The Innkeeper



Lex had a… difficult… time explaining to Toro what a realm was, though Lex had a sneaking suspicion that the Trelop understood the concept somewhere in the middle of the explanation, but was just venting its frustration on Lex.

When it finally understood, Toro displayed a remarkable amount of 'not screaming' at Lex randomly. Instead, it became silent as it contemplated the ramifications of what it had heard.

The issue that it was facing was not the destruction of its entire world - that was a given based on the situation. The issue was that Lex did not have a solid grasp of the timeline. According to what Lex said, the appearance of the elixir meant that the realm was on the path to destruction, but the fact that it was on that path also meant that it could be veered off that path. The top minds of the realm would think of ways to work on the issue, but it all depended on how long they had.

If one thought of the timeline in terms of the geographic time scale of planets in the origin realm, even millions of years were considered a short time. Theoretically, since the realm was even bigger than planets, the timeline should similarly be greater, right?

But not only was there no way of confirming how long they had, there was also no way of knowing just how bad the situation had become. Maybe the elixir had already started appearing across the Crystal realm hundreds of millions of years ago, and this was just its latest occurrence.

All in all, there was too much uncertainty.

"Do not spread this information lightly," Toro finally said after contemplating for a while. "Spreading panic will not help anyone. I will contact the elders of my race to see what they know. In the meantime, I suggest you find a way to contact the Crystal race. Regardless of what anyone says, they are the true rulers of this realm. If the other races are allowed to exist, it is through their will. If the Kraven are allowed to invade, it is due to their indifference. The true might of that race is not what common folk can understand."

"As it happens, I was intending to meet an elder of the Crystal race to begin with," said Lex. "He told me to meet him in a city known as Valesco. Do you have any idea where it might be?"

"I'm sorry, we Trelops do not usually care much for things outside of our own territories. I do not know the land. You are better off asking one of your human leaders."

The fish, before it went away, extended a small brown root and broke it off, before handing it to Lex.

"If you encounter any Trelops on your way, show them this. So long as you do not threaten them in any way, they will not cause you any trouble. In fact, not only will they avoid causing trouble, they will even go out of their way to assist in your travels."

Lex observed the small root and couldn't really determine what was so special about it, but he kept it anyway.

After saying that, Toro swam away, not really bothering to keep Lex company. He was clearly very disturbed by the news.

Lex, too, saw no reason to delay so he began returning towards the Inn, this time with a bit more urgency. Instead of walking calmly on the seabed, which his ridiculous weight and small frame made so easy, he swam to speed up.

When he eventually reached Babylon, he attracted a bit more attention coming out of the water than he did going in, but no one really bothered to question him.

When he returned to the tavern, he was ready to send one of the workers to go and call Jolene from her residence, but discovered that there was an unusually jovial mood at the tavern.

There was an entire group of mildly intoxicated men, singing and dancing on the stage while the onlookers played music by slamming their tables in synchronization with one another. The triplets were busy serving more drinks, and even they could not contain the grins on their faces.

"What's going on?" Lex asked Roan, the barkeep who was efficiently pouring out drinks without spilling a single drop.

"I think it'll be best if you ask Big Ben," he replied, a soft smile even on his face.

Curious, Lex immediately scanned the tavern and discovered that Big Ben too was dancing and singing, but with a whole host of people on the rooftop terrace!

As the 'security' of the facility, he was usually up front, but today he was the farthest possible from his post.

"What are we all celebrating?" he asked when he finally reached the top. Unfortunately, due to his excellent senses and sharp hearing, the surprise was already spoiled for him, but he still pretended not to know. Still, there was a smile on his face.

"Betty's expecting!" the man roared, drunkenly! "The doctor said so. It's official!"

Lex's smile widened and he grabbed the man by the shoulder, making sure he didn't fall over.

"Congratulations man! Where is she? I want to congratulate her too."

Big Ben erupted into a roar of laughter upon being asked the question, and when he was finally able to stop he managed to say, "she's still at the hospital fighting! She said she won't come back until she finds a doctor who will tell her it's okay to drink while she's expecting."

Lex smiled weakly as concern suddenly filled him.

"Do not worry, I'll talk to Roan. We'll give her the best tea during this time. She won't miss drinking at all."

Big Ben was too busy laughing to hear what Lex said, so he left him to his party. Suddenly a thought occurred to him. Was he supposed to reprimand Ben for drinking on the job?

Shaking his head, he quickly returned to the ground floor to pass out his instructions. For reasons he couldn't fully understand, he suddenly felt quite protective of Big Ben and Betty.

Since they were a part of the Midnight family, he would take great care of them. That also included… not letting this realm get destroyed.