“Hey, human.” Whitney's voice chimed from a hill where she was picking whisker-fruit. “Yeah, I forgot your name.”
<How could you forget a name like Kora...moan... there’s more to that name. What is it? Oh, NO! This place is making me forget my own name!> I wracked my brain trying to remember before blurting out “I AM KORAMONAN OF THE CLAN KRIMOSHI!”
“Well no need ta yell it. Found yer kin yet?” Seeing my expression at the question she moved on without waiting for me to answer. “Well, my friend down the shore could use someone ta talk to, someone smart like you. I think ye’ll get along nicely. She’s up that’a way.”
I heeded Witney’s advise and walked along the lapping waves of the lake, enjoying the soft breeze. The sight of a figure on the horizon brought my lake strole to a sudden stop. Something, or someone was there, sitting on a rock. I cautiously moved towards the figure, silently creeping up behind the stranger, unsure if this was the farmer’s friend. As I drew closer I saw what appeared to be a shark girl. She must have been around 6’ tall; her skin a strange mixture of orange and grey, with several stripes along the orange parts. She had semi-lustrous white hair flowing past her shoulders, with a few droplets of water still suspended in it. She wore a black bikini top and a well-crafted grass skirt reaching down to her knees. She hadn’t noticed my presence yet as she was busily reading a book with a cute little pair of spectacles on the bridge of her nose. She leaned against a small chest on the rock beside her.
I hesitated a few moments before speaking, “Er…. hello?”
The stranger dropped her book with a start and nearly pounced at me, taking a big bite out of the air with her sharp teeth; thankfully, I managed to avoid her by jumping back. “Who are you?” she demanded. “What are you doing here?” I hastily offered her my apologies, declaring my innocence of any ill intention. I told her Whitney had sent me to speak with a friend up this way. She calmed down, though this didn’t remove the look of irritation from her face. She sat back on the rock, picked her book up and adjusted her glasses. She flipped a couple pages, finding where she’d left off, before finally asking. “Whitney huh? Ok. Who are you? And what’s your business around here?”
I told her I was exploring this demonic realm, searching for my brother and betrothed, and perhaps to discover what happened to my mother and father several years back. I sat down next to her and laid my katana against her rock to show my trust. “It’s quite unusual for me to see a being like you, especially relaxing and reading a book.” I realized the words sounded insensitive almost as soon as they had lept from my lips. I stammered to recover them, but she interrupted me.
“I suppose I am a bit different…” I wasn’t quite sure what she was comparing herself to, but I was thankful she hadn’t become offended. “Anyway, I’m just catching up on my reading; sex and swimming, the famous pastimes of my people, are all well and good, but I like to keep my wits sharp too.”
In her calm she looked less imposing and far more intellectual, from the neck up, anyway. Her manner of dress appeared more appropriate for a luau. I introduced myself by name, focusing on each syllable so I wouldn’t forget it myself.
“I’m Izma, a tigershark,” she told me. I asked what a tigershark is and she explained. "It's a mutation among shark-people. We're stronger, tougher, faster... and we have some other... err, 'qualities' our sisters lack," With a glance she subtly discouraged any further inquiry on the matter so I asked about her books. "These? Scavenged from around the place. It's so hard to find recorded knowledge around here, and even some of this stuff isn't in great condition... you know?" I had to agree, with the exception of Rathazule’s notes I hadn’t seen any significant records of any kind. The meager pile of books stored in her chest was the largest library I’d seen in this world. I figured larger collections could probably be found somewhere in Tel’Adre, if one knew where to look.
Izma must have sensed my curiosity as she offered, “I could let you borrow some… for a small usage fee. And you’d stay in sight, of course. Nothing personal, but I’d like to expand my collection, not reduce it.” Having lost all my books to the portal I understood her concern. I nodded in agreement, earning a toothless smile from her long muzzle. I was glad she had the courtesy to cover her array of razors for the gesture.
As the sun crossed the sky above we chatted idly about our studies. It was so refreshing to meet someone with an intellectual mind who was willing to just sit and talk. Even in Ignam most scholars were too pressed for their work to actually talk about anything meaningful. As my belly rumbled I commented that I should go about finding something to eat that wouldn’t transform me. Izma nodded and felt she should do the same, though with less concern of transformation.
“There’s an otter who often fishes along the shore in the afternoons. She’s up for some Fish’n’Fuck, if your willing to trade. But I think she only offers that trade if you’ve a dick she can use.” Izma pulled a small white item from the hem of her skirt. It looked like a pristine shark tooth but with an odd purple glow. “If you want one, maybe eating this will give you one. No guarantee, though. Transformations are a bit random.” I took the tooth and told her I would keep it in mind.
She lifted the massive rock and buried her library chest under it before waving and vanishing into the lake.
