Total pages in book: 80
Estimated words: 77812 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 389(@200wpm)___ 311(@250wpm)___ 259(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 77812 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 389(@200wpm)___ 311(@250wpm)___ 259(@300wpm)
Weird.
Heads nodded and shoulders shrugged…did anyone on Earth do it differently?
I needed to travel to more places that had people if I didn’t know the answer.
“We’re getting a place to sit and some food while Toman breaks down the details about why everyone can’t get English.” Honestly, I wasn’t sure we’d have done any better on the hospitality side of things if the situation had been reversed.
“Is there any language on Earth they could learn that wouldn’t have anything kink related?” Kaden asked a great question even if he was from Florida and everyone he’d come with had been nuts.
“I don’t think so…not any productive language I can think of. I mean, maybe some tiny ones?” We’d have to get like small island in the Pacific kind of tiny for me to be sure. I wasn’t sure there was any reason for them to learn something like that, though.
Sure, they wouldn’t get a kink vocabulary but they wouldn’t be able to speak to anyone in America either.
Or anywhere else for that matter.
“Wren?” Daddy saying my name out loud had us tuning back in to his conversation. “There are a tent and chairs set up on the other side of the portal.”
Daddy pointed to the other side of the large rock the portal seemed to be set into. “It is just out of sight.”
Thank goodness.
It wasn’t as hot as some of the deserts on Earth I’d been to but it was hot enough that we were sweaty and uncomfortable already.
“That’s great. Thank you.” Everyone back home was going to be amazed at how boring I could be.
Professional.
Yes, that was a better word even if boring was more correct.
“If I’m going to get sweaty, it’s going to be doing mate things or something fun.”
Daddy didn’t react on the outside but on the inside he chuckled.
“I’d have to agree, my mate, I have gotten very used to the different forms of what you call air conditioning.”
“Please tell me you’ve got something like that over in the tent?”
As Daddy gestured around the rock, I turned to everyone else. “Let’s go sit down and then we’ll watch the show as Toman explains the human mating practices we’ve picked up.”
“If they have not set it up already, we can make the air cooler for us while we wait.”
Yes!
“Thank the ancestors.”
That got another laugh from Daddy but I was a good translator and focused on the group. “There seems to be air conditioning-like spells that he can put on the tent if they haven’t already been done.”
Nearly everyone blinked in confusion but Betty’s husband Albert frowned. “I think I remember my mother doing something like that when I was a child but it was a long time ago.”
Yeah, there’d been a lot we lost just because we hadn’t needed it. Humans were amazing innovators and we’d done a lot of that on our own.
We behaved ourselves admirably while we walked around the large boulder in a single file line with our belongings and without saying anything that would make anyone laugh.
“Oh, that’s…” Betty sighed dramatically as the oasis came into view, but everyone else in our small group nodded along with her at the sight. “It’s like a movie.”
Well, I guess a people who used magic on a regular basis for damned near everything could make a badass rest stop in the desert, but my favorite part was the long curtains on the large tent that would block out a lot of the sun and the river someone had created that was running around the large tent.
They fucked with nature more than we did because water in the desert topped fucking with flowers out of season.
“They put couches for us to sit on.” Kaden found the situation fabulous based on the marvel on his face, but there were mixed reviews.
“Do you think the couches could hide insects like scorpions? They have those in our deserts but do you think they have them here?” Shilo, the cutest little worrier I’d ever seen, shivered. “I lived just outside of Phoenix for six months and it was the scariest place I’ve ever lived.”
Phoenix?
Before Daddy could ask, I sent him a picture of a scorpion, so he didn’t have to think about it.
“No.” Shaking his head, he frowned. “We have less dangerous insect-type animals here but there is a barrier around the tent that will keep out any forms of animal.”
“Some of your animals called apes may be able to go through the barrier, however. It is based on having higher-level thoughts.”
That was cool.
“We won’t mention that since it’s not going to happen. Nothing animal related around the portal could do that.”
And anything else weird would hopefully get noticed by the people guarding the portal.
“All food and drinks should be safe to eat but they have kept the options simple for the time being just in case.” Daddy gestured toward glass-looking containers that seemed to have juices in them and an array of what looked like meats, crackers, and fruit. “We’ve discussed allergies and food issues, but please let me know if you have any ill effects.”