"Okay, but the previous pope miraculously didn't succumb to the bliss until he gave permission for a priest to ordain a nine-year-old a bishop, and then that nine-year-old survived until today. That's a solid miracle right there."

"And once we figured out to ask Orion for help the Something didn't get any of us all winter long any winter after that. You have your miracles and I have mine." 

"I guess." Loki, seeing that conversion is not going to work super well today, continues to eat in silence.

The food is really, really good. 

They've going to scavenge for two more days, then it's three days to canoe back.

He'll stick around for as long as they'll keep him around! He has not been in a canoe before but he can try to pick it up. 

Canoeing is not terribly hard and Loki is patient but it requires more upper-body strength than he generally has. He's going to be really hungry when it's mealtime. 

Yes, well, being useful enough to keep around is worth being hungry. 

He's not really sure where he's expecting Eros to be based out of but it has to be big. 

It's a prison!

There's a sign that says LAKE ERIE CORRECTIONAL FACILITY and everything.

Big, hard to get into, he doesn't know what prisons have in them but probably the answer is "a lot," that tracks actually. 

"...lot of space, that'll be a change." 

"Yeah, you get your own room unless you want to share."

He hasn't slept in a room alone in — he has no idea how long it's been since he slept in a room alone. "Wow." 

"It's really nice!"

When they land, Sasha will be directed to talk to Lev.

He goes where he's directed and doesn't stop himself from looking around. 

All the area around the camp is farmland, with various people intent on agriculture. A variety of children aged between three and maybe ten are playing; a woman is helping one of the older children identify a bug with a book. On the way to Lev's office, he sees a dad comforting a crying baby, some people hauling water to a machine while someone reads to them from Lord of the Rings, and a bunch of people churning butter and making cheese and drying meat while gossiping. 

He really, really hopes they let him stay. He's been hoping they let him stay this entire time but he really, really hopes they let him stay. 

He's left waiting outside Lev's office for a pretty long time. 

He is not going to be anxious about that he is not he is not. Loki was patient and he got batteries out of the toy store and he got them more to read than they'd asked for without increasing their carrying load and he pulled his own weight and he is not going to be anxious about that. 

Eventually the door opens. Lev has a very stressed aura. 

"Hi, I'm Lev. I assume you're Sasha? Sorry for keeping you waiting, I'm really busy."

"Hello. I'm Sasha, yes. Thank you for meeting me at all." 

"Well, we've got to get you a work assignment." Lev's office is full of bookshelves-- mostly economics and survival books, but there's a science fiction and fantasy shelf with a surprisingly complete Orson Scott Card collection. "The way it usually goes is that you work here for a week and if no one has any complaints-- and if you like it here, of course-- then you can stay, and if not you at least got some food and some parasite treatments."

He nods and leans forward. "I don't know how much Loki told you — I can sew, I can read, I was a scout for my old crew —" 

"Loki's very enthusiastic about you, she wants you on her scavenger team. We don't have much need for sewing, there's plenty of clothes in the stores, but reading is always useful."

"Scavenging sounds good, and I don't know what things I can do with reading but I expect I would like most of them." 

"Probably you'd get a turn as a bookreader on one of the teams that has one, but if you're smart enough you might end up switching into medical training later. Right now we need people on"-- he looks at a piece of paper-- "water purification, cooking, goat husbandry--"