notice anyone else's reactions, Joy observing the spectacle from behind her fingers, only occasionally peering out at the intensity of it all.
Suddenly, the white one reappeared behind the blue one, together with a sphere of what looked like dark, crackling energy between its hands, launching it with a blistering speed, the crowd gasping-
Only for yet another contender to leap onto the ruins of the stage and taking the projectile onto itself, brown and and vaguely bear shaped, Sue's heart skipping a beat only for her to see them end up barely staggered by the blow, blue one leaping into the shadows shortly afterwards as the brown bearish one started swinging at the white one, its claws leaving dark tracers that distorted the air around them.
The white one was on the defensive this time, having to constantly dodge before finally managing to gain some ground with a solid leap- a leap that also let Sue notice that they seemed to be just a floating torso- and answering back with a brilliant sky blue beam that cut through the darkness, the brown one managing to dash away from it just in time for the ground behind where the beam struck to erupt with massive ice crystals.
The brown one didn't have any time to breathe though, as the white one disappeared shortly after, only for the red one to leap back from the shadows with a fiery roundhouse kick, forcing it to back off- though in the process, the red one left itself open to counterattack, which was capitalized on by the blue one that had just emerged back from the shadows, stomping the ground again with its heft, but this time, instead of the ground as a whole erupting, a massive stone spike then erupted from underneath the red one, the fiery fighter managing to avoid getting impaled and instead climbed along with it up into the air-
At the same time though, the brown one was preparing for something, small wisps of yellowish light gathering around its mouth for a few moments before erupting into an honest to god laser, aimed up at the red one and shooting off way into the sky, looking almost like a thunderbolt against the backdrop of the night- but only almost, and actual lightning wasn't about to be outdone.
After weaving and dodging the ray for a few moments around the tip of the pillar, the red one leapt high into the air, just as another creature, yellow and until then hidden in the dark, let out a piercing roar, accompanied by an actual thunderbolt shooting out of its body, up into the sky, and down onto the red one, who was in the middle of an overhead kick, bolt of electricity striking its leg and getting redirected downwards onto the blue one as the kick completed, the intensity of the attack kicking up dirt all around the stage, shrouding it for a few moments as everyone's hearing recovered.
And once it had settled, all the performers were standing next to each other on top of what used to be their stage, facing the audience, lit up by the fading embers- though instead of bowing, they all each struck a pose. The crowd wasn't too different from what Sue was used to though, erupting into loud cheers and cries of adoration, Sundance and Willow included, with only a handful of larger creatures clapping along.
"By the Pale Lady, it feels like they manage to cut it closer and closer every single time..."
Solstice's words fell on largely deaf ears though, Sue still stuck staring wide eyed at the scene as the torches around the crowded part of the plaza began to get lit for illumination, only a single thought going through her head.
What.
The fuck.
Was that.