Bay12: A dozen posts have been spent theorizing ways a dwarf can identify what the material an elf's underwear is made of without eyesight.
I largely suspect this is an over
sight that blind Dwarves can identify everything, including things like skin, hair and eye colour. Or maybe Dwarves just have ways, like martial trances, or bookkeepers, to know things just because they can. Granted, blind Dwarves can see everything on the tile they're standing on, to simulate being able to 'see' objects and such through touch. The implication being, the longer Cog stays in any one elven retreat, the greater the odds of him being arrested by an administrator for sexual harassment.
Cog and Onget made their way from Senaca's tree to another retreat to the east, some place called Drunkenmuddles or something. The Elves may have had a drinking tree, but wherever it was they were hiding it from Cog and Onget. However, along the way the Dwarves did find some elven archers talking about all the great beasts they had knowledge of roaming the wilds. They were both trying to get the other to kill great megabeasts.
Cog asked one of them if they'd like to join them on their adventures. One obliged.
The other saw the life of patrolling, not as boring - but as safe, choosing to stay behind.
I was somewhat concerned that there was a fair chance that an elf that was willing to join two Dwarves on an adventure before even knowing their names was stark raving mad or melancholic, but as it turns out Quathari Toothbride was just near-fatally bored of life in the forest retreats and wished to see more of the world. I suppose when you're immortal you have a lot of free time and eventually run out of things to do.
Traveling before dawn, the three adventurers made it to a home tree just as the sun was reaching over the horizon. Cog couldn't see what the home tree was, find a way in, or hear anyone talking atop it - and Onget and Quathari were lousy at describing what it looked like.
So they went to the nearest other landmark, which turned out to be a market. Which was great, as Cog was just looking for a market - and had accidentally stumbled upon one in the twilight of dawn.
A few early-rising Elves chatted amongst themselves as the two dwarves and the one elf archer approached.
Bins stacked full of mangoes were laid out in rows. On further inspection of the market, Cog came to the realization that everything was mangoes.
An elf on the far side of the market, quickly realizing that Cog was not eying his mangoes but was instead looking at those of a rival, began shouting for attention.
This kickstarted the mass-awakening of the entire market of mango.
Mangos here, limited supply! Mangoes here, very cheap! There were even doctors professing the health benefits of mangoes - mangoes they sold!
Though I do question the marketing strategy of just shouting mango... It was certainly loud. One unified mass of elves selling mangoes.
The mangoes certainly smelled great and would be a valuable food to bring on the journey as they were light, and probably full of essential vitamins (as the elf doctor said). There was the issue that Quarithi's people didn't use currency, as far as Cog could tell, but this wasn't a problem as Cog had no money anyways. With that said however, Cog didn't really have that much to sell at all either. The last trade goods he had (some fancy clothes) were traded for the silver warhammer, and he certainly was not going to give up his hammer or his clothes for some blasted mangoes.
So he traded what he could; the last of his stingray meat, a portion of badger meat, and all for an equal portion of mangoes. An authentic dwarven-crafted piece of sharp rock was also thrown in on top of the deal, though it didn't make much of a difference either way. That is also the story of how the Elf named Alala became the first elf to sell something other than mangoes. And so Alala had the privilege of being the only elf to be shouting 'authentic honey badger meat' amidst a torrent of 'mango!'
I should hope that Alala manages to maintain his new business on selling something that isn't mango.
Went to a shaping tree, couldn't tell what it was or where it was and so just left for the north.
There was a wide expanse of forests and brooks, but the journey was calm - there did not seem to be many things other than the occasional dragon in these forests. For a moment it even seemed as if there weren't elves.
Sure enough though, the adventurers made it deeper into the heart of elven civilization. If the market there also sells nothing but mangoes I will be convinced that mangoes are in fact their unit of currency.