Submission (#2055) Approved

"Not that I don't agree we should be doing something to help out. But don't you think we should have adult supervision for this sort of thing?"

Kier and Ragnvaldr ambled down the mine slope, side by side, each with a few cuts of rope tied to their backs. Kier shook their head. "Oh come on, it's not like it's a hard task. We'll just be putting some signs up. All we have to do is avoid the water itself. We don't even have to go into any dangerous caves or cliffs." A grin. "It'll be fun!" And really, this was about all that kittoms could do by themselves. 

Ragn nodded slowly. He supposed that much was true. And what they were doing was quite important, for the sake of the travelers who would come here to Zevija. The place was a marvel in itself, but it was apt for oneself at all times to watch their path as they walked among the rocks of this place. 

The both of them had come that afternoon from a nearby cavern city, where they had asked around about odd-jobs that they could do. Guided by a local guild master, they were referred to a small expedition crew that regularly handed out tasks and volunteer work to those who were willing. And without a beat, Kier had accepted the commission, dragging Ragn deeper into the caves with them to the next town over. 

They had walked for quite some time, with only their footsteps to keep each other company. Occasionally a hole would open up here or there in the ceiling far above, casting a few rays of light down onto their path below. And then it would be gone again when they rounded the next corner, fleeing like a dream. 

And so they went, until the two of them eventually came upon another large cavern containing a smaller underground town. Here, the paths were strewn with sulfur pools of many different shapes and sizes. The mineral water within the pools took on unnatural hues, some golden and some green, and still others a startling shade of violet. They periodically let out great bunches of steam into the air, filling the hollow with unrelenting heat, before the gaseous clouds drifted into the high reaches of the cave, escaping through some tunnel back up to the surface, where no doubt it would emerge from the ground to startle some poor passerby. 

This town, though small, was something of a tourist location. There was a museum here that routinely displayed assortments of rare minerals, and there was an entire business of tour guides who would lead travelers around the cavern, showing them to the pools and rivers and to the mining locations where the locals were hard at work. And being that it was a place for tourists, many visitors unfortunately were quite unfamiliar with the place, and had been known to often endanger themselves in some way. The sulfur pools themselves, the focus of Kier and Ragn's journey here, were often in need of fencing off, indicating that they were not to be approached nor touched. 

Kier and Ragn stopped at a supply station a short ways away from the largest series of pools. There, an assistant elnin helped them tie together a number of signs and cloth notices with the rope, placing them carefully into a small wagon that could easily be pulled by two kittoms. After thanking the elnin, Kier took the lead and both of them continued down the sloping path.

The rusted wheels creaked to a stop at the first pool. It was a relatively small one, but one that needed work nonetheless. "Let's start here," Kier said. Ragn nodded, and began to unload a few signs from the wagon, separating them by content and hazard level. "These should be good."

They set to work, Kier on one end and Ragn on the other as they carried the signs to the edge of the pool and held them upright, nailing each strip of wood carefully to the edge of another, and firmly rooting the poles that held it all up into the ground. After erecting two of these completed signs and surrounding the pool with poles, they took up the cloth in their mouths and secured it to each pole until it had encompassed the entire danger zone. 

Kier breathed a sigh of relief and admired their work. "I think this one looks really nice, if I do say so myself." Ragn simply nodded again, content that the task did not seem too difficult for them to accomplish. "Onto the next one, then."

And so it went, the two of them making their way to the next pool and the next, at each setting up signs that warded away travelers, and a boundary that made sure they would stay away. The minutes turned into hours, and the hours stretched and stretched until they at last heard the tolling bell that indicated the workday was over. The elnin in the mines began to make their ways back home, passing by the two kittoms and giving them a few nods of encouragement before disappearing into town. With that, Kier secured a final piece of cloth. 

"Whew! I think we've done plenty, don't you think? It's at least half this cavern, and this cavern sure is biiiiiig. Maybe we could go get something to eat in town and rest up. And continue tomorrow?" 

"Yes, that would be a good idea," Ragn agreed. "It's always better to not overwork yourself. I'm glad that we were able to do so much, already." Kier smiled at that. Ragn, being his serious self all the time "Let's be off, then!"

The wagon was empty now, and the journey back felt much lighter, both on their backs and their hearts. Acts of kindness like this, helping out their fellow citizens of Eyre... that's what being elnin was all about, right? Kier definitely seemed to think so. And it was nice, to be useful, to know that someone out there was better for it because of the path they had chosen to walk. Kier nodded, murmuring to themself. "That's the kind of person I want to be."