"She spoke with me while they had me. Briefly, but it doesn't take much."

"Should work. I apologize if your experience was an unpleasant one, by the way."

"Thank you," he says. "It was no more than mildly frustrating, but my subjects suffered much worse."

He sighs slightly.

"I really wish they'd surrendered when I suggested it. It would've turned out better for everyone involved."

"I am mildly surprised they didn't. They hadn't independently been doing any conquering, they must have realized they had more to lose than to gain - I think they had a very unhealthy incentive structure back in their original universe, the commander-executes-you-for-failure sort, and perhaps they never shook themselves out of it."

"It's unfortunate. I prefer when people don't need to die, generally."

"Your, uh, subject Taliar seemed to think he could bring them back - he can't, because of the spellbinding, but he was under that impression."

"What does the spellbinding have to do with it?"

"Spellbinders when they're born have a sort of - phantom spirit animal, who only they can interact with, and who they can instantiate in the real world once they're older. No magic resurrection method known to me gets a dead familiar back or restores someone with their familiar."

"I don't see what difference that's supposed to make to Dawn-shining Taliar," says Esarkan. "Accomplishing the impossible is his favourite pastime."

Well. Second favourite, these days, but never mind that.

"...yes, I - noticed that. Is the story public, there?"

"What story are you referring to?"

"How he met his husband. How they have a marriage considered metaphysically impossible in my home world."

"There are details of the first part that aren't common knowledge, because they would tend to alarm people. The second thing, I'm told, has to do with them both being soulbearers. The metaphysics of Elven marriage don't interest me especially, so I declined to ask for details."

"Would tend to alarm people -"

"I'm not the best source on this; you might do better to ask your alt, or Taliar, or Taliar's father, or apparently my granddaughter for some reason. But I can tell you what I know if you're curious."

"I think I caused Taliar some injury when speaking to him and would hesitate to talk to him again without a little more context, but if you'd advise me to speak to one of those other people I can certainly do that."

"You'd know better than I would whether you want to talk to your alt. I can promise you won't injure anyone by speaking to Corino, and I'm sure he'd be happy to talk to you."

"Excellent. Where do I meet him - also, in the case interdimensional contact goes poorly, do you want or is there someone you would designate to have the teleport? It can pick up a whole planet or anything less than that, fairly good specificity, and it has a range of anywhere in this or adjacent dimensions."

"If the supply is limited, I want Nezhefena to have it. If the supply is slightly less limited than that, Nezhefena and myself. If I get three, the third will be Taliar. Corino spends most of his time at the Elven settlement these days, but I expect he'd prefer to meet you here."

"I have a total of three, the rest were destroyed in the blast. I'll get Nezhefena one; the process takes about three hours. When would it be convenient for me to meet Corino?"

"I can have him here by tomorrow, if that's convenient for you."

"That works fine. It's been a pleasure. Thank you."

"Likewise," he says, smiling. "You're just as much of a joy to talk to as the other you."

He smiles and pops home.

Esarkan contacts Corino. Corino is at the palace the next day.