Intermission 13 Page 1

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Over time, Ix’s transformations grow farther and farther apart, though they still occur unexpectedly. After getting some distance from the dungeon, and making sure that any pursuit has been thoroughly thrown off, Amadeusz returns to his human form and pulls Ricki aside for a conversation.

“I’m not certain it’s a good idea to bring this elemental with us.”

“We have to! Look at them, they couldn’t get away from the Guard on their own.”

“That may not have been the worst outcome.”

“You have to understand, this is a very different situation than with Kamau or Macadamia or your drider friend.”

“She’s my GIRLfriend and her name is Lara.”

“Of course.”

“But my point is, elementals are fundamentally unsafe to be around. This one, doubly so.”

“We’ve already received surprise burns when it changed to its fire form unexpectedly. And even its ice form is dangerous to remain in contact with for too long.”

“They aren’t made of the same matter as us. They aren’t from the same world as us. They aren’t meant to live here.”

“And this one could very easily burn our home down around us, whether it means to or not.”

“That won’t happen. We can let them stay in that one room in the basement where the undead knight used to be.”

“It’s made of stone, and it’s got all that containment magic on it, so there shouldn’t be any problem.”

“That’s not…”

“…Hm.”

“Well, yes, I suppose that WOULD work.”

“With minor alterations to the wards already in place, it could also help control the elemental’s fluctuations, and…”

“That’s not the point.”

“Ricki, there’s more going on here than you know.”