Six potions, a scroll of Identify, and an assortment of rations and other sundries later, the newly acquired wealth was gone, Davin admittedly was glad that, due to the closeness of the other dungeons in the area, the cost of potions wasn’t marked up to some ridiculous amount. The potion belts that they all now had were a nice touch, the six little pockets that had a hardened outer shell to protect them from impact were well worth the tokens that they had dropped on them. Cadence had added their backpack to the trunk, the trunk's lock now adding another color to its mechanism, which Davin only noticed because he was paying attention to it, having just assumed that the marbled stone that functioned as the lock had always been that way, so when the blueish tones started to mix in it brought a smile to his face.

"Do they have a Hall in this town? I'd not even thought to look.." Davin admitted as he felt the stone in his pocket.

"They do, but since we got ours in the Bastion, we'd have to get any new ones there," Hugh responded as he followed Davin's thoughts.

"I haven't been back to the Bastion in ages, so if there aren't any issues, we could go there after we finish this next job, you have to do." Cadence looked to the east into the general direction of the Bastion.

"Sounds like a plan to me. So, we just start heading north?" Davin asked his friends.

Hugh eyed him and shrugged. "You do know that you're the only one that fully knows what's going on, I don't know why you're asking us." Hugh's tone was deeply sarcastic.

"I wanted your input. I have no idea where anything is, and the basic maps that we have for the area only have the largest roads shown on them, which I don’t know how helpful those would be." Davin threw his hands into the air in an exaggeratedly before chuckling.

"North? We could likely catch a ride on one of the wagons since winter is that way, they don't have much for food that way, so we could offer ourselves as guards to help." Cadence suggested as they started heading off towards the edge of town, where a few wagons were being loaded.

"That is the single most RPG thing that I think I have heard yet." Davin chuckled again. " I'm in, Hugh?"

"You and your games…. It will be a wonder if you don't get us thrown into some crazy thing." Waving his hand as if to brush it away. "But that does sound like a good idea, not having to spend all day casting will give me a chance to work on learning that new spell, and not having to walk the whole time is far too good to pass up." He shrugged his shoulders as he looked at Davin and Cadence.

"Game?" The questioning tone was strong in Cadence's voice.

"Huh?" Hugh and Davin responded in unison.

"You said something about a game?" Cadence stated far more firmness in their voice.

"Oh, I guess that hasn't come up specifically… So, you know that I said I come from a world that has no magic?" Davin asked rhetorically. "Well the reason that I seem so familiar with all of this, is that for me, everything here, and I mean everything. Classes, levels, magic, patrons, we called them gods, and even all of the races that we've seen. For me, I have played these 'characters' since I was a teenager."

Cadence stared at Davin, mouth agape slowly blinking.

"Oh! And a lot of the things in my world are apparently terrifying to everyone here, like this one time I was talking with Gale and Jes about cars, which are basically horseless carriages powered by a series of repeated and controlled explosions, and they could be large enough to move more than fifty people in one go."

Cadence coughed, seeming to have choked or forgotten to breathe. "What? You have carriages that are the size of ships?"

"Ships? I'd say more boat, A ship depending on which we're looking at could be bigger than this town, and likely be able to fit even a few more in it." Davin thought about the one time he'd gone on a cruise.

"Wait till he tells you the population of his world." Hugh chimed in, chuckling.

"I come from a world that was reported to have millions," Cadence responded in a whisper.

Davin hit Hugh. "That still has Compass stunned."

"A Patron? You had more than millions?" Crack in their voice as they asked.

"Oh yeah, last I knew, we were over eight billion, I came from an area of just over two million. It’s all perspective though, unless you needed to, most people likely only interacted with a few given the option."

Cadence lost their balance slightly. "How could there be that many? How?"

"Eh, it’s a big world, but since I could spend all day breaking your mind with the impossibilities of my world, I'm going to remind you, that here magic is real, and that is far more mind-blowing to me. I have watched Hugh cast the same exact ritual twenty times or more and am still absolutely floored by it every time."

To that Cadence nodded, the spell of impossibilities seemingly broken. "You make a good point, I have seen magic several times in my world before I… died… So I do understand your amazement with it." They shook their head as tried to shake away some lingering memories.

"Just let me preemptively apologize for anything weird that I may say or do."

"Go with it, he's a fantastic cook, the quirks are worth it." Hugh Staged whispered at Cadence, to which Davin hit him again.

"Is that all you see me as? A meal ticket?" Davin's tone exaggerated in offense.

"Of course not!" Hugh answered confidentially. "I also see you as a springboard for my magical career." Hugh chuckled.

"Okay, enough fooling around, let's go sell our services to the caravan and make our trip north easier." Davin let out an exasperated sigh as he started to walk over to where the wagons were being loaded.

It took his friends several seconds to realize what Davin was doing, rushing to join him before he talked his way into trouble. Cadence quickly took over the conversation after Davin had said hello. They were no stranger to traveling, a huge amount of what they had done up to this point was just that, but this time it felt different. Cadence had largely been alone over the last eight years, so they still were having a little of a struggle trying to wrap their mind around the fact that they had made not one but two new friends in a matter of days. Several minutes of negotiations later, they had secured a spot on one of the wagons for the three of them and their chest, being the first line of defense against any monster or bandits that would pop up between here and their next stop. Since all they had was a direction, there wasn't much to do beyond that. Cadence also secured them a few extra tokens if they could help with some of the loading and unloading at some of the outposts that were going to be along the way.

"I don't mind a little heavy lifting, I'm not as strong as I used to be, but I'm sure that I can still hold my own," Davin responded with a smile, barely even thinking about the tradeout.

This story is posted elsewhere by the author. Help them out by reading the authentic version.

Hugh let out a sigh, kicking his foot at the ground like one would see from a child. "Fine, I guess I can help, and I likely have a few spells that can help us as well."

Cadence nodded. "We only have about an hour before they set out, was there anything left that we needed to do before that?"

Davin's head rocked back and forth. "Any chances that we could get a book of crossword puzzles?" He let out a chuckle as his friends stared back at him.

"A what?" Cadence and Hugh asked in unison.

"I'll take that as a no…" Disappointment was clear on his face.

The two of them continued to stare at Davin, neither of them sure what he'd been asking for. Cadence spoke first. "What is a crossword?"

"Eh, just a paper puzzle that can help keep a mind busy while traveling."

"Paper puzzle? Like those ones, you said that Jes liked?" Hugh asked hope in his voice.

"No, more like a written word puzzle, like a riddle, but a lot of them, and they're tangled together like a puzzle." Holding up his index fingers and crossing them symbolically.

"Could be interesting… You will have to show us one someday." Cadence gave a confident smile.

"I didn’t even think about making one!" Excitement spread over his face. "I'll need some paper and pens!" With that, he rushed off toward the general store before either of his companions could respond.

"What's a pen?" Cadence asked aloud.

"No idea, but I think he may be disappointed when he finds out."

"I don’t know," Cadence smiled, "He did seem rather excited about it, I am sure that he will make do."

The trunk that Hugh had only lifted via spells for the last several days was far heavier than he'd ever expected it to be, not having to lift it ever. So when the three of them struggled to put it onto the wagon that they had been assigned, Hugh was left a gasping and shaking mess.

"I am not built for this." Stretching his back as if he'd spent the last several hours lifting, rather than just a single trunk.

"If you were built for this I doubt you'd have such narrow shoulders," Davin responded with a laugh. "Scholars have a build." Another laugh poorly held back.

"What's that supposed to mean?" The mock offense was rich in his words.

"Eh, just a silly thought from home, about the things that a certain group of people like and the weight that those items held." Davin suppressed the smile that was fighting its way onto his face.

Hugh's face was twisted in confusion. "Huh?"

"Why is all nerd stuff heavy, when most of them lack the build to carry it."

"Nerd? You've called me that before, what does it mean?" Annoyance tinging his voice.

"Don't worry, it's not a bad thing, it's just that you're smarter than you are strong."

"Yes! I stated that already." Hugh's annoyance peaking.

"Don't worry about it, you're just making me feel a bit nostalgic for home."

"How would this remind you of home?" Confusion now back in his voice.

"Because as a nerd, we know our own, my friend." Davin smiled wide again.

"I have no idea what you two are jabbering about." Cadence almost spat the words.

"Eh, nothing special. Just making fun of myself, and Hugh while I'm at it."

Hugh scoffed and then climbed into the wagon. "And just for that, you get to take the first walking shift." Settling next to the trunk, he pulled his robes close.

"Fair, Cadence, you ride too, no point in both of us walking." Motioning to the wagon.

Nodding in response. "Yes, I think that will be good, we can swap out after a few hours, I might get in a small nap while we ride, from what I heard they ride till late since most of them camp right in their wagons."

Davin nodded then started to stretch, limbering up was always a good idea before a march. "So we'll take shifts since we're also the night watch, I can't see in the dark though, so if anything I'll take the first watch while the fires and twilight still offer something."

"Sounds like a plan, wish that we could have spared some more coin for more spell books, honestly it would give me something to do during the night that was a little more interesting." Hugh lamented as he remembered the meager funds that they had.

"I have done some writings if you want to take a look at them…" Cadence cut themselves off and started to blush.

"Oh? What do you write?" Davin asked.

"I guess one could call them observations, I have done quite a bit of traveling, and I have tried my best to put what I have seen into words." Pulling out a small book from their breast pocket. "I have written several of these, this one is about half full, so it should give you something to do."

Hugh nodded. "I appreciate the sentiment, but that feels a little… personal."

"Oh, these aren't, my previous ones have some following, I haven't sold too many, but I enjoy writing them." The blush that they had been fighting had gotten even brighter, their pail skin making it seem even brighter.

"Something to do at night?" Davin asked.

"I don't really sleep, remember? So, it's helpful to have things that fill the time, while we were on our way out I would spend the night doing some of my recordings on the ambient magics, but that can only do so much." tapping on the side of the trunk.

The 'hya' that rang out over the crowd that had gathered split the subtle murmur that had been happening. The crowd fled away, not wanting to be trampled in the process. The caravan of wagons began to move, creaking from all the wheels as they awoke.

"Here we go!" Davin was hopping in anticipation.

Hugh's eyes narrowed as he stared over at Davin. "You are way too excited for this."

Cadence let out a chuckle. "It is rather refreshing."

"Wagons and caravans of goods weren't a thing in my world. So this is as new for me as it is old hat for you." Davin jogged a few steps ahead as the wagon that they were in started to move.

"Your cars?" Hugh asked.

"Huh? No, semi-trucks, trains, and shipping companies. Like I would see them, but they were nondescript fifty-foot-long boxes on wheels, they just faded into the background." Trying to match his pace with the wagons.

Hugh and Cadence just stared, not comprehending what they heard.

"What about bandits?" Cadence asked.

"Eh, not as common when you're moving at sixty miles an hour."

"An hour?!" Cadence yelped.

"Oh that’s just freeway speeds, there are some bullet trains that put that to shame." He waved his hand in front of him in the universal symbology of fast.

"Bullet train?" Cadence struggled over the words.

"Eh, a very fast-moving series of wagons that are tethered together in a line."

"Isn't that dangerous?" A look of horror spread across Cadence's face.

Davin waved his hand batting away the sentiment. "It took us almost two hundred years to get to that point. You guys have the better deal, your ships that travel the outer edges of the wilds are amazing."

The point to which neither of them could argue against.

Several hours later, and Davin was starting to slow down, the road north was just that, a road, long, pretty level, and incredibly uneventful, Davin found himself hoping for a wandering monster to liven things up. When another call was made from the front of the caravan, the opening in the roadway finally showed the beauty of the area, the rolling hills, and the setting sun over the forest. The wagons circled, making a more centered central area.

"Are we stopping?" Davin asked, his energy sapped from the long walk.

"We are, do you think that you can still pull the first watch? Or do you think you need a rest?" Cadence asked as they stood, stretching from sitting for so long.

"I've got a few hours in me, so I can take the first watch, so I should just walk around the outside?"

"Basically, I'll check with the leader, and see if they have any concerns. I'll set up camp, so you can eat when you get back." Cadence stated as they started grabbing things from the trunk.

The rush of activity that happened just as Daven stepped out from between the wagons was a sight to behold, a large central beam was raised, and a canvas tent made the caravan seem as if it was a giant circus tent. Music and conversations began to rise, now that Davin had a chance to look, there were a lot more people in this caravan than he'd expected.