<div class="floatright"><div align="center">The baths<br/>(http://i.imgur.com/MtYRCHR.jpg)<br/><br/>The bath entrance<br/>(http://i.imgur.com/nDh6kKY.jpg)<br/><br/>Sitting room<br/>(http://i.imgur.com/7ahwOvO.jpg)<br/><br/>Bunks<br/>(http://i.imgur.com/3hpwTTe.jpg)<br/><br/>Vania<br/>(http://i.imgur.com/t0dFJ5A.jpg)</div></div><br/>The acolyte who spoke stood up and nodded,<strong>"I shall show you myself, I understand all of this must be rather tiring.  Right this way." </strong>He led the way back out of the room and walked beside Pipa, while silently one of the  mysterious hooded priests followed.<strong>"We won't bother with a tour then but since you want a meal and a bath I'll show you those buildings before your dorm."</strong>They walked through the hallways of the building that Pipa was coming to think of something akin to Oreford's tiny town hall.  It seemed to serve a similar function as various priests, acolytes, and other people in fine clothing walked about seeming like they were always on their way somewhere important.<strong>"The temple is built on a bridge that spans the Erusrin.  What we are in now is the training grounds, the school in a sense, where we'll try to teach you as much as we can to give you the best chance to escape the dungeon next year.  There are training grounds for those of a martial bent, alchemist and wizard workshops for those who lean in that direction, and there is a building where we have teachers lead classes in history, languages, monster lore, and almost any other knowledge you can think of.  The building we are heading towards now, just up ahead, is the living space for our contestants.  It houses a wonderful bath house, a dining room, and a kitchen staffed at all times."</strong><br/><br/>He paused and looked over Pipa's muscular form and added,<strong>"Though you will not be allowed to indulge or over eat, not that i suspect that is a problem for you.  We are going to work to get you into the best shape you can be in before the dungeon.  Now for some women that means filling out their curves, making them more voluptuous, sexually appealing, but I somehow doubt that will be the route you choose to go in for your run."</strong>He held open a door to the living space building and allowed Pipa to enter first.  Gesturing down a grand hall straight ahead, Pipa could see a large eating area, large enough to seat a hundred people if needed.  There were far less people in this building, and what she saw were mostly servants or slaves cleaning, sweeping, polishing floors and walls and windows with cloth.<strong>"You can ask any acolyte or servant for anything you need, we are here to serve you and make you comfortable so that you might train most efficiently.  What is it you'd like to eat?"   </strong><br/><br/>He went through a door, leaving her in the large dining space with only the silent priest as company.  She knew they did speak, but seemed to do so rarely, letting the acolytes do the speaking instead.  It gave time for her to look around at her surroundings and marvel at the opulence of the place, especially in comparison to the home she'd always known.  Yet for all of it's grandeur, there was something that seemed almost homey to her, a feel of history and age that said that she belonged here.  Maybe it was the way the servants smiled at her as she passed?  Not a deferential nod of a slave or hired servant, but an almost friendly and familiar nod and smile, with no judgments on the color of her skin.  Here it didn't matter to the others if she was quarter orc, just that she was a contestant.<br/><br/>The acolyte returned shortly with her meal and then retreated to a distance to give her peace to eat.  She watched as he spoke to one of the servants, and then a different one, returning as she finished her meal.<strong>  "Leave the plate contestant, one of the servants will fetch it.  I will show you to the baths."</strong>They went back down the grand hall and found a rather wide staircase that spiraled down to a second wide hallway.  At the bottom of the stairs a great set of stained glass doors, looking artistically beautiful and yet massively heavy at the same time.  But with a single push the acolyte opened the doors and then a second set of more mundane double doors beyond that, after a short antichamber.  These second doors opened into a locker room, there was no other word for it, but the pegs and shelves and door-less lockers gave it the obvious appearance of what the room was for.  She noticed several stall doors along one wall, privies no doubt.  Thankfully the doors went almost all the way floor to ceiling on those, so apparently there was some privacy allowed in this place.<br/><br/>He offered to take her robe, and at her hesitation said,<strong>"All acolytes and priests go through much training to resist the desires of the flesh.  To be accepted as an acolyte we have proven that we have mastered at least the simplest of those tests.  As for the servants who work in the bathing chambers, they wear rings that mute their lusts.  We haven't had any cases of a servant trying to force himself on a girl in over a hundred and twenty four years."</strong><br/><br/>Pipa was reminded of the mage who tried to force Eren, and knew that it was more than just magic that kept such a record going.  Regardless the acolyte hung her robe on a hook and gestured for her to enter the next room.<strong> "The baths are for relaxing," </strong>he explained gesturing to the showers in the next room all around them,<strong>"You can enter them after you are clean."  </strong>The room after the locker room was lined with showers and in the center of the room stood a stone table laden with various soaps, towels, cleaning cloths, wooden scrape blades and bottles of some sort of goo that Pipa was unfamiliar with.  An old woman sat near the table and gave Pipa a sleepy smile as she entered before returning to the small carving in her hand.  A tiny knife made almost imperceptible cuts in the white soapstone that the old woman held, flecks of which went into a waste basket at her feet.  The acolyte gestured to the old woman,<strong>"Maev has served in the temple for forty seven years, and can give you any advice you ever might want about the bathing rituals or grooming."</strong><br/><br/>The old woman, Maev apparently, looked back up and nodded once.<strong>"I used to be a priest, but now the joints don't like moving around much.  I find the warm damp of the baths to feel soothing.  Just let me know if you need anything, now, shower up, you'll enjoy the baths I think."</strong><br/><br/>The acolyte and priest moved to speak with Maev quietly, giving Pipa a dozen feet of privacy and the comfort of their backs while she showered under a stream of water that could change temperature from an icy stream to nearly steam, it was a magical and marvelous luxury, but eventually she realized that she was just lazing, and turned off the stream of water.  The acolyte stayed where he was and Maev stood up, uncertain at first, but with a breath seemed to gain stability.  She led Pipa into the baths proper and Pipa found herself gasping.  These were no natural caverns, this was.... glorious.  Two pools sat to either side, easily large enough to fit several dozen people in.  The one on the right steaming and even at this distance Pipa could feel the heat coming from the right pool.  Maev gestured to it,<strong>"The pool on the right is the hot pool, be careful going in, it won't burn you, but sit in it for a few hours and we'll have contestant stew for dinner."</strong>She chuckled dryly to herself,<strong>"Maybe boil that green skin to a lovely red, eh?"</strong>Then gesturing to the pool on the left,<strong> "That one's the soaking pool, warm but not hot.  Then across the way, you see that door?  Steam room, stone benches lining the walls, surrounding a grate on the floor.   Good place to sweat, good place to go to relax aching joints.  Questions?  No?"</strong>Maev hadn't given her time to answer.<strong>"Then I'm going to go sit down on that bench and continue my carvings, you go enjoy the baths and  hollar if you need anything."</strong><br/><br/><hr/><br/>Later after her bath, she found the linen robe somewhat constraining considering how long she'd been naked around others.  But the acolyte led her to her dorm,<strong>"Moonlight dorm,"</strong>he explained,<strong>"Is one of six dorms that we have in the temple.  Midnight, Daybreak,  Morning, Midday, Dusk, and Moonlight.  We can house ten contestants in each, and need room for more than fifty so that we can house the alternates that are often sent.  Each dorm has a bunkroom, a lounge, and a small bathing facility with two privies and a shower, though the showers are no where near as nice as the ones in the living space.  Still as long as you don't mind cold showers, you are free to use it.  But I would suggest getting comfortable being naked around others sooner rather than later, for it is a forgone conclusion in the dungeon."</strong><br/><br/>The entered the lounge, finding several comfortable couches and chairs, and even a large piano in the corner.  The whole room was done tastefully and yet simply, with earth tones dominating everything.  Along one side of the room was a large table with ten chairs about it.  For studying maybe?  Meals?  Pipa wasn't sure and the acolyte didn't offer.  She yawned immediately as they went up a small flight of three stairs into the bunk room.  It was a large room with alcoves along three walls.  Three alcoves on the walls to her left and right, and four alcoves along the far wall.  The center of the room was dominated by a massive cabinet structure.<strong> "You may choose your bunk, any but that first one, as it's already been claimed,"</strong>he said in a soft voice gesturing to the single alcove that had it's curtains drawn shut.  From behind it the very soft sound of deep breathing, almost snoring but not quite, sounded over the top of the curtain.<br/><br/>Pipa chose an alcove and the acolyte nodded,<strong>"Your belongings will be here in the morning, sleep well contestant."</strong><br/><br/>The acolyte left, but Pipa noticed that the priest only retreated as far as the sitting area and then stood against one wall silently.  She looked around her chosen alcove and found shelving on either side and a chalk board on the other wall, complete with chalk, to take notes or leave messages for the owner of that alcove she supposed?  Above the top shelf on either side was a dimly glowing mage light ensconced in a glass sphere.  Touching the sphere made the light go dark or return to light.  Too tired to do much else she pulled the bundled blankets over her body, lay her head on the pillow that had been in the alcove, and was swiftly asleep.<br/><br/><hr/><br/>Pipa arose the next morning to the sound of soft singing.  She woke in this unfamiliar place, feeling actually very well rested and sat up.  Looking around the first thing she spotted was her pack with her belongings sitting on the floor just outside of her alcove.  The next was the other occupant of her dorm.  A redheaded elven woman with wild curly hair.  She was singing very softly in another language.  As Pipa moved she turned, turning great grey eyes on the quarter orc.  Pipa couldn't help but notice the woman's freckled skin and small pert breasts, her cute upturned nose, or her full lips.  Then on second glance she noticed the tight athletic body and rather wicked looking tattoos on the elf's arm and leg.  But the elf girl smiled,<strong> "Hello, I guess we're going to be bunkmates for the next few months?  I'm Vania."</strong><br/><br/>Pipa heard the sound of a throat being cleared and looked to see that there was a different acolyte waiting down below in the sitting area.  There were two hooded priests as well, though they seemed to be content to wait, if Pipa wished to speak with her new bunkmate.  The throat clearing was probably just an announcement that they were present.