Whether Ted believed Madorn or not, Eknie was not going to walk up to them and tell them how they were allowed to feel about her. That freedom was intoxicating, and for lesser men, it would have been terribly frightening as well.
The high cor was comfortable with Madorn and some strong mead, just like Theinskvalur had suggested, and the two men shared different - and rather dark - thoughts while their fingers got frozen and the mead got colder and colder.
"...And that is why the pressure is not a problem until a certain depth is reached," the scientist explained.
Of course, Ted had not been listening at all and he knew that Mad knew this. There was no sense in getting upset about it. If it had been the high cor explaining occult stuff, Madorn would have yawned. Despite his best efforts, Ted had never managed to get the inventor even mildly interested in magical matters after the initial honeymoon with basic sigilcraft.
