Adventures on Terra - Book 2: Escape

by R. A. Mejia

  I only have to wait fifteen minutes before I’m at the head of the line. When one of the tellers becomes available, I walk up to the counter and see a woman who looks to be in her twenties. Like all the other tellers, she’s wearing a blue short-sleeved dress shirt and a black tie. Her hair is mousy brown, and I see two cat ears peeking out from her short curly hair. She smiles professionally and greets me, “Welcome to the Adventurers’ Guild. How may I assist you today?”

  I’m not sure what to say, so I stare for a moment before answering, “Hey. I’m not a member of the Adventurers’ Guild, though I want to be. I mean who wouldn’t want to be able to get quests and loot and experience and stuff.” The cute lady in front of me presses her lips together in a concerted effort not laugh at me, and I realize that I’m rambling. So I hold out the three letters to her. She takes them and gives me a questioning look as if to ask ‘What am I supposed to do with these?’ I realize I haven’t explained at all about my quest and blurt out, “These letters are for an adventurer named Sebastian. He’s about fifteen years old, is a bear beastman, and the letters are from his family. It’s a quest they gave me. To deliver them, I mean.”

  The young lady nods in mock seriousness saying, “Well, thank you for all that information. I’ll be sure to have our staff look up the adventurer to whom you’re referring. Depending on where he’s at, it may take a while to get him the letters, but we’ll do our best to get them to him. Was there anything else?”

  You’ve completed the Quest, “Mailman.” You receive 5 XP and Improved reputation with Samiahle.

  I dismiss the quest notification, and I look around at the waiting line to see if anyone is listening, then lean towards the teller, “Uh, I wanted to get to Trinitarian. What’s the fastest way to get there?”

  The teller looks me over, notes my shirt full of holes, my worn black leather pants, and my dusty red scales, before telling me, “Well, if you have the coin for it. You can get teleported to Trinitarian, but that service costs a full gold for non-guild members.” When I gulp at the huge price, she smiles slightly and continues, “A cheaper alternative would be to get work as a guard for one of the caravans traveling to the city. Though, most won’t hire you unless you're a member of one of the guilds.”

  I nod eagerly at the last suggestion, and the friendly teller looks through a notebook and writes down the names and dates of departure of several caravans going to Trinitarian in the next couple of weeks.

  I thank her for her help, but before I leave she casually says, “You mentioned that you were interested in joining the Adventurers’ Guild? If that’s true, you could take the entrance exam in Trinitarian. You’d have to get to level 5 before you could try though.”

  I turn back to her and smile widely, “Really? Thanks for the tip. I’ll work on getting to level 5 right away.”

  As I walk away, I hear her say to my back, “Good luck!”

  I meet up with the other members of my team near the entrance to the guild. I tell them about the list of caravans heading to Trinitarian and how we might be able to get hired on as guards with one of them. They tell me about the job board. They searched through the lists of jobs available, but the best-paying ones were either too high level for us or required that we’d be members of the Adventurers’ Guild. We decided first to investigate the possibility of becoming caravan guards. That would solve both our issues with coin and finding transport. We leave the Adventurer’s Guild full of high spirits sure we’ll have our problems sorted out in no time.

  Chapter 5.4

  It’s starting to get dark by the time we get to the last name on the list of caravans leaving for Trinitarian. We’ve already talked to the caravan masters of all the others, and they all refused to even consider us as guards unless we were members of a reputable guild. Walking along the horse stalls just outside the city proper; We had to wade through a flood of young men and women who were trying to attract the business of the wagons driving by. I can’t make out who’s saying what but a few voices rise above the rest to reach my ears.

  “If you want the best care for your horses, come to Barney’s Horse care facility. We’ll make sure they are well fed, and your wagon’s taken care of.”

  “Bah, he means they’ll steal your horses and the goods in your wagon. If you want to protect your goods, then bring your wagon to Millie’s Mine Cart. She has the best guards.”

  “Millie’s will charge you an arm and a leg. Dr. Gooflak, will not only take care of your horses but he’ll also give your wagon a twenty point inspection to make sure it’s in good repair.”

  The voices of the people hawking for our business start to mingle together, but Vrax deftly points to one person, a girl with tan skin, purple hair and a single eye centered above her nose. I lean down to talk to my Kobold friend, and he yells that he heard that girl mention Dr. Gooflak, the last person on our list of possible caravans. We walk up to the girl who can’t be more than fourteen years old, and I can see that she’s wearing a white short-sleeved shirt, black pants, and black thick soled boots.

  The athletic looking cyclops doesn’t notice us as she tries to get the attention of a four-horsed wagon driving by. I tap her on the shoulder, and she turns around with an irritated look on her face, “What do you want? Can’t you see that I’m trying to work here.”

  I put on my friendliest smile and answer, “Hello. I’m Armon, and we heard you mention Dr. Gooflak. We were wondering if you could tell us where that is. We have some business to discuss with him.”

  She eyes, or is that eye for a cyclops, us suspiciously and asks, “You debt collectors?”

  I look at the other members of my group, not sure if we want to hire on with a company with debt collectors after them. Vrax though has no compulsions about answering, “No. We are mighty warriors looking to travel with a caravan to Trin…Trin..”

  “Trinitarian. We’re looking to work our way to Trinitarian,” I finish for my kobold brother.

  The young one-eyed woman considers the four of us, then nods and holds out her hand, “Hello, I’m Leelu.” I shake her hand and introduce myself and the rest of the group. She politely nods as she’s introduced to everyone, then pointing to a building down the road, she continues, “Follow me, we’ll take a left at that building up ahead and continue for two blocks. Dr. Gooflak 's transportation, delivery, animal care, and wagon repair service is the building on the right.”

  Leelu starts walking down the road without looking back, and we have to hurry to follow her. It only takes ten minutes to wade through the crowds of child hawkers and turn left where she indicated. We find Leelu waiting next to a rather shoddy looking two-story building that’s painted firetruck red. Once we’re close, Leelu pushes open the two large red sliding doors on the side of the building and goes inside. Not wanting to assume it’s ok for us to follow her, we stop just outside the open sliding doors. I peek through the open doors and see an area that looks like a mechanic’s garage with tools along the walls. Leelu moves to the wall by the open doors, reaches up, and pulls a thick white rope twice. A loud bell rings two times, and she yells, “Dr. Gooflak, we have visitors.”

  An accented voice calls out from somewhere in the building, “Leelu is that you?”

  “Yes, Dr. Gooflak. It’s Leelu. I’ve brought some people with me.”

  A squat humanoid figure comes out from somewhere, walks up to Leelu and hugs her. Now that he’s in the light, I can see that the figure has pink chitinous skin and two crab claws instead of hands. He’s completely hairless, has large bulbous eyes, and seems to have a mass of tentacles where his mouth should be. He wears a white long sleeved coat, tan pants, and his feet are completely uncovered. He’s one of the oddest looking creatures I’ve ever seen.

  Mary, sitting near my shoulder, snickers, then whispers under her breath, “Ok, now where’s Fry?”

  I don’t quite make out what she says and ask, “What was that Mary?”

  “Oh, nothing. Nevermind.” Mary sees something, turns to Kitsun
e and tells her, “Look they’re waving for us to come inside.”

  I look forward and see that Leelu and Dr. Gooflak are waving their arms at us. My eyes take a moment to adjust to the shade in the garage as I walk inside.

  Dr. Gooflak waddles over to us and holds his clawed hand out. I tentatively place my hand on top of his chitinous extremity, and he moves it up and down in an approximation of a handshake, “Hello. I’m Doctor Gooflak. Pleased to meet you. My Leelu tells me that you’re interested in getting hired with our caravan to Trinitarian. Is this true?”

  I nod, “Yes. My team is highly skilled in combat, magic, and healing. We needed to get to Trinitarian and heard you were looking for some guards.”

  “Oh, yes, this is true. We have a group of wagons that we plan to lead to Trinitarian. We’re delivering fruits, vegetables, and other goods to the college there. We can’t pay you much, but if you’re good warriors, then we can take you with us. Tell me first, what makes you think you are good warriors?”

  The question surprises me. I hadn’t expected an interview. Everyone else asked if we were with any of the guilds and when we said we weren’t they lost interest. Oh, I’m terrible at interviews. Thankfully, Mary, our chief negotiator steps in smoothly, “We’re a balanced group with fighters, stealth, magic, and healing. We’ve faced scores of monsters in multiple dungeons and the wild. We’ve successfully fended off Imperare slavers and soldiers. We know we’re a little on the low level side, but our superior teamwork has helped us defeat foes almost twice our level.”

  The crab man nods his head with every word Mary says. When she finishes, he says enthusiastically, “Oh! You boys and girls sound wonderful. We’ll hire you. We can pay you five copper a day each, plus we’ll provide you with food.”

  Leelu pulls on his shirt and whispers loudly, “Doctor, you don’t know if any of that is true. They could be lying.”

  Dr. Gooflak looks down at her and gestures with his hands wildly while replying loudly, “What? They may be lying?” He turns to us, and I give him my best, most honest smile. He asks, “Are you folks lying to me?” We quickly reply that we’re not and he turns back to Leelu, “You see, they said they’re not lying. Satisfied?”

  Leelu starts to object again but the doctor cuts her off, “Leelu, I’m an excellent judge of character, and these boys and girls seem very honest and hard working to me.” Turning to our group, he holds out his claw and continues, “So, it’s decided? You’ll come with us?”

  Mary looks like she wants to say something, but I shake the man’s claw and agree, “We’re happy to be on board. When do we leave?”

  Dr. Gooflak hops with excitement and tells us, “We leave in a week, my boy. Return here when the sun comes up in seven days, and we will be off to Trinitarian together.”

  I thank the doctor for hiring us, and we all say our goodbyes. As we leave the garage, I notice that it’s already dark and the street near the stables is empty of people. I’m quite chipper, having secured passage and work for the next leg of our journey, and even skip once as I walk down the street. I’m quite satisfied with myself until Mary flies in front of me, “Oh, great leader. It’s wonderful that you’ve arranged for our passage to Trinitarian. But what are we going to do tonight? We still don’t have any coin in our pockets, we don’t have any food, and we don’t have anywhere to sleep.”

  I stop in my tracks at the reminder. Oh, I guess I forgot about that.

  Chapter 5.5

  The problem with not having food, lodging, or coin is easily solved for the night. City ordinances forbid people from sleeping in the streets, as the city guard kindly informs us when we try it. So we leave the city and camp in the nearby forest. We’re not the only ones that can’t afford to rent a room for the night, and all along the road outside the city are wagons and carts with people camping around them. Not everyone that works in a caravan wants to or can afford to sleep in an inn. We’re able to find a nice place in the forest only a quarter of a mile outside the city. It’s full night by the time we start a fire, and it’s too late to hunt, but Kitsune can barter for some food with the caravan folks in exchange for her healing skills. Since many of the wagons are full of foodstuffs, they’re more than happy to trade. A few even offer her a place on their crew, which she politely declines. The food isn’t anything special, mostly fruits and vegetables but it’s something in our bellies.

  So, our first night in Monstrum passes by as most of our nights have. Us camping out, with full stomachs, and us on a rotating watch. The fire keeps away the wild animals, and the person on watch keeps away the two legged threats.

  The next day we go back to the city to figure out how we’ll spend the next seven days. After discussing our skill set, we decide to get temporary jobs to try and raise some money for our trip and increase our skills. Kitsune gets hired on as an assistant with the local healers. Vrax and Mary answer a variety of non-guild jobs, which include gathering herbs, killing local wildlife, finding lost objects, and even solving a minor murder case. It turned out it was the butler in the kitchen with the candlestick.

  I spent my time that week working with a local blacksmith. I wanted to get some guidance with my new blacksmithing skills. The blacksmith was a gruff looking dwarf that had too much work to handle on his own. He said that his apprentice ran off and that was the only reason he’d even consider taking me on. I had to show him my [Skill] window to prove that I already had the blacksmithing skill, even if it was still at novice level one. When he asked why I wasn’t already apprenticed, I lied and said that I’d bought the skill book for the craft but hadn’t realized how much practice it would take to understand how to work with metal.

  He laughed at that. Said it took him years to learn how to be a blacksmith which included six years as an apprentice and three more as a traveling journeyman. When I asked how long it took him to get the [Blacksmithing] skill, he said he got it the first day he hit some metal at the forge. When I tried to press him for details about how long it took him to go up a rank in the skill, he dismissed my questions out of hand. He emphasized that just having a skill and knowing how to use it are two very different things; especially when it came to crafting. When it came to crafting, each new rank that you want to achieve must be accompanied by proof of skill and knowledge, or you can’t raise it. Going from novice to beginner requires proof of knowledge. You take an oral test proving you know the basics of the craft along with a small example of your work in copper. Gaining any other rank requires a better example of your craft in a specific metal that has to be judged by a master. To get from beginner rank to intermediate rank requires a piece made from bronze. To go from intermediate to advanced requires an iron piece. From advanced to expert, a steel one. From expert to master requires a master-quality work in mithral.

  After agreeing to hire me for six days, I immediately got to work on cleanup duty. For the blacksmith this meant sweeping, cleaning the forge, he showed me where to put away the tools at the end of the day. He expected me to clean rust off the tools, haul stock from storage, and replenish fuel and water. The blacksmith showed me where the fuel for the forge is kept and expected me to know the difference between coal, charcoal, and coke. The knowledge the [Blacksmithing] crystal imbued into my mind included this information. Coal looks like a rock, natural charcoal looks like thoroughly burnt chunks of wood, and coke looks like a porous version of coal, which it is. Coke is a specially processed version of carbon-rich coal that burns hotter and leaves less residue than coal.

  After a couple of days of proving I could handle cleaning and supply duties, the blacksmith started letting me help him pull the bellows on the forge which increased airflow and thus heat when he was working with the metal. While doing this work, the blacksmith would explain the processes of and uses of forge fuel. Which projects used coal, charcoal, or coke. He prefers to use a mix of all three to get the high heat, the steadiness of burning and the durability of fire to be able to work for a while on a project. He said the best way to do t
his is in layers, charcoal on the bottom, then coke, then coal on top, as needed, to feed the fire. While I already knew the temperatures that each fuel burned at from the information in the knowledge crystal, I didn’t know the stuff about which metals worked best with each fuel and the advice about layering the fuels. Heck, with the crystal forge I had in my [Inventory] I knew that I didn’t ever need to use any of those fuels since it ran off mana. It wasn’t until the blacksmith showed me how much work it took daily to manage and control the heat in his forge that I appreciated the crystal forge. I knew enough that I could likely sell the object for hundreds of pieces of gold to any well off blacksmith and that anyone who knew anything about the craft would kill me to get their hands on it. Nope, that object is staying in my inventory until I can practice where I’m sure no one can see me.