by J. T. Wright
“Big wolf. Are all creatures in this forest big?” Tersa asked impassively. Trent didn’t respond. He didn’t know what to say. Tersa squared her shoulders, hawked and spit to one side, gathering the courage that she knew a Guardsman must possess. “Nothing for it! You take its right leg; I’ll chop its left. It’s big, but we have it outnumbered. Remember not to hurt it too much, the pup is probably just lost.”
Trent shot her an incredulous look. Don’t hurt the pup? The white wolf standing fifty feet away, near a bend in the road, was bigger than the Greater Ice Serpent had been. The wolf’s teeth were longer than Trent or Tersa were tall and could be easily seen when the wolf’s mouth opened in a yawn and then snapped shut. They could walk beneath its body without brushing its stomach with their heads. This wolf could trample them and never notice the squishing of their bodies unless their mangled remains became stuck to its paws!
“No need for weapons, Young Master. Ignore Arakai, he’s harmless! A gentler soul cannot be found.” A man stepped out from where he had been concealed by the wolf’s bulk. Dressed in sparkling golden robes and wearing a wide-brimmed leather hat that obscured his eyes, the man didn’t even come up to the wolf’s shoulders. Trent watched in disbelief as the man reached out to thump the beast’s leg irritably.
“Arakai! Make yourself small, you’re frightening the customers!”
The wolf let out a disgruntled groan and rolled its blue eyes. To Trent’s astonishment, instead of snatching the man up in its immense jaws, the wolf let out a sigh and did as it was told. It shrank, dwindling quickly until its shoulders were no higher than the man’s waist. The sight was disconcerting, causing Trent to scrunch his eyes shut briefly rather than watch the unnatural display.
When he opened them again, nothing he saw made him want to sheathe his sword. The wolf’s mouth still hung open, mischievously flaunting the fact that while its teeth were smaller, they were no less sharp. Trent didn’t doubt that the wolf could return to its previous size in a heartbeat.
“There, all is well now, yes? Yes! Of course, it is! We are well met! Fated, one might say, and fate leads to business! Yes? Yes! Come, young master and miss! Come and shop at Ranar’s traveling emporium!”
Waving his hand to hurry them along, the man, Ranar, darted back to a wagon that had been hidden behind the wolf, Arakai. As gigantic as Arakai had been, it was quite a surprise to Trent and Tersa that they hadn’t seen the wagon. Or box. The word, wagon, brought to Trent’s mind a contraption of wheels and wood, pulled by a team of horses.
Ranar’s wagon hovered three feet off the road. There were no wheels to be seen, and if it had rested on the earth, the garishly painted rectangular wooden box would have been as tall as a house. Only a platform built on the front where a driver could sit, and the empty harness laying in the dirt of the road, could be compared to the wagon Trent had seen in the past.
“Hey! A traveling merchant! We're just waiting for the Sergeant, couldn’t hurt to check it out.” Tersa slapped Trent on the shoulder and ran toward the improbable box. Her hand touched her belt pouch, and she remembered that it contained a gold piece! Sergeant Cullen had implied that she could keep it, if she chose the Rogue Class. Technically she hadn’t, but he hadn’t asked for the money back yet. If she spent it before he did, it would be his loss. Tersa was so caught up in her thoughts of a shopping spree, she ran by Arakai without stopping to see if the wolf was amenable to being petted.
Trent sheathed his blade and followed with noticeably less enthusiasm. Ranar had vanished into the wagon via a set of steps and a door underneath the driver’s platform. Arakai was still where he had been. He was sitting now, tongue lolling out of his mouth lazily. Around Arakai, the leather harness of the wagon sat empty. The wolf had been pulling the floating vehicle! A fact which did not make Trent more comfortable in the slightest.
Tersa ran up to the wagon and began banging on its side, urging Ranar to hurry up and open his shop, but Trent approached more cautiously. He tried to give the wolf plenty of room, but Arakai didn’t share his desire for space. When Trent tried to step past, the wolf stood and stretched out its front legs, arching it’s back downwards.
Trent froze at the wolf’s movement, and his hand touched his sword hilt again. He wondered if he and Tersa ran in different directions, could one of them manage to get away? Tersa wasn’t looking in Trent’s direction, and Trent couldn’t find his voice to shout a warning as Arakai padded his way over towards the stricken boy.
Trent licked his lips. Running wouldn’t work. The way the wolf’s muscles rippled beneath its pelt as it stalked closer spoke of speed, more speed than Trent could muster. That left fighting. Oddly, the decision to run left Trent’s mind as Arakai came closer. Trent found himself coolly picking out the first part of the animal he would strike at.
He didn’t get the chance to act. Arakai‘s steps never quickened, but one moment the wolf was several feet away, and the next his muzzle was next to Trent’s sword hand! Instead of latching on and tearing Trent’s arm from his body, the wolf’s cold black nose reached out and firmly pushed Trent’s hand away from the hilt of his blade. Then the wolf relaxed back onto its haunches and tilted its head, giving Trent the impression that something was expected of him.
“No need for violence, Survivalist. The traditional response to this situation is to pet the dog, though you must never refer to a wolf as a dog!” It took Trent a moment to realize that these sentences, spoken with a growling, rough voice, did not come from Ranar or Tersa. “Also, it isn’t wise to pet a Greater Dire Wolf uninvited. Once you’ve been invited, however, it is equally unwise to refuse.”
Trent had had very little interaction with animals. Other than one apple-loving mare to which he had grown attached, Trent just hadn’t had the opportunity. He had plenty of experience with Beasts, however, and every one of them attacked him. He knew that some high-level Beasts could speak, but having a Greater Dire Wolf tell him he should pet it was new.
Arakai, having spoken, was waiting impatiently, tail twitching. Unsure of how to pet a wolf whose head is almost level with your chest when it’s sitting, Trent reached out to scratch at the side of Arakai's neck. The mare had enjoyed being scratched there. Hopefully, wolves had more in common with horses than was immediately apparent.
“The ear, boy, left ear. It’s been bothering me all day!” Arakai demanded. The twitching of his tail became a full wag as Trent’s hand scratched his ear. “That’s the spot! Not too hard, but not too soft either! Don’t forget the base!”
Arakai’s head pressed against Trent’s hand eagerly as directions on how to properly accomplish a good ear scratch, issued forth from his throat. First the left ear, then the right. Didn’t Trent have two hands? Why wasn’t he using both? Trent found his suspicion of Arakai thawing, but in its place, a new fear was growing. Trent was starting to think that if someone didn’t come to his rescue, he would be a slave to the wolf’s itches forever. Fortunately, rescue was at hand.
Ranar’s head popped back out the open door at the front of the wagon, his hat slightly askew. Tersa, unable to see him from where she stood, continued banging on the wagon’s side.
“No need for the racket, young miss. I'm moving as quick as I can! The shop will be open soon! You should step back. Must mind your toes, you know. When the shop settles, your feet will be… Arakai! What are you doing? Don’t bother the young master! Forgive him, young sir. He is a greedy, lazy Beast. Many times, I’ve thought of replacing him with a more tractable animal, like a ferret, but we do get attached, don’t we? Why I remember the time…”
Ranar’s voice faded as he went back to preparing his shop. His words could still be heard as he continued his musing from within, but the spell Arakai had over Trent was broken. The wolf let out a sigh as Trent’s hands fell away. Arakai cast an evil, tooth-filled snarl at the unseen Ranar, while telling Trent, “You should go, Survivalist. He has been waiting to speak with you for a long time.”
Realizing he might hav
e misspoken, Arakai coughed and added, “He does love customers. And he’s a sucker with ones he’s met on the road. A big believer in fated encounters is Ranar. He'll offer good deals. Be sure to take him for all he's worth!”
Trent was in no condition to catch Arakai’s slip. He was too busy wondering how high the wolf’s Level must be. Trent didn’t know if Beasts used a Skill similar to Identify or had their own means, but for Arakai to casually pick out that Trent was a Survivalist, the wolf’s method must be well-practiced.
Arakai pushed Trent towards the wagon, and a bemused Trent allowed himself to be guided. Soon Tersa, Trent, and Arakai stood in a line before the wagon, waiting for Ranar to open his shop.
Thumping and banging came from inside the yellow and red floating box, and these sounds were echoed on the outside by Tersa’s anxiously tapping feet. How much longer was this going to take? Tersa wasn’t sure how much time had passed since they had left Cullen behind, but in her mind, the Sergeant had already finished the big snake and was on his way here. She had to get her gold piece spent before he arrived!
No matter how loud Tersa stomped her feet, she could never rival the sound of a house-sized structure dropping to the ground from three feet in the air. With a crash that could be heard for miles, Ranar’s wagon did just that. Dirt thrown up by the wagon’s introduction with the earth, washed over the waiting trio. Trent was protected behind his mask, and Arakai, used to his master’s antics, had long turned his head aside, but Tersa wasn’t so lucky.
Having opened her mouth to shout for Ranar to hurry up, Tersa suddenly found her eyes and throat filled with the fine dust of the road. She tried to yell out a curse but only managed a “gaawk,” as she stumbled backward, scrubbing at her face.
Arakai grabbed Trent’s belt with his mouth and urged the boy to step back further. “He always forgets to warn people about what comes next,” the wolf explained after dragging Trent a few feet.
Now settled on the ground, the wagon’s wall that Trent and Tersa were facing, suddenly revealed a seam halfway up. With a creaking groan, that seam became larger as half the wall suddenly fell down, kicking up another cloud of dirt as it landed. When all the displaced earth settled back down, Ranar's wagon had become a long booth, with the man himself leaning calmly against a counter, a smooth smile plastered on what could be seen of his face.
“There! All is ready! We are well met, young master and miss, and Ranar’s Traveling Emporium, the greatest collection of adventuring goods and supplies ever assembled and put up for sale is open!”
Trent had never set foot in any shop before. He certainly didn’t know what to expect from a traveling merchant’s display. Whatever images his mind might have drummed up, Ranar’s Traveling Emporium crushed them. There were no shelves or tables holding marvelous pieces of equipment. No racks of carefully arranged potions to be seen.
The wall that had fallen had become a floor covered in thick red carpet, and unless that carpet was for sale, Trent thought this would be a short shopping trip. Behind Ranar, the “wagon” was empty.
As Trent shuffled his feet uncertainly, Tersa bolted to the counter. While Trent stared, the girl began to poke, slap and tap at the wooden surface. She made soft gasps of astonishment over whatever she found there. Tersa was clearly delighted, and Trent began to suspect she had been spelled or bewitched.
Arakai’s head pressed against Trent’s back as the wolf urged the boy forward. Stubbornly, Trent tried to resist, but his feet slid towards the counter. He was forced to pick those feet up and step forward once he reached the carpeted floor. It was either that or trip on the wooden lip.
With Arakai still pushing him, Trent slowly approached the counter. Watching Tersa’s hands wiggle and tap, he was introduced to a whole new kind of magic. The surface of the counter held a screen that was similar in appearance to a Status. Instead of Attributes and Quests, though, this screen held lists and descriptions of items.
Mission accomplished. Now that Trent was at the counter, Arakai stopped pushing and reared up to set his front paws on the counter. “Never shopped at a traveling merchant before? Let me show you, Survivalist!”
Arakai’s claws tapped at the screen delicately as he demonstrated. The wolf’s tapping was adroit compared to Tersa’s pounding fingers. “A light touch is all it takes. See? There are the menus. Ranar is well stocked. Weapons, armor, clothing, Skills, and Spells, he has it all!”
The wolf seemed to think this explained everything, but all Trent saw were words. There were still no items.
Arakai coughed. “Ahem, perhaps a demonstration is in order. That sword of yours… you need better, another Level or two and you'll do as much damage empty-handed as with that blade. Just tap, weapons, then swords, and then read the descriptions and choose! If I might make a recommendation, this one is perfect for you.”
He gave a quick paw tap and without ceremony a gold ring appeared on the counter in front of Trent. Curious, Trent reached for it, but before he could pick it up, Ranar’s long fingers covered the ring and snatched it away.
“Apologies, young master, apologies.” Neither Ranar’s tone nor the look he shot Arakai were amused. While he agreed that the sword the ring contained might end up in Trent’s hands one day, that day had not yet come. “This sword is not for sale. It shouldn’t have been placed in the inventory to begin with! Whoever placed it there will be suitably chastened, I assure you! To compensate you for the inconvenience,allow me to make another recommendation, at a discounted price, of course.”
“Hey! Service! Paying customer right here!” Tersa’s fist pounded on the counter. She had to spend this gold piece now!
“Ah, of course, young miss, what can I help you with?” A flash of impatience flickered in the silver eyes hidden behind the brim of Ranar’s hat.
“That’s better!” Tersa said with a sniff. “I don’t need anything!”
In a thousand years, never had Ranar taken a thrust like the one Tersa delivered. Why bang and shout if you don't need anything? Flummoxed, the ancient Al’rashian’s plan to introduce Trent to the items and Skills the boy needed, collapsed.
What Tersa had meant to say was that she didn’t know what to buy. It was the word ‘recommendation’ that had inspired her pique. But faced with Ranar’s attention, Tersa’s pride would not allow her to admit to a stranger that she had no idea what her new Class required. The traveling merchant had dozens of items that fascinated her. She couldn’t just take any of them!
If only she had a trusted companion whose opinion mattered to her! The gold piece burning a hole in her pouch had to be spent! Sergeant Cullen could advise her when he arrived, but Tersa was certain her vast fortune would disappear with the man’s approach.
Maybe she should watch this oddly dressed Swordsman and see what he bought first. Maybe that would give her an idea. The Swordsman who… who… who was Trent! Trent was stupid, and he knew next to nothing, but he always ended up with great stuff! Why hadn’t she thought to ask him? Better question, why hadn’t Trent already offered his best friend a helping hand!?
An irritated fist pounded Trent’s shoulder. Trent’s head turned in mild astonishment. This was the first time in hours Tersa, the girl who expressed herself physically at any opportunity had touched him. While the redhead had occasionally addressed him, ordered him around and, mostly, remembered his name, Trent had gotten the feeling that was because he was the only one present. In the company of others, his friend forgot him.
“What?” Trent muttered sullenly, meeting Tersa’s squinted gaze.
Tersa leaned close. “What should I buy?”
Trent lifted his mask and pushed his cowl back. The cover was affecting his hearing. “What do you need?”
“What do ya think I need?” Tersa replied.
Trent shook his head. It hadn’t been the cowl after all. This was pure Tersa. She wanted something and expected him to provide it. Trent was beginning to think this was how the world worked.
Did anyone think of
him as something more than a tool to be called upon as needed? He suspected now that his Bond was gone, now that he was no longer a Summons with potential, he would soon be pushed aside.
Despite the uneasiness that churned in his gut, and the morose feeling that settled on his shoulders, a hint of Trent’s loyalty remained, and he gave Tersa’s question serious consideration. He didn’t know what the Recruit needed, but he knew that she would benefit from some of the Skills he possessed.
Instead of answering verbally, his fingers, that had recently learned to work the Traveling Emporium’s inventory, went to work. Arakai hadn’t lied; Ranar was well stocked. He quickly found what he sought, and three glowing Stones came into existence on the countertop.
“Any of these will do,” Trent informed the watching Tersa brusquely.
“What are they?” Tersa’s nose almost touched the Stones as she leaned in close and examined each one in turn.
Trent’s finger tapped one stone after another as he named them. “Dash, Appraisal, Storage.”
Trent was so stupid! Or maybe Tersa was the stupid one for asking him. No, Trent was definitely the problem! Tersa might be able to afford Dash or Appraisal, perhaps both, but Storage? Who did he think she was? Duke Lewis? Or some other really rich person!
“Why even take out Storage, jerkface!” Tersa decided it was time to educate the clueless boy, “Don’t you know how much that costs? It’s like a million…”
“Eighty silver,” Ranar interjected. His fingers drummed at the edge of the counter. He missed his sword. Normally, its hilt was the target of his tic, and the wood was a poor replacement.
“…gol…gaawk!” Tersa had bitten her tongue, hard! Who did this merchant, in his shiny robe and stupid hat, think he was fooling? Eighty silver for Storage? What was he trying to pull here? This was probably a fake Stone! Everything here was probably fake! Tersa drew in a deep breath to let the man know exactly what she thought of cheats, liars, and frauds.