I ended up grabbing a set of leather shoulders, leggings, gloves, and a ring which gave me +1 to strength and agility. The rest of the gear was cloth, and the weapons were useless to me. Evans gladly took the rest.
We sat around the campfire and chatted general leatherworking until we both decided we were too tired to stay up much longer. We set out our bedrolls by the fireside and kept our swords close by. The stars were absolutely mesmerizing. Constellations I’d never seen twinkled away in the heavens above. This world was actually pretty cool.
At first, I thought I had been dreaming, but then I felt it again. My bracer was vibrating in a three-pulse pattern. I opened my eyes and saw a notification flashing red and white at the bottom of my vision.
PROXIMITY ALERT
I was up in an instant, sword at the ready. My sudden movement woke up Merchant Evans, and he drew a shortsword from beside his pillow. Three riders on horseback approached. Two, hands on their sword pummels, held torches high in their other hand. Slightly behind, but in direct line of sight, the third had an arrow nocked in his bow, but the bowstring wasn't drawn.
“Whoa! Steady your weapons, gentlemen, we mean you no harm. I am Sergeant Williams of the city patrol. We've heard rumors of cutthroats traveling this way and have begun patrolling.”
Evans lowered his sword and returned it to its scabbard. “Yer a bit late, Sergeant, we ran into them yesterday. Killed one of my guards too before Aba here took out two of ’em. The third bastard ran off into the forest like a coward.” Not seeing a threat, I too put my weapon away.
Sergeant Williams looked shocked. “May I see the bodies?”
“Don’t know why you'd wanna, but sure.” Evans covered a yawn and led the sergeant a short distance into the woods.
Merchant Evans and Sergeant Williams came back from the forest a short while later. “Abalonious, good work against those two. They were the top two leaders of the local gang of cutthroats. You’ve done the countryside a great service dispatching that scum.”
I nodded once. “Just helping out someone in need. I can’t stand bullies, and I couldn’t walk on and let them do as they pleased.”
Williams looked surprised. “You mean you didn’t know about the bounty?”
“No? What bounty?” I shrugged. “Sorry, this is my first time leaving the village. I've never been out this far.” I lied. It seemed plausible that I'd grown up in the village and never ventured out until I was old enough. Better than trying to explain being a player from the real world.
Williams pulled out a note. “I’m impressed. You don’t see many people go out of their way to help their fellow man without reward. There’s a decent-sized reward at that. Here, when you pass through the city, head to the bailiff's office and give him this. You’ve more than earned it.”
Item Received: Bounty Reward Claim (500 Silver)
Quest Received: Bounty Hunter - See the bailiff about your reward.
Accept?
“Thank you. Yeah, I’ll take this over as soon as I get there. I could use the funds anyhow.”
Sergeant Williams offered me his hand, and I traded grips with him. “If you’re ever looking for a place in the city guard, I’d happily recommend you. We can always use good soldiers.”
I thanked him again, and his patrol set off into the forest after the third cutthroat. Evans and I headed back to our bedrolls and quickly fell asleep.
The next morning, Merchant Evans and I ate some more of the deer and mushrooms. Even the leftovers tasted amazing. After cleaning up breakfast, we went to check out the tanned leather hides to see what we were working with.
Merchant Evans nodded slowly as he appraised the hides. “Not bad, not bad at all. We can definitely work with this. There’s enough leather to make a couple different pieces of armor for you, as well as repair your leather vest.”
“What do you have for sale in your inventory, armor-wise? I figure I should save the materials for anything I can’t buy.”
I thought about my gear, and a screen popped up before me listing all of my gear. Or rather, lack thereof.
I looked through Merchant Evans’ inventory and I noticed something called a Power Conduit. My bracer buzzed twice, and a notification popped up:
Compatible Part Detected: Power Conduit
Coaxial Power Conduit: Regulates power in tech-based armor
“Evans, how much for this? My bracer seems to want it.” Yes. It did feel odd saying that.
“Fifty silver and it’s yours.”
“Sold.” I took the part, and another popup sprang to life:
Initiate Repair and Diagnostics Mode?
Evans looked over with curiosity as I answered yes. The bracer lit up like a Christmas tree, and a panel opened on one side. I inserted the power conduit and closed the panel. At first, nothing happened, and the lights just sat there, blinking slowly. After a few more moments, it came to life. Panels opened everywhere, lights flashed, and a holographic blueprint appeared listing statistics for power consumption and charge rate and battery life. We both sat there in awe as I looked over the diagrams.
A mechanical voice suddenly startled us. “Boot. Sequence. Complete. Power flow restored. System efficiency: Twenty percent. Suboptimal. Please seek replacement quantum capacitors.”
On the blueprint diagram, two squares were highlighted. I touched the one flashing red. A square ejected itself from the bracer and fell to the ground. I picked it up and examined it. A small charred square, maybe a cubic inch, lay in my palm. “Evans, did you happen to have one of these too?”
He frowned. “Nah, that I don’t.”
The bracer spoke again. “Diagnostics completed. Do you need assistance?”
Evans and I looked at each other. “Yes? What are you?”
“I am an artificial intelligence construct subset designed for combat and strategic operations.”
“Subset?” I asked. “You mean you are incomplete?”
“That is correct. As more pieces of tech armor are connected, my capabilities will grow substantially. The left bracer was destroyed in battle. I had to sacrifice the shield module in order to save the Caretaker from a quantum cannon. I was to be left in your possession by the Caretaker two hundred years ago at the end of the Battle of Unsung Heroes.”
“Do you have any more information about this war?”
“Negative. Deep memory storage is not currently available without a satellite uplink module.”
“Where do I get one of those?” Hey, it was worth a try.
“Unknown. Satellite uplink modules were normally installed in shoulder plating module sockets. Acquire shoulder plating to access satellite functions.”
Now my curiosity was piqued. “What functions?”
“Depending on equipment configuration, functions will vary between offensive, defensive, intelligence gathering, and long-range communications, as well as access to central mainframe memory storage records.”
“What are your current capabilities?” If it was broken, I supposed I had better figure out how badly
“Quantum capacitor status: twenty percent. Expect slow recharge rate, diminished charge. Currently available enhancements: Augment Weapon. Augment Movement Speed unavailable due to reduced power availability. Shield bracer destroyed. Shielding system unavailable. Further queries?”
“Just one more, What do I call you?”
“The caretaker called me ‘SADA,’ short for Strategic Armor Defense AI Construct; however, you may rename me at any time.”
“SADA, huh? That actually has a nice ring to it.” The diagnostic display winked out, and the module bays all closed. The metal returned to its inert, boring state.
Evans chuckled. “Well, I didn't think I'd ever watch someone havin’ a conversation with a bracer. That there’s somethin’ ya don’ see every day.”
“Right? That was a first for me as well.”
We crafted a leather bracer for my left forearm and repaired the chest piece. We also made six leather armor repai
r kits. Evans happened to have a decently nice studded leather jacket for sale, and after a discount, he charged me 155 silver pieces. That left me with 85 silver.
Evans clapped once. “Much better! Ya look fit for adventurin’!”
I looked myself over. “Not bad at all, for a noob.” Evans laughed. I moved my arms about, stretching and flexing, trying to get the idea of the range of motion. The leather seemed to accommodate most of my movements without any real handicap. “Not bad at all. I suppose the leather will loosen up as I wear it in?”
“Yup. Usually takes a few days of fightin’, but it'll feel like a secon’ skin soon enough. By the way, you should talk to Etta Wellington, the Innkeeper in the next village over. Tell ’er Evans sends his regards.”
A quest notification popped up and I accepted. “Thank you for all of your help, Evans, hope to see you again sometime.”
Evans smiled, and we traded grips. “Nah, boy, be me should be thankin’ ye. Owe ya my life, I do. I have a shop in Aspen. Ye should stop in sometime.”
“Count on it!” I gathered my gear and headed down the dirt road toward Pinewood Village.
3
Morogan, The Brave
The dirt road snaked through the forest like a river. The trees had been cleared some distance away on either side, likely for visibility and to keep the animals away. A small creek could be heard just past the tree line, serene against the quiet loudness of the forest. Might as well stop and check it out; I’d been walking for a few hours and could use a break.
A gentle breeze blew from up the creek, carrying with it the smell of fish. My stomach grumbled. Maybe it was time for some creative thinking…
Exploring the riverside and the forest past it, I found a nice stick to use as a fishing pole. I came across a spider thing the size of a basketball in a shadow at the base of a bush. I wasn’t sure how prevalent they were out here, but as with all spiders, if there was one, you could bet there were more. Of course, I cut it to pieces. The spider silk was perfect for fishing line, and I used one of the razor-sharp barbs on its legs as a hook. The rest I kept and bound in some leaves so they wouldn't stab me. You never knew, I might need them later. I used a pinecone as a bobber and some spider meat as bait. I supposed I could have eaten the spider meat, but I wasn't sure how to cook or if it was even safe to do so.
Surprisingly enough, I caught a fish. A notification telling me I'd learned basic fishing had popped up as well. That was interesting: you could still learn some skills on your own without visiting a trainer.
After cooking the fish and a mushroom from earlier, the smell was so overwhelmingly delicious that I devoured it. It was probably the best “seafood” I'd ever had. As I’d finished eating, I became keenly aware of how quiet the forest had grown over the last few minutes. The birds had stopped squawking, and the crickets had stopped chirping. The only sound came from the flowing water. Nothing stirred.
Movement caught my eye in my peripheral vision. Casually, I turned toward it, trying to act as if I hadn't noticed. There was nothing there. A chill crawled up my spine as I scanned the area. Still nothing. It was definitely time to “Nope!” out of here. Cautiously, I backed away from the area, scanning left and right as I quietly moved toward the dirt road, my hand on the hilt of my sword.
For a few miles, I felt as if I was being followed, hunted even. After a while more, the feeling faded, and I could hear the sounds of the forest animals again. Feeling a little safer, I continued on my journey to Pinewood Village.
Several more hours passed without incident, and rolling hills greeted me. Fields of green stretched for miles in every direction except east, where a dark, dense forest covered everything behind it. In the distance, a stone wall surrounded a small farm village.
From up on the hill, I could see the circular layout. Farmhouses with small gardens were arrayed in a circle around a central building. Fields in quarter circles surrounded the houses, and the dirt road turned to cobblestone as I followed its path.
A commotion came from a group of people who stood outside the cobblestone wall. As I neared, I noticed that the group consisted of three males, maybe in their early twenties; however, it was the guy they had pinned to the wall who drew my attention. The kid was just short of six foot four and built like a tank. Pointy ears, greenish skin, and fangs. I’d played enough games in the past to recognize him as a half-human half-Orc. A shield and mace lay nearby on the ground.
The biggest of the three men was in the Orc’s face, “Where is the girl!” He punched him in the stomach, and the young Orc grunted in pain.
“Morogan told you. Morogan not know!” He flinched back as another blow came.
“Liar!” the ringleader bellowed. He looked at his two friends. “He probably ate her.” He turned back to Morogan. “Didn't you, filthy Orc.”
Morogan looked horrified. “Morogan not eat! Not eat! Morogan swear!”
Bullies. Racist bullies at that. “Enough!” Everyone turned, startled. “Leave him alone. Now.” I reached for the hilt of my sword but didn't draw.
“Mind your business, kid, and don’t be making threats you can’t back up. It’s three against one.”
“I said back off, asshole.” I was quickly losing patience with them.
“I got this, Luther.” One of the goons pulled out a steel club and rushed me. I drew my sword and intercepted its trajectory mid-arc, sending sparks flying every which way. That surprised him.
“Not so easy when they fight back, is it?” He was about to respond with an undoubtedly snarky comment, but I saved him the trouble of stretching his brain muscle and landed a Dash-assisted kick to his chest. He landed atop his friends in a heap. Apparently, I had knocked the breath from his body and stunned him.
“You son of a whore! I'll kill you!” Luther bellowed. I focused on my augment skill, and lightning erupted from my sword, sheathing it in brilliant white light. Luther, realizing I wasn’t going to be a pushover, gathered his cronies and backed away. “This isn't over, bitch. Not by a long shot.”
I returned my sword to its latch and turned to face Morogan as Luther and his goons ran off. He too had fallen in the commotion as bodies hit the ground. “Sorry about that. You all right?”
“Morogan all right. You save Morogan from hurting bad men.” He picked up his mace and shield and hung them from leather straps on his back. “Morogan not like fight for nothing.”
“Who were they? Why were they threatening you?”
“Bad men mad. Morogan beat bad men in tournament. Girl missing. Bad men tell village Morogan eat. Morogan not eat girl. Not eat people. Not ever!”
“What if I help find her? Will they leave you alone?”
“You help Morogan?
Quest Received: missing persons report.
Find out what happened to the missing girl.
“Yes. I will help you find her.”
Morogan smiled. His boyish looks were very apparent. “Morogan, how old are you?”
“Morogan seventeen years. Morogan quest for manhood.”
“Ahh, I see.” I nodded. “I'm also on a similar quest. Maybe you want to join a party with me? We could help each other.”
Morogan jumped up and down, “You join party with Morogan!?”
I laughed. “Sure, why not?”
He looked down at his feet, “No one join Morogan before. Humans not like half-Orc. Orcs not like half-Human. Morogan solo always.”
I offered him my hand. “Join me. Let's go kick some ass together.” He took my hand, and a small window appeared with both of our names and HP and MP bars.
“Abalone… Abaloni… You have hard name. Morogan call you…Aba!”
“I like it.” I smiled. “Nice to meet you, Morogan.”
“Morogan happy meet Aba too.”
We headed into the village, and Morogan showed me to the bulletin board. There was a pickup quest for some heal root and a hunting quest for some deer and boar. We snagged both of them.
The central building
happened to be the inn. We stopped by, and I met with Etta Wellington and passed on Evan's regards. The quest completed, and I received 100 XP as well as a free stay while I was in the village. She also handed me a letter with my name on it.
Abalonious,
I regret that I am unable to meet with you as Paul had requested. A lead came up regarding our “mutual quest” and I had to look into it. I shall meet with you in a few days in the city of Bridgeport.
Garstil, The Arcane.
I pocketed the letter and thanked her. A notification alerted me that my main quest had been updated.
I met with Stephen Magnus, the little girl's dad. Apparently, Ashley, the little girl, was quite the adventurer.
With what information I could gather from Mr. Magnus, we set off for the spider forest.
Morogan had waited a little way away as he hadn't wanted to frighten Mr. Magnus, so I had to fill him in on the details.
“So, apparently, little Ashley is quite the adventurer. Her dad is worried though, as she never stays gone for more than half a day. It seems her dog went missing, and no one wanted to help look for him. She got frustrated and went looking by herself. That was two days ago.”
“Morogan worried. Two days long time for little girl. Morogan hope she okay.”
“So do I.” We traveled a bit into the forest in silence. Both of us worried about the fate of a little girl all alone in a forest full of spiders. A chill ran down my spine as I remembered the basketball-sized spider I had slain at the river. My foot crunched on something. I looked down, thinking it was a branch, but following it, I noticed it was connected to a large furry ball. A very large spider lay on its back, surrounded by a charred blast mark. It was clearly dead. Barbecued even. Morogan ripped off a chunk of meat and munched on it.
Legend of the Sword Bearer: Tempest Chronicles Book 1 Page 3