"Sooner or later we are going to have to fight this thing," whispered Brumbar.
Snow took no such precautions. In normal tones he said, "I calculate that we can be here for sixteen hours before the spell breaks."
"Where is here?" asked Brumbar, still whispering, and looking around.
"This is extradimensional space," said the elf. "Think of it as a world hidden within the world we know."
"Invisibility," Brumbar whispered, nodding.
"Not at all like invisibility," corrected Snow. "And you don't have to whisper."
Brumbar narrowed his eyes as if deciding to believe his companion.
Snow kept talking, "If I just turned us invisible, we would still be there in Southrun. That storm, if it's master really had us in mind, would be punishing us with its fury."
"So its like a tent..."
"No," Snow shook his head. "This extradimensional space is about the size of a tent here on the inside, but outside it has no footprint at all."
"Whatever," said Brumbar. "All I care about is if it can see us."
"It can't. We aren't there to be seen... or heard. We are here instead."
"What about our companions?" asked Brumbar.
"Safe," assured Snow. "Wet, but safe. I just checked."
Brumbar started.
"There is a window into the world we left," explained Snow.
Brumbar looked in each direction of the space they shared, insisting, "I don't see a window."
"You have to know where to look," said Snow.
"So it's invisible," said Brumbar, nodding.
Snow opened his mouth and then thought better of it. He closed it without saying anything. Then he shrugged off his pack and dug around. After a few minutes, he withdrew a thick tome.
The two men passed the next few minutes in silence. Snow read from his book. Brumbar tapped his chin and thought.
When Brumbar broke the peace, it was in his regular voice, "We should face it instead of hiding."
Snow didn't answer.
Brumbar quickly followed with a question, "How can we fight a cloud? My carpet is destroyed."
"It isn't a cloud," assured Snow. "There is some being in it."
"Perhaps," allowed Brumbar. "Do you have a flying spell available?"
"I do, but I think we are better off hiding in extradimensional space until its fury is spent." Then he added, "Sixteen hours, remember?"
"In my experience," Brumbar said, "Women don't tire of their anger as easily as all that." The knight tapped the pommel of his sword. "We should face this cloud (or cloud's master) like men -- instead of all this creeping around and hiding in invisible tents like common camp followers."
"What would a Paladin know of women and camp followers?" mused Snow.
"About as much as an elf knows about about a straight up fight, apparently."
"Mock me and my talents," said Snow, "But my race is a noble people who built civilizations and went to war while yours were still working out how to walk on their hind legs."
Brumbar nodded. "So all the hiding and grab robbing is something you came to late?"
Snow chaffed. "I didn't steal from that tomb."
"You forget that I saw you," accused Brumbar.
"In a dream!" reminded Snow.
"Well, why did the statues come to life, then?"
"Why do dragons fly? Why do goblins kill? Why do storms hunt people in a desert? We live in a fantastical world, Brumbar. And it doesn't need a grand moral design to try to hurt us."
"The storm chases us because one of us broke a promise," insisted Brumbar.
"Maybe," allowed Snow. "Or maybe its just a crazy world full of danger."
"If it can hurt us, we can hurt it," declared Brumbar.
"There are at least a hundred reasons why that doesn't make sense."
"Makes sense to me," shrugged Brumbar.
"Okay, what weapon?" asked Snow.
"What weapon, what?" clarified the knight.
"What weapon would you use to fight a cloud?"
"Fireball," said Brumbar.
"I asked what weapon *you* would use," reminded the elf.
"My mace," said Brumbar.
"To fight a cloud?" scoffed Snow.
It was Brumbar's turn to remind. "You are the one who said it wasn't a cloud."
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