It had been weeks since Rina had been back to the inn, but in a world like this, not much could change in such a short amount of time… in some ways. Technology progression was slow and the general cultural from place to place generally stayed the same. You could be from practically any place that had the same technology level and fit in perfectly well. There might be some odd customs that had to be adapted to if you came from too far away, but all in all, if didn’t travel too far away one place was just like most other places for thousands of miles around and it was unlikely that if you were accepted in one place you’d be accepted pretty much everywhere else you traveled to in the area generally speaking.

Modern Humans, however, were used to fairly rapid change on this level. Left anywhere long enough or traveled far enough away from a given place and the whole world and customs might seem radically different. Some of that was from the rapid technological that spread from hubs of research and development. Some of it was a natural separation from urban centers and rural farmlands. Still more of it was because of aesthetic of living in one environment versus another or wealth disparity making the conveniences of modern Earth near impossible to procure, sometimes in the oddest of ways. It gave Humans the sense that because they dealt with all these rapid changes on an everyday basis their world had sped up, that the lives they lead changed so fast that there was no stability from moment to moment, year to year, decade to decade.

It was an illusion. The truth has always been that as speed at which Humans had developed technology, built their city, and changed the world on such massive scales, the more that their interpersonal, social, worlds had slowed down. Their personal development crawled along, because there was no need for growth and even if there was a need things would soon change and no longer would it be. So when Jason let Rina out of his sight, he expected everything had remained the same as when they had left. What he didn’t realize was that as a social group was smaller and the fewer distraction that people had the more they were prone to focus on their immediate displeasures rather than some abstract issue that they were powerless to effect and often, people did not care who they directed their grievances at. The Human problem was the main concern on the minds of most in Gondaluke and Rina was entering a place where drunken complaining had a tendency to turn to drunken brawling without much provocation over the pettiest of things in the best of situations. The Human situations was far from a minor annoyance for a single person. It had become a concern for all within the town and their anger was close to boiling over, before their anger was fueled by alcohol.

She excitedly entered the door, happy to return to what she had come to regard as her home in short order, largely because of the kind atmosphere and acceptance that everyone had of her, patrons and the Tik’rs. Her smile was bright and cheerful as she stood just beyond the threshold. She took a deep breath, gathering up all of the wind that she could collect into her tiny body, and then she released it in a joyous shout into the dining hall, “Ohayō gozaimasu. I’m home, everyone!” She was expecting cheers and people rushing to welcome her back to the place that she had found so much happiness in a short amount of time in, but that is not what happened. Instead, grumbles from almost all of the patrons could be heard, but worse there were murmurs of disgust at the notion of eating where a Human had come in. Certainly they spoke loud enough for her to hear, but she was oblivious to it all. A positive mind can often make one become deaf and blind to the evils of others and this was certainly the case with Rina. She wasn’t just benevolently letting the insults nor the look of upset patrons go. She simply did not see or hear them to her detriment.

The little looked around for the people she had come to think of as her family, but she saw none of them. It must have been one of those rare time when everyone had something that took them away from the front of the house, so she started for her room. She could drop her stuff off and find them later. She hadn’t taken a step when a group of 3 male Tok`phane blocked her path. “Little Human, your scent offends our noses,” the biggest in the center said threateningly.

Rina sniffed at herself. Her nose wrinkled as she looked back to the dog-men, “Hai! I’ll get right to baths after I set my things down. Thank you for letting me know mister.” She bowed and began to speed walk around the group and she would have got away too if the members of the group weren’t just a bit faster at recovering their senses from being taken so lightly by this chipper small being. One of them grabbed Rina and drug her back to where she was, “You will not blemish this establishment any more than you have. Out with you Human.”

Rina cocked her head to the side looking at the 3 of them, “I need to put my stuff down.”

“You are not wanted here Human,” the three were becoming more agitated, quickly approaching the point where they no longer wished to deal with this little Human.

“But... but… but...” Rina’s eyes began to well up with tears. She had felt that this was her home after losing her family not once but several times and now she was being told that she was not wanted. Her mind raced with fears that the Tik’rs had told these people to keep her out, to toss her out on the street, alone and forgotten.

One of the Tok`phane went to grab Rina only to find that has arm to be taken hold of. The whole group looked to who had stopped them. Their eyes traveled up the large greenish brown arm to find it attached to an Orc that dwarfed them in size. His face was seemingly filled with rage as his eyes bore into the three that had acted aggressive toward Rina, but then, it as he saw them turn to look at him he gave big smile, the rage disappearing from have, except from his eyes which never blinked. The Orcs smile was meant to comfort and look friendly, but inside their maw were razor sharp teeth, yellowed from terrible hygiene, that no living being could feel comfortable about seeing, least of all the Tok`phane, who, like their dog counterparts from Earth, took the baring of teeth as a threat to back off or prepare for war, but any creature would have looked at the face of this Orc with its wide smile, displaying sharp teeth and glaring angry eyes as unnerving and something to be avoided. The Orc spoke, “Something can help with?”

The three shook in fear. They knew that this Orc was Dork, one of the helpers of the T`krs who worked as both a busboy and bouncer for the inn. If there was trouble there was no doubt that Dork could handle it alone, but even if he couldn’t the proprietor of the inn, Awlrek, could come to aid him and certainly there was no group that they couldn’t handle that could fit into the inn. They, however, hoped that he was on their side. He must be, afterall, who would want a Human around, especially not a small dirty one. “No, we don’t need anything. We were just telling this small Human that it should not be here and it should leave.”

Rina rushed to Dork hugging his leg. The size discrepancy between the two was comedic, but really, the difference in physical appearance between the two was the thing that most would find quite hilarious. One would never expect to see a cute little Human girl seeking safety in a gigantic ugly Orc that looked like it ate such creatures thrice daily. “Th-They said i wasn’t wanted.”

Dork looked down at Rina, his hand cupping the back of her head caringly, before returning his gaze to the three Tok`phane. His fury was obvious, “Rina no leave. You go. Rina stay.”

The 3 looked at Dork, then at each other. They seemed to communicate with each other wordlessly. Their fur bristled and in unison their body all tensed, turning so that their back was against the door without taking their eyes away from Dork until they had made their way out the door and left the inn all together.

“Safe go room now,” Dork said to Rina.

“Thank you,” she sniffed as she let go of Dork and started walking to the back of the house where her room was. Before she made it a dish flew by her face and crashed on a nearby walled. This was only the first. As with all riots they start with one angry stupid action which empowers more and more to act in ways they’d never behave normally. Not one, but many dishes crashed around Rina. If she took another she’d definitely be hit. Those tossing the dishes laughed as though they were having the time of their lives. It wasn’t long before someone took even more liberty and tossed a dish directly at Rina. Luckily Dork was there and quickly moved to protect her. He used his body to shield her from the airborne pottery, getting her to the hallway to the back of the house where she would be safe from the crowd. He hoped that would end the ruckus, but it was too late.

Riots, once started, needed to burn themselves out. There was little that anyone could do to stop them, even the most powerful peacemaker in the universe. Dork was not such a person and his appearance was such to be threatening to just about any other species that saw him. When the rioters saw what he was doing their jovial malicious attitude towards Rina turned to blind drunken rage at Dork. They charged at him picking up anything that they could to for weapons and attacked him. Only some of them could get to him so others flipped tables and broke anything they could their hands on.

The stampede of bodies caused Frisxea who had been resting up stairs to peek down stairs to see what was happening. When she saw she immediately returned up the steps, going from room to room to warn the guests to grabs their things and get out of the Inn, telling them there might not be anything to worry about, but if there was it was better to be safe than be trapped. She made her way out as well, but before she did she grabbed all of Jason’s belongings that he had left. Belongings that she had been using in his absence. No sense leaving them unused if she need use of some of them.

As the last the last guests and Frisxea got out of the inn, the Tik`rs came up the street and saw the large gathering of people outside their inn, made up their guests. Wondering what was happening they spoke to Frisxea. Awrek ran in to help Dork and stop the riot before they went too far. Dork hadn’t budged from his spot. He would not let harm come to Rina and there wasn’t anything that the mob could do to hurt him. Unfortunately, the mob hadn’t just been attacking him. They had taken their rage and frustration out on the inn as well. All would have been well if not for several lit fires being knocked over, setting the lumber that the inn had been made out of ablaze.