"If there's proper schools about this- Going to imagine massively oversimplifying electricity and turbines to get an idea how much I'm missing. Okay. So the acid spell would be conjuration? I might find that useful for a few steps, by the way. And Jolt, evocation?"

"Yes and yes. I don't have Acid Splash but I can get it or enlist a kid."

"What would be good to think about making if the plant thing doesn't take off as fast as hoped? D'you think I could learn magic? Want to learn some engineering principles when comprehend is up and tongues isn't?"

"You seem sharp enough to be a wizard but it takes years, and money for the spellbook and supplies. I would love to learn your thing though."

She snorts in an almost-laugh. "Well, it takes years, and money for the tools and materials."

"Fair enough, but I don't think drow classes in wizardry will admit you, so I'd have to tutor you myself and Instructor Johysis's bargaining aside it's not my strong point."

"There's always later. Make some money, build some tools, so many more options. Don't need a fifty seven step plan to world domination starting now. And I'll try to explain the basics."

"Why would you want world domination when you can go poke the rock that turns you into a god with far less opposition from world leaders?"

"The what. There's a river that turns you into a monster, but a god?"

"Yup. There was this guy who figured out how to turn himself into a god and left behind an artifact that let other people do too. He died when I was little, gods can still do that once in a great while, but as far as I know the rock still works."

"This sounds like something worthy of further investigation."

"It doesn't always work, a lot of people die trying, but when we're stronger I agree."

"What is- Being a god even like- Agh. Further investigation. The river I was referring to, by the way, is the Dyne- The source of power of the infamous Heterodynes, who strike terror into the heart of Europa with their evil, so on so forth, until the Good Heterodynes took it upon themselves to be heroes instead half a century ago. They say if you drink from its source, you might just explode, but you also might become a Jaegermonster, a separate race with all the same cunning and wit but with supernatural strength, speed, regeneration, and fighting talent... Stories from me are probably not a good use of spelltime, sorry."

"I'd be interested in hearing it later, but yeah. More questions about life among drow? Imagine Tongues just ran out, what do you panic about not having asked."

"-Washing and, uh, toilets."

"Wizards and sorcerers get a spell that cleans things. You can get a bath but it's an expense and it's not a necessary one while you hang out with me. Nightsoil is valuable, try to save it for the chamber pots in my cave and you'll be pulling that little bit more of your weight when it gets sold."

"Well, better than there not being said spell. I'll build myself a bath when I can afford it."

"Yeah, do you want a going-over now? It gets your clothes too."

"May as well. Ehm... Gods? I never heard anything reliable about any- Odin the father, Thor the warrior, Loki the trickster... Baldr, maybe, something about the sun... Some say Albia is a god, not just a queen..."

"I haven't heard of those but they could be gods I've heard of under other names and with different emphasis, or they could just not be popular any of the places we've got books from. Drow mostly don't go in for gods ourselves. I can rattle off a few I've heard of if you want."

"They're not just stories, right? They actually do things? Also could a spell sharpen the saw blade when it inevitable dulls?"

"...yes, they do things. They give clerics spells, most obviously. I can mend it if it breaks but sharpening we just do with mundane tools."

"No 'clerics' in City Frostbound. I guess I'll need a file and maybe a vice... Any other common or cheap tools will help... I can kind of get around it but," shrug. "Oh, uh, my work on things will probably be loud, if we're talking about secrecy."

"Clerics are just the people who get spells from praying. How loud? How long for how long?"

"Shouting loud, whenever I need to use the saw or other big tools. Probably pretty often."