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[Rolzup]

Interlude: Interior, Tea-Shop, Continued.

The samurai speaks. "In the meantime, I should introduce myself. I am Yamamoto Kenji, you may call me Kenji. My companion is Dr. Wujuyama, a sage and expert in matters of the Wu. Now, please introduce yourselves as we wait for the tea."

The man who smells of smoke nods, impatiently. "I am Burne, known as Burne the Magnificent in some circles. I am a veteran, a scholar, and a master of the alchemical arts. This," he continues, making an expansive gesture in the direction of the mechanical cat, "Is Abraxis, the Ultimate Cat, my famulus. One of my lesser creations, admittedly, but still a vast improvement over the inefficiencies of the so-called 'natural’ cat."

Abraxis, sitting on a nearby chair, begins to shudder and emit a horrid grinding noise.

"See! He purrs with pleasure at his master's praise!"

A foul smelling smoke begins to arise from the cat's ears.

"Enough, beast! You'll strip your gears, and this is neither the time nor the place for me to effect repairs."

"Names!" explodes the madman. "Names are power! Power! POWER! Never let them know. They can't know your names. They learn your name, they take your power. Power. Magical Power!! I've got Powers. No name! No name! No means no! Any seven.

"Mr. Bojangles. Hey there, Bojangles. Walk with a monkey-man. Talk with the Monkey Man. Can you get us some wind for the sailboat? Mr. Bojangles. Tangles. Angles.

"Pretty Hair! Her beauty lives. She is not dead. Not dead but dead. Dead but not dead. Find the dead but not dead. Alchemy! Alchem-Tea! Here kitty, kitty, kitty!"

He produces a container of milk from under his coat.

"Got milk? Nice cold milk for tea? Kit-Tea! Alchem-Tea. Here kitty, kitty, kitty!"

The madman takes a teacup from a table fills it with milk and puts it on floor near of the mechanical cat.

"Thank. You. Sir. However. I. Am. Not. Designed. To. Injest. Fluids. I. Am. Prone. To. Rust," Abraxis pauses. "Me. Ow," it adds, resignedly.

He takes another teacup, fills it with milk and holds it for his dog to slurp up, who happily indulges.

The man in red speaks. "I am Rakhir, the Red Archer, a warrior looking for employment."

He says nothing more.

The blonde woman opens hers eyes, suddenly, a look of alarm on her face. The first sight she sees is Dr. Wu. Immediately, her look softens as she makes the all-too-common, "Oh how cute!" face that humans have been favoring Hannu with since the dawn of history. Wu scowls and turns to Mop Mop Bow. "Most efficacious tea..." he mutters softly.

The woman says slowly, "Thank you for rescuing me... I really don't know what else to...I mean, this is all rather cliché. I've never been a damsel in distress before. Thank you for the wonderful tea." She uses a phrase in the Three Lands language than means 'Master of Tea Ceremony’ while addressing Mop Mop Bow.

"I am --she pauses a moment-- Delphine."

She speaks using a fair approximation of an Imperial Court dialect; the one prescribed for ambassadors and courtiers.

Her wits apparently collected, she continues, "Please honored tea-master, tell me more of the priest of the Oven-Lord. I believe he is my missing fiancé."

Mop Mop Bow says, "Fiancé, how nice. Have much happiness. If you find. Ah well, young priest was round-eye with hair like angry straw. About 6 foot. Too big. Eyes wide like a child's, and not just from his round-eye nature."

A sad look of recognition crosses the woman's face, "Oh, Joquim."

Mop Mop Bow says, "Nice man, for round-eye devil-god priest. He come to Little Ajakhan and help King Daikon feed the beggars. And cure sick. Young priest have tiny oven. This big," Bow spreads his hands. "He bake good things that fix broken legs, cure men of drink, de-plague lousy plague-woman of loose morals. Etc."

"Also, he buy much tea from Mop Mop Bow. Tea and spices. Hint hint."

"So that's why he came down here," the woman says to no-one in particular. "At least it wasn't Yellow Fever...And what happened to this King Daikon? He was a priest too?"

"No, no...he greengrocer. With funny stick. He wave it at people at they got well. Or they got cursed. But only good people got well and bad people get cursed so everything work out. Until last week, when he disappear. Along with your fiancé."

"You must know where he went!" she all but shouts, hysteria winning over lucidity-inducing tea. "That's his stand across the plaza, right?!"

"Yes, his stand," says Mop Mop Bow, "Not only that. He live on roof of building behind stand. Still I not see. King Daikon spend lot of time by the docks. See him there. Buying, fresh off boat. And waving stick at soldiers who try and press people onto terrible boat. Maybe you look there. And maybe now time for Quiet Tea, very good...."