"First of all," the creature-guy said, "you should probably know you can't go back home." He pulled out a clear vile out of his stomach; inside contained the magic rock. "You have been contaminated by this. Luckily, you two were the only ones. I have been ordered to confiscate the parasite and take any infected."
Can't go home? Infected? What was going on? Jon was having a hard time, partly because it was disoriented to understand a language he never learned.
"We've started the purification process," he continued, "but it needs time to finish. If you go back now, due to the nature of your planet, you would die, killing anyone you came in contact with. Do you have any questions? Oh, right, let me get that." He took the gel off their mouths.
"What do you mean we can't go back?" Karyn yelled. "Where the heck are we?"
The creature-guy immediately stuck the gel back on her mouth. "That was annoying. Anyway, you are in space, on the way to the Cappan."
"Space?" Jon whispered. This whole conversation was going over his head. "What are you?"
"I am a goave; my name is Harc." He stood up and did a formal bow. "May harmony be with us."
Jon bowed awkwardly. "Likewise. My name is Jon, and this is Karyn. What's going to happen to us? How long the purification process last?"
"Hmm, don't know for both questions. Only ordered to take you to Cappan, then I'm off to the next job."
"Harc!" a voice cried from outside the room. "We need you up here."
"If you'll excuse me. Oh, by the way, the purification process can have some strange side-effects. Don't panic." With that, Harc left the room, changing back to his jelly state.
