Two Brothers

by Phoenix Grey

  Hopefully, that was all it would be. There was a lot of loot in Azure's bag. Surely, once sold, it would be enough to get him to Squall's End.

  "It's a four-day trip," Lonnell continued. "You likely won't find anything designed for passenger travel. Mostly merchant ships."

  "That's fine with me." Azure definitely wasn't expecting any fineries. "And the school is in Squall's End?"

  "On the outskirts of it. But it's not free either. I'm afraid you'll find that everything, once you leave the island, is a bit expensive. It's part of the reason why I have no desire to leave."

  "If it's too expensive, I suppose I could just buy spells instead," Azure said with a sigh.

  "Not if you ever want to become a skilled mage." Lonnell shook his head. "Magic scrolls are actually illegal to sell to the public. The ones that Uden and I came across were black market." He shrunk slightly as he said it, which made Azure grin. Upstanding Lonnell Namud had done something illegal. It was almost unfathomable. "Ruthren smuggled them over. You can often buy them from merchants who sell a variety of...strange things, but only if that merchant trusts you. Still, most of what slips through by illegal means are just low-level spells. To become adept at magic, you have to attend a magic school."

  It reminded Azure of the difference between becoming a phlebotomist and a doctor. Phlebotomy is a medical skill, but you don't need to go to college for it. All doctors know phlebotomy, but no phlebotomist can become a doctor without schooling.

  "Whatever the case, I want to make it happen." Azure waved away all of the potential roadblocks in his path. "I think it would be what Uden would have wanted."

  "Indeed." Lonnell nodded. "I suppose, in that regard, you'll have to carry on in his memory."

  "Speaking of which," Azure took the opportunity to change subjects to a more pressing matter. "I was thinking of going to Cragbell tomorrow to sell my loot. Is there anything that you or your parents need for the funeral?"

  "Nothing in particular. Uden was not well-liked, so we're not planning for a large service." His expression softened with sadness. "My parents have decided to bury his remains under the tree where he practiced his knife throwing. I feel it's appropriate."

  "I'm honestly not sure what to expect from your funeral traditions," Azure admitted. "Do you place flowers on the graves?"

  "No." Lonnell gave him a queer look. "We simply bury the body and say a few words of remembrance. The person's belongings are typically divided amongst family members according to what item is most useful or most treasured to that person. Sometimes, it can lead to nasty squabbles."

  That's not too different from my world, Azure thought.

  Lonnell continued, “Uden didn't have much, and what was precious to him was destroyed with his flesh thanks to his imp's blood's decaying skill. It is a bit sad.”

  And a bit of a waste. The decay of Uden's weapons was a loss. Azure felt bad for thinking it, but it was true. If Uden's possessions hadn't been destroyed along with his body, Azure might have gotten some better gear out of it.

  "It is sad...and kind of interesting," Azure confessed.

  "I suppose it is interesting." Lonnell nodded. "I honestly hadn't known what to expect when he died. It was a strange reminder that he wasn't all human. Truthfully, I often forgot. He looked so much like a human that it was hard for me to believe that he wasn't 100% human."

  "I know," Azure agreed, though he still felt there had always been some otherworldly quality to Uden that had separated him from the rest. It was in his eyes and the pallor of his skin and the silent way that he was able to move. The half-imp had been a rather mysterious creature to Azure.

  "Anyway, I should let you get some sleep." Lonnell pulled himself to his feet and picked up his lantern.

  "Would you like to go with me to Cragbell tomorrow?" Azure asked.

  He thought for a moment before responding. “Sure. I suppose there's nothing else to do around here.”

  "Good stuff." Azure smiled. "I'm sure you have a lot of things to sell, too."

  "I do," Lonnell replied before turning to leave. He took a step and then paused, looking back at Azure. "I never thanked you for coming with me on this...adventure," he hesitated on the word as if pondering if it was the right one. "This isn't your home. You had no stake in what happened here, yet you came anyway.

  "I know that Uden often gave you a hard time, and we didn't always agree on things, but I honestly couldn't have done this without you. So thank you." He smiled softly.

  "It's the least I could do."

  Just then, a notification popped up.

  Your relationship with Lonnell has reached Level 4. Your relationship has been updated from Trusted to Friend. You and Lonnell have been through a lot together. His opinion of you is high, and he will not hesitate to help you with anything that you need. Congratulations!

  CHAPTER NINE

  THE REALM – Day 37

  The next morning, Azure restocked his supply of arrows from Manny's shed and then collected the rabbit pelts that Meva owed him before heading off towards Cragbell with Lonnell at his side. Upon arriving, he went straight to Ruthren's cart.

  “Heyo!” the merchant greeted them, seeming chipper as usual. He glanced at Lonnell, then behind him. “Where's your brother? I just got something in that I think he'll love.” Excitement rang clear in his voice.

  “Uden died,” Lonnell said, not bothering to ease the blow.

  Ruthren's smile instantly faded. “How did it happen?”

  “It's a long story,” Lonnell sighed, “but the short version is that he was protecting me.”

  “I have time for a long story,” the merchant told him, obviously wanting the details.

  As Lonnell rehashed their harrowing ordeal with the demon, Azure browsed Ruthren's wares. The Bag of Holding was still there waiting for him. Of course, it was. Who around here could afford such a thing? Somehow, though, seeing it didn't bring about as much yearning as it had before. In all the time that Azure had spent inside The Realm, he'd yet to completely fill his inventory. Sure, he couldn't hold large items in the bag he had now, but it didn't seem to matter as much. Acquiring the Bag of Holding wasn't as important to him as getting off of the island.

  Normally, Azure's eyes would have gravitated to all of the shiny weapons with their amped-up stats. But today, he was being practical. Shopping was all about what he needed to survive. Not what he wanted.

  “That's some nice armor you've got there,” Ruthren commented on his Armor of Light once he had finished talking to Lonnell. “Got any mind to sell it? You don't see a complete set of armor like that around very often.”

  “It's not for sale,” Azure replied quickly, knowing that the armor was one of the most valuable things he possessed. Even if he didn't have enough coin to buy passage to the mainland after he sold all of his loot, selling the armor was out of the question. He doubted he'd come across anything better in a while. He might be wrong, but he wasn't willing to risk it.

  Ruthren held up his palms. “It never hurts to ask.”

  “No, it doesn't.” Azure smiled at him. “I do have a lot of other things to sell, though.” He unfastened his bag from his waist to begin rummaging through it and placing his loot on the cart.

  Admittedly, he had expected a low-ball price for the rabbit pelts and bat wings, but when the merchant only offered him twenty-five copper per demon horn, Azure had a hard time hiding his discontent. “We nearly died to get these. In fact, Uden did die,” he pointed out. It would not be beyond him to play the sympathy card in his haggling.

  “I'm sorry, kid, but I can't pay you more than they're worth. The smaller the horns, the less they go for, and these are lesser demon horns.” Ruthren was unmoving.

  “But the item class is rare.” He stared down at the horns, wondering if they were really worth so little.

  “Twenty-five per horn is all I can offer you. Take it or leave it, kid.” Ruthren began counting out the coins he owed Azure for everything else.

 
“I'll take it,” he grumbled, still not happy.

  Throwing in the iron halberd, since he didn't think he was going to use it anymore, Azure received four gold, two silver, and seven copper. That should definitely be enough to buy him passage on a ship, Azure thought with relief. Picking up the halberd had been a smart move. He was surprised when Ruthren offered him one gold, four silver, and five copper for it. At the time, Azure had no idea how valuable the weapon was. It felt like one of the few things that had gone right.

  Now he wished they had taken the time to kill the two goblin warriors waiting at the entrance of the cave. Maybe their spears would have been worth a lot, too. Oh well. There was no going back to the past. Azure could only look forward and learn from his mistakes.

  For his share of shopping, Azure replaced the mortar and pestle that had been taken from him by the goblins and purchased twenty-five empty vials, which left him with three gold, seven silver, and eight copper total (when adding in what coin he already had on him). Being frugal was probably important if he wanted to survive once he got to Squall's End.

  “When's the burial going to take place?” Ruthren asked once their business was concluded.

  “Tomorrow, shortly after sunset,” Lonnell told him. “Uden hated the sun, so we figured it would be more respectful to do it in the dark.”

  “That makes sense.” The merchant nodded. “I'll try to be there.”

  “He would like that.” Lonnell smiled softly.

  Azure allowed his curiosity to get the better of him. “What was it that you had for him that you thought he would have liked?”

  A large grin spread across Ruthren's face as he reached behind his cart to pull out a scroll. He handed it to Lonnell first, who chuckled softly before showing it to Azure. “Yeah, he definitely would have liked this. Is it bad that I'm glad he never got a chance to buy it? I don't even want to imagine what mischief he would have gotten into with this power.”

  Drawn onto the front of the scroll in purple was the picture of a hand reaching for some coins on a table. Azure couldn't really tell what the scroll was supposed to be. Concentrating on it brought up the item's details.

  Spell Scroll: Steal

  Quantity: 1/1

  Weight: 0.0 kg

  Mana Cost: 7

  Cool Down: Ten Minutes

  Magic Class: Necromancy

  Uses: Silently transports items into your inventory from up to 10 feet away.

  Azure's eyes widened in wonder. A spell scroll. This was magic. He never knew how much he actually yearned for it until he had it within his reach.

  "How much is it?" he asked quickly.

  "Three gold," the merchant replied, causing Azure to cringe internally.

  "Is that a good deal?" He raised an eyebrow at Lonnell.

  "This is black market, boy. A special item. You pay for the risk of me bringing it here. You can't get this anywhere else but in The Deadlands," Ruthren explained before Lonnell could interject.

  Lonnell looked over at Azure. “It would be a good deal if you had no intentions of going to The Deadlands. You would likely be able to buy the same spell at the magic school there much cheaper, but few people who make it to The Deadlands come out alive. That's why it's called The Deadlands. Factor in the cost of transporting it here and the price is actually a steal.”

  The merchant's grin broadened as he agreed. “Yeah, it's a steal. This kid knows his stuff.” He glanced back over at Azure with greed in his eyes. “Are you interested in buying it?”

  Azure groaned inwardly. This was yet another instance of the Bag of Holding. Though he could afford the spell, if he spent the money, he definitely wouldn't have enough to go to the mainland. He had a feeling that quests and opportunities to make money would be more plentiful there, so it was probably better to wait. Regretfully, he declined, feeling like he had lost something when he watched Ruthren roll the scroll back up and put it away.

  "It annoys me how expensive things are here," he grumbled to Lonnell as they walked away from the merchant.

  "It really was a good deal," his friend told him. "Not a very useful spell if you're not into thievery, but still a good deal."

  "Yeah. I'm not exactly looking to become a bandit," Azure said with a sigh. "Are you ready to go back?"

  "Not yet. I want to head over to the tavern and check on Bronna." Lonnell glanced in the direction of the tavern, and his disposition seemed to perk up.

  "All right," Azure replied, not sharing in his companion's enthusiasm. There was a twinge of bitterness in his heart for the squat maiden. Not only did he find her annoying, but it was easy to trace the cause of all of this back to her.

  Playing the blame game probably wasn't fair. Honestly, it was more Lonnell's fault for telling Bronna about Uden's heritage in the first place, but he didn't dare to point the finger in that direction. He was certain that Lonnell felt the guilt―the responsibility for his part in his brother's death.

  They walked to the tavern and entered. Unlike before, no one glowered at them now that Uden wasn't present. Azure remembered the confrontation they'd had with the barkeep before. He decided that he was glad to be leaving the island. The longer he stayed here, the less he liked the people. Perhaps if he had been dropped into The Realm in another location, Azure would have seen Uden as an evil nuisance, too. But that wasn't the case, and he couldn't help that he now disliked the villagers for how harshly they had treated his friend just because he was half imp. Apparently, the half-human part of him hadn't counted for much.

  Fuck this place, he thought as he watched Lonnell scour the room for Bronna. Though the tavern was half-full, she was nowhere to be seen. They headed towards the bar where Leland acknowledged them with a nod. He was busy talking to a woman at the end of the bar and seemed to have no intention of serving them.

  Lonnell walked over to him. “Has Bronna come by today?”

  Leland gave him an annoyed look but pulled himself away from the conversation he was having nonetheless. “No, and she won't be coming by again for a while.”

  Lonnell furrowed his brow, and Azure instantly worried that she'd been kidnapped again. The last thing he wanted to do was have to go rescue the hobbit of a woman.

  "Why do you say that?" Lonnell asked.

  "Esau sent her to the mainland to stay with relatives. He didn't feel it was safe for her here anymore," the barkeep told him and then immediately went back to carrying on his conversation...which it quickly became apparent was more flirting than talking.

  "I'm assuming that Esau is her father," Azure commented as they stepped away from the bar.

  Lonnell nodded in acknowledgment, looking distraught. “I have to get her back.”

  Just then, a quest notification popped up.

  Quest: Find Bronna

  Feeling it would be safer, Bronna's father shipped her off to the mainland. The timing couldn't be worse now that Lonnell has decided to propose. Help him find his lost love.

  Difficulty: Easy

  Success: Find Bronna

  Failure: Fail to find Bronna, die, or abandon the quest

  Will you accept this quest: Yes or No?

  "I'm guessing that means you'll be heading to the mainland with me." It was difficult for Azure to hide his happiness about the situation. While he knew this wasn't what Lonnell wanted, he couldn't help but feel selfish. Maybe he'd even be able to convince his friend to stay once they got there.

  "I guess I don't have a choice," Lonnell replied with a sigh. "But first I need to find out where exactly he sent her to."

  "Does that mean we're going to Esau's?" Azure asked, wondering how far away the man lived.

  "It means we're going to the mill. That's where he works." Lonnell pivoted to exit the tavern, and Azure followed suit, having no real idea where they were headed.

  They walked until they reached a building on the far side of Cragbell. Having never been inside the structure before, Azure had just assumed it was a dwelling. The walls were made of white stone with a few
small windows, but there was no waterwheel or fans powered by the wind to grind grain. The wooden door was flung open to ventilate the building. Lonnell knocked on it twice before stepping inside.

  Instantly, Azure's nose filled with an earthy smell. It was like sticking his head into a bag of flour and having a good whiff, but there were other scents mixed in as well. The dark tones of rye and the malt of barley combined with the heat-baked stones of the building and the wood of the roof and the dust of the dirt floor.

  The sound of stone crushing grain came to a halt as they entered the dimly lit building. Inside, a man stood behind a large quern-stone. There was a sack of grain to one side of him and a sack of freshly milled flour on the other. He straightened himself and wiped his brow on the back of his sleeve, his expression showing little more than irritation at the interruption of his work. Wisps of white hair clung to his forehead from sweat.

  "Lonnell," he said the name with no betrayal of feelings towards it.

  "Esau." Lonnell bowed his head respectfully.

  "I suppose you're here asking after my daughter." The man hunched over, leaning against the stone table that the quern-stone rested on. He was short like his daughter, standing only about 5 feet tall, with a lean build, and appeared much older than Azure had expected. Clearly, Bronna had been born late in his life, for he had to be in his mid-sixties. Aquamarine eyes rested above a long nose with a hook at the end that concealed part of the lengthy white mustache below it. It extended over his upper lip and was swept messily to the sides. The man was definitely in need of a shave. All around him in the room were sacks of various grains waiting to be milled. It looked like an exhausting job.

  "Leland told me you sent her to the mainland. I am here to tell you that the threat has been dealt with. The curse on Crescent Island is no more, and it is safe for her to return," Lonnell said as if it were just that simple to get her back.