I looked over the three boys standing around me. They were all roughly my age and about my size and age. I sighed. "I am heading to the outpost on a quest."

They looked like Chris, Kevin, and Sean. Those were the pricks who gave me such a nightmare at school. Here I was going to call them Chris Dipshit, Kevin Dipshit, and Sean Dipshit.

"He’s lying. Everyone knows you don’t get quests till you’re older", said Sean Dipshit.

"Yeah, even Zac doesn’t have quests, and he got his class ages ago," said Kevin Dipshit.

"I asked you what you were doing," said Chris Dipshit.

I had to come up with better names on the fly than this! I’d lose track of them and then get confused. But their conversation confirmed that I was correct with the name choice.

"I’m heading to the outpost." I was hopeful that fewer words would reduce some thought complexity for them and maybe stop any further trouble.

"Where’d you steal those there guns from?" said one of the dipshits.

Confirming that thinking was not a high priority here.

They were wearing rough clothes. Jeans and what looked like homemade shirts. All faded and well-worn. The two larger boys looked mean, although that could be me projecting. The more petite boy, I think I called Kevin Dipshit, looked like he wanted to be sitting under a tree reading. That was just the glasses giving me ideas. It was close enough to be my school nemesis that I was spoiling for trouble.

Oh, I liked that. I have nemesises, nemesai ? Whatever the plural was, now. I was feeling a bit awesome again. I had guns, and they didn’t. Maybe this was why guns were restricted in Australia. They did make you feel powerful. If I had guns when my bullies came for me, I would have to take a loan to buy more ammo. I sighed. I don’t think I was ready to shoot people for looking like bullies.

I would not resort to guns on people. Yet, then I remembered he had asked a question.

I sighed again, "I bought them. My name is Lu...er Sam, what are your names?" I remembered Tasar’s advice about letting people know who I was.

"Don’t tell him, Roy. Da says to be careful around strangers", said Chris Dipshit.

Roy, or Sean Dipshit, clipped Chris Dipshit on the arm, "What you do that for Earl, now he knows my name."

I liked Kevin Dipshit more when he snickered. I needed to get a bit more control here, "So, Roy, Earl", I nodded at them. "My name is Sam, and I am heading to the outpost. I bought my guns. They are pistols, actually, so please do not stand in my way,"

I drew one of the pistols and thumbed the safety, pretending to be knowledgeable and confident. You could hear the hum of the power pack over the silence.

A branch broke behind me.

A smooth, grave and quiet voice said, "As much as the lads can sometimes deserve it, I’d appreciate you not shootin my boys now, Mr. Sam?". It was terrifying.

"Aww, Da, we were just having some fun. He wasn’t gonna shoot us any. We was just wanting a look at them fancy guns", Roy Dipshit whined.

"Run on home, boys, finish your chores, and I’ll see you later, Roy. Earl, off you go, and you too, Jimmy. I’ll chat with your folks, so don’t run off and hide. I’ll finish my chat with Mr. Sam here, and you might get to see him later."

The boys broke and ran like the devil was behind them. I turned around.

It was a real live goddamnd cowboy. He, too, wore jeans, a flannel shirt, a cowboy hat, and leather boots. He was carrying a nice-looking high-tech shotgun in a very casual manner over his shoulde, makinge him look even more dangerous.

He had a noticeable implant in one eye.

He spat a wad of something to the side. "Them boys are annoying but don’t mean to be trouble. Now, what brings you to our little outpost? I overheard about a quest?"

"Yes, sir, I have a quest. It’s called Collect a Chaos Bounty (1). I need to redeem it at an outpost system store. I believe there is one in your outpost?"

"As Roy said, you are a bit young for questin, but a quest is a quest. If what you say is true. We don’t stand in the way of people gaining levels and such. Pretty rare around here. Most of us folk get into the farming and labouring classes. Tier 1, Poor, " he spat again, " but we are honest classes and folk. We don’t need you looking down on us, but we won’t stand in your way. Remember to be honest and consider where your food comes from, Mr. Sam, Farming folk like us."

With a sigh, I could be honest, "My name is Luke, sir. I don’t look down on anyone, sir. I was a bit like Roy, Earl, and Jimmy a few days ago. I am just trying to find my way in the world. I want to help the folks back home who are in trouble."

Goddamn, I had only been speaking to them for less than five minutes, and I was already calling people folk like a hillbilly. I was not going to turn into a bumpkin.

"Well, that sounds fine. I’ll take you to the store and introduce you to Lloyd. If you behave and are staying, you’ll need to stay at the Hostel. Dangerous out in the woods here. But you would know about that, handing a quest in and all. Lloyd might be able to help you out before you go on your way, too. Careful round here, we ain’t friendly folk, look after our own, but we are fair and kind to those who are fair and kind to us."

He turned and walked towards the outpost. "I’d appreciate it if you put your guns away. I don’t want my boy to get any more fool ideas, understand? I don’t mind you giving them a beat-up if they deserve it. Shooting my boy would upset his Ma more than I would care to deal with. If it happened, I’d have to chat quietly with you about it." He casually patted the shotgun.

It was terrifying in his certainty that he would be able to do something about it. I swallowed nervously. I did not want to test him. However, he had given me permission to lay some smackdown on Roy!

BEEP.

You might be reading a pirated copy. Look for the official release to support the author.

Return to your place of Incarceration to reduce and or remove bounty. System-sanctioned law enforcement officers were notified.

Although it was muffled, I am sure he knew what it was. We walked around the fields and into the outpost. Again, I was reminded of a cowboy town. I remember watching ‘Serenity’ where they picked up Shepheard Book, Doc and River. This town had a similar feel, except it was quieter and had no obvious spaceships. The town was the main hard-packed dirt street, with some two and three-story wooden or fake wooden houses and shops.

Horses, or close to horses – and to be honest – really freaky-looking horses tied up and several people standing or sitting under the shade of awnings and balconies. There were cyborg horses and even a steampunk-like motorised vehicle of some sort parked outside buildings.

Most of them nodded to Dipshit’s Da. He never told me his name, so I had to make do with calling him Dipshit’s Da.

We stopped outside what was the hostel. It said Hostel on an old sign. I could read it, although I am sure it was not in English. "Is a hostel like an inn or hotel?" I asked Dipshit’s Da.

It looked like a real-life cowboy saloon. Not that I had ever seen one. It had dusty glass windows that you could not see through. Proper swinging saloon doors and real live piano music, Country Honky Tonk, I think it was called. My Pa, damn it, my dad was a somewhat fan of Country and Western, so I had some exposure to that and some Blues and Jazz. Enough to know what country music sounded like. I could even sing popular songs like the unfortunate "Achy Breaky Heart."

"Pub or Tavern would be closer, with some simple rooms. Usually, for drunks and such, we don’t get a lot of fancy folk coming through here who want to stay or need an inn." he glared at me with a frown, "You are a bit young for drinking, right?" It was not a question.

"Sure, another couple of years, and I’ll be a regular." I could snark with the best of them.

Maybe that was part of my problems with kids my age. I should learn to shut up at times. Oh well.

"Outpost shop is in there; Lloyd will help you out. He is as close to the leader we got here. Most of us want to work the land like our folks, live in peace, and not be bothered by quests, fools, and heroes."

"OK?" I looked a bit hesitant.

"Off you go. If I go in, I might be tempted to claim the bounty for that collar." I could see the grin and hear the smirk, "Lloyd will be asking about it, no doubt, and remember, we don’t want trouble, so I hope I won’t be seeing you."

Goddammit, I was going to kill Tasar for this stupid collar. Dipshit's dad shoved me in the back and through the swinging saloon doors with a chuckle. The insides were dim, but the aroma of roasting meats over the smell of sawdust on the floor and the stale beer gripped me. My stomach rumbled.

I had my father to thank for my education on all matters of pubs and clubs and the associated smells and ambience. I am sure that when we got kicked out of a club when I was 3, me in his custom papoose, him blind rotten drunk, he was not going to win father of the year. He was an upstanding guy, and I was just a way to "break the ice with the ladies if you know what I mean." Well, that was his defence to the child protection officers. Anyway, I knew the smell of stale beer before I could read. Before Mum passed away, he was a nice guy, but afterwards, not so much. It didn’t stop his business success. I was unsure how much Amy saw that side of him or if she just had a blind spot; she was always off with her friends.

Wooden beams supported the upper floor, and the directional lights attached to the roof between them. These were shining onto photographs of personal achievements around the room, all related to a mountain or the desert. Some of the people who reached the summit, others seemed to be simply happy to be alive in beautiful places. It was an odd mix, given the rustic outsides or the inn. From the music, I had expected more than just one customer here. The innkeeper, the tavern owner, Lloyd, stood behind the long bar along the far wall, talking to his sole patron.

Lloyd Tucker Tier 1 Innkeeper.

LOG: Warning. You have an active bounty. Lloyd Tucker is a System-sanctioned Law Enforcement Officer L2.

Crap.

Lloyd looked over at me and nodded at his customer, "I’ll have those ready for you the day after tomorrow, " as he stood and left. Lloyd came around the bar and over to me.

"Luke, " with a nod, he put out his for me to shake.

"Lloyd", I said as I shook his hand, consciously not triggering "Thunder Grip" I was saving that for Roy Dipshit if I was going to use it.

I felt a strange surge over me as he gave me a look up and down.

LOG: Lloyd Tucker has Identified you. Identification Rejected.

Luke Level 1 Warrior Tier 1 Race Human.

"Hmmm, not many Level 1 folk come through here anymore. Those Grimclaws keep the forest pretty empty. Especially fugitives. Although there is some strange information about you on the bounty board."

With perfect timing,

BEEP.

Return to your place of Incarceration to reduce and or remove bounty. System-sanctioned law enforcement officers were notified.

He smiled. "Or lack of information, lots of it missing about you and that collar you are wearing is wanted in conjunction with an escapee with a lot of redacted information, from the central Empire. Quite a bounty, too. Some mighty interesting folks might be wantin a chat with you. But lucky me, you came here first."

"Wait, I can explain … " I started. Well, I couldn't. I had no idea what Lloyd was talking about.

"Don’t worry. You have some time to sort it out. Just tell me what you are doing, and well, we don’t truck with those Inner Empire folk and want to be left alone. Harley messaged me and told me you seemed OK. A bit lost, but OK. He is the gentleman who shoved you in the door. He is generally a good judge of character. He appreciated you not doing something stupid with the boys. Despite the bounty being enough to set us for quite some time, it ain’t how we treat folks who have done us no harm. Maybe if I help you out, you can return the favour?"

I looked at him.

"I’m going to ignore the collar for now. That story can be told later. Tell me about your quest, and then I’ll see what I can do to help if you are the right kind of people."

"I have this quest …" he cut me off.

"Just share it so that I can see it for myself. That way, I know you ain’t lying to me."

"Um, I am kinda new to this. How do I share it? My trainer just kicked me out without too much, er... training."

"Ha, that’s the right kind of training, figure stuff out for yourself, don’t listen to what everyone else has done, work it out and see it work properly for yourself. Learning from your mistakes. It reminds me of how the old-school trainers worked and how we do things around here, too. Part of working it out is asking other folks and meeting people. So, if you just think about share quest and then the bits you want to share. Some folks will share all of it, but generally, the name, description, difficulty, and sometimes the time frame if it is relevant. Rewards are a personal choice. Sometimes, rewards can be very personal or give too much information. If I wanted the info, I could buy it from the system shop with enough credits."

Share the quest with Lloyd Tucker, name and description only.

LOG: You are about to share a quest with Lloyd Tucker.

Tutorial Quest Received: Collect a Chaos Bounty (1)

Collect a Tier 1 or higher Chaos trophy.

Redeem for bounty reward at any Outpost System Store.

Lloyd nodded. "Tutorial, you are a beginner. Interesting. I bet there is a story with the collar. I take it you have the Chaos Trophy?"

I grinned back, "Got 2. 2 Tier 2!" with a bit of pride.

"Have you now?" he gave me a strange look, "Mighty nice effort for a Level 1; you should get some nice reward for those, and you have done us a favour, too. See, the kids would get eaten if they wandered too far into the woods, so two fewer Grimclaws, I take it, is a good thing. Come over and hand them in, and I’ll see about organising some food and getting you sorted."

He led me over to the side of the bar where a familiar black obelisk stood, which was slightly smaller than Tasar’s but had the same features. At the top was a sign "Desert Edge Outpost Shop".

I put my palms onto the palm rest and looked over at Llyod.