<22 August 2024, GRAND MESA OF SUMMER, A+> [Theo and Julia] As they started to lie down. Theo sat bolt upright. "OH! I have an idea."

He jumped to his feet. "Julia, get the Access Crystal for the Bathhouse."

"Oh, that is a good idea," Julia said, summoning the crystal from where she kept it in her pouch. Theo used the crystal.

<22 August 2024, MIRROR DEEP RETREAT, ????> [Theo and Julia] >Local Message: Universal Translation in effect "Greetings and welcome back to the Deep Mirror Retreat," Laurel said.

Theo smiled, "Hello, Laurel. I have a question for you. If we wanted to have four people here for a full day. Sleeping meals, everything. What would that cost?"

Laurel paused as she thought, her wooden-looking face revealing nothing. "For one night, I would not recommend staying here. We have a one hundred gold per person per day minimum for long stays."

"What is considered a long stay?" Theo asked.

"Anything over sixteen hours for you and most species. Species over a certain size are granted exceptions as they physically can not wash themselves in that allotment of time." Laurel said.

"Do we have to be bathing the whole time?" Theo asked.

Laurel paused. "Sleeping in the bathing chambers is not permitted. However, if you were to fall asleep during a massage or in one of our steam rooms, we would not wake you until the service was complete."

"Could we pay for an eight-hour air massage?" Theo asked.

"I am unfamiliar with this style of massage," Laurel said.

"You lie and let the air currents in a room massage you," Theo said with as straight a face as he could.

"Ah, I understand now," Laurel said, waiting a moment. "I can not approve this. However, I begin to see a pattern. You are seeking a way to sleep here, for yourself and two others?"

"Yes," Theo said. "Preferably without having to shell out four hundred gold because, frankly, I don't have it."

"I see. And how many times would you want to sleep here?" Laurel asked.

Theo thought for a moment, "Probably just once or twice."

"I have a solution, but it is not one that you may enjoy," Laurel said. "You may stay here for two sleeps, I will provide a room for you and the others you bring for the total cost of ten gold, but you will give me a boon to be used at a later date."

"I will agree to this so long as the boon is not for killing anyone or causing harm to children," Theo said.

"I can agree to that; go and fetch the others, and bring me a token of your boon. I will prepare a space for you." Laurel said, and Theo headed for the exit crystal.

After an hour on the Overlook, Theo, Julia, Ordus, and Sylvi appeared back in the lobby.

"Greetings and welcome back to the Deep Mirror Retreat," Laurel said. "Ah, Lord Sorrenson, Lady Brahmin, I was unaware that you would bring me such interesting people."

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She glanced at them and seemed to read everything about them. "The son of the betrayed king of the Elementals of Axshranna, you are back once more. And a child of the Karzun Family, welcome to Deep Mirror Retreat. You certainly are rubbing shoulders with interesting people. Now then, your fee."

Theo handed her ten gold and a disc carved from a Runestone Brick, with 'T.O.S. & J.B.' carved into it and a Permanent rune carved into the backside. Laurel examined the token they had slapped together. "Normally, I would not allow harmful magics as a token, but I have heard whisperings of what you are working with and know what it is you are preparing for. I will allow it this once."

"Thank you," Theo said, smiling.

"It is of no consequence," Laurel said and waved her hand, causing a line of gold and grey to shoot off down a hallway. "Please follow that line. And enjoy your stay. An attendant will be by to inform you when fifteen and a half hours have passed."

The four of them walked off down the hallway and into a small suite of rooms with a small toilet attached to it. They all crawled into an available bed and fell asleep quickly.

A while later, when they awoke, they found a door that had not been there before, leading to a hallway with four doors. One led to a beautiful sitting area with food, another was a Purple door indicating women only, and another was a blue door indicating men only.

They all ate together, and then Julia poked her head into the purple door. She leaned back and smiled at Theo, "They are baths. I think we should all bathe, and then we can leave."

They all bathed fairly quickly. And when the attendant came to inform them of the impending sixteen-hour mark, they all walked to the main lobby. Laurel was there. "I do hope that the accommodations were acceptable. Remember, one more stay like that."

"Understood." Theo said with a nod, "And thank you, Laurel. This is of great assistance to us."

"I have a question. Will you be returning to use the second stay before the Primordial Flight?" Laurel asked.

"Probably," Julia said, curiosity in her voice.

"I may have a deal to make with you next time you come. Please check with me at your next visit here." Laurel said with a smile. "Thank you, and come again."

The four of them used the Crystal to return to the Overlook.

<23 August 2024, GRAND MESA OF SUMMER, A+> [Theo and Julia] They were all back, and the fire was still burning. With the position of the moon, Theo assumed that it was just after midnight. He checked the timer.

Time to Primordial Flight: 42H - 40M - 27S

"Alright, just over forty-two and a half hours, that means that we have just over thirty hours until people arrive. So what is our point of focus?" Julia said after checking her own timer.

"I think we really need to focus on getting the ramp finished and then pulling out as much of the basement as we can; that way, if we need it, there is some kind of shelter." Theo said, "But I also need to finish getting everything out of the Cabin; I am mostly done with the bricks. But everything else is still there."

"Very well," Ordus said, nodding. "Why don't Julia, Sylvi, and I go and help Kreldar. Theo, you go put your dimensional Storage to use and get the Cabin empty."

Theo nodded, "Alright, sounds good; I'm off then."

He took off toward the Cabin while Julia, Ordus, and Sylvi walked to the Thronehold.

[Theo] For the next several hours, Theo worked by firelight. He would prepare a stack of items and then open his Dimensional Storage. He then moved as much as he could, as fast as he could, which was quite a bit. When he was done, there was nothing left in the Cabin.

He looked around; he had never finished it, but he had also built it only a few days before. He nodded. If anything was left after Primordial Flight, he wanted to fix it. Rebuild it and make it a nice, cozy little place just for Julia and himself.

He took a moment to glance at the timer.

Time to Primordial Flight: 38H - 27M - 53S

"Better go check on how everyone else is doing," Theo said and started the trek back to the Thronehold.

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