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Kayla Sockum:
Kay flutters about as a bat for a few second before turning back into a more human form and then sit down at the table. She's dressed in a pale blue dress with white heels and a little jewelry. She order something absent mindedly, peeking about the various people around the room, curious.
Erik Samuelson:
One such person had been perusing his menu when the bat was flapping around, blinking in surprise as Kay landed and shifted back. "That's pretty slick..." Erik commented, looking both impressed and amused. "Travel like that often?"
Kayla Sockum:
"Sometimes I just travel from cemetary to cemetary using the underworld as teleportation center point." Kay responds half-jokingly. "I did that, like twice." She makes a flying gesture with their hands. "Bat-flying is pretty entertaining and practical at night, honestly."
Erik Samuelson:
"Really..." Now that caught his attention, looking Kay over curiously for any signs of a spectral companion such as his own. "Been down there a few times myself, but never thought to use it for getting around faster."
"I can imagine." He nodded towards her table briefly. "Mind if I join you? Bit easier than talking across the aisle."
Kayla Sockum:
"Come on, come in!" Kay waves him over and smiles. "I did some visit in there, for wizardry business a few times." She takes a deep breath. "It's only useful to move around faster if you can just open doors."
Kay seems to get some ethiopian food back from the food. "I'm Kay, what's your name?"
Erik Samuelson:
"Fair enough. Finding the key for the gates can always be a little interesting, but worth it more often than not."
He moved to claim a seat across from Kay, putting in his own order for corned beef hash and pancakes for himself as the server dropped off her food. "Erik, good to meet you."
Kayla Sockum:
"I've heard of your people before, never got to meet one before." She smiles. " Kay slowly work around the food on her plate, delighting in every bite. "Nice to meet you too."
"I've not really used the key system and more my knowledge of death magic to move about without disturbing things as much as I could. It's not a familiar land yet and I'd feel at odd presuming otherwise. So far I've mostly managed not to fuck up."
Erik Samuelson:
"Happy to be the first, then. Been trying to make more in-roads with the other things that go bump in the night as of late; part of why I've been coming here more often, besides the food." He added with a chuckle, nodding as she continued. "Glad to hear it. It can get pretty hairy down there if you piss off the wrong residents."
Kayla Sockum:
"Yep, the rusty city is not really a place I can visit again and the guardian was pretty upset with us when we left. Weird rules we did not fully understand." Kay explains simply. "Are you familiar with a lot of stuff over there?"
Erik Samuelson:
"Decent bit. Gone down a few times to pick up new tools of the trade, as it were, although I haven't had to cross the river too often."
Kayla Sockum:
"Might have questions for you at later dates, since you happen to know a bit about this." Kay smile, enjoying the food and conversation apparently. "Would you mind terrible sharing contact information?"
Erik Samuelson:
"Not at all." He pulled his phone, ready to offer his number and take hers in return. "You're the first person I've run into so far that's not one of mine who's been down there to my knowledge."
Kayla Sockum:
"There's a few others, I think, but it's not a lot or often I think." Kay nods. "Thanks, by the way, I will probably end up calling you sooner rather than later over this, I might be looking for something, once I'm more sure of whatever the hell it is."
Another bite of her food. "Where are you from?"
Erik Samuelson:
"Sounds good." He paused to thank the server for dropping off his own meal, taking a test bite before nodding with approval. "North Philly. You?"
Kayla Sockum:
"I was born right here in Philly, I don't really remember what part of it exactly." A beat. "I spent a lot of earlier times around Kensington." A little shiver at a memory it summons back.
Erik Samuelson:
His eyebrow arched at the shudder, giving her a quiet look. "You good?"
Kayla Sockum:
"Yes, I've just been reminiscing a lot about my childhood and growing years lately and it's been kind of a trying time." A shrug. "A lot of my future steps were discovered in my past, and it's not been the easiest thing to work with." Kay chuckles. "Just some weird memories poking their head in."
Erik Samuelson:
"I can imagine. Best of luck with it."
Kayla Sockum:
"Yes, I might actually need luck in more ways than one on this." A laugh. "Would you mind answer a question of occult nature about yourself?"
Erik Samuelson:
"Ask away."
Kayla Sockum:
"I'm just curious as to how you come into your supernatural existence, if it's not too indiscreet."
Erik Samuelson:
"Ah." He said with a small smirk. "It happens at the moment of death, or a little bit after theoretically. Best as I can tell we kind of get...stopped along the way and made an offer to come back and settle whatever matters we left behind."
Kayla Sockum:
Kay nods "Oh that's interesting, I imagine it's not always the easiest transition." a smile.
Erik Samuelson:
"Mine was pretty...abrupt, but it varies from person to person. Been about two years for me at this point and I've settled into it well enough."
Kayla Sockum:
"Yeah, I'm familiar with the concept." Maybe a touch of sadness permeate her voice. "Among my people, I am the specialist in terms of Death, among other things, you don't usually come into this power without experiencing something related."
Kay finishes her food at that moment, ordering a coffee to go with it now. "Do your people have tasks they undertake or problems they tend to try and solve?"
Erik Samuelson:
Erik offered a nod, taking a moment to make a dent in his own meal before answering properly. "We have our own reasons to come back, but along the way we help the dead we come across to fulfill their own lingering desires and let them move on. Helping the living is just as important, though, whether it be from a ghost that's gone too far off the deep end or just dealing with the loss of a loved one."
Kayla Sockum:
"That can get pretty complicated, sometimes just figuring out what makes the dead tick." Kay sips her coffee. "The living are a touch easier, if only because of shared qualities, I imagine, it makes the dead easier on your end since you've been through that? Or am I way off?"
Erik Samuelson:
"Mmhmm, especially when they may not be exactly sure what they're looking for themselves. Some of them are going through the motions more than anything, as I imagine you've seen, and getting beyond that can take some work."
"That factors in somehow, I'd say, yeah. It may not have stuck on our end but we know what it feels like to have something you can't leave behind."
Kayla Sockum:
"Hmm." As if something Erik said seem to have brought some idea forward, leaning back into their seat. "The going through the motion part is always something I sort of forget about... now my wizard brain is wondering about ghost psychotherapy."
Erik Samuelson:
"Could be possible, in theory. With a little work you can break a memory loop as it happens, and from that you can probably pull them back to full sapience."
Kayla Sockum:
"Can't brush your hair for the 20th time in a row if your brush is in my hand." Kay mentions, probably from an experience in her earlier days. "Though I might need to get good at ducking whatever might get thrown in their frantic search."
A shake of their head.
Erik Samuelson:
"Sounds like there's a story there." He said with a quiet chuckle. "It's interesting to watch in a way, seeing someone pared down to a single moment in their life, but knowing there's more there under the surface that you can bring back to the fore makes putting the work into it worthwhile."
Kayla Sockum:
"Yeah, you don't learn our powers in a vacuum, you need someone to teach you at some point, or learn through experiences, whatever that experience is." Kay explains "So, when I was young, I did encounter a few ghosts to help with them, or ask them for help, or just, you know, have a chat. The hairbrush one was the first time I did it."
"I know some tricks to make some of those things easier, but it's like any other tool or powers that affect sentient beings. It's not always predictable how things'll go."
Erik Samuelson:
"Gotcha. We work similarly on that front, having to go down Below if we want to pick up a new ability from scratch. Once we know the base we can develop it from there, but it's something that has to be experienced rather than taught so it varies from person to person."
"Makes sense. They're still people at the end of the day."
Kayla Sockum:
Kay smiles and nods. "How dangerous is it Below for you? Like, is it just a trek in the park or is this the kind of thing you prepare an expedition for?"
Erik Samuelson:
"Usually more the latter, especially if you're going to be heading farther in past the rivers. That place takes more than it gives, and you have to keep an eye out."
Kayla Sockum:
"What kind of preparation you make usually? I think I c ould use some kind of primer on that one." A soft chuckle. "My experience kind of always involves having an exit button, which I'm not sure everyone has access to that."
Erik Samuelson:
"Ways to mark which way you came from, things to trade with ghost enclaves or in the River Cities, that kind of thing. That and as much knowledge on the Dominions you might be passing through as you can get, if only so you don't potentially piss off the guardian of the place."
Kayla Sockum:
"Yeah there's probably a need for a travel guide for these rules." A soft chuckle "And a practical application of them too, it's not always obvious what they mean, as far as I gathered."
Erik Samuelson:
"Mmhmm. I've lucked out and haven't been caught in too sticky of a situation yet, but I know it's coming eventually." He smirked a touch, knocking on the nearest piece of wood for good measure. "Hopefully not too soon, though."
Kayla Sockum:
"If I come across anything helpful in terms of that, I'll let you know, just in case there's a camping trip in the near future."
Erik Samuelson:
"Sounds good, and if you ever need company on a run feel free to get a hold of me."
Kayla Sockum:
"Oh I will."
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