Ah oh, looks like it’s time for a new character! Everyone, please let me introduce you to Viola. This stately older woman is a lizardfolk, and she has immigrated to the Forest as a permanent resident. Viola’s origin ‘verse is a D&D setting, and she has retired from her old life as an adventurer, Investigator class. I think of Investigators as something like Sherlock Holmes mixed up with an alchemist, and Viola’s sharp mind and patient demeanor make her right at home in both laboratory and field research settings.

Speaking of which, shortly after her arrival in the Forest, Viola set out to find an occupation. While it’s not strictly necessary to work in order to live in the Forest, not everybody is happy with lives of pure leisure, and many people seek out at least part-time employment. For someone as focused as Viola, it can be quite distressing to be unproductive, so she quickly set about finding a place for herself. Those Investigator skills of hers came in quite handy, and inquiries with the locals quickly highlighted Shift-Tec as a natural fit for someone with her skillset. Not content to simply submit a CV and application, Viola’s detective work sussed out a plot to win a bit of an unscheduled interview with Cellina, the director of the company. Ms. Afolabi was furious when she learned that a stranger was able to alternately sneak and schmooze her way past ST Tower security, and make it all the way to the door of Cellina’s penthouse suite to formally present herself.

The ever-unflappable Cellina wasn’t put off by the intrusion, and she invited Viola in for a discussion of the future. Cellina is no stranger to employing eccentric scientists, after all, and a good manager knows that allowances have to be made for the unorthodox personalities that sometimes come packaged with genius. Viola ended up with a senior researcher position in Shift-Tec’s R&D division, complete with a comfortable corporate apartment while she settles in.

What sort of mischief will Viola get up to on her new adventures in the Forest? Will she be able to leave behind the history of fear and violence inherent in D&D ‘verses? Will she get used to these strange new technologies and people? Will Ms. Afolabi ever forgive her for intruding on her idol’s privacy? I hope you’ll all stick around, and we can find out together!