Timestamp: 50th of Fall, 521 A.V.
Taz stared at Randal incredulously.
“You want me to WHAT?!?!?!” She said, studying him intently with a look of horror on her face.
“You heard me. Come on Taz. You know if anyone can do it you can. I really just want to shock these blokes into hightailing it out of here and never coming back. They are interested in DEVELOPING some trade here, and it’s the kind of trade we don’t need.” He added, holding his hands wide and appealing to her better nature. The man did seem sincere, even if what he was sincere about was almost horrific.
“First off… Gross! Second of all, I know nothing about what’s edible and let alone how to prepare it in the insect world!” Taz said, curling her lip as if she was fighting off almost instant nausea. She’d turned about four different shades of color and Randal had no difficulty reading the emotions playing across her features. But she owed him…. owed him deeply and it was almost impossible to say no to Randal because of that unspoken debt. “Just a feast then? A feast of all insects for some fancy people from Riverfall that think this place is paradise and want to flood it with Akalaks?” She added, knowing just how well the Akalaks ate and how much they would be horrified themselves if all the food on the menu was used to crawl and squirm before being used for food.
“Taz, be reasonable. Bugs are delicious. I’m somewhat of an expert on the subject.” Bree added, suddenly picking a side and that side wasn’t Tazrae’s. She was team Randal all in and Taz could see it in her reptilian gleam. “I can help you find things… things even this man doesn’t know about. That would be things high in the canopy you can now have access to because you have an incredibly talented and smart jungle Ixam that is more than able to climb for them. Just think of how much fun it would be learning about what’s edible in the jungle besides nasty fruit and things you have to battle to kill… like a tapir. Give it a try. Bugs aren’t bad, Taz. They can be very good… and if you serve them to the Akalak that I suspect will hate them, they will turn tail and run out of here so fast and look elsewhere for business opportunities.” Bree said, agreeing with Randal.
“It’s like being a Guardian of Syka without actually invoking the statues.” Randal reasoned, smiling his most charming smile at her.
Taz simply stared between the two of them, utterly dumbfounded. “Do you even cook bugs?” She asked, not even sure where to start with her counterargument.
“Sure. But I’m talking more than bugs here, Taz. Bugs, possibly tarantulas, bats… anything and everything that is somewhat questionable in Riverfall’s culture. I want them served up everything edible yet incredibly revolting. Snakes too would be good. Frogs? Can we do that? Bree, can you tell edible frogs from poisonous ones?” Randal asked the Ixam, confident she knew what humans could stomach in the amphibian world too.
Bree nodded. “Of course. Bullfrogs are good eating. I used to slaughter them when I was a hatchling.” She said, puffing up slightly and licking her lips. “Now they are like that popcorn that Tazrae makes some evenings. Just crunchy little kernels.” She said with a toothy reptilian grin. “Besides, it will be fun foraging for all of them. It’s like no work at all to catch them.” She added, nodding at Randal.
Taz slowly nodded. She had a way of finding good eating snakes quickly. Magic items that located snakes helped tremendously. But spiders? Grubs? Frogs? They could do all that, she supposed, and it might be kind of fun to put on such a ruse to Randal’s ‘friends’.