Since the assisination attempt against Zephyr's life, he has been move to much more 'secure' quarters. This being a larger cell, which is a bit less damp than the one previous to it, and one which apparently has working plumbing. It is still a cell of stone and darkness, and the food is still horrid… but it's a refreshing change.

It has been quiet for the most part… except for today. Today there is a very loud ruckus going on down the hall way, just out of the fox's field of vision.

Zephyr, who in complete boredom had been doing seemingly endless repititions of excercises to pass the time (situps at the moment), stops… perks his ears, and silently pads to the bars of his cell, listening. o O {Another prisoner? Something different, at least… }

Zephyr presses the side of his muzzle to the bars, straining, but can't… quite see what's going on. He stops moving, just listening.

Three zelaks come into view. One holding the key to the cel, and the other two dangling a violently squirming raccoon between them.

"Please stand against the back of your cell." The zelak in front clicks.

Zephyr steps back a few paces as the zelaks appear. He still does _not_ like the 'bugs' at all, and his tail lashes slowly from side to side as his ears flatten slightly. "Of course."

The zelak opens the cell door with a loud *clack*, he quickly steps aside and the two others holding the squiggling Rath'ani step forward to chunk the poor fellow in. With another loud *click* the door is closed and the zelaks are gone.

the raccoon goes tumbling in and lands against the wall next to Zephyr. He struggles to his feet and shakes himself off.

The fox, backing up a few more paces as the zelaks open the cell, jumps slightly as the prisoner is tossed in… then stands taller, silently assesing the raccoon. It only take a moment for him to decide he's not much of a threat, and his ears slowly perk back up. "Er… Hello?"

After thoroughly brushing out his robe, the raccoon finally turns to regard Zephyr. "Hello yourself." He pauses to pat a few spots on his robe that contain some rather oddly shaped bulges. "My pardons for my entrance… the bugs have never been the most civil sorts."

Zephyr tilts his head, regarding the newcomer curiously. o O {That a dress?} He chuckles softly. "Glad to see you feel the same way about them I do. And… it's quite alright, I've done much more… painful entrances here."

The raccoon extends a hand. "I am Fenter. A pleasure to make your aquantince." He pauses for a moment, ears splaying just a tad as Zephyr mentions multiple 'entrances' into the prison.

Zephyr smiles warmly and extends a black-furred paw to accept Fenter's. "Pleased to meet you, Fenter. Zephyr Blackpaw." His ears flick as he notices the raccoon's own ears. "So… what'd they accuse you of?"

Fenter uses his tail to brush away a spot of dust on the floor. "Accuse? Oh… I end up here all the time. 'to teach me a lesson about responsibility' they say. Bah, grumpy family is all."

Zephyr blinks as he sees Fenter's… use? of his tail, silently horrified, as his own fur is always as clean and brushed as he can get it. He tilts his head again, then pads back to one of the cell's stone bunks to settle lightly on it, tail curling around himself. "All the time? And… your family?" His ears flick back slightly. "Are you involved with the Temple higher-ups, then?"

Fenter produces a sandwich from his pocket, wrapped in wax paper. "In an extremely roundabout way… and believe you me, I have very little love for the temple." He takes a large bite from his meal. "So what are you here for?" He mumbles between bites.

Zephyr glances hungrily at the sandwich, having had lousy gruel for dinner. He chuckles softly, then manages a wry grin as he leans back against the wall. "Assassinating the Astrogator-Captain."

Fenter COUGHS!

Zephyr sits up quickly. "Nono! I didn't do it… never even met him. Combination of me being framed, and… ", he growls softly. "Temple convenience."

Fenter says, "You kill the… " He breaks back into coughing fits, and when he finally gets them under control he can only mumble to himself. "Oh dear… "

Zephyr starts to get up. "You okay? Didn't mean to scare you like that… There was this assassin who looks like me, she did it… long story."

Fenter nervously wipes crumbs from his chest. "Yes… yes… framed… #cough#… "

The raccoon scoots a bit closer to the edge of the cell, AWAY from Zephyr. "Er… you'll understand if I'm just a teensy bit skeptical. Just don't tear my throat out or anything and I'll be more prone to believe you."

The fox collapses back onto the bunk with a sigh, trying his best to look nonthreatening. "Tear your… Gah… I'm not a killer, okay? Believe it or not. I'm an exile, to be honest."

Fenter sighs, "Seems most of my trouble of late as been related to Exiles… " He digs around in his robe. "I usually pack a few meals before they bunk me… are you fond of Eee cuisine by any chance?"

Zephyr scoots back against the opposite wall. "I'll stay here if it makes you feel better… " His ears perk, and he sniffsniffs curiously. "I don't know. What's an Eee? Are they good to eat?"

"An Eee? Hmm… you must be an exile… or have just been in this cell too long. They're bat creatures… and they make the finest sandwiches. that is… if you like the taste of bugs." Fenter says as he produces a second sandwich.

Zephyr sits up a bit. "Oh… Bats… right." He smiles. "Bugs are fine. Anything's better than the slop they've been feeding me."

The fox holds up a paw and grins. "Thanks… and can toss if you want, but I can promise, I'm not gonna hurt you."

Fenter nervously shoves the sanwich towards Zephyr, since it's wrapped in paper it doesn't get dirty. "S-so… you're an exile you say? Where are you from then?"

Zephyr slowly reaches for the sandwich, unwraps it, sniffs once, then quickly takes a bite and makes a soft sound of pleasure. "Mff… Good. You're right." He swallows, then regards Fenter again. "Originally, Y'irra s'a te Y'irr, then a world I don't know the name of, then a place called Genesis, then a bunch of places in between worlds. Now here." He smiles. "You're a native, then? A magician?"

Zephyr takes another bite of sandwich, savoring the first meat he's had in a good long time.

The sandwich crunches noisily, but actually isn't too bad.

Fenter says, "Interesting. I've heard grampy talk of quite a few from there… one raised quite a fuss recently I'm led to believe." He blinks at the fox's question. "Magician? Well… technically I am, but I've not graduated yet.""

Zephyr blinks, and sits up straight. "Others… from Genesis? What'd they look like? And has there been a female wolf around, with them, or around here? Or is she the one?"

Fenter scratches his chin, remembering talk about a wolf. "Er… I may have heard of one. Could you tell me a bit more about her?"

The fox's tail swishes anxiously. "Grey and white, white hair… ", He pauses to stretch out one digitigrade leg. "… legs like mine in form, she's very, very pretty, one ear pierced, doesn't act like she really understands this place yet… "

Zephyr tucks his leg back under himself and sits forward quickly. "Is she alright? Have you heard where she is?"

Fenter blinks. "Er… a name would be useful."

Zephyr closes his eyes for a second, ears drooping. "Wyn."

Fenter jumps! "Ohhhh yes… I've not met her… but I've heard of her. she's the one that explodes mountains with her dreams if I'm correct."

Zephyr blinks! and jumps up suddenly, tail lashing. "Yes! That's her! Where is she? Is she alright?" Forgetting that he makes the raccoon nervous, the fox pads towards him excitedly. "And where'd you hear all that?"

Fenter shrinks back. "I h-h-heard it f-f-f-from a Fox named Tarin and an Aeolun named envoy and a noble Jupani named Arkold. PLEASE DON'T BITE ME!!!"

Zephyr does a double-take, eyes wide. "Others… Tarin's here? And _Envoy_?! But she can't exist without the Tower, she's just a… how did… " He blinks, looks down at the raccoon. "Bite… Oh! Sorry!" He quickly sits back on the bunk, ears blushing, then smiles a little. "Sorry about that."

Fenter counts his fingers and toes, rubs his nose, touches his ears, pats his pockets and then relaxes. "Er… quite allright. It's just that there's been so much talk lately of the Astromancer's murder and the assassin… well… I tend to be jumpy about such things."

Zephyr, in his excitement, pants a little, and can't help displaying his sharp teeth as he does… even though he doesn't realize it. He stares at Fenter again as he catches his breath and calms. "I… rf, I know, I want to… have to catch her, the assassin, to clear myself, I think. But… the wolf? Is she with those others? Is the safe?"

Fenter shrinks back just a little bit more, he pauses and takes a glass bottle from another pocket, uncorks it… takes a large swig, and then relaxes. "Er… I honestly don't know. All I remember is talk about teleporting people with her dreams and blowing up mountains and that Jupani that seemed to fancy her a bit… "

Zephyr's muzzle wrinkles at the bottle. "Bad stuff, dulls your reflexes… " He pauses as what the raccoon said sinks in. "Jupani… fancied her, you say?" His ears flatten involuntarily, and he can't help showing a little teeth. "Sounds like I'm going to have to have a little talk with this Jupani… "

"It also calms my nerves." The raccoon answers, arching an eyebrow at Zephyr's last comment.

Zephyr hrfs. "Stay in here long enough and I'll teach you breathing exercises." He takes a deep breath and stares hard at Fenter as he sees his expression. "Wyn lost her memory in the transition to this place. She and I were… are… " He takes a deep breath. "Close. And I don't want a Jupani noble taking advantage of her. Especially since it seems like people get to 'nobility' in this place through being sneaky. If you see him… you might want to convince him to take aim at another target. So I don't have to." His tail lashes slowly, and for a moment, he looks a bit more like a wild creature defending its mate and companion than a 'civilized' being. Just for a moment, then his eyes regain their calm.

Zephyr takes a few more deep breaths, eyes closed, then opens them to regard the raccoon calmly. "And yes, the part about her dreams is true. Another reason why I'd warn him off. She has rather powerful magic, and yes, she has destroyed mountains." o O {Hope this works to convince that 'noble'… }

Fenter takes another large swig from his bottle. "Mister Blackfoot… I assure you I didn't mean to upset you by what I said. Now don't get yourself all worked up."

Fenter pulls another sandwich from his pocket and pushes it towards the fox.

Zephyr's ears flick. "Blackpaw. And I'm not upset, I just… care about her. A great deal." He wrinkles his muzzle again, then leans back against the wall to idly groom his tail. "Getting drunk's not going to help you get out of here, I think."

Zephyr tilts his head, then indicates the sandwich with a gesture of his muzzle. "You sure? Thank you, but if you're hungry… please, keep it. I can eat just about anything, honestly."

The Rath'ani smirks and leans back against the bars. "Oh… I'll get out in a bit. Be it a few hours or a few days, just depends on how penitent I look when the guards come by to check up on me. I'm here because I asked my old geezer of a grandfather for an advance on my allowance."

Fenter says, "Oh… I have about twelve more where that came from. And a few bottles of water, don't worry."

Zephyr blinks. "They put you in prison for asking for… an allowance advance? Thought my family was harsh." He leans back more, relaxing. "Sure someone doesn't have it in for you? I mean, they put you in with someone theyhonestly think is a cold, cruel murderer… " He halfsmiles. "Might want to check on things when you get out."

Zephyr smiles again and picks up the other sandwich. "Then, thanks. The food here is really, really, _really_ bad."

Fenter tries to scoot back a bit more, but his back is already firmly wedged against the bars. "Oh… I'm sure gramps just places me here with the hopes that you'd scare me. Who knows… although the only person I know of that is out to 'get' me wouldn't do so here."

"The guards here are only zelaks afterall… you were probably the only one left on the block with a cell to yourself. Who can understand the mind of a bug?" Fenter says, taking another large bite from his sandwich. "As for the food… why do you think I pack all my own meals?"

Zephyr crunches into his sandwich. "Well, you can stop being scared now." He grins wryly again. "So… if you're an almost-magician, what can you do? Don't suppose you could conjure up some proof for me?"

Zephyr chuckles softly. "They have minds?"

Fenter says, "Proof? I'm a chaos mage… we make bad things worse… not better. You'd need a temporal or a mind mage for that, and the ones that could do what you want are hard to come by. Probably a full day ritual easily… ""

Zephyr sighs. "Thought so. They said something about a mind mage, I told them 'sure, I've got nothing to hide'. Last I heard of that." He looks up again. "Chaos mage? You um… " He glances at the raccoon's rumpled fur and faded robe. "… make messes of things?"

Zephyr finishes the second sandwich, licking his muzzle and relaxing back again, properly nourished for once, at least.

Fenter pulls out a second bottle. "Water." He says, reaching out to place it on the floor where Zephyr can reach it. "Well, chaos magic is a bit more difficult than that. A good one can make an accident happen to someone, increase the changes of a gambler to win money, make a field wither and die. It's all about probabilities and such."

Zephyr snaps up the water in one smooth motion, then uncorks it, takes a long, full drink, and wipes his muzzle. "Ahh… Thanks. Water here's no good either." His ears perk at Fenter's words. "Not bad. I can think of more than one person around here I'd like to have accidents happen to. Or several." He grins again, then blinks. "How about probabilities of an innocent fox with _no_ proof of his innocence being judged fairly by this tin can of corruption you call a Temple? Couldn't make that much worse, could you?"

Zephyr thinks… "Or the probability that the real assassin, who's a real pro, will do something stupid and get herself caught?" He gazes at the raccoon. "That kind of thing?"

The raccoon makes a face. "Egk… heavy order. Magic of that caliber might not even be able to be cast up here on Rephedim. And I know I'm not the one to do it." He smiles sheepishly. "I'm just an apprentice."

Zephyr's hopeful expression falls. "Even that she'll leave some minor clue? That they'll find a red fox hair at the crime scene that doesn't have my scent, something tiny but improbable?" He sighs. "Oh well. I'll figure out something. I hope."

"Magic's a tricky thing here. you have to devote years and years of work to be able to do something simple like cause hiccups in a person or somesuch." He finishes off the last of his bug sandwich. "Are you that worried that you won't get a fair trial? Obviously someone is looking out for you if they put you here… these cells are reserved for nobles and suchlike."

"And… er… family that needs to be taught a lesson." Fenter ads with a wry grin.

Zephyr takes another drink of water, making a face at the problems with magic here. "Well, I'm up here for one reason. I _was_ down below, but one of the guards tried to kill me, and almost did. Nice security around here. And I do have counsel, a lawyer, that was given to me by this… Well, I don't know what it is, just something called 'the business' or something like that. But I rescued one of their people and swore myself over to them. And they gave me a lawyer."

Zephyr chuckles wryly. "Except you don't get executed if you don't find a good way out. I do."

Fenter makes a face. "Doesn't sound very reputable… as for the guards, well… they don't get paid enough to be honest. Not like the knights."

Zephyr shrugs. "Never said I was very reputable either all the time. But I don't kill people." He looks down at Fenter again. "And will you relax? Do I sound like a cold-blooded assassin, or a really confused and lost exile?"

Fenter takes another swig from his own bottle. "Pardon, I don't relax very well in jail." He glances around nervously, thinking of a way to change the subject… ah! "So you know the aeolun, Envoy?"

Zephyr sips his water again. "Envoy? Of course… Except I don't know how she's existing here. She's supposed to just be a remote unit for a larger thing… it's hard to explain. But she's _not_ supposed to be able to live on her own. How is she?"

Zephyr smiles "Still naive and asks you questions till you want to run away screaming?"

Fenter says, "Fine… although she's a bit too curious and literal for her own good I fear." He smirks. "Ah… so you DO know her… "

Zephyr chuckles. "Yup. I knew her when she was brand-new… when she was worse, even, about asking questions."

Fenter says, "she told me that she wanted to eat people's brains once… "

Zephyr winces. "Um… Yes. She asked someone that. Their expression was… well, I wish someone had captured it. We had to explain for a long, long time why you really can't do that… "

"Thank Dagh you did!" The raccoon does seem to relax a bit at this. "So… how is it that so many people from this 'Genesis' place came to be here in Sinai?"

Zephyr closes his eyes as he remembers, grinning. "And she used to ask some incredibly embarrassing questions a long time ago, too. You think kits ask questions that stump you or make you blush… "

Zephyr rrs? and perks his ears? "How? I have no idea about the others. Wyn and I… well… something happened with the magic there. Short version, the universe tore open, and we fell through just before the mountain blew up, and we ended up separated here."

Fenter says, "I shall have to ask Envoy and the Tarin fellow at the docks how they came to be here. Interesting… although it just goes to show what happened in lands with too much magic."

Zephyr idly counts on his fingers. "How many universes is that now… " He chuckles. "I have an interesting life."

Zephyr says, "Too much magic? How so? Here… it's strange here. Like there's magic down on the ground, but not up here. Why's that?" "

Zephyr points up at the ceiling. "And why, if there's an obsolete rustbucket of a starship being used for a temple up there, is there only sail-powered craft and all around?"

Fenter says, "Oh… well, one of the reasons why they have the magician's college up here on Rephidim is because magic doesn't work as well up here. Not sure why… I guess we've not read that chapter yet at school. Less chance of 'accidents' happening."

Fenter blinks. "There has always been sail powered craft… and what is a 'star-ship'?"

Zephyr looks at the raccoon sadly. "All your people must have forgotten. And I'll bet it's 'sacred knowledge', so you better not tell anyone else… but what little of the Temple I was in, the walls, the type of doors, the ripped-out and broken panels… I'd say she landed a long, long time ago. Think of one of the airships… but think of one that sails between the stars. That's what I'd say your temple is… or was, before it landed here and broke down over time.

Fenter slides down a bit, getting a touch more comfortable. "You sound like my grandfather… "

Zephyr chuckles. "Well, I used to fly one. A lot smaller, but the same kind of thing. Your grandfather? He's told you the same thing?"

"Grampy… well. You'd probably be better off not knowing about grampy." the raccoon lowers his voice to a much more hushed tone. "He handles all the fancy bits of the temple… talks about cogwheels and circuits and such all the time."

Zephyr's eyes widen. "So there are some who haven't lost the skills. Does he actually fix things? Or is it like… " He pauses, thinking "… rituals?"

Fenter says, "Nah… grampy's no mage. I guess he fixes things… although I'm not sure how he does it. Usually when I see him he's just yelling. Excitable type he is."

Zephyr chuckles. "Sometimes that's the best way to fix a machine. Yell at it and give it a swift kick." He tilts his head. "So your grandfather's pretty high up in the temple? Does he have any pull in… legal matters?"

Zephyr, tired of sitting, rises and paces slowly back and forth across the cell, pausing to look down at Fenter. "I am _not_ going to bite you, okay?"

Fenter's ears splay again. "I wouldn't know… although he's not the type to pull favors. Least of all for me. Me being an embarrassment to the family and all." He sinks down a bit more. "Not bite me… gotcha."

Zephyr hmphs. "Never mind, then. And since I think everyone I've met involved with supporting the temple so far seems to be slime, sadists, and sycophants, I'd have to say I respect you a lot more for not liking them." He stops pacing, finding his water bottle and drinking again. "That why you're an embarrassment?"

Fenter rocks back and forth. "Oh… well, we Rath'ani are known for our great skills as magicians, engineers, fine craftsmen and suchlike. Me? I'm just a poor soul who can't seem to get the knack of everything. My family had me stuffed into the College Esoterica so I wouldn't be noticed by anyone who might recognize me as part of the family. It's not such a bad way to spend your time… although getting allowance money is a bother, as you can see.

Zephyr settles down on his bunk again. "You sound a lot like me, actually." He grins. "My family apprenticed me to a highly prestigious clan, hoping that I'd become a great engineer… They designed things… like the temple. But I hated math. I wanted to fly, all the time. Although… I didn't get put into a dungeon for sneaking out to the simulators, you've got me beat there."

the raccoon smiles sheepishly. "Well, I did sort of come unannounced, and I tripped over some wires that were strung across my way, then dropped a sandwich into one of the stupid machines, and… well… you get the idea."

Zephyr winces. "That kind. Sounds like when I broke a very, very expensive part of a… um… ship that belonged to one of the… er… nobles of the clan. And also when I accidentally pounced one of his prize rr'thai… In serious trouble. all the time, I was.

Zephyr thinks… "When… if I get out of here, as soon as I've had time for a good hunt, first, I'm going to see what's going on with that 'business'. And I'll see if they have any tasks for a chaos-mage-in-training? So you don't have to ask your… grampy for money so often?

Fenter says, "Bah… no time to work. I attend classes fulltime at the college and suchlike. I appreciate the offer though."

Zephyr rrs. "Alright." He holds up his bottle and smiles. "I at least owe you a drink."

Fenter sinks backwards a bit more, he's practically laying down now. "Well, for now I think I shall go to sleep. that is one nice thing about being incarcerated. If you want another sandwich just give me a yell." With that the raccoon pulls his hat down over his eyes and folds his arms up behind his head.

Zephyr yawns, and settles back on his bunk. "I think I will too. And… Fenter? One favor… Well… two."

Fenter lifts his hat to reveal an eye. "Yes?"

Zephyr says, "When you see my friends from Genesis again, and if you meet Wyn… Please… tell them I'm alright? And second… and this is optional… if you could let people know that the fox they're holding as a cold and cruel assassin really doesn't seem like he's that at all?" He smiles a little, then settles down to sleep. "The first is for my friends' s sake. The second is just a favor, if you want… it might help me, a little." "

Fenter pulls his hat back down. "The former is easy, and I shall indeed do it. And if by the time I leave I have all my appendages intact like you've promised to leave me with, then I'll make it a point of telling people so." He chuckles to himself. "Who knows… they may even ask me to testify about your character at your trial… "

Zephyr smiles. "I hope so. And… thanks. Oh… also need to know where you got the sandwiches, they're good." He grins, then settles down with his tail as a pillow, having a little more hope. "Good night, and keep in mind your grampy's definitely not perfect either. He's got the lights around here really messed up."