You say, "Bow to him."
2860h, 3244m, 3198e, 10p elrxk-
Belar bows respectfully to the Ebonglom Wyrdling.
The Ebonglom Wyrdling rears up suddenly and opens its vast maw before taking
Belar into its mouth.
2860h, 3244m, 3198e, 10p elrxk-
Belar tells you, "What did i do wrong."

You place a painting of a painting of a painting of a painting of a painting of
a painting of a painting of a painting of a painting of a painting of a
painting of a painting of a painting of a painting of a painting of a painting
of a painting of a painting of a corridor of portraits against the wall,
raising it a little higher, then moving it a little to the left, and then
lowering it a bit. When it is just right, you firmly affix it to the wall,
exhibiting it for all to see.

Bloody dissection chambers.
Splattered across the tiled floor and walls are stains of dried and darkened
blood, increasing in intensity as they approach a steel slab in the centre of
the chambers. Open skylights overheard allow fresh air to enter the stagnant room and cast thin shafts of light upon the morbid laboratory. A narrow table to the side of the large dissection slab contains all manner of vicious instruments - ranging from knives and tongs to extremely long needles and saws. Narrow gutters surround the steel slab and empty into a small basin at the base of the table, which is half-filled with blood. Flicking her barbed tail idly, Lady Valaza i'Xiia's brow is furrowed in thought. A painting of a painting of a painting of a painting of a painting of a painting of a painting of a painting of a painting of a painting of a painting of a painting of a painting of a painting of a painting of a painting of a painting of a painting of a corridor of portraits is proudly exhibited on a nearby wall.
You see exits leading east, south, and northwest.

You say to Valaza i'Xiia, "Like the painting?"

Valaza i'Xiia raises an eyebrow at you.

"Heh heh heh" you chuckle.

Valaza i'Xiia says, "What, precisely, is that?"

You say, "Just a painting of our portrait corridors."

You say, "I was tryin' a new art style--repeat paintin'"

Valaza i'Xiia says, "And why have you littered my laboratory with that trash?"

You say, "Well, ye like exotic works to read, so I figured ye'd like some art
to go with it."

You beam broadly at a painting of a painting of a painting of a painting of a
painting of a painting of a painting of a painting of a painting of a painting
of a painting of a painting of a painting of a painting of a painting of a
painting of a painting of a painting of a corridor of portraits.

Valaza i'Xiia says, "Do I look like the kind of imbecile who spends all their
time closeted away in a library?"

You say, "Hmm, maybe I'm confusing ye with another one. Sometimes ye nobles all look alike to me."

You shrug helplessly.

Valaza i'Xiia scowls miserably at you.

Thick, gold-rimmed spectacles sit upon the nose of this slender viscanti woman, giving her a markedly bookish appearance. Bat-like wings extrude from her back, the skin-like membrane stretched between the bones scintillating in purple and golden hues. From underneath the long, pristine white coat that she wears, a jointed tail with a wicked barb stretches out to coil on the ground, flicking idly to and fro. On her finger is the jade signet ring of House i'Xiia, displayed proudly for all to see.
Valaza i'Xiia is not one to be trifled with.

Valaza i'Xiia says, "Perhaps a lobotomy would help solve that delicate problem, hmmm?"

You shiver violently.

Valaza i'Xiia brandishes her scalpel menacingly.

You say, "Look, I'll take it down..."

Shaking your head at a painting of a painting of a painting of a painting of a painting of a painting of a painting of a painting of a painting of a painting
of a painting of a painting of a painting of a painting of a painting of a
painting of a painting of a painting of a corridor of portraits, you begin
scraping away at the paint.

A short time later...

You say to Valaza i'Xiia, "Okay, it's gone."

Valaza i'Xiia says, "Ah, much better."

Valaza i'Xiia examines you with a critical eye, marking down notes with an
avaricious grin.

You say, "I guess ye don't like many distractions when ye are performing
surgery, eh?"

Valaza i'Xiia says, "It requires a delicate hand. I'm sure I could arrange a
demonstration, if you would like."

Valaza i'Xiia rubs her hands together and grins at you with evil satisfaction.

Beads of sweat break out on your face.

You say, "Er, no, that's all right."

You say, "I gotta get back to the city."

You wave goodbye.

You tug upon the aether strands around you, searching for one that connects to the Megalith of Doom.

Valaza i'Xiia inclines her head politely to those around her.

Speaking to Sarrasri - our summarisation of the situation with Celest.

Kiarlea: Celest: "You're bad! Stop killing angels!"
Serenwilde: "No. We value our freedom, and we actually care about the opinions of our entire commune."
Celest: "No, you're bad! Stop hurting ANYTHING or we're going to cry and tell our mommy on you!"

Sarra: Celest: Mommmy!11!!1 Serenwilde is being bad and won't do what we waaannnt. What should we dooo????
Terentia: Declare war if they won't stop hurting anything, even if the original demand was just angels. Overkill will always make them do what you want. Here's a Lolly.

Hey, I'm losing a shop I ran for over twenty years cause of this, I still think it's amusing.

What do you mean SHHHHH! We are already losing a lot of refills! *points at Glom folks* You! become our personal Alchemists so we can live during this war!

Patience, young one.