LAST EDIT: 19.03.2019

Todor was lost in thought as he entered the locker room. Three hundred years of history that he could study and research. Before he got into the circles of game development he really enjoyed his time at university gathering knowledge about a time long past. It could be a good distraction from my Internet obsession, he thought as he closed the locker when someone touched his shoulder. Todor jumped in surprise leaning his back to the cold metal wardrobe. Irry stood there giggling at his outlandish response, blond curls vibrating at the rhythm of her mirth.

"This is the men's changing room," he hissed at her. But as soon as he said it he knew how stupid he sounded.

"Oh, is it? I thought half-naked sweaty dudes all around were just decoration," she said with a grin.

"What are you doing here?" he asked grabbing a jacket and putting it on.

"Well, if I hadn't sneaked in here you would have run away home and I wouldn't be able to talk to you."

Todor sighed turning around to lock his stuff. What is wrong with this elf?

"Let's at least go out of here before we talk," he said resigned to the whims of the strange girl.

"Oh you humans are so prudish about your bodies," she said briskly but she followed him out of the changing room.

Once they were in the hallway Todor glanced at her wary of what is coming next. You could never guess what came up on Irry's mind.

She glanced back at the locker room and shook her head.

"You think that just because you human males are bigger on average down there all Anadori women just want to jump your bones," she said with a mischievous grin.

"We are not such good friends, Irry," Todor said, trying to cut her off before she said something even more outrageous. " You still consider all humans as some kind of ancient experiment. Oh, and that we don't have souls."

She shrugged, the sly smile disappearing into an enigmatic facial expression.

"I find apel ... you humans fascinating. Do you know that you managed to reach the Void? Not even Grand Cabals of Anadori managed that. Can you imagine that? Outside of globes clutches!" she said, her eyes getting glazed over.

"I know, I lived in that world. Internet used some satellites in orbit to work. That is one of the reasons why I can't find an easy way to bring it back," he spat out increasing the pace of his steps. Irry followed him without any effort.

"Oh, right! Did you ever go to the Void?" she said bouncing in front of him.

Todor wanted to be irritated by her but he just couldn't. He stopped and sighed.

"Do you want to go out for a coffee and ask your questions about the Old World?" he said with resignation in his voice.

"Can we? Please? Oh, I guess you are asking me if I want to. Yeah!" she chirped happily.

They walked to his car in silence. Todor glanced at Irry as he took out his keys. It must have been torture for her to keep her mouth shut.

"Why don't you park at the companies' parking lot? Don't we all have one reserved spot?" Irry asked as she examined his old vehicle.

"We are supposed to get one each but some big shot takes my spot. Almost every day," he said sourly as the lock clicked. The car didn't have a central lock either, it was truly an analog vintage experience.

Irry surprisingly just let out thoughtful 'Hmmm' as she waited for Todor to unlock the door on her side.

They drove for ten minutes to a nearby coffee shop. Irry was amazingly silent all the way. That is, until they took their seats at the cafe. Then the dam broke and she started firing up questions as soon as they sat down.

"So, did you ever visit the Void!?" she repeated the question from the factory.

The warm atmosphere and the genuine curiosity on her face finally relaxed Todor and he let out a belly laugh.

"Hell no. Going to space was an expensive and hard process. Only the richest countries could afford space programs and only the best of the best were chosen as astronauts. Although I like to think that if my company and my game succeeded I would be rich enough to buy a ticket for one of the space hotels that were starting to operate before the Knitting," he explained.

He nodded to the waitress and once they ordered they took a moment to enjoy their drinks. Irry took a sip of her coffee and made a face.

"Both of my sisters love this stuff, but I never understood the appeal," she said putting the cup down.

"You have sisters?" Todor interjected, mildly curious. The only family she talked about was her grandfather. The rest were on her grudge list.

"Yeah, two. We are triplets," she answered sedately.

"I never knew. Isn't that rare for an Anadori?"

"It is astronomically rare. We have offsprings very rarely because we are practically immortal. But I guess after the Three Banners War you made sure we need to procreate if we want to keep up. War took a big toll on our population. We don't die of old age. My grandpa says that is why you apelings live such a short life. Because ancient Anadori mages put safeguards in case you ever rebel," she said taking another sip and grinned. "This gets better the more you drink it."

"But rebelled we did. And sundered the world into three," Todor added absentmindedly.

"Yeah, you sure did. I wonder why you can't use magic anymore though? Those ancient apelings could and they used some kind of powerful ritual to split the world into three realms."

Todor shrugged. "I studded physics these past seven years in hope of finding a way of repairing the internet. Because I can do physics, I can't do magic. So all that is new to me."

"But you can still use alchemy. Humans can do it, right?" she asked taking larger sips of coffee.

Todor froze for a second. Alchemy? Did I ever consider that?

"But isn't that just chemistry with weirder results due to to the magic around intermingling?"  he asked.

"Basically, yeah. But you humans managed more in that area than we did in thousands of years. They say universities based in territories ruled by Humanity First Alliance mastered it into the extreme, even managing to reproduce feats only possible with magic."

Humanity First Alliance or HFA is a state made out of all the human nations who transitioned during the Knitting of the Realms. They were the ones who fought both Morgothlites and Anadorians to the standstill. They had to use nukes to do it but they kept their ground. He did read an article about HFA reclaiming irradiated areas by using alchemy to make it safe for people to move back in.

"Maybe there is something to that. Magic will not stay magic once science gets a hold of it. It's just an unexplained phenomenon that will be categorized and explained soon enough. But I don't have time to become expert in alchemy as well," Todor concluded.

"I wanted to ask you something. That is why I ambushed you back there," Irry said, suddenly without a grin on her face. She didn't look right without it in Todor's eyes.

"Yes, is it something I should worry about?" he asked, surprised by her tone and change in temperament.

"You see, my family considers me a black sheep, as you apelings would say. Sorry, you humans would say," she stopped, taking a deep breath and large gulp of coffee. "I don't go to their balls or gatherings, I refused to marry into an arranged marriage, I got a job at a mundanes factory. So everyone looks down upon me," she said, her eyes locked on the table.

"I am sorry to hear that, but why are you telling me this?" Todor asked, his forehead wrinkling in confusion.

"Weeeell," she said a shadow of the smirk appearing in the corners of her lips. "I wanted to annoy them even more. There is this family gathering coming up next week. And I need someone to come with me. Who better than a soulless apeling to make all those old Anadori cringe with indignation," she finished conspiratorially.

"Let me get this straight. You want me to come with you to a gathering of old-school Anadori? Me, a human?"

Irry nodded energetically making her locks bob around her face.

"Please? You can meet my sisters. They are not as bad as the others. One even dated a human."

"Oh, well that would make her practically not a racist," he responded dryly.

"And they are pretty hot," she added.

"All you Anadori look hot to us humans, it's your behavior that makes you less attractive," he confessed honestly. Irry looked surprised at his statement.

"We do? Do I look hot to you?" she asked, her grin going into overload.

Todor knew she was teasing him but it made him uncomfortable nonetheless.

"You have an aesthetically pleasing form, yes," he responded tightly.

"So does that mean you wouldn't mind walking with me among the Anadori elders?" she was insistent, her eyes blinking with exaggeration.

"Why me of all the humans in the city? I am just a crazy guy who lives alone with a cat and reads books about physics in futile attempt to bring some lost technological marvel," he winced once he said that out loud.

"I know you, I like talking to you and you have aesthetically pleasing form as well. So what do you say?"

"What do I get from this?" he asked just to give himself more time to think of an excuse of why he can't help her.

"I will help you with your Onodori," she said seriously. The solemn way she said it made Todor squirm in his seat.

"My what?" he said slowly, one eyebrow rising up in surprise.

"Onodori, a person's lifelong quest. I will help you with your search for that techno spiderweb."

Todor choked unable to respond. Having an elf as a helper could actually give him a chance. He would have access to doors that would otherwise be firmly shut to him. And maybe I should get out of the house some more, random thought intruded.

"Alright, I accept under one condition," he said carefully.

"Anything, friend. Anything," Irry chirped with a grin that spread from ear to ear.

"I choose my own clothing, I will not wear some elven toga or something," he demanded with a finger pointed at her.

Irry laughed and clapped her hands startling the waitress.

"Hey, doll. One more coffee!" she barked at the surprised waitress in jubilation.

Todor left Irry to her celebration and newly discovered fondness for coffee and drove to the local library. After an hour of digging, he found that books chronicling Three Banners Wars were heavily biased revisions of real events. Morg writers would say the certain battle was won by them, claiming thousands of Anadori killed by a small band of Morgothlite warriors. While the same event described by Anadori claimed it was small skirmish where no one was killed and they strategically retreated from the area.

He sighed as one more contradicting event was described by two different sides. This is pointless, without the unbiased research this turns into ideological posturing. And without the Internet, the data can't be shared as fast before getting shut down and censored by all side. Seems that if I want to record correct history I must get back to my Onodori, as Irry called it. He smirked and said the word out loud.

"Onodori. I like it," his whisper loud in an empty library.

He went home without borrowing anything. Mihos greeted him at the door but once he got patted and fed he lost interest and climbed the cupboard once more.