The meat buns were hearty and cheap. Spicy, rich juice dripped down Alan's chin as he licked his lips savoring the flavor. He had been experimenting with different foods and so far these meat buns were the most economical for the increase in SP that they gave. It didn't hurt that they were absolutely delicious.
Of course, compared to raw and sinewy lizard meat anything would taste incredible, but still, these meat buns were damn good. Alan wiped his face as he finished chewing and focused on keeping his head down. He attempted to ignore [Sense] while he made his way to the guard station.
It turned out to be a plain-looking building located to the side of the grand market. The vendors of the market were just getting set up in the early morning, but even so, the bustle and activity around him triggered the ever-present pounding in his head. Ignoring the pain, Alan shoved his map into his pocket and made his way up the short flight of stairs to the large double doors of the building. A small bell hanging from the door chimed as he went inside.
A sleepy-looking man with a messy beard and unkempt uniform turned towards him from behind the front counter before yawning and going back to whatever he had been doing. Behind the man stood rows and rows of files stacked haphazardly in piles. The building itself was clean and orderly.
Alan walked up to the desk. "Good morn-"
"Holy shit!" The man interrupted, jerking back in surprise. A few files were knocked off the desk and for a moment they just stared at each other. Calming down and focusing on Alan, the man composed himself and cleared his throat, clearly embarrassed by his reaction.
"Sorry I didn't see you there." He wiped his hands on his pants and smiled sheepishly. "I uh, well welcome to the South Guard Station, again sorry for that reaction, can I help you with something?"
Alan sighed.
He had been having issues with [Hide] since he managed to make his way back to civilization. Not to mention the fact that ever since the captain had cast [Track] on him, the Skill had been steadily ticking upwards in experience. He wasn't sure if that was a good thing or not, but given what he had come here to do, he'd probably find out soon enough.
"I'm here to see captain Jacobs," Alan said, ignoring the guard's reaction. "I have a ninth-bell appointment."
The man looked at him skeptically, before looking over one of the files in front of him. "Alex?" he asked, somehow finding what he was looking for in the mess of parchment.
"That's me," Alan replied.
"Just head up to the third floor and the captain will be-."
"Alex." Captain Jacobs appeared in the hallway behind the receptionist who immediately stood up and saluted to the approaching figure.
The captain waved him back down. "I'll take it from here Hobbs. Alex follow me." The captain beckoned Alan to follow, leaving him no choice but to run to catch up.
"Thank you for coming." The man said simply as they made their way through the station.
Wearing the badges of his station and dressed in a spotless blue uniform, the captain walked through the station with apparent authority. He radiated the same cold and imposing presence that he had when Alan had met him, and the people they encountered in the hallways parted as they made their way.
"Of course," Alan responded quickly. He guessed that Jacobs must have realized his arrival through [Track]. He focused [Sense] on the ground below him and sought to ignore the pounding in his head. "I know we got off to a rough start and while I'm here I wanted to offer my apologies and ask some questions if possible. I know I'm probably low on your list of priorities, so I can schedule an appointment with you later if you do not have enough time right now."
The captain ignored Alan for a moment as he paused at a simple wooden door. The door looked the same as many others along the hallway except carved in large brass letters was a name: Captain Henry Jacobs. The man opened it and stepped inside.
"That will not be necessary, first come in and sit down." Behind the cold facade, Alan thought he could detect a bit of wariness in the older man's voice as he stepped behind a very worn but orderly looking desk. He proceeded to sit in the large leather chair located behind it and motioned for Alan towards the smaller chair across from him. Alan moved to comply.
"Now that you are here, I am certain of it." The captain stated without preamble just as Alan was starting to sit down. Alan paused in the process, uncertain.
"Sit down now." The captain said, his voice cold. Alan sat.
"You are resisting [Track] in some way. Tell me how and do not lie to me. You have one chance."
Well this wasn't off to a good start.
"I have a Skill called [Hide] sir, it's passive, so I can't control the effects, but I would guess that it works against [Track] somehow." Alan went with the truth; he didn't like the look in the captain's eyes.
Jacobs stared hard at Alan for several long seconds. Alan was painfully aware of his own heart beating, the pounding of his heart seemed to match the painful rhythm of hammering in his head. He desperately wished [Sense] would give him a break, he was barely able to concentrate despite the tense environment, and he needed his wits about him.
The dripping from the water clock in the corner was the only sound in the room as the captain's icy blue eyes continued to glare at the young man across from him.
"The fact that you came here of your own accord and have not tried to flee or venture into more suspect parts of the city makes me want to give you the benefit of the doubt. If you had said [Stealth] or any other activated Skill, we would be having a very different conversation right now. It is illegal to impede us from keeping tabs on you while under a probationary status. Luckily for you, I am familiar with [Hide]. Based on what I am feeling, yours should be at level eight or nine." It was not a question, and the captain's gaze did not waver from Alan's face for a single moment.
"Level eight sir," Alan responded quickly. Back in the caves, he had been granted an upgrade from [Hide] to [Stealth] after a particularly surreptitious and violent run through lizard territory. He was suddenly very glad that he had not accepted it.
After a tense moment, the captain sighed heavily, and his body seemed to deflate in the process. "Is it too much to ask you to make this easy on me? Tell me your Skills, tell me your past? The law prevents me from forcing these things from you, and it's not like there are Skills that can reliably read your mind. I have a hard time believing you're up to no good, but you are making it very difficult for me to give you any trust here."
Alan didn't know how to respond, which left him staring blankly at the captain as the silence stretched out. Drip by drip the clock in the corner measured the passing of time. The captain saved him from having to answer as he straightened himself back up. "What did you want to ask me?" The weariness was gone completely leaving Alan to wonder if he had imagined it.
Once again in familiar territory, Alan didn't waste any time.
"First, I wanted to thank the guards that found me in the Expanse. There is no question that I owe them my life. I have a few questions for them as well about how they found me since I am looking for clues into my past." As good as an excuse as any.
"Admirable, I will have Hobbs give you their information if they are willing. What else?"
"Thank you sir. Second I was hoping..." Alan had rehearsed this part on his own, but with the unexpected interrogation and a [Sense] migraine piercing his brain, he was having trouble focusing. "I am looking for work and I was hoping I could find something here. I would be willing to take a pay cut in exchange for some training and instruction. I know a select portion of Mana Guild members get selected to work with the Guards after graduation, and I very much want to be that in portion. The Guards have more leeway in leaving Territory borders, and I feel it is my only chance to explore the mystery of how I ended up out in the Expanse. It also gives you the double benefit of keeping an easy eye on me. I'm willing to do anything and work any hours I can as long as it does not interfere with my Guild schedule."
"I see." The captain leaned back and sighed.
"Look son, I am going to be blunt. I could recommend you to some parttime positions around here but knowing your reasoning, I will not be doing so. The fact is that you have no chance of being chosen to work with the Guards of any Territory with your arm the way it is. You would be categorized as unfit for service, and this is something I can speak to with certainty because I am involved in the selection process."
"And before you press further for training or special treatment, let us get this straight: we are not baby sitters. If you want to engage in more martial pursuits, then there are trainers around the city that I can refer to you. However, I was at that meeting ten days ago, and I am fairly certain you do not have the money for it. Honestly son, your best bet is to focus on training your Skills to work for your Guild as a transporter between Territories. It's a good life that only a select few achieve, much safer than what you are asking for, not to mention well paying."
Completely shut down.
Alan knew it had been a long shot, but he had imagined he could at least do some menial labor around the station and spy on the Guards doing training drills.
"However, I am not completely heartless," the captain continued. "I do not take particular pleasure in turning away determined young adults from their goals. I will have Hobbs give you a list of martial instructors that we know are reliable along with their specialties. Most have no openings, but I will throw in a recommendation to anyone you choose which should get you a place in their classes. If you can pay the fees, you can work these classes around your schedule and make of it what you will. "
"I will reiterate, with your arm the way it is you will not be allowed to join the Guards as a Guild contractor. Even if your arm were not damaged, the other members of your Guild would make the task all but impossible for you. The kids you will be competing with have been training their whole lives with the best instructors for this very purpose. Again I do not want to step on your goals, but you need to go into this looking at the reality of the situation. That is all I will say regarding your request."
"Thank you sir," Alan said, maintaining a calm facade. It wasn't ideal, but he wasn't leaving empty-handed. He had hoped for more but had been prepared for worse.
The captain pulled out a small quill from his side and began writing as he continued speaking.
"Officer Michael will be handling your case from here on out. His [Track] Level, while lower than mine, should be perfectly capable of ignoring a Level 8 [Hide] debuff within the city limits. I'll call him over now to introduce himself and cast [Track] on you. I wish you good luck young man, unless you find yourself in some trouble I doubt we will be meeting again any time soon, so here's hoping that this will be the last that we see of each other for a while. Despite your circumstances, you seem like a good young man and believe me when I say I do sincerely look forward to uncovering your past."
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Was that a threat? The captain's face gave away nothing.
"Thank you sir," Alan replied, not realizing that his face and tone had been equally stoic throughout their entire conversation.
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That could have gone better.
Alan found himself waiting by an intricate fountain on the other side of the market, going over his meeting with the captain. The sound of the water gently splashing behind him helped to soothe his nerves somewhat. He pressed his fingers against the bridge of his nose. His day was far from over, but the ever-growing pain in his head refused to cooperate.
Alan glanced at his arm, still in the sling.
Forced to confront reality, he admitted that he had been purposely keeping himself from thinking about it. He knew the fact that his arm was disabled was a huge issue for him, but still he kept pushing off dealing with it till later. The truth was that he just didn't want to acknowledge the situation.
It still didn't feel real.
The arm was healing well, according to the doctors. Alan suspected [Sustain] was preventing any new damage to the appendage, which was allowing it to heal faster than usual. Staring at it, his forearm looked fairly normal if a bit beat up. He just couldn't move it or feel anything below his elbow. Something about the body's chemical signals not reacting anymore, according to doctor Belman.
Alan tried moving the fingers to no effect.
Since his stay at the hospital, he had been forced to notice a few things. For one, his general balance had been thrown off a lot more than he had expected. It was a strange rebalancing of his center of mass, and even when standing still, he sometimes felt like he was about to fall over. His Points into Dexertiy probably helped in that regard, but it nevertheless caught him off guard.
Then there were the moments when he would try to reach for things.
A handrail. A book. A jar of water. A thoughtless but natural movement. And every single time when nothing happened, when his arm failed to move, there was just the briefest moment of confusion. Of panic. A sinking feeling in the pit of his stomach while his mind caught up to his body's instinctual responses. With it the recognition that his life might never be the same. That he might be a cripple.
His jaw tightened as he looked away from the arm. He had overcome worse, he would overcome this too.
"Alex!" Thankfully, a voice broke him out of his thoughts before they turned too dark. Alan turned to see a handsome young man running up to him.
"Hey Thomas, thanks for meeting up like this." Alan stood up to greet him. Thomas looked much the same as the day he had been tasked to show Alan around the Guild campus on his first day out of the hospital.
Alan was thankful that they had run into each other a few days back and were able to set up this meeting.
He had been visiting the help counter at the Guild Hall on that day to ask a few questions about finding apartments. Lacking friends, and slightly scared of asking too much from Walter, Alan had been relying heavily on the people who worked at the Guild help desk in the mornings to answer his general questions. Even though his inquiries tended to be a bit out of the normal scope of the job, they were usually kind enough to help out where they could.
As he was leaving the Hall having had his map marked up with areas to check out, he had run into Thomas. Remembering the boy from his time showing Alan around campus, the two had gotten to talking, helped in no small part by Thomas’s outgoing nature. After hearing about Alan's living situation, Thomas had offered to help out and show Alan around a few places.
"I'm just glad you found the place alright," Thomas replied, smiling. "Did you just get here? I passed by the area a few minutes back but didn't see you so I went looking around in case you had gotten lost."
"Yup made it no problem," Alan said. He had actually arrived early, having finished his meeting with the captain sooner than expected. He didn't say it, but he suspected [Hide] might have prevented Thomas from spotting him earlier.
Thomas smiled. "Good to hear, so let's see what you've got so far."
Alan only had four nights left with his free housing situation and had been checking out apartments whenever his headaches didn't prevent him from venturing outside. He didn't want to end up on the streets, but he had been starting to resign himself to the fact that he might have to be homeless for a while. His estimates about the cost of living in the city had been extremely off, to say the least, and five hundred drams per month was turning out to be nowhere near enough to live on. Rent was expensive. Food was expensive. Everything was expensive.
He debated going back to ask for more loan money, but thinking back to Jan, he didn't imagine it would go over very well. Not that he didn't think she would do it, but the terms of the loan would be frightful.
He handed Thomas the stack of fliers in his hand.
℈1200/month: 1 bedroom in a 3 bedroom apartment in Mana Park.
℈250/month: 3 square meter storage space in Mana Park.
℈900/month: shared studio apartment in Dressoria.
℈500/month: 1 shared bedroom in a 2 bedroom apartment in Western Field.
℈1900/month: studio in East Mana Park.
℈900/month: studio apartment in Western Field.
℈500/month: 1 bedroom apartment in South Western Field.
These were the best he had been able to find. The cheapest thing had been some storage space for two hundred and fifty drams per month, and technically he wasn't supposed to live in it, but it was looking to be the only affordable option so far.
He needed a job or a miracle or both.
Thomas glanced through the stack nodding to himself. "Looks about right, though some of these can probably be talked down, while others seem suspiciously low. Gotta be careful of scams. And I would throw out the apartments you have in Western Field. Trust me, it is not the safest neighborhood, and once you're on the south side, well don't be on the south side of that area."
"I see," Alan responded gloomily. If this didn't work out, he might as well start scoping out the best places to sleep on the streets of South Edge.
Done with the fliers, Thomas looked up. "These are pretty normal, but I can do you better. You remember our deal, right?"
Alan looked at the other young man. "You'll show me some places that your family owns, and if I take one of your places, I get one free month and a good deal on rent. In return, I make sure to introduce you to Sara."
Thomas was nodding along.
"Not to question this too much, since it seems like a good deal for me," Alan continued hesitantly, "but couldn't you just introduce yourself normally? You know, 'hi I'm Thomas' and all of that?"
Thomas was giving him a shocked look.
"Alex, you seem like a nice weird guy, but clearly you do not understand the delicacy of the situation." He ran a hand through his perfectly crafted hair. "What would I say from there? Where would I even run into her before class starts? And once class starts she'll have her pick of any guy she wants! I need to get in there before she has other options, otherwise I'll be just a face in a sea of eligible bachelors!"
"I see."
"I don't think you do." Thomas put his arm around him in what Alan guessed was deemed to be a friendly gesture. "Look here, the places my family owns aren't spectacular, but they're far from the worst, and I'm going to be giving you a great deal. As part of this great deal, you don't simply introduce me to Sara. I can see you thinking it's as easy as saying 'oh hey Sara this is Thomas' and leaving it at that. Nope, not good enough. We're going to become friends you and I, and as friends, you're going to find ways for us all to hang out in natural, normal ways. In return, you'll get the nicest landlord you've ever had the pleasure of leasing from."
Thomas was smiling as he patted Alan on the back. "Follow me, my man, and we'll see what you think."
Thankfully Thomas began moving away from the bustling market and down some quieter, residential streets. The people walking around seemed reasonably well off and the houses matched the people. The neighborhood seemed calm to [Sense], which Alan appreciated.
"What if she doesn't like you?" Alan asked as they walked, wondering what type of situation he was getting himself into. He liked Sara, and he wasn't sure how he felt about this.
"Then she doesn't like me and you still have the nicest landlord in all of Saga." Thomas took a left at one of the intersections with a small clothing store on the corner. Foot traffic was picking up.
"Look I like to think if we had known each other better, you would introduce me to her without any pretext. Just like I would rent a place to you if I knew you were looking. That's what friends are for, and that's pretty much all there is to this. I'm not looking for some skeezy deal here."
"Why Sara?" Alan asked.
"Uh, have you seen her?" Thomas responded incredulously. "Well I certainly have. She's around campus now and then because of who her grandfather is, and for the life of me, I haven't been able to find any reason to introduce myself. I heard not too long ago that she's skipping a grade and going to be in my class this year, so I was wracking my brain for a way to get closer to her before classes start. Then here you come along looking for housing and telling me you're taking lessons with her and her grandfather. Seems like fate to me."
Soon enough, they stopped in front of a small building.
"And here we are!" Thomas gestured grandly.
"An apothecary?" Alan looked at the storefront. It seemed nice enough.
"Didn't I tell you? My full name is Thomas Hackett, and my family owns Hackett Apothecariums. We have twelve wonderful locations around Saga! Four are located here in South Edge, though the main office is in Central of course."
Alan thought a moment.
"Why are you enrolled in the Mana Guild?" He asked.
"Same reason as everybody. Adventure!" Thomas grinned waiting for a reaction. Alan stared back.
"Also money," he continued a bit dejected after getting nothing from Alan. "Many of the best ingredients for our potions and tinctures come from outside of the Barriers. You wouldn't believe what people charge for some of these things, and a lot of it isn't even that hard to find once you're out in the Expanse. Having someone on the inside is well worth it for my family, and I'm a fourth child, so off to the Mana Guild I shall go. Which suits me just fine as I hear the women in other Territories are more generous then the ones you find here if you get my drift." Thomas smiled knowingly though having lived in Strength, Alan didn't see much difference when it came to such things. He kept his mouth shut as Thomas continued speaking.
"It also means that we have some space above our stores, which is just being used for storage because it isn't worth the trouble of renting it out. I took over an apartment above one of our nicer locations when I enrolled here, and another buddy of mine is renting from me as well. A little extra income never hurt anyone, so like I said no big deal. Anyway, follow me and we'll check out the place."
The two boys walked to a small door to the side of the store, and Thomas pulled out some keys. Walking up some stairs, they arrived in the apartment.
It was filled with boxes and strange instruments, but overall the place was better than any he had seen so far by a wide margin. It had hardwood floors that were clean and didn't creak, wide vaulted ceilings, and large windows that brought in plenty of light. To Alan, it was the most luxurious apartment he had ever been inside, which made it all the harder when he had to turn it down. [Sense] was killing him, and this apartment was severely triggering his headaches. It seemed the apothecary shop below had too much foot traffic and movement.
"Do you sell anything for headaches?" Alan asked as they went to try a different location.
----------------------------------------
The other places Thomas had shown him were all within areas of heavy foot traffic; it turned out that the first place they had visited had actually been the quietest. It made sense that stores would be placed in areas where people would congregate, but Alan needed a place out of the way where his [Sense] headaches wouldn't become a constant torture. He asked Thomas about any options in more remote locations that he might have, and the boy had promised to check on something and show him more later, but Alan wasn't hopeful.
He had lived underground in caves for two years, he could live on the streets for a month or so while he looked for work.
More importantly, after his meeting with captain Jacobs, he had come out more determined than ever to overcome his situation. His main take away from the captain was that he needed to get his arm working and find a way to improve his physical ability to a level above the other students.
With those thoughts in his head, the next day saw Alan once again standing in the courtyard facing Walter.
"So?" Walter asked, waiting for Alan to speak.
Nothing for it. Alan needed to get back to Strength, and he needed to do it as part of a unit in the Guards.
It was his one of his few leads. The deputy commander of Strength had ordered the road closing around his town during the outbreak of the fictional Ash Plague. He wasn't naive enough to think he could just walk up to such a person and start asking questions. Being a part of the Guards, even as a member of the Mana Guild, would give him a route to the man and a way to start investigating from the inside. Otherwise, he would just be acting as a Mana mule, escorting people and goods back and forth between Territories.
Actually, given his low Intelligence and inability to move large swaths of Mana around, it was doubtful that he would even be able to achieve that much. More likely, he would be stuck doing simple errands for the Guild while hopelessly struggling against his ever-increasing debt. It was a future that he needed to avoid.
He had asked Walter every question he could think of about the requirements and what they look for when placing Guild graduates. He knew the roles they sought to fill for the Guards, and more to the point, he only had one year in which to prove himself fit for them. It wasn't the option he would have chosen otherwise, but he knew what he needed to do to give himself any chance at all. He had resigned himself to giving Walter a full listing of his Skills to be sure of his choice, but he was ready to move forward.
He stared determinedly as Walter leaned against a wall looking up at him with vague interest.
"Teach me [Accelerate]."