"We can send each other written messages with various devices." She displays her phone. "George has his chiplocked since he's a writer, doesn't want people stealing his scoops, but most of us have to touch ours to work with them."

"Interesting. Are those hard to come by?"

"You have to get a demon to install it - it's not impossible to do without but demons who install them don't mess up and surgeons do - but apart from needing to set that up and buy into a batch somebody's summoning a demon to do, not especially. That's chiplocked ones, mine you can have delivered in five minutes if you pay for it."

"I suppose I'll have to figure out how to get ahold of some money, then. What's the advantage of the chiplock?"

"Oh, we'll pay you for the interview. The chiplocks you can control with your brain and the encryption is demon-proof."

"Sounds complicated. Can I have it done later if I decide I want it?"

"Probably! I guess you might not be as human as you look inside the skull somehow, that'd make it a bad idea."

"But there's nothing about the device that would make it harder? I'll go ahead and get one, then."

"We're going to need some way to pay you - I imagine you're used to gold, but we can't use hard currency anymore with demons running around, it's all electronic."

"-the device handles that? I guess I've got a lot to learn about how things work here. More than I realized, even."

"Well, demons can perfectly counterfeit, but they can't fake a confirmation message from your bank."

"That makes sense," he nods, "but it's still going to take some getting used to. I can have one delivered, though? How do I do that?"

"If you want me to just have it deducted from your interview payment I can do it - also requires a device, you see."

"That seems like the best way to do it, yes."

She lets him shoulder-surf as she picks out a basic mini-computer for him. "What color?"

"I like that shimmery blue."

"There you go, then, and it'll go to the desk at the hotel for you to pick up, lemme get a picture of you -" She snaps one. "- with that on it so the clerk can match you to it."

"Thank you. And if I have questions about how to use it, is there someone I can ask?"

"Hmm. I can stick with you a bit, I'm off for the day."

"I'd appreciate it, thank you."

She helps him check in at the hotel and shows him how the elevator works.

He's charmed by the elevator. "Dwarves use something a bit like this to move ore around but it's nowhere near safe enough to ride on. Maybe you'll see a few of them after all."

"To investigate the elevators?"

"And whatever else you have that's close to what they already use, yes. They're not going to be interested in making any big changes, but a better elevator they'll want."

"They'd need to wire their places for electricity."