Outside the tower, Vonn stood with Tazo and Selen, all of them glaring at Kotta. The Kobold folded his arms and said, "Were you planning on hiding the truth of the Dragons from the wisest Kobold we know?"

Selen flapped once. "As you heard, we were a little busy with other topics."

"With how to make machines and potions and spells, no doubt. I want to save the souls of the Scaled Nation's people and stop them from treating everyone else as their slaves. Are you telling me that's not a worthy goal to even mention to Ralator?"

The bird girl shut her eyes and dipped her beak. "You've gotten carried away with all this."

"Should I be more modest in my goals, like you three? I'm a Bard. I'm using the gifts I was given. If I'm a fool and nobody believes me, so be it. But you know there's at least some truth to what I'm working on."

Tazo told Selen, "Vonn retold a story called 'The Hobbit'. I think Kotta identifies the Dwarf kingdom with something evil called Gomorrah...?"

Kotta's head bobbed, making his tail twitch to balance him. "It's one of many connections! And Vonn, you mentioned that the author was himself one of your Christians, and that he was a friend of, what was his name, Lewis. Another devout man who was aware of other worlds and other races. Maybe your people were missing puzzle pieces that mine have."

Selen said, "I would be lying to you if I said this was all perfectly figured out. That our prophets had a perfect moral system ready to hand to you. I don't even know that my God watches this world."

"Do you pray, Selen? Even in this strange place in a body not your own?"

Selen stretched out one pale wing and looked along her feathers. "Yes," she said. "For whatever it's worth."

The Kobold turned to judge Vonn. "Then as I told you before, I'm willing to face danger. Will you at least wish me well?"

Vonn tried to see into the murky future. He and his friends were the ones stirring this world's currents, maybe to shape what happened centuries from now. He saw no way that the people would turn to some utter rationalist belief system. And even ignoring what had happened to him personally, he wasn't sure it'd be a good idea. "I care about your safety, Kotta. But besides that, I can't fault you."

Selen said, "You saw how shocked Ralator was, and he must be one of the most open-minded people around. If you shout about our origin, I and the others might get branded as heretics and pushed to denounce you."

"I see," Kotta muttered, looking at the scraggly autumn grass. "It's not right for me to interfere with your work. So I shouldn't point to you two and say, see, they have proof of another world. I may have more of an uphill battle than I hoped."

Vonn spoke to Selen, in English. "I'm sorry this got so far along without closer consultation with you."

She answered, "I led him along. If he's this serious, I'm willing to try to support him as much as I can without outright endorsing it. Can you do that?"

"A dangerous road for both of us. But I'm willing."

"Even though you're not a believer, Vonn?"

He said, "I know of worse ideas out there. 'Where there is no vision, the people perish.'"

"Book of Isaiah!"

He smiled and switched languages. "See? I'm not completely ignorant of that material."

Kotta said, "Well?"

"We'll try to help at least a little."

Kotta shook their hands, in the Earth style he'd seen them do. "Is there a story about Humans inventing magic? Every race seems to have its own, though in Kobolds' case we say it was given to us."

Vonn had the most ready answer to this one. "It's from a different religion, from the Romans and the Greeks before them. But maybe you'd find it interesting. It says, at the start of the world a pair of gods were told to bring gifts to all of the animals..."

Kotta listened intently to the tale of Prometheus, Thief of Fire, and of Pandora's Box. "It was given to Humans, then, in that story. The inverse of the Eden story, but getting at the same truth. And it so happens that the Human version I learned first says they invented fire magic."

At this point Vonn couldn't say it was definitely coincidence. "Any more of this talk and I'll be connecting pictures and scribbles on my chalkboard with bits of string. I need a drink."

#

They went back to the tavern, full of military souvenirs like old banners and spears. The crowd was mostly Kobolds like the town itself and was wary around them, but laid eyes on Kotta and didn't bother the group. Vonn got a meal of chewy veggie slabs, something like bagels, and drank small beer.

Tazo tried to change the subject and forestall any horrible arguments. She got Vonn and Selen talking about a land called Japan, and ended up laughing at some of the tangents and stories. "So all foxes love rice? Where did that come from?"

"Anyway," said Selen, "I recognize a fellow student over there." She stood and went to talk to the few Kobolds still hanging around. A few of them were playing pool, at the table built by Tazo herself.

A green-scaled girl came over, looking reluctant. "You're looking for Master Ralator?"

Kotta said, "We just talked with him. He threw us out for the day."

She hissed in amusement. "I've had that happen. So, what, you're here to study? He gives lessons but not usually this day of the week."

"We were hoping for a lesson, yes, but between me and the others he got frustrated." Kotta bashfully scratched the back of his neck.

"Well, I'm bored, so we can go over some basics if you want. Greyfeather girl, you're still practicing, right?"

Selen conjured a tiny whirlwind in her talons. "Yes. Master Ralator's teaching method has helped me. It sounds like Tazo and Vonn here have been doing well, too."