The island is mountainous, and shrouded in mist. As the ship approaches, the mist clears slightly to reveal a small dock and wooden village clinging to the edge of the water. There's people going about their business; a few stop to stare at the airship as it grows visible.

Adam and the entire crew and the two passengers (why did his parents had to insist in coming?) stare at the village at the edge of the water. Like they are staring at a bunch of suicidal people. It's exactly that kind of staring, actually. Sure the houses would be safe, but there is no reason to live in a place where someone could slip and fall into water.

Adam exams the place through his spyglass. Are those things boats? They don't look sealed enough to be safe! What is going on?!

Well, that is confusing and they can't recognize those shapes... which they appear to have only one kind?

After some deliberation they send three winged people village-wards.

They're met at the docks by a couple of villagers, including an old woman in a brightly embroidered blouse, a broad collar of turquoise and gold, and turquoise plug earrings, with her white hair elaborately braided with long, green feathers tied in. There's children peeking around, clearly curious about the new arrivals.

The old woman steps forward when they arrive, calling something out in an unfamiliar language. 

The new arrivals look mostly human but with wings (the single male in the group has claws), their apparent leader is the very tall winged woman that takes a step forward.

It's a bit strange that they sent an aged person to greet them. But the entire thing is strange already.

Sofia replies with something that is mutually unfamiliar and tries a few other things.

She cycles through a couple of other languages, then, recognizing that none of them are getting a reaction, pulls a feather out of her hair and a small knife with a black blade off her waist. She makes a small cut in her thumb, runs the blood along the feather, then murmurs a prayer. The feather vanishes in a flare of harmless flame.

"Well, now is that better?" she asks, clearly understandable, though still obviously speaking a language they didn't know until just then. 

Sofia was about to pull her own translation solution. But this is better than translating writing. "Yes. Hello, I'm Sofia Whiteburn. My ship got turned around during a storm and we are a bit lost."

"I've never seen a ship quite like that. Where're you from originally?"

"It's a recent invention. This is its maiden voyage, actually. We departed from Port Constantinus and were meant to cross the strait to the Silver Bay outpost."

"Never heard of either of them, but I haven't heard of much that isn't local. This island's Tohombodehe. We're on Omaven, off the coast of Madeza."

Confusion. "I never heard of either of those too. I don't think we would be that off course. ...I confess that I also don't recognize your shapes."

"Shapes?"

Blinking. "You don't have shapes?" She says in the tones of someone asking 'you don't have legs?'. "Forms that you could change into? Like, this is my Ventari shape, with wings, and I could change into my Petram shape, with stony skin."

She hums. "No, that isn't magic that I have, though I suppose I could pray for a different shape if I was very unhappy with mine? Young Pati did that. I've heard that the Umexalim can shape-change, but I don't know much about them... And the spirits of course can take whatever shape they please. Can everyone where you're from change shape?"

"I think we are either further away from each other or there is a greater communication gap between us than just the language."

"...Does everyone where you're from have the same type of magic?"

"Not everyone, but nearly everyone can shift between shapes unless they lost all but one of them. ...I guess it might depend if count that as magic."

Wryly: "We consider shapeshifting to be magic, yes. You said you got here after getting lost in a storm; were you in the ley at the time?"

"I'm not familiar with the term 'ley'."

"Hm. I suspect you may be farther from home than we thought; the ley lines connect the reality-islands to each other, that you don't have a word for them is strange." A pause, then: "...I'm afraid the realm may have stolen you. Haven't heard of it stealing a whole ship before, but I suppose that could happen."

"Well... that sounds like I should include more people in this conversation. How does the realm steal people and things? Uh, do you have explanations for people that suddenly arrive here?"

"No one knows, I don't think, and I don't really have an explanation prepared - we've never gotten a first-gen while I've been here. It's just something you hear about, traveling."

Sofia nods. "I'm sorry for asking, but would you mind giving even an unprepared explanation?"

"Well, this realm isn't all one piece - it's a bunch of bits floating around in the void. We call them reality-islands. Only way to get between them is the ley. You're standing on part of the biggest reality-island, Omaven. It's a proper continent, with an ocean and everything. Most islands are small, though. Barely more than enough ground to support a village, if that. People sometimes appear, from all sorts of worlds. The tales would have it that getting lost's what does the trick."

"Well, we certainly go lost. Sorry, do you mind if I call my husband and son here?"

"Not at all. Now, this isn't quite a proper place for a meeting, especially with my old bones. My house is attached to the temple, if you all want to meet there."

"I would be honored to. I shall return shortly with them."

"Very well, then."

She turns to talk with some of the others, mostly asking them to return to their days, and then heads back to her home. The temple and attached house are clearly visible, at the highest point in the village, on a small stone prominence. They're not quite grand, but they're the closest the village has.

They return shortly. Sofia's son looks too old to be her offspring, but all of them look around 18.

"Do you have some sort of anti-aging magic," the woman asks curiously, "Or is it just a difference in species? Someone with a son that age would look much older, around here."

"Ah, shifting resets your age as long you have two forms to change back and forth. Is this entire world slowly dying?"

"Adam!" Sofia admonishes.

"Most species age, yes, and immortality magic is relatively rare. Most of it blood-locked." She sounds amused, at least.

"Well, to be fair we do age. We just age back." Says Adam's father. "Is the local magic typically 'blood-locked' as you say?"

"Well, depends on how you define 'most.' Most types are limited to bloodlines, or people from a certain world, but the magic most people use generally isn't. The magic I use is worship-locked - anyone who follows our religion and knows the rituals can use it."

"It's unlike all of our magic that is tied to our shapes. Which would be blood-locked, except one can acquire shapes at the pools."

"Pools?"

"The source of shapes are pools with magical water that painfully reshape your body. Though, shapes are hereditary once you have them."

"There's places with magic water, but I haven't heard of anything quite like that, and I traveled in my youth pretty far. If those pools work for any species, and we ever figure out how to get between worlds on purpose, your world can probably expect some tourism - a bit of pain isn't much, for immortality."

"It would increase demand and they hurt a lot, but for the sake of people stop dying it would be a good trade off. ...There is a simple test to figure out if a pool would work for your species. It would hurt like touching a candle..."

Amused: "That's not much at all. Of course, mine isn't the only species, but it is the most common around here. How does this test work?"

"I have a category of magic power called infusing. I know how to use it to tell if someone is capable of acquiring a shape or not - animals and people that already lost the shape slow up as a negative."

He offers his hand and creates a silvery spark between his fingers. "Just touch it for a second."

She does, without hesitation.

The pain is comparable to that of a candle, but there is a different quality to it.

"Yeah, she is compatible."

Smile. "Of course, getting there's a problem."

"Yes... We have a terrific teleporter that belongs to our guild, but she never evinced the possibility to move people this far. And she is back home and they might not figure out what happened to us for awhile."

"As far as I know, the only thing stopping us from jumping worlds is building a big enough - or strong enough - ley-ship. Though I'm not an engineer, and it's been decades now since I've traveled. But everyone who comes through seems confident that it's just a breakthrough away."

"That is not unusual among engineers, but we might be able to help. My other magic gift is being a good inventor. ...Do you know where we would be able to learn more about ley-ships or the general concept?"

"And ways we can sustain ourselves?"

"For learning, there's the continent proper. We're off the coast of the Hayadi region, there's the university in Huicoa, and there's the capital, which would probably be interested in hearing about your world and abilities. For sustaining yourselves, I'd heard you can generally make a bit by letting the folks at the university study a novel magic type. Plus the capital might fund you if they think you'll be helpful with research."

Adam nods. "Generally navigating the continent itself is safe? How far are both locations?"

"Most of Madeza's safe - the places that aren't are far inland, they're still refusing to acknowledge the Great Speaker's rule - and outside of Madeza's usually fine, especially if you're flying."

She stops to consider.

"This spell doesn't do units of distance - a few hours boat travel to Hayadi City - then from there a day and a half's boat ride up to Huicoa, or an hour and a half in the ley, and then another day's ride up to Atencallah - that's the port town in the barrier islands around Amadahni, you'll probably be shot at if you try to approach Amadahni proper, so you'll need to dock in Atencallah then either take a boat across the bay or get special permission to fly in."

Nod. "Thank you. Uh... This is already obvious, but we really should ask. The water here does not melt people, right?"

"...Not on this reality-island at least, that I know of."

The three nod seriously. "All untreated water in our world behaves like acid when it touches people. We were very surprised when we saw a village built like yours."

"...Have you tried the water here? It might still not be safe for your species, even if it's safe for us."

"We have not. It's likely related to shifting and the pools. But we should test it before going ahead."

Nod. "Is there anything else you could use while you're here?"

"Any information we can get until we have abused too much of your hospitality."

"And maybe the opportunity to trade some things."

"My duties are mostly as a judge, a need for me rarely comes up, so I have the time. Trade would be welcome, though you might want to talk to our merchants for that. What sort of information do you need?"

"How common is translation magic for one? General navigation principles... there might be things that are could be obvious and perfectly natural to you that would blindside us, which makes hard to figure out specific questions."

"If there is anyone that travels through the relevant routes it might be worth asking them any other helpful navigation details." He waves at his father. "And also get a boringly-detailed account of a trip in case you have giant flying animals that would attack us. Or giant flying animals that are perfectly nice until we preemptively attacked them." He waves his hands helplessly.

"Hm. Pati's the face of the merchant house, she's done some travel. Meya's currently on break from university, you could talk to him about the route up to Huicoa. But most of us don't go any farther than Hayadi. The seas are calm between here and there, and there's few giant flyers this far ice-ward. Those're mostly in the Great Bay region, to the southwest, past the mountains. Storms are few this time of year, and they're generally weak by the time they hit us. You'll want to head towards the coast, then turn right to start heading up the coastline ice-ward. I don't know much about navigation in your world, but here there's two ends to the continent - the Great Ice, and the Fire Range. It's colder near the Great Ice, warmer near the Fire Range. If you head away from the continent, eventually you reach the Edge."

Sofia takes notes. "The Edge?"

"Where reality ends and the Void begins."

"Ah. We are likely to stick to the coast or further inland anyway. I think most of the crew won't find the water pleasant."

Nod. "I'd imagine so."

"Anything important comes to mind?"

" - You'll want to know how to identify the cities. It's been ages since I've traveled that way, but, hm, Hayadi is a bit back from the water, at the head of a large delta. The city is fairly sprawled - the trees are taller than most of the buildings, and there's parks and farms between neighborhoods. Quite frankly it looks like a village that outgrew itself. Huicoa - the biggest building's the university, it's a fairly obvious complex of stone buildings where most people are using wood and stucco. It's also the largest town between Hayadi and Amadahni. Atencallah is on the outer edge of a mountainous barrier island - Amadahni is in a massive crater that halfway slid into the sea. The leader of the nation is Asheli, the Great Speaker, she rules out of the second highest building - the highest's one of the temples - near the back edge of Amadahni."

"Oh, and you asked about translation magic earlier - I'd say most merchants and government types will have some, it's very useful what with everyone speaking different languages, but most people won't know any."

Notes notes. "Is literacy common here? My magic lets people understand writing, but illiterate people won't naively know how to write back."

"Also, are we likely to call the attention of Asheli?"

"The temples teach reading and writing, but a lot of people choose to leave school to pursue a trade. Most should have some basic literacy, though. And if you arrive in Atencallah in that strange ship of yours, possibly - it's not a ley-ship, and it's unlike any technology or magic I've seen."

"...What do they look like? What attracting Asheli's attention entails?"

"Ley ships? They're sleeker, and fully enclosed. Most common material's a smooth grey, sometimes with hints of other colors. Generally have a ley-sail. And I'm not certain what getting her attention would result in, she hasn't been Great Speaker for very long at all."

Nod. "We probably can't screw up too badly."

Nod. "She doesn't have absolute power, besides - the Great Speaker mostly only controls international matters and the capitol, and then she has to listen to the council, so it's not like annoying one person will get you executed."

"That is reassuring."

"Indeed."

"Well, I can't think of anything else that's important. Do you want to see if young Pati or Meya are receiving visitors?"

"Of course! Thank you for everything."

"Oh, you're welcome. Hospitality to travelers is part of my job, after all. Now, let's get these old bones moving, and we'll head right on over to Pati's - she's nearby."

She leads the way to an understated stone house, and knocks on the door. 

A woman who looks to be in her late twenties opens it, and smiles broadly when she sees the old woman. "Lady Tshu!" she says. "And our new visitors. Come on in!"

The entryway is as plain as the outside, though peeking past the curtains that cover the interior doorways it's obvious that the rest of the house is more opulent, decorated mostly with gold and turquoise and rich weavings.

"Thank you for sharing your time with us." They come in.

"No problem at all," says Pati. "Why don't we get comfortable? The sitting room's through here."

The seats are mostly soft - pillows and padded stools - and the floors are covered in rugs. Pati talks quietly with another woman, who ducks through another door before returning with drinks.

"Now, why have you sought me out?" she asks, sitting on one of the pillows.

"Lady Tshu told us that you're the face of the mercant guild and might know relevant travel information. We are new to this world and would like to cover all bases."

"Hm. I've mostly been to Hayadi, but I went as far as Amadahni once, when they called the election. From Hayadi to Amadahni is a well-traveled route, you might see navy ships who'll ask your business, your ship being so strange and all, but it's unlikely that you'll run into actual trouble, long as you stick to the travel lanes. I can show you the signals the ships use, too, in case someone tries to flag you down. Between here and Hayadi is occasionally a problem, there's pirates to the south of us who like to pretend to be a legitimate political faction. There's a few sea beasts, but nothing that'll trouble a flying ship. ...Up there, you'll want to be careful not to hit the tooth-birds, some of them get big."

"We would love to learn the signals. What is a tooth-bird?"

"Flying birds, but they have teeth, wings are kinda like a bat's? Mostly eat fish, far as I know."

"...Well, can they be killed without magic? We have weapons."

"Don't see why you'd want to kill them, they don't have much meat and aren't aggressive, but sure, they're just birds."

"Just checking."

"Has Lady Tshu already explained not docking in Amadahni itself?"

"She mention that we would be shot if we didn't have permission and that we should dock at Atencallah first and then see which way we are allowed to cross the bay."

Nod. "You'll likely want to talk to the portmaster after docking - he's just off to the left of the docks, building sticks out a bit, though he might also send someone to approach you when he sees you come in... You'll probably want to dock somewhere meant for ley-ships rather than watercraft, those're more fit for a flying boat, or just do what you've done here, long as you're away and out of the travel lanes."

Note note. "Do you have cost estimations?"

"There's no docking fee if you're only there briefly, for any of the cities... Food in Amadahni can get a bit pricey, but it's not so bad if you don't mind living off of fish. For money - Asheli's been trying to renovate the economic system, but most transactions are still based on bartering. We used to use cocoa beans and lengths of cotton cloth, and you can still outright purchase coins with cocoa beans or cloth-lengths. For money, the merchant house in Hayadi actually specializes in information and exotic goods, so you might want to talk to them, or you can go to the university at Huicoa, or get a stipend from the government."

Note note note.

"We have some silk cloth," she absently comments. "Does the stipend comes with any restrictions or obligations?"

"I don't know. Haven't gotten something like that before. But I'd also be happy to trade with you myself."

They ask more questions test if the water is not acidic (it's not). They want to trade some cargo for emergency money and equipment.

Trading can be done! They're limited in what equipment's available, this's a pretty small village, but she'll do what she can.

That is entirely reasonable! They just want a couple of things they might need on the short term and then they are set to leave.

Alright. Do they have a list?

Of course! Both for the things they want to buy and things they are willing to sell.

They have a good number of the needed supplies, but unfortunately the ship will probably have to stop somewhere else for some of the others.

She offers them a pretty good exchange rate, especially for the silks.

Adam is no trader, but he figures it's a good deal and accepts.

Is there anything else while they're here?

Nope! They are all set (or as set as they can be.)

She wishes them a safe and fast journey, then!

They are very kind!

"Do you want to talk to Meya now, or get ready to head out?" the old woman asks. "I'm not sure what further information he could offer you, though."

"Well, is not like we have any appointments so we might as well talk to him."

"This way, then." 

She leads them to a much smaller house, made of simpler materials, halfway between the previous house and the water.

Adam and his parents follow her. "It's so spacious here."

"Really? This's a fairly small island, by our standards. The continent has much more space, long as you're not in a city. What's your world like?"

"Ah, we have plenty of space on the surface, but we all live on floating islands and the space needs to be budgeted."

"Do the islands float by magic?"

"Yes. Is that something that happens around here?"

"Haven't seen it myself, but I wouldn't be surprised."

"Your world does sound much more... diverse than ours."

"Now, I'd be shocked if there was a world more diverse than this one - most worlds seem to feed into the realm, so it has the diversity of what must be at least thousands of worlds, if not all of them."

"Uh, now that I think about it sounds odd that we would be more advanced than you. But if death by aging is common place in most worlds that might explain it."

"What do you mean?"

"Well... I guess someone has to be the most advanced world that came in contact with you, it's just feels weird being from that world. By no action of our own, just chance."

"If I remember the going theory right, most worlds are fairly old, and people have only existed for a short span of those worlds - and advanced people even less, so random chance favors the unadvanced. Of the people I've met, most first-generations were surprised by metal tools. I also seem to remember a traveler who claimed to be from a world with ships that could travel between stars, which were large balls of flaming gas amazingly far apart, but she didn't know how, so you might just be the first advanced engineers motivated to interact with people to come through. But, yes, it also feels very strange to us, that our little island, of all the islands, might be the first witnesses to the most advanced civilization we've come into contact with."

Adam is a bit speechless at the description of star traveling ships. Possibly envious.

"Well, supposedly it had to happen to someone. That is what stars are in our world too, or at least our sun."

"Huh. Probably not here. Well, some of them might be, but I'd be surprised if the air goes up all that high. Would be weird, for an island to have edges but not a top."

"Uh, I'm not sure if that is the same for our worlds, but the air sort of gets thinner until there is no more of it and the space between the world and the sun is just true emptiness."

"Huh. How can space be empty?"

"I really don't know how. I know that air falls towards the world like everything else and there is not infinite air around."

"Hm. Hadn't thought of it like that before." They arrive at the house, and she walks up to the door and knocks on the frame. A gangly boy, perhaps in his late teens or early twenties, answers after a few moments. 

He blinks his large eyes, then says, "Ah - Lady Tshu, it's good to see you. ...Who're they?"

She chuckles. "They're our new visitors. Didn't you notice their ship coming in?" He shakes his head, and she continues, "Anyways, they're heading up the coast ice-wards, and we figured you could give them some pointers about the journey, if you're not busy."

"Oh, no, not at all - I'm not really prepared for guests - um, come on in -." He steps aside to let them in; the space beyond is cramped, with no separate entry hall, just straight into the living space. There's a single large room, with a firepit in one corner, and a rolled up bedroll in another. There's no grand decorations, though the shelves are filled with books and papers. "Sorry about all this," he says, gesturing at the mess.

"Don't worry, it's not like we called ahead."

"Ah, well. Anyways. What did you need from me?"

"We are new to this world and we are afraid there are things too obvious to mention."

"Hm. Well, do you know about the ley yet? Or the civil war? There's also - politeness things, I guess. Like, painting your face is considered really crass? That sometimes trips up foreign students. And, like, staring is rude, don't talk too loudly or excitedly. Some of that tripped me up, out here manners are mostly about hospitality and friendliness, no one cares if you're loudly friendly, in the cities there's more of a focus on - presenting yourself well and nobly. People are a lot less helpful, too."

Notes.

"Does make up count? And what about a civil war?"

"Like, if it's noticeable at all?

"There was a civil war that officially ended a few months ago, it's how the Great Speaker rose to power. Usually the Great Speaker's elected by the council. Asheli was favored by the previous Speaker, but like half the council voted for her cousin, half voted for her, and then her cousin declared that the votes for her were invalid since there's never been a female Speaker before - it should've gone to a vote by the cities after that, but he just declared himself Speaker, and she declared him in defiance of the people's will, challenged him to a duel, and when he refused raised an army. Some parts of the country still are refusing to acknowledge that she's the Speaker now, though."

"Oh, joy. Are we likely to be forced to take a side or something?"

"I mean, she'll want you to acknowledge her as the Great Speaker if you come before her, but - pretty much all the ambassadors have. Her cousin's side is pretty much over, and if you're headed up the coast I doubt you'll run into any hold-outs."

"Acknowledgement was expected. At any rate that is good."

"Yeah. The war was - nasty - so a lot of areas don't have as many resources as they used to. Fields got burned, bridges got destroyed, all that sort of stuff. Asheli's been promising to improve trade and restore the countryside, not sure how much that's going to pan out. She did very publicly punish anyone who'd been involved in breaking discipline, so there's that at least."

"Um, other things... There's laws - okay, among things that trip up foreign students - we have personal property, don't take things without asking... Judges don't have to keep to existing law, they can do what they consider fair and just, though you can challenge that. Don't move property boundary markers, don't cause a public disturbance - that's mostly measured if it shuts down commerce or roads - don't seriously slander someone - truth's a defense, but that'll depend on the judge - don't get drunk in public, don't default on loans. In the big cities, commerce is technically supposed to happen in the marketplaces, but you can also go to the office or home of a merchant house to negotiate a private deal. If you're accused of a crime, you're allowed to defend yourself in court, and you can appeal decisions to a higher court. You can get help, but there isn't anyone who professionally helps the accused outside of the big cities."

"Okay, nothing too weird so far." She writes it down anyway.

"Yeah. I've heard some places have laws about what clothes you can wear. Um, don't insult the gods? Like, basically don't name a god and then insult them, or graffiti a temple. How illegal that is varies, but it's generally a really bad idea."

"What are the laws about what clothes one can wear? Back home some places vary about it... We can change into different shapes, but the process involves molting off skin and it's very gross and will ruin anything you're wearing."

"Some places let you strip off whenever and wherever. Some places let you strip off only to change shape. Some will require you to go somewhere private if you want to shift and they might not even offer little nooks for that." Adam offers as examples of what goes on back on their world.

"...Yeah, public nudity's generally not allowed here. I'm not sure of anywhere it is allowed. You have to have your genitals covered, is pretty much the gist of it, though some other cultures have more strict modesty rules. There are exceptions for species without external genitalia and for shapeshifters in an animal form, you might be able to petition for an exception under that? Or if it's an emergency. Um, other than that it's just - don't wear a uniform you're not entitled to, don't use the Speaker's insignia. There's at least one reality-island where they restrict certain colors and clothes to certain castes, though. Remember hearing about it."

"Do breasts count for the nudity rule? And an exception for emergencies is generally universal back home."

"Here, no, though most other reality-islands they do."

"Is the caste reality-island nearby?"

"I don't think so?"

"Alright, just checking."

"Hm... Can't really think of much else. Um. Don't anger spirits? Though some of them are touchy."

"Spirits?"

"Yeah. There's a bunch of different types, it's pretty much a catch all for very magical nature-associated non-humanoids. Like, fox-spirits, or river-spirits. Most are able to put curses on people if they're angry."

"Okay, we definitely don't have those."

"They're subject to the same laws as non-spirits here, so the nasty ones tend to go elsewhere, but yeah."

"But... is there a way to keep them away?"

"Or fight them?"

"I mean, you'll avoid most of the landscape ones if you stick in the air, and the animal spirits are generally just - part of the population, or hanging out in the wilderness. Spirits that will track people down to cause mischief are rare. If one's attacking you, it'll generally go away if you fight back, and they're vulnerable to, like, being stabbed and all, though I don't think that'd kill most of them? Same as anything magically powerful, really."

"Sounds trackable then. Is not like we expected to be fully prepared to literally everything."

"Yeah. That'd be kinda hard."

"Well, thank you for all the help. Do you think that those are the most important pointers?"

"Can't really think of anything else. Though knowing me the instant you all leave the island I'll think of something important..."

"Ah, so that is true to this world too."

"I wonder what a world with efficient brains would look like."

"Well, now I have a new magical power that I wish to acquire."

He laughs.

He grins. "Thank you for the help."

"Oh, no trouble at all. It's nice to talk to outsiders sometimes."

"And thank you for having us over."

"It was my pleasure."

Well, do they have anything pending to do before leaving?

Other than actually doing the trading, nothing much.

That is dealt with then. They have someone that floats the various cargo up and down.

"Good doing business with you," Pati says when they're done.

The old woman wishes them a safe trip, as do several curious onlookers who've wandered over to the docks.

Some of the crew circles around the ship and waves goodbye but soon they board and they accelerate away.

There's nothing but ocean initially, but shortly they get past the low fog and come into sight of the mainland. Sprawling wetlands give way to forests, then in the far distance the gentle rise of ancient mountains. The more distant lands seem strange to the eye, the lack of a horizon throwing off proportions. 

There's a few villages nestled in the wetlands, most near the widest river that winds through, or close to the shore. Farther back, where larger trees rise and the muck starts to give way to solid ground, is a city, built half over the water, with alternating buildings on stilts and floating farms next to a neighborhood of houses built in the arms of trees.

It's hard to get used to the notion that people can be so unconcerned about large volumes of untreated water. They follow their instructions and move at a steady pace.

The coast is fairly long and windy. Eventually the wetlands give way to sandy hills, then they pass another city with a cluster of stone buildings on a large hill - probably the university town that was mentioned - and, after a while, finally a sudden ring of mountains, with one half partially collapsed so that the sea passes through in a shallow bay. An outer arc remains intact, with a city built into the mountainside on the outer edge - what must be Atencallah. Amadahni isn't visible behind the mountains, but there's an odd shimmer in the air in the gap they'd have to go through. 

As per instructions they will approach Atencallah to do dock there.

The dock's fairly busy, but there's some open spots up in the air. The taken ones are inhabited by sleek, shimmering ships in varying sizes, while more ordinary boats occupy the water piers.

They wave for permission to dock. Adam takes note on the various ships designs.

They're granted permission.

The ships come in an enormous variety - most of the water ships are small craft of various kinds, but there's a few large ships with anywhere from one to three masts. The ley-ships only seem to have their base material and a vaguely sleek profile in common. Some are tear-drop shaped, some elongated on both ends, a few with fin-like protrusions at various points. 

Adam is fascinated.

Sofia lands to talk to the relevant people about their situation.

A relevant person approaches as they dock.

Sofia waves a piece of parchment in case they lack verbal communication magic.

They do. The dock master briefly tries to find someone with verbal communication magic, but whoever it is is apparently not working today. Written communication can be done easily enough, though.

She has a brief note explaining how they are from a different world and just arrived in this one.

After confirming that the translation works both ways, he carefully writes out, "Well, welcome to Madeza, then. There's a docking fee if you're planning to stay past the dawn, but it's not high."

She writes. "How much? And staying past dawn depends if we can take our ship to the capital. We were hoping we could make some money by being a novel kind of magic at them or at least be pointed at other monetary opportunities thereafter."

"You'll have to get permission. Not sure how long it will take. There aren't really docks built for flying ships there, though. We can come to collect the fee at dawn if the length of your stay's uncertain. The fee's five cocoas or equivalent a day."

Sofia checks if they can afford that. "Could you point me to where I can get the permission?"

It's pretty affordable, yeah. About a third of a day's wages for a common laborer, for comparison's sake. 

"You'll want to talk to the foreign office. They're thataways," he says, pointing and then giving more comprehensive directions. 

Sofia takes notes and thanks them for the help.

A short while later Adam and his mother fly towards that direction.

The office is rather clearly labeled, and sits along an avenue stretching from the middle of the docks. 

Inside there's a room with low chairs and mats, and a woman in sitting at a desk.

Sofia show her the note, but presumably they would have translation magic here.

She scans over the note, then blinks at them. "Welcome to Atencallah," she says in what's not quite a language, which also gives some really bizarre feedback on her exact meaning. "Do you need help with anything?"

"Being new to this world we are trying to figure out what to do next and someone recommended us to go to the capital."

"Alright. There's boats leaving regularly from the other side of the island."

Nod. "Any chance we could get permission to take our ship there?"

"Hm. Depends on what sort. Craft that ride low in the water aren't allowed, the bay's fairly shallow, and neither are ley ships."

"It's a flying ship."

"...How?"

"We use buoyancy by means of lighter than air gasses?"

"So it's not magic," she clarifies.

"Ah, yes."

"That might be allowed. We'll need to send for permission, and my supervisor might want to look at your ship to make sure it doesn't have any weapons."

"That sounds reasonable. How about personal powers?"

"Not a concern, unless they have major destructive capabilities, which is pretty rare. I think the border agents handle those as they come up, and scrying catches most major problems before they happen. We just prefer to minimize the necessity of intervention, and it's easier to catch magical effects."

"Alright, we really only have one person with destructive potential. She affects gravity around her."

" - That probably won't even work within the city or anywhere inhabited, or possibly in the entire country, the shield protects against those sorts of effects."

"Okay, how long until we can get a permission? Is there a fee?"

"Not sure. Depends on how busy the office in Amadahni is. Might be a day. There's no fee for calling, but there'll be one for docking in the city."

Nod. "Thank you."

"You're welcome. Did you need anything else?"

"I'm not sure you're qualified - or even responsible - to give us advice in case there is trouble because we are literally from another world and might do something stupid because things are so different here that no one would understand why we act weird around water (in our world it melts people, yours doesn't affect us)."

"...Do you want an overview of our laws or something? You don't have to worry about catastrophes here, they're handled by the fire-net, but there are also more individual problems it's possible to meet."

"We already got an overview from some helpful locals. I'm just trying to cover all our bases."

"Fire-net?"

"That's good. And for the fire-net...There's - the rituals, that protect the nation. They're tied to the sacred fires. The rituals cast the fire-net, which ensures that the gods will intervene if anything catastrophic tries to happen."

Nod. "...I'm not sure it might relevant that our species have different shapes, but we do. Changing between them is gross and we are recognizable though."

"I'm not sure that's likely to come up, there's more'n a few shapeshifters."

"I think that is all then."

The secretary can't think of anything else, either.

In that case they will just make sure she knows where to find them and go back to their ship.

After a while, a man comes strolling up to their ship. "Hello!" he calls. "You're the Whiteburns?"

"Yes. And our crew." Adam says taking a step forward. "How can I help you?"

"I'm here to inspect your ship, if you don't mind."

"Oh, go ahead. I can answer any of your questions if you have any."

He nods.

It turns out he does have a few questions about this thing or that, but nothing difficult to answer.

Answers are supplied as needed.

"Very good," says the inspector at the end. "All looks in order from my end. Someone will be by tomorrow or so to let you know if you have permission to dock in Amadahni."

"Thank you, for you time. We will keep someone on watch in case you need us for anything."

"Alright. Good luck with the permissions." And he's off.

They settle in for the night.

Some of the crew wants to go out and explore. Adam thinks this is a terrible idea. His dad convinces people that they should wait until they have a more permanent port.

Does the night go without incident?

Yup!

The next day, news comes that they have permission to dock in Amadahni. Instructions for this are passed on.

Instructions are (unsurprisingly) followed.

Amadahni is a sprawling port city nestled in an enormous crater. The side closest to the ocean has slumped into the sea, two breaches in the mountain range allowing water in. A tall sea wall protects the city proper from any inundation, and there's a thin beach mostly covered by the wooden dock. The majority of the ships there seem to be local fishing boats or ferries from the outlying island, hardly sea worthy, but there are a few larger, fancier ships, including some incredibly beautiful ley ships. The city itself is laid out as a giant grid, the broad streets gently sloping upwards to the crater's center, which hosts a gargantuan platform with four buildings laid out along the cardinal directions. The west and east ones are step pyramids, larger than the other two, which are at a closer glance actually compounds of closely clustered square buildings. The central plaza is fairly busy with people going to and fro. The city gleams in the early light, white stucco formed into intricate patterns along the building walls, some painted, some covered in flowers.

Their approach is getting a small amount of attention - a few people are lined up along the sea wall to watch them come in, and the people on the dock occasionally pause to glance over at their strange airship. 

They will follow the docking protocol. Adam is only mildly distracted by the other ships.

They're met by someone vaguely official-looking. "Welcome to Amadahni!" she says. "Now, there's a fee just to dock, then a further fee for each day you stay. For a ship your size..." She names a very reasonable-sounding price. "Do you need any directions to anywhere?"

"In a sense. We are recently arrived from another world and are searching for a way to settle in."

"You'll want the Immigration Office, then. They'll be able to help you settle in."

Adam thanks her and asks for directions to the Immigration Office.

Directions can be provided! It, like most of the government offices, is on the central plaza, southside. Plaza's hard to miss, the road from the docks goes right up to it.

"Have a good stay, now," she says when she finishes giving directions. Do they need her for anything else?

"Thank you."

And they don't need any extra help and a group is sent there.

They're asked to declare any plants, animals, or magical items before leaving the docks.

The buildings around the docks are mostly plain, getting more ornate and colorful the closer they get to the central plaza. There is an awful lot of climbing involved to get to the central plaza. (There's a lift of some sort, but it's reserved for the disabled).

The buildings on the plaza put the rest to shame in their sheer ornateness. The south side cluster of buildings has signs indicating what offices are in which building, luckily, and it's a fairly easy matter to find the Immigration Office, which is located in a squat building near the front, decorated with murals of daily life in the city and surrounding areas. 

What? Flying is not an option?

They will get there regardless.

Flying is indeed an option, and a good way to skip the crowds. 

The inside of the Immigration Office is colorful, painted with yet more murals, and the seats look comfortable. There's a man at a desk at one end of the room, and two people sitting in the chairs, talking quietly.

Assuming there are no signs warning against it. They will go to the man at the desk.

"Hello," he says when they get close enough. "How may I help you?"

"Hopefully. We arrived from another to this one recently."

"Alright. I'll see if there's anyone available to meet you, if you could wait a few minutes."

"Of course."

They wait.

It turns out there is someone available to meet them, though they have to wait a while since he's apparently busy. After a while they're waved through; exiting the office is a trio of foot-tall winged humanoids, one blue, two in shades of green.

By contrast, they are all between around six foot tall and with white-feathered wings. "Hello."

"Hi!" chirps on of the green beings, drifting backwards and then zipping up to look Adam in the face. "Are you new too?"

"We are arrived, yesterday. And you?"

"We were traveling to Shiza, then suddenly we rounded the corner and found Nenthe instead! They're mostly from our world, they said, and were happy to see us, but said we should come here first, since here's really really close to Nenthe and my Tana is a magic-weaver!"

"As far we know we are the first from our world. What is a magic-weaver?"

"Magic-weavers pull the life-strings to make things! Like glow-seeds! They're all ndonya, so I'm gonna be a ndonya when I'm grown up!"

Stephanos is making notes of this in case Tempus ever manages to come to this world. "Ndonya is not translating, but it sounds fascinating."

"Really? There's boys and girls and ndonya, do you guys not have them? You're all funny colors, are you something else?" They're practically vibrating in excitement.

"Depends what you mean by something else. We have boys, girls and people in both category and people that are neither."

"We are a different species than yours." Sofia adds. "This coloration is normal for this shape."

"Ohhh! There's people who decide to stay green," they say, as if this's something scandalous, "But I think only people who're more'n one are still experimenting and don't have their magic yet. That'd make magic funny, if you were a boy and a girl and a ndonya."

"Gender relates to color and magic?"

"Yeah! You can tell what gender someone is by their color! Green's a kid, blue's ndonya, purple-pink's male, and white's female. Ndonya are magic-weavers, boys are magic-writers, and girls are magic-sayers. Kids don't have magic, which is silly. I'll be old enough to choose soon, I'm already a whole handful!" They hold up a hand, all eight fingers splayed.

"You sure are," mutters the blue one, voice amused.

"What each one does?"

"Well, I said what magic-weavers do. Boys can write protections and stuff. Girls can do short-term stuff. My mom does lights and sounds."

"Oh, right. Our species can do magic, and can even change our physical bodies to match their gender, but we don't really have a choice on the matter or the exact powers."

"Huh, I do magic-weaver kind of stuff."

"Cool! Magic-weavers are the best."

"Hah, thanks. What are you planning to do with it?"

"I'm gonna make glow-seeds and house-seeds and tashu-seeds! And all sortsa new seeds, too, someday! Tana makes pet'e braids and 'bitu cloth, which's cool too, I guess."

"Pet'e and 'bitu?"

"Pet'e braids do things! Like make you focus better! Tana does them for me lots. 'Bitu cloth is super warm and thin and lightweight, it's good for flying in."

"Woah, are the braids expensive?"

"Not usually?" says the blue one. "Though that's within our own community. I don't know if they'll even work on aliens - or, well, non-incusai. Might be it'll be harder to weave the life-threads."

"Is that the sort of thing that is safe to test?"

"Probably. Or, I should know if it is soon as I get a look at your life-threads. I suspect someone who's been here longer would know better than me, though."

"Fair enough. We are the first ones from our world so it might be more complicated than finding someone that already knows the answer."

"Wouldn't mind the money from doing braiding myself, though. Do you want braids, or were you just curious?"

"I do want the braids, yeah."

"Well, I can give you the address of where we're staying, you can come by after you finish your things? I need my supplies to do a proper braiding, anyways. ...Or on second thought, I can come by your place if you don't mind me bringing the kids, you'll probably have trouble fitting in the apartment."

"We don't have an address yet. We are currently living on our ship."

Shrug. "I can swing by the docks, too, we're pretty close to there."

"Sure." She checks and gives them their dock's number and a description of their aircraft.

"See you this evening, then?"

"Of course." She makes a note.

"Well, I'll be seeing you. Good luck with your meeting!"

"Thank you."

They wait.

They're waved into the office, which has no windows, instead being lit by softly glowing globes.

A tall, willowy woman with shimmery golden skin, darker golden feathers spilling down her back in the place of hair, and large black eyes sits behind a lightweight desk. Her clothes are different from the local style, solidly colored and form-fitting rather than embroidered and draped. She doesn't have external ears, and her nose is nearly flat.

"You're the Whiteburns?" she asks, in an oddly melodious voice.

"We are." Adam confirms in a formal tone he continues. "We come here representing ourselves and the crew of our ship. I'm Captain Adam Whiteburn."

"This office is intended to orient new arrivals to this country, get them documentation, and provide assistance in settling in, finding meaningful work, and learning the local language, among other duties," she practically recites. "New arrivals who intend to stay in the area are provided with appropriate shelter and a small stipend for basic goods. If you already have arrangements for a place to stay, your stipend will be increased. Basic preventative care and emergency healing are free of charge at the temples. Classes are also free for those under their species' age of majority, and many temples provide free adult learning classes. You will also be provided with a copy of our laws, written, recorded, or orally given as you prefer. As a note, participation in the local fire-rituals at appropriate times is a general requirement; if participation conflicts with your religion, moral code, or ability, accommodations can be made, or for extreme cases the requirement can be waived entirely. Details of the rituals will also be provided."

"We have our ship which works to live in the short term, but not very comfortable on the long term. I presume the entire crew will be required to come here in person for the legal work? Regardless, that's easy to manage. We don't know what the fire-rituals entail and if it conflicts with anything. We are hoping to find a way back home eventually or that someone from there might be able to move between both worlds."

"That would be preferable, yes. How many are in your crew? And we can try to put you in contact with magical theorists; unfortunately there's currently no known way to move between realms."

"There's a few different fire-rituals; they're all vital to maintaining the fire-net, which protects Madeza and somewhat the rest of the continent from natural disasters, wide-scale attacks, severe disease outbreaks, and other ills, as well as aiding the health of our farms. The monthly rituals are not required, though you're welcome to participate - they usually involve feasting and a small sacrifice, typically blood or a hand-crafted item. The yearly ritual takes place over the five intercalary days at the end of the year. No business is to be conducted - only essential services are exempt - and as many activities as possible are to be avoided. You make a small sacrifice, then douse all fires at the beginning, and relight them at the end, after the great temple fire is lit and the criers announce the dawn of the new year. The greatest fire-ritual takes place only every fifty-two years - fires are doused for thirteen days, as many tools and clothes are replaced as possible (and the devout usually replace as many other items as they can), and fires must be relit from the central great fire. The last great cycle one was twenty-four years ago, so you have a while before you need to worry about that one."

They nod along. "That doesn't sound particularly onerous."

"Mmhmm. The ritual is traditionally considered to invoke the old Madezan gods, which some religions object to as well."

"We would need to more about the old Madezan gods. Our religion doesn't object on principle."

"The cosmology's pretty large, and who's who is sometimes a matter of debate. I'm not sure I'm entirely qualified to answer questions of theology, but they're generally accepted as the ones powering various rituals, and, when not called upon, are non-interventionist. Calling on them in proved rituals is considered varying levels of safe; they've never been known to react poorly to the fire-rituals."

"Is this the sort of thing that we could decide later, after talking with a theologian?"

"Sure, it's fairly early in the celestial year - the seventeenth day of the third month; the months are twenty days long, and there are eighteen of them, plus the five intercalary days at the end."

Sofia writes this down.

"Do you have any other questions?"

"None specific for now, no."

"You can return to this office at any time if something comes up; we're here to help, after all." And if no questions are forthcoming, official documents and a copy of the law can be provided. She also solicits numbers and preferred living arrangements of crew members, and finds them appropriate housing mostly together.

They will provide everything they can provide, but they know the crew members well enough that there is very few gaps to their knowledge.

She also explains the grid layout - it's very sensible, it's rather clear that this was a carefully planned city - and how to actually navigate to the housing, how to get to the minor weekly market (easily, there's a courtyard that the buildings will be around) and how to get to the major daily market (generally one at the center of every large neighborhood). Currency can be explained, the exact value of the stipend, what's a fair price for bread in their area...

Notesnotesnotes. Sofia is quite daft with using her metallic-not-a-quill.

What the apartment will probably actually look like and what the common appliances are (magical cold boxes are a thing that exists, but they won't have one because they're an expensive thing, as are a lot of other magical conveniences). Interior doors aren't a thing since wood's expensive, instead the apartment comes with basic curtains to separate rooms. Furniture is Madezan, which means a lot of rugs and pillows for sitting on rather than like freestanding wooden furniture like some places have. Interior plumbing exists, but is communal - each floor has a shared water spigot and bathroom. If you need emergency medical care, go to one of the temples which are located here and here for that neighborhood, but there are also doctors for non-urgent needs.

Well, the curtains are less than ideal for soundproofing reasons, but that's by far the nicest resettlement they have heard of. Rugs and pillows are far more adaptable to their multiple forms than any wooden furniture usually is.

Madeza prides itself in being very nice, especially since the Great Speaker Asheli took over! It's gotten a lot nicer in recent years, many of these are pilot programs.

They are all very nice pilot programs.

Is anyone willing to talk to the interesting new arrivals?

Once they get to the apartment, sure. Their direct neighbors aren't very chatty, most people are going about their business. The courtyards seem to be the places to hang out if you're feeling friendly; there's cushions scattered on the tiles and low benches along the walls. Each building has its own small, shaded courtyard where people gather and talk quietly, and the apartments are arranged around much larger courtyards, which seem to act more as thoroughfares, though there's also a large group of teenagers hanging out around a statue in the middle. The weekly market isn't in session today, but there's still people in the larger courtyard offering a few services. The neighborhoods themselves don't have roads, so much as a series of courtyards connected by small passages through the ground floor of the buildings.

The rooms are airy, and every single one has windows opening onto one of the two courtyards. The bedrooms mostly overlook the smaller, more private courtyard, with a long main room that seems to combine kitchen and living space opening to the main courtyard. They're all small and bare, with plain off-white cloth for curtains and pillows.

There's a variety of people hanging out in each courtyard - humans and human-like species seem pretty common, as do the small winged Incusai, various animal-like beings, and a few beings that look like animated stone, among many others. Many people here don't seem to share a language at all.

Nice. The small passages are not a problem for the flying beings unless landing is non-trivial.

Pool-shifters (The term they decided to use for themselves, albeit mostly because they couldn't agree on anything better) will introduce themselves. Sometimes multiple times because they are - as the name implies - capable of shifting between multiple forms. The winged one (Ventari) appears to be the default, but among them they have purple-skinned energy generating ones (Bronto), red skinned fire-breathing (Aester), stone-skinned ones (Petram) and a sprinkling of others.

The crew is mostly still optimistic about returning home. But they're looking for jobs. How is the market for that?

Adam, in particular, wants to talk with someone that might be interested in shiny new magical species.

One of the animal-like beings, that looks like a small ferrety-fox with overlarge ears, sandy brown fur, and bright silver eyes, is very interested in a shiny new magical species. She pops up from where she's curled up in a sun spot when she notices Adam, makes an inquisitive whir-like sound, and tilts her head. "You new?" she asks, perfectly understandable yet not seeming to actually speak. "I haven't seen people like you around, shapeshifters aren't too common."

Gosh, that's adorable. "Me and my crew are literally the first of our kind to get to this world."

"Cool! What are you? I'm a spirit, though I haven't met any other spirits like me yet here."

"My species doesn't have a name yet. We have the ability to change between different, specific shapes that we are born with or acquire in special places."

"Huh. Most spirits can shapeshift, I know, though I can't super much, just change my fur color. That sounds cool, though! What's your world like? Mine's boring, just a lot of desert, most of the people died long ago."

"Untreated water is acid to people. We have monsters on the surface, so most people leave in floating cities. But by default we don't have to worry about old age."

"Huh. Spirits don't really get old either, but I haven't heard about acid water. Floating cities are a neat solution, though, must've been hard to do."

"There are all kinds of horror stories from the early days when there was not enough space or treated water." Adam says seriously. "But nowadays, people have kids when they can afford a house and there are enough mages to supply city expansion."

"I think we used to have water, I don't know if it was acid or not. But people lived on the surface before everything dried up. Things started getting really hot when I was small, though."

"Did people manage to adapt?"

"Lotsa people left where I lived, I dunno where they went."

"How long ago was this again?"

"Uh. Long? I was really young, I didn't really count the time."

Shrug. "Okay. What is life like now?"

"There wasn't really anyone left at all before I got lost exploring. Here's nice, though, I like being around people again."

"I was surprised with how organized they were. And even if they weren't organized it beats being lost at the oceans of my world."

"Apparently most places aren't this organized? And someone said it used to be worse under the last Great Speaker, and a lot worse during the civil war. But yeah, a lot of people are happy with the current Great Speaker."

"Yeah... I have no idea what we would've done if we had landed in an open conflict. Find somewhere isolate, maybe."

"Mhm! I can't imagine what a war would be like!"

"Luckily, I never had to deal with one, but back in my world there used to be some extremely bad ones."

"That's horrible."

Nod nod. "At least people eventually learned their lesson."

"Do you think wars won't happen anymore here?"

"I mean people back in my world. If the leaders here keep dying every other decade, the lesson might never stick. Which is reason to go back to my world and bring our kind of immortality to this one."

"Oh, yeah. I think I head there's a few immortal leaders somewhere? Someone was gossiping. But I don't know much about people anywhere, let alone here."

"You mean immortal leaders that always stay in power? That also lends itself to disaster. At least back in my world. It's nice when there are wizened old people that remember how bad things can get, but leaders that never leave power tend to turn bad, or be violently replaced."

Shrug. "Dunno which it is. Haven't been here long."

"At least it isn't an issue I have to deal with. I just need to figure out how to talk to about magical engineering."

"That sounds neat."

"Despite everything I am excited to learn the things this world got up to."

"Me too! Being around people's cool, even if it gets a bit much at times..."

The conversation comes to an end and Adam has some duties to attend, mostly research...

Adam is good at research, but not the best at people management.

Good thing that his family is willing to help him out.

Someone very official looking, in what's probably a uniform, though the sash across his chest is a bit unusual for that, approaches them. "Is the Captain of the Whiteburn ship?" the man asks.

"He is not here, but I speak on his behalf."

"There has been a minor incident involving one of your crewmembers."

"Well, how can I help you then?"

"It might be a bit of a delicate matter..."

"Do tell...?"

"There was an altercation." Pause, and: "Over appropriate pay for a sex worker."

"Ah, I see how that would require delicate management? Where is our crew member?"

"At the local arbitration house," he says, inclining his head. "It's nearby, if you would like to come."

"Of course, are there more details that you would like to share?"

"I was just sent to retrieve you, I don't have many details."

"I see," he grabs his things and turns back to the official, "lead the way."

The official nods, and does so.

The arbitration house is relatively plain and severe, though it still has carvings of odd creatures in its stucco. The inside is neatly appointed, stone benches instead of chairs and no rug upon the floor. A secretary looks up when they enter, looking the same sort of human as most here, and says, "Name and business?"

"Stephanos Graycalm and I am here to help a dispute involving a crewmember under my son Adam Graycalm." He does not look old enough to have a son that has a crew, but the wings clearly mark him as not-quite-human.

"Right. Altercation involving a newly arrived crewmember and a sex worker over appropriate pay," she identifies after a moment of glancing at him and a nod from the official. "They're both talking to a judge, right now, but it's unlikely to have gotten far."

Nod. "Thank you."

Now, to see how they can unravel this mess.

Samson and a human woman are sitting in front of a stern-faced judge (also human). The low murmur of conversation stops when the secretary announces them, and the judge turns her head to look at Stephanos. "I presume you are the representation for Samson?" she asks.

"If he's dragging in someone to argue for him, I want my union rep," the other woman says, arms crossed and expression mulish. 

"Yes, your honor," Stephanos says politely to the judge. "And I am sure the court will uphold your rights," he tells the sex worker. "If you don't mind. I would like Samson here to explain himself to me."

"Uh... I, I just... we are all stressed out with being on another world and stuff and I wanted to relax a bit. And I hired her for it, but then I remembered that she is... you know..."

"This a court, don't let anything be assumed."

"She is aging."

"Ah."

"So, what, you're speciesist against mortals?" the woman asks.

"I am not... I just... can't sleep with one! You get me, Captain Graycalm?"

Stephanos pinches the bridge of his nose. "I am not a Captain, and if you just wasted everyone's time over this. I am sorry, your Honor. I am sorry... miss. We have some cultural taboos that never collided with a society like yours. How exactly can we solve this? Is paying for the lost time enough?"

"That, and the property damage claims - which were minor - would suffice," the judge says calmly.

"Thank you, your honor."

Samson gives a little groan.

"Think with your brain next time and I would be more sympathetic to you."

Samson sets his jaw and nods.

"Did you even ask about their disease prevent and birth control methods?" Stephanos whispers.

Samson eeps.

"I have magic for that, I'm not operating unclean," the woman says, rolling her eyes.

"If that is all?" the judge asks before an argument can break out.

"I'm satisfied," the woman says, shrugging.

"That wasn't a jab at you," he tells the sex worker. "And thank you, your Honor."

He bows and after a second Samson does the same.

They proceed with the necessary bureaucracy and payments.

The bureaucracy is very efficient, and the payments are enough to be a solid warning not to do this again, without threatening most people's livelihoods.

Samson still is in a bad mood afterwards, but not in an uncooperative way so he proceeds with the bureaucracy.

Stephanos takes him back so everyone can have a reminder that, yes, nearly everyone here is mortal.

Hard to forget. But, that's a good time to remember.

No one really wants to talk about mortality, and the conversation turns towards - of all things - about babies.

To be fair, the concern is that no one picked them up yet. They might need to find the way themselves or get used to staying. Many want to sacrifice shapes to get powers, but any child they had afterwards might not get that shape. The talk goes on and on, but does not produce much result that night.

Legal matters are handled fairly quickly and efficiently, and shortly they receive a message from the local office responsible for research and development, asking to discuss their world, its magic, and its science.

Yes, they would like that very much.

The office they're directed to is in the same governmental complex as the immigration office. They're given a time range when the office is open, though making an appointment would be most convenient.

They make an appointment then. It's only Adam, his parents and four other crewmembers coming.

The office is plainer, the person they meet a local - humanish with no extra additions, dark skin and black hair, simple clothes with no embellishments. He confirms their identity as the Whiteburns, then says, "We heard your airship is propelled by non-magical means?"

"That's correct. We do have people with magic that can help it fly, but it's by designed capable of fly independently of any magic assistance."

"Do you know how it was made, and how it functions?"

"I have designed it myself."

He can explain the basic principles of buoyancy and how his engine works.

He nods. "That seems reasonable. We'll want to make sure it runs on the same physics as us - sometimes places have what we'd call magic, that's simply normal to them, and that magic carries over to the things they make. But it does seem like your world has a better understanding of certain principles, which offers the potential for a rather fruitful partnership."

"I should be able to help with those tests. I also interested in the potential of local magic and ship engineering."

"Knowledge exchange is common, yes. Some things are secret at the request of their contributor, or for national security reasons, but the rest is shareable."

"We are also - unsurprisingly - interested in any information about interworld travel. Though we came to understand our prospects of going home are dim."

He makes a face. "Yeah. Not much that's known can be generalized. Anyone who's had magic capable of getting themselves out either didn't bother saying so, or wasn't able to meaningfully explain it."

The shifters collectively make a resigned grimace. "Well, we figured we should get settled then."

Nod. "Also of interest will be potential combinations and interactions with your magic - I understand that it's unlikely to lead towards interdimensional breakthroughs, but some magics interact in ways that boost one or the other, or have other unprecedented effects."

"Yes, that's another thing we are hope to set up. One of the easiest things worth investigating is anti-pain magic or even non-addictive painkillers. A lot of ours powers are constrained by generating pain as a byproduct. Another constraint is that we have to sacrifice shapes to get powers."

"How much do you know about us? Sacrificed shapes are not inherited, most people wait until they have kids."

"Not much, primarily information about your ship. Some magics might be able to circumvent the sacrifice, or increase your capacity somehow, but that sounds likely to involve higher level things, which is more expensive to commission. Pain suppression is usually relatively straightforward, and available at the vast majority of healing centers."

"How good of pain suppression? It hurts every time we shift. It just hurts less over time and you get used to."

"Ranges from 'enough to relieve a minor headache or muscle ache' to 'conceptually incapable of perceiving unwanted pain' to 'outright unconscious.' Pain relief under a healer's supervision is easier to obtain than portable pain solutions, but medications or potions are not unobtainable, and simply require a prescription for the stronger or more addictive cases."

Sofia makes a note.

A woman with metallic-blue eyes and hair speaks. "Mr. Stephanos over there has a power that lets him have kids with special powers, special to our kind of magic that is. Do you think you have some fertility god, or mumbo-jumbo that could share his power with someone else? So they can have special kids? Shift-dancers are probably our best bet to get out of here and I don't want to depend on Sofia being willing to have his tenth kid."

"Clotilda."

"Fertility deities exist, as does magic impacting it. Some powers can be transferred, though usually not intuitively. You'll likely want to talk to a university, or a temple, for a more comprehensive overview of existing options in that field - we mostly focus on the untested, when known options fail."

"I just want to go home," She who is apparently Clotilda. "I would love to talk to anyone that can give me a slight chance of achieving that."

"I am making note," Sofia says and notes.

"I can give you a list of recommendations, how about?"

Clotilda looks at Sofia, who nods. And writes down the list of recommendations.

"Do you wish to schedule an appointment for a more thorough overview of differing advances in various fields? This is mostly intended as a preliminary - to get an idea of where the other stands."

"Absolutely. I and some of my crew are interested in the area."

"We can establish some basic divergences now, and let you meet with appropriate experts next time, how about."

"Sounds good."

Adam and the two other engineers present can offer what they know, which turn out to be a lot. There had been advancements on the field of optics and metallurgy that they have been personally involved in, and they know a lot about engineering in general.

There's some things they're good at - they have ridiculous progress in advanced math, theoretical physics, and the like, but it's like they skipped ahead of all the intervening practical steps. (The man explains that ley travel requires advanced math, as do some magics, and most of their physics studies have been based on those, so they were essentially coming at it from another direction).

Metallurgy is of interest, and he's sure optics can be applied usefully, too. Their engineering is mostly building-related, some ship-related, or highly specific to a certain magic type, so general engineering information is valuable.

Indeed, information is very important. They eventually run out of surface-level differences, though not before realizing that the Shifters' world had a couple of agricultural advancements. They are going to ask the rest of the crew in case there is more obscure things that could be useful.

He'll let them go, then, after establishing another meeting time.

That's easily set up.

They will also follow up on the various magical/fertility/painkilling suggestions.