Kinverse: Volume One

PATH OF THE EMERALD MAIDEN

A naive young monster's tale by Moros, aka KinverseWriter

Legal Disclaimer: All publicly recognizable characters, settings, etc. are the property of their respective owners. The original characters and plot are the property of the author. The author is in no way associated with the owners, creators, or producers of any media franchise herein mentioned. No copyright infringement is intended. All characters and events in this story are entirely fictional. Any similarity to actual persons, living or dead, or actual events, is purely coincidental. This work of fiction contains disturbing content.

Reader discretion is advised.

Description:

A young woman from a pre-neolithic society is accidentally whisked away to another world entirely during a raid on a research lab run by alien invaders. Stranded with no friends, badly injured, and no idea where home even is, she's forced to live off the land and learn how to survive in this strange and hostile world.

There's only one slight problem, though.

She's not trapped in this world with them. They're trapped in this world with her.

Categories:

Adventure, Coming-of-Age, Isekai, Erotica.

Disclaimers:

This story contains sexual elements and disturbing themes. The contents aren't purely intended to be pornographic, but some scenes objectively are. This is about a giant monster that eats people, so reader discretion is advised. This story contains vorarephilic themes.

This story will have a very slow and intermittent pace to begin with. True stakes don't really show up until halfway through, though the build-up is always there in the background. This is ultimately not a story of grand adventure and defeating one's enemies to rise to the top, it is the tale of a lost and naive young woman growing as a person and learning new things. It is a personal one concerning her, and thus this story will be told in present-tense first-person.

Chapter 13: Interlude 2: The Return

---

A/N:

Post-CW plot context:

The protagonist catches up to and finds Susan in a cave she was sheltering in. Susan cowers in fear and further mentally breaks down from the stress. Curious, the protagonist decides to experiment first before eating her. Rather than harm her she gently explores Susan and performs oral on her as she’d seen Spencer do. They have sex. The protagonist then eats her consensually, as Susan has convinced herself that the previous days have all just been a lucid dream caused by binge-drinking and watching scary movies. The protagonist begins experimentally teaching herself to speak. The first arc ends.

Overall, the scene has a sense of in- and out-of-story awkwardness to it. The protagonist is doing something contextually revolting and evil, but with it being viewed from the perspective of the protagonist, it is presented in a different light--which only serves to magnify the atrocity of the act.

---

“In related news, due to the recent expected heavy seasonal rainfall and a decrease in the atmospheric electromagnetic activity that caused this incident, the provincial government has lifted the evacuation notice and urges residents to begin returning home," the man on the screen says.

“The western half of Strathcona Provincial Park and much of the forest south of the town has been damaged, but thankfully damage to the community itself has been minor.

“And now, we go to the scene with field reporter Abigail. Abigail, you have the mic," he finishes.

The scene on the TV shifts from the newsroom to a scorched suburban neighborhood being drenched in heavy rain.

Fuck. Sensational content or not, at least they're not sugar-coating it.

Abigail smiles into the camera before speaking. “Thank you, John. What you are seeing behind me is what many residents--though luckily for everyone relatively few--will be returning home to. Despite the best efforts of emergency responders a few streets in the southern part of town were reached by the fires."

Abigail turns and gestures behind herself.

“Damage ranges from minimal to severe, with some homes being lost entirely while most only have some surface burn damage. In the worst-off homes' cases, it is likely that water damages will make up most of the repairs needed."

Thank god I live in the east part of town.

With a subtle indication from Abigail, the camera smoothly shifts to include another individual as she turns to face them: a man still clad in firefighter's gear as a set piece, sans mask, instead wearing a rain hat.

“With us here today is Mr. Scholtz, long-time volunteer firefighter and resident of Gold River. Mr. Scholtz, how do you feel about all of this?" she asks.

The man is neither smiling or frowning, instead seeming to be schooling his expression for the camera. He clears his throat and responds.

“I think that we put in our best efforts, but it just wasn't enough. The fires started too close to town, and even though we got on them pretty quickly, support was slow due to the lack of funding and the province having been caught on the back foot."

His countenance drops a bit with a slight frown creeping onto his features.

“Leadership had to prioritize slowing the spread toward the town at the cost of stopping it elsewhere until we could get more support. I'm disappointed we couldn't keep the surrounding forest safe, but thankful that the rains arrived in time to save Gold River where we couldn't."

Bringing the microphone back to her own face, Abigail turns back to the camera and continues.

“Thank you, Mr. Scholtz. On behalf of the studio and all our viewers I'd like to wish those whose homes were lost or damaged in this disaster a speedy recovery. And for all who spent their Thanksgiving battling the flames: thank you for your service."

The man simply nods. I don't blame him for his reaction, he's probably had a long few weeks and now he's gotta do a--thankfully--short news interview.

No remarks from the studio so far on the province's lack of initiative. Too soon; that'll probably come later in editorials.

The segment begins to wrap up. The view shifts back to hold her front and center once again.

“This is a trying time for this small community. We can only hope that things can quickly return to normal. Back to you, John."

With that she's gone and anchorman John is back, but not alone any more. With him is a well-dressed balding man seated opposing him along the curved news desk such that both face the camera. John speaks up.

“Thank you, Abigail. With me now is Dr. Jameson--professor at University of Victoria--here to weigh in on the strange weather that caused all of this."

The middle-aged man's expression shifts to one of interest as he lightly coughs into his fist, his own segment beginning.

“Hello. My name is Dr. Jameson. I have a PhD in Climate Studies and Meteorology as well as Astrophysics, and teach a series of courses at the campus ranging from simple meteorology to a more niche theoretical class on dimensional physics."

That's a lot of big words.

John continues. “Dr. Jameson, we have here some questions prepared for you, ones we've been asked quite a bit over the past few weeks that we think you could help clear the skies on. Are you ready to begin?"

After taking a sip of prepared water, Dr. Jameson turns back to John and nods, having ignored the anchor's pun.

“Yes, let's begin. Me and my classes have been going over the phenomenon and what may have caused it ever since it happened. However, I must temper the expectations of the viewers first: I'm sorry, but please keep in mind that much of this is conjecture."

Yep. Mhm. Go on, let's hear it.

John turns and asks, “Our viewers have been dying to know: What do you think caused all of this? And what is 'this,' anyway?"

The professor quickly shuffles through a few pages of notes to reorient himself before speaking again.

“The original event is widely believed to have been a... well, a sneeze of sorts, from the sun. A large burst of solar wind dumping a lot of electromagnetism into our atmosphere."

He stops for a moment to clear his throat once more.

“It has only been a few weeks and activity has only begun shifting recently. It won't be until after months of study that we can release any sort of conclusive results, and I run a class, not a dedicated lab for this sort of thing. What I can and will definitively tell you is that this incident was- not normal."

He fidgets and adjusts his glasses, nervous.

“Solar wind- it's normal. This- this wasn't. It was, uhm, very sudden, and far too strong."

The man's nerves are clearly shot. I get the general impression that he wants to say something, but... can't, for whatever reason. But after a moment he coughs into his hand again and with a deep breath, retakes his composure.

What exactly he said isn't really surprising. That something weird's been going on in the skies above Gold River isn't news, but the why certainly is. There have been a few releases online over the weeks; scientists throwing around words like 'unprecedented,' phrases such as 'fluctuations in the magnetic sphere,' as well as comparing this event to a bunch of famous old signals from deep space.

But that he's so nervous... that's interesting. He's the trope of the reclusive theoretical scientist brought to life. Is it just nerves from being on live TV or something else?

After quickly skimming some notes on the desk in front of him, he sighs. The doctor looks back up to respond, staring at the camera rather than John.

“The simple answer is that, to be honest, the data is inconclusive at this time." He puts up his hands in a placating gesture and continues. “I know that people aren't going to like to hear that, but again, I must remind you that it's too early to say for... absolute certainty. I will elaborate, but please keep in mind that the following is speculation from one man and his students based only on early data."

I fiddle with the remote. “Get on with it already, old man..." I say.

Clearing his throat, he picks up a page and begins reading from it; likely a note specifically prepared for this part.

“On the morning of the 24th of September, a sonic boom was heard over the town of Gold River followed by a sharp rise in electromagnetic activity in the region. Despite relatively clear skies a dry lightning storm followed which ignited fires. A few homes were struck but damage was minimal and any fires in and around the town were quickly put out. However, much of the fury of the storm was concentrated to the southeast, over the forest.

“The result and its conclusion have already been covered and that's not why I'm here so I won't be getting into that. This entire event has been anomalous from start to finish, what with the sudden hyper-concentrated solar wind, the sonic boom, and the excessive amounts of electromagnetism. An early hypothesis was some sort of extremely narrow and tight solar flare, but damage would be significantly worse if that was the case. That's not to mention that something like that would be extremely rare--if not entirely just hypothetical--and it would have been predicted in advance.

“Further study showed that there had been no solar flare, expected or otherwise. Thunderstorms are in season uncommonly in the area, but never like this. For there to be enough energy in the atmosphere to have sparked a furious storm of this power, without significant cloud cover, is unprecedented. I personally can only conclude that somehow a large amount of electromagnetism was dumped into our atmosphere above Gold River, and that it had nothing to do with the sun."

There's all those big words and terms again. All sorts of weird stuff about the sun, magnets, and electricity. And nothing to show for it other than 'the sun did it, but it didn't actually do it.'

“So far, my current hypothesis is that it was caused by extrater-"

Off. I toss the remote to the hotel room's couch and get up. Big fancy guy, big fancy super-niche class, still nothing to show for it. Waste of time, I've heard what I need to hear.

The three of us--that is to say, I along with Carey and her mother--have been living in a hotel for the past few weeks. It's turned into a vacation of sorts, although one with a lot of creeping stress underneath it, so... not really a vacation after all.

Our rooms are thankfully decent, if quite pricey considering the influx of demand. Both have a queen bed each, a relatively small TV on the wall opposite the bed, and a tiny kitchenette with a dining bar. By the door there's a small bathroom that thankfully has a decent shower-slash-bath combo in it. The room doesn't have a deck but I don't really need one.

Time to go spread the good news. Leaving my room, I don't have to go far, simply heading next door. Seconds after knocking I can hear footsteps from the other side as someone approaches. After a brief pause to glance through the peephole it swings open to reveal Carey.

She smiles. “Frank! Hey, what's up?"

And of course, she's in her underwear, bra, and nothing else. Judging by the occasional droplet of water coursing down her exposed flesh I think she just got out of the shower.

Stunned for a moment, I get it together and respond. “Uh… I'm going to assume you weren't just watching the news, uh, right?"

Confused by my expression, she takes a moment and remembers. She looks down at herself before backing away behind the door a bit.

“Uh. No, I was in the shower. Hey, can you give me a minute? Sorry."

Awkward.

“Uh, y-yeah, I'll be out here."

Shit...

Think about dull mundane things, like cleaning up a campground. No more stiffy. Down, boy. That ship can't even leave port much as I'd love if it did. There was once a time I'd have loved to get flashed like that by her but such is life. I know she still wants kids; maybe she'll ask me to be the surrogate- agh. Kill that unhealthy line of thought.

A minute later, the door opens again and Carey reappears, fully dressed once more with a tinge of red in her cheeks, Goose cackling in the background.

“Sorry about that Frank. Um, do you want to come in?" Stepping aside, she opens the door further, showing Goose on their own room's bed, typing on her smartphone. In the background the TV is on but muted.

“...Sure." I reply as I step in. I notice the channel--the same one I'd just been watching. “Hey, Goose. You see the news?"

Still smirking, she doesn't look up from her phone to respond and simply continues whatever she's doing, multitasking.

“Yep. Hey Carey, evac order's lifted. We're heading home, assuming you're done teasing poor Frank."

Carey's face turns even redder and she rounds on her mother. “That's great, mom! That's great. Can't wait to go home and get back to work!"

Awkward silence fills the room. Two thirds of it, at least. Goose pipes back up, only now looking up from her phone.

“Right. Anyway, do either of you have any lunch plans? It isn't the Grillhouse, but we could eat out for lunch. To be honest I've kind of enjoyed this unplanned vacation, kids."

That's actually a bit surprising. She loves working in the Nest. Carey must be thinking the same thing because she voices my thoughts.

“I thought you loved your job? You getting tired of flipping burgers all day, old lady?"

She looks considerate for a moment, a strange expression growing on her face that I can't quite read. After the moment passes she looks to Carey, smiling once more.

“Ah, I am getting old, kid. When it comes to many things in life, the mind loves what the body hates, and the body loves what the mind hates. Actually, that's true when it comes to your father too. Hm."

A philosophical Goose. The world truly is ending.

At the mention of her estranged father, Carey's embarrassed smile twinges. “Yeah. I suppose. I like the feeling of a good workout, but that's only the me me, not my body."

Carey… hasn't spoken much about her father. Goose has said a bit more than her, but that makes sense since she knew him longer. Carey was just a little kid when he walked out on them. Her sister was barely two years old. From what I've picked up over the years, something happened and he started drinking extremely heavily to cope and began distancing himself from his family.

Goose dealt with it for the most part, though I know nothing about how the divorce went. Carey's lucky she had such a strong mother, and to be honest I think it factored pretty heavily into who she is today. Still… any time mention of her father comes up, she gets that look for a moment before brushing it off.

Those moments are just about the only time I've ever seen her look vulnerable and she's good at concealing it. She's strong and brave, and it's what I admire most about her.

Interrupting to help take her mind off of things--and because I'm getting hungry--I latch on to Goose's prior idea.

“Lunch sounds good, Goose. Got any ideas?"

It works as Carey is immediately engrossed in the idea of food after presumably a work-out and subsequent shower. Getting up from the bed and putting her phone in her pocket, Goose obviously has something in mind.

“Yep. Spotted a nice little place I've been meaning to hit up. It's a bit early, but they're open."

---

“Goose, I still can't believe you liked that place," I say.

A light chuckle comes from the back seat.

“It was a shithole, mom," Carey says from shotgun.

Glancing in the mirror, I can see her mother's shit-eating grin.

“That's the point, Carey. So what if it was a barely legal dive? It keeps the Victoria hipsters out."

Carey frowns. “I didn't see their liquor license posted anywhere. Did we just visit a modern-day speakeasy?"

Goose chuckles again. “Maybe. Maybe not. All I know is that they served craft beer of a sort and it was damn good stuff."

I shake my head and continue focusing on the road. The two of them chose to day-drink, so here I am playing designated driver even though it's Carey's truck.

The good old burden of responsibility and all that.

Said 'nice little place' turned out to be a likely barely legal dive. It was so shitty that the so-called 'Victoria hipsters' seemed to want nothing to do with it, ass-end of the bell curve as it was. And on top of that it might not have actually been legal.

It would explain the clientele. Lots of bikers. Goose had a blast, of course.

Having finished lunch, the three of us headed back to the hotel, packed our things, and squared stuff away for our formerly indefinite stay. Goose and Carey pawned off driving to me since they'd been day-drinking, which meant I was the one who had to drive Carey's truck--loaded with all of our stuff--back to Gold River. Traffic's sucked the whole way home since we clearly weren't the only ones eager to get back to our own beds, and the road wasn't built to handle traffic like this.

At least it carried the eagerness of one's own bed rather than the worried flight from home. Less honking with better driving.

“I can't wait to get home," I say.

Carey looks thoughtful for a moment before speaking up.

“Same, dude. At least none of us have pets. Well... any more, at least."

“What was the name of your family's dog, again?" I ask.

“Carly. It's been, what, seven years now, mom?"

“Yep. Great dog." Goose sighs. “Your dad hated her, but she was always so gentle with you and Sam."

After a curve, the road ahead of us widens out and the forested valley town of Gold River opens up before us. The visitor center on the side of the road is packed with cars and a line is formed outside of the public washrooms. I'd assume they're people who couldn't wait until they get home to go, but they've only doomed themselves to a longer wait in the end.

At the intersection, I turn left--south--rather than north to where the homes of Carey and Goose are.

“Hey, wrong turn, shortie," Carey pipes up. “My home's back the other way."

I continue watching the road. “I'm dropping my stuff off first. This is your truck, remember? I'm not walking home across town with a suitcase."

Taking another left, we leave the main road and head into the eastern suburbs.

---

After unloading my luggage I drove Goose then Carey back to their own respective homes; Carey's specifically I'm just now pulling into the gravel driveway of.

She and her sister Sam live together in their rented house. They're a bit of an odd dynamic; Carey is an outdoorswoman and her sister is a bit of a shy and reserved shut-in who likes computer games. I don't know Sam nearly as well as I do her big sister despite having known the two for years.

Their home isn't the largest but they don't exactly need something to start a family in--especially since they rent and neither is seeing anybody. It's in a nice and quiet secluded spot that's a bit backed into the woods from the rest of the neighborhood at the north end of town.

A quiet which Carey breaks as she throws her door open and closed the moment I shift into park before running around to her truck's bed, opening it and the canopy before climbing in to drag her suitcase out.

Having heard our approach--if not Carey's very obvious arrival--the front door opens and Sam steps out onto the porch.

“Carey! Hey, I missed you!" she calls.

Spotting me still sitting in the driver's seat, she waves half-heartedly to me as well.

“Hey, Frank. Good to see you too," she says in a more reserved greeting before ducking back a bit, pointedly looking away from me.

And there's the main reason why I don't know her too well: she's even more shy around me. The scene is somehow as awkward as the one before lunch.

What a fucked up love triangle this is. At least there's no weird sibling thing going on, so it isn't a true one.

Sam likes me. I like Carey. Carey likes women, though she doesn't currently have a girlfriend. Getting out of her truck just as Carey finishes what she's doing, I wave to Sam and turn towards the back of the truck.

Suitcase in tow, still-buzzed Carey crawls out from the bed of the truck, waving to Sam.

“Missed you too, Sam! I'll be in soon!" She sets her bag down on the gravel drive before turning to me, voice lower. “You sticking around, Frank? I think it might be good for Sam."

I'm… kind of on the fence about her. She's not really my type, but she's sweet. The main issue is that she's too shy, and not so much in the cute way. Maybe growing up in Carey's shadow did it, maybe she was always a bit of a loner. Regardless of the cause things have always been awkward between the two of us to some degree. Even at gatherings she always seems to just... sink into the background, for lack of a better term.

She's, well... she's forgettable.

I don't bother whispering. “Eh, I'm fine, I'm tired from the drive. Maybe we can all go out drinking or something in a few days."

Turning, I wave bye to Sam. Her expression is… well, a bit mixed as per usual.

She may be shy but she really doesn't make it subtle. Part of me feels bad about it but I think I'd feel worse if I did ask her out. I don't want to feel like it's a pity relationship--she deserves better. Or is that some catch-22 of doubt where it is a pity relationship because I think of it that way and I should change my thinking?

Agh. I need time to think. At least she's only a year younger than I am. Not now though. I'm tired, and I'll have plenty of time later.

I give a final wave goodbye and leave down their driveway.

---

A few days after we returned home, things were mostly done settling. Stores had reopened, streets were cleaned, and the surprising number of break-ins were investigated. Life was mostly back to normal. Tomorrow me and Carey will be back on the job, but for now she took what I said to heart and planned a 'welcome home get together.'

It was a party, plain and simple. Goose would be there grilling burgers, Carey's friends were invited, and hell, I invited Richard because why not. He was cool at the Nest and he would probably appreciate taking his mind off of the whole 'nearly losing his home' thing. Unless he did end up losing his home... I don't know where he lives.

Sam is also going to be there of course, since, well… she lives there.

I haven't put much thought into that whole situation despite the glut of time to do so, but I'm not sure if it's a good idea to keep this whole 'let her make the first move if she has the courage to' thing going. I'll talk with her later I suppose, either during or after the party. Maybe I can rope Carey into helping; she's the one who's pushing for Sam to be more assertive in the first place.

Walking down the street it's like nothing happened at all. No massive fire in the distance, no vision of the apocalypse in the skies above, no tension in the small community's ashen air, just simple suburban life once more. There aren't a lot of people out on the streets right now though with almost everyone indoors eating dinner. The occasional house's occupants decided to put up late Thanksgiving decorations but many people simply didn't bother, having stayed with relatives and thus celebrated there.

People around town have started calling this the 'Thanksgiving Fire' because the evacuation order came out about two weeks in advance of the holiday and peoples' plans were disrupted. Personally I think a lot of people learned the meaning of being thankful over this little break from normality.

Having pretty much everything you know turned upside-down tends to give perspective in life about what truly matters most to you. I suppose in some ways this whole event was in the spirit of Thanksgiving.

Speaking of which, I doubt I'm immune to that. It's probably why I've been so introspective lately. Like now. Agh. And I still don't think I'm ready to talk with Sam.

I breathe in, and I let out a sigh, feeling the built-up stress of the month... release.

It's okay, Frank: you're gonna party, you're gonna relax, you're gonna eat a burger or two, and most importantly, you're going to have a very awkward conversation with the very awkward sister of your best friend-slash-crush.

No pressure. Just relax.

All too soon my short walk across town is over and I find myself back at the driveway of Carey and Samantha Fairbanks.

Only Carey's truck is here, everyone else either not here yet or having preferred to walk as well. Gold River really isn't that large, being two kilometers directly across at its widest point. Everyone is simply within walking distance and it's one of the reasons why Carey and Sam stuck around after their mom put up her feet and started a business in her retirement. Neither I or Carey even have our own vehicles; we just use our work trucks or walk.

Carey's laughter rises from behind the house as I'm walking down their gravel driveway. Rather than bother with the front door I change direction to the open gate along the side of their house leading to their fenced-in backyard.

Their home has a tall wooden privacy fence which grants the backyard even more seclusion, but there are only chain link fences preventing access around the sides. Following the path and rounding the corner I enter the backyard where the party is in the process of beginning. Goose is sitting in a folding chair near a cluttered table next to a barbecue tapping away at her phone--which is pretty normal. Carey and Sam are seated in folding chairs of their own at a table under a canopy and a few of Carey's friends are with them.

I head over to Goose. Carey's back is to me, though Sam spots me and sheepishly watches me out of the corner of her eyes. Approaching the table, Gold River's favorite griller looks up and I greet her.

“Hey Goose. A bit late to be migrating your nest, eh?" I joke, flicking my head in the direction of Carey's own barbecue which she's commandeered.

Slightly smiling, she scoffs before speaking. “Ha. It's too loud 'down south,' no matter the season. Damn did my old job pay well but I'd rather be with what family I have left." She gestures towards the barbecue and continues. “Burgers aren't getting put on for another half hour. We've got snacks though if you're interested."

Said table is home to not only her burger supplies, but bowls, bags, and spreads of various snack foods, some if not most of it probably prepared by Goose herself earlier in the day.

“Thanks, Goose." I grab a ceramic plate and some appetizers from the table before heading over to join Carey, beginning to pay more attention to their ongoing conversation as she animatedly tells a story.

“-So then mom stepped out from behind the counter with a bat and the guy got this hilarious look on his face and booked it for the door!" Before she could continue, she broke down into a giggling fit again, not noticing me take a seat. “But- but he fucked it up and forgot our door opens in! So he slammed right into it, and it was the funniest thing I saw all year."

She finally notices me while her friends laugh and turns to look over.

“Oh, hey Frank! Glad you arrived! I was telling the story about that guy a few days before the evac who threatened to burn the bar down because mom wouldn't serve him any more alcohol."

He never did follow through. Turns out too much alcohol makes you say and do stupid shit. I hadn't been there, but I'd heard the story already.

“Yeah, Goose found a tooth later when she was cleaning up," I add. “She started joking about how she can technically claim her establishment does dentistry." The joke earns a chuckle from across the yard and sends Carey breaking down into laughter again.

During all of this, Sam's been staring down at her snack plate, picking at it occasionally and trying her hardest not to look at me. If I didn't know otherwise I'd think she hated me; it's never been this bad before.

Yeah… we definitely need to have that chat. Would Carey being there for moral support be better or worse?

In the distance I can barely hear crunching gravel over Carey's laughter. Glancing over, Richard and a few of his other friends I saw at Goose's a few weeks ago round the corner. Noticing my gaze, he waves.

“Hey, Frank! Thanks for inviting me. I brought a few friends, but you know them already."

That I do. Spencer's weaselly mutual friend Dan was brought along, who'd thankfully been on his best behavior at the Nest. I knew he'd probably bring a friend or two but that's fine and expected.

“Yeah, that's alright. It's a party; the more the merrier."

---

A/N:

This chapter was a pain to write.

I actually wrote most of it except for the most important scenes and then moved on to the next twelve chapters to give myself time to come up with ideas. I finished the second arc before this chapter. One of the big reasons for why this and the next chapter gave me troubles was because of it having so many dialogue scenes. Not only was I very inexperienced with dialogues at the time, there's so much content to stuff into the chapter to begin with and I needed to be careful not to oversaturate and overwhelm the reader with info and characterization.

There was so much, in fact, that I ended up splitting up the chapter into two! To be honest I probably could have divided this one up again but I'd rather have one long chapter that smoothly progresses over two shorter ones which seem disjointed.

As for the specifics of the troubles: I needed to flesh out Frank and Carey's characters while also establishing who Sam is, not to mention another dialogue in the next chapter that will establish another character for a future interlude... this was originally meant to be one chapter but there's just so much that it ended up being two, and honestly? If I had content within the party itself--which won't be included in the next chapter, by the way--I could have definitely made three.

So in the end, one long chapter and one average one. One criticism I expect to hear is that I introduce all of these characters and then seemingly do nothing with them. That's because they'll show up later.

Except for Richard. He's permanently a named background character. No real backstory, no real depth to him beyond 'responsible young adult.'