“Taunt!”
Brian watched as Emile shouted out the name of the Ability, the group of five goblins wielding clubs and rusty knives all turning to look at him. Five more goblins with slings were hurrying around in the back, grouping up to begin pelting them with rocks when a second shout went up.
“Backstab!” Jenny said as she seemed to shimmer into existence behind the sling wielding goblins, stabbing one in the back of the neck with one of her daggers, dropping it instantly before calling out again, “Sneak.”
“Brandy!” Emile shouted as he blocked or dodged several of the attacks of the melee fighters, still taking a nasty hit to the ribs from one of the clubs.
“Heal!” the Medic shouted as her hands glowed a soft green, Emile immediately seeming to recover.
“Mass Paralyze,” Brian said as he carefully applied the Spell to the five goblin fighters, letting it freeze them in place for a few seconds before ending the effect, still giving Emile more than enough time to kill two of the green-skinned humanoids.
“Nice! Thanks, Brian!” the front-liner shouted, now easily able to avoid the blows of the remaining three, two more of the ranged goblins having already fallen to Jenny’s blades, resulting in the last two trying to scatter as the Scout chased after them.
“Paralyze,” Brian said as he froze the one that the girl was following, allowing her to eagerly pounce on it and slit its throat, before darting off after the last one.
“How’s your mana?” Brandy asked, Brian just smiling as he cast another paralyze on one of the melee goblins.
“About half gone,” he lied, hoping she wouldn’t notice that the fight had barely scratched the surface of his reserves, “I should be fine though, my staff can store mana, so I have a bunch to spare.”
“Really?” the Medic asked as she glanced at the wicked looking staff, “That’s pretty neat. Maybe I should try to get one for myself?”
“It’s useful,” Brian nodded as he watched Emile cut down the last two goblins, Jenny having caught up to the last sling wielding one, stabbing it repeatedly until it stopped struggling, “Okay, let’s search the camp, but be careful of any more that might be hiding.”
“Oh, come on!” the Scout laughed as she wiped her blades off on the ground, “That’s all of them, isn’t it? Not like A goblin shaman is going to show up and-.”
She was cut off as the bolt of flame shot from one of the ragged tents, a goblin wearing a bone necklace and carrying a short staff with a bird skull tied to the top running out as the Scout screamed in pain.
“Shit!” Emile yelled, charging forwards as the shaman stopped and shouted something in its guttural language, making the young man stumble, “What?”
“Emile!” Brandy shouted, even as she ran over to Jenny’s side, immediately starting to cast her Healing Ability on the girl’s burned back.
“I can’t see!” the boy shouted, Brian blinking as he watched the goblin shaman grin, turning to look at Brian himself, already starting to say something again.
“Paralyze,” Brian said, not giving the shaman enough time to finish before it toppled over backwards, a look of surprise on its face as the older man jogged up to Emile’s side, placing a hand on his shoulder, “Curse Break.”
“What?” Emile gasped as he blinked, looking around in confusion, “What was that?”
“A Blinding Curse,” Brian explained, already turning away to hurry towards the two girls, Jenny sobbing in pain as Brandy frantically tried to heal the wound on her back, “What’s wrong?”
“I don’t have enough mana!” the Medic panted, her skin pale as she looked at the patch of charred skin and bone that was on her friend’s back, “It hit her in the spine! It we don’t heal it, then she could lose the ability to walk properly!”
“Here,” Brian said, pulling one of the Healing Potions from his ring, handing it to the frantic girl, “Give it to her, quickly!”
“A-are you sure?” Brandy gasped, looking at the small vial of crimson fluid, “These things cost a fortune! And this one looks like it’s really strong!”
“Do it!” Brian shouted as he stood, stomping over to the still paralyzed shaman, scowling down at it as he ignored the two teens tending to their friend, “And as for you…”
The goblin’s eyes shot around in its head as it tried to break free of the Ability, before it let out a wheezing cough, purple liquid starting to bubble around the edges of its mouth as dark blood dripped from its nose and eyes. The creature shuddered slightly as the Poison took hold, its eyes pleading with Brian to just finish it off as it was in obvious pain.
“No,” he growled, “I like these kids, and you hurt one of them, so now I’m going to hurt you.”
He blinked as the sword drove down into the paralyzed goblin’s chest, straight through its heart, looking at Emile in surprise.
“Brian, what in the hells was that about?” the young man said, the anger on his face obvious, “I get that you’re angry, but you can’t do that! It may be a goblin, but it’s still a living thing!”
“What?” Brian blinked again, “But it-.”
“No,” Emile growled, “Killing them is one thing, but that was torture!”
“I…” Brian paused as he looked at the angry teen, “You’re right. I’m sorry.”
“Good,” Emile sighed, pulling out a cloth to wipe the dark blood off his sword before sheathing it, “At least I know you’ve got a brain in your skull. Unlike some people.”
He chuckled slightly as the two girls approached, directing the jab at Jenny as the girl sniffed, her eyes puffy from crying.
“I just got half my back burned off, and you’re making fun of me?” the girl huffed.
“You should always be careful,” Emile huffed back, “I keep telling you that, but you never listen!”
“I can look after myself, thank you very much!” the girl muttered.
Unauthorized duplication: this tale has been taken without consent. Report sightings.
“Apparently not,” Emile said back, “Now, come on, let’s collect the goblin ears so we can get paid.”
“Why does Brandy even like you?” the Scout muttered a little too loudly, “You’re such a stick in the mud.”
“I…what?” Emile stopped, turning to look at the two girls in surprise, Brandy blushing brightly as Jenny went slightly paler, realising what she’d just said, “Did you just say that Brandy…likes me?”
“N-no!” Jenny said hurriedly, “Must have been your imagination!”
“No way,” Emile shook his head, “I definitely heard you say that.”
“You really didn’t!” Jenny repeated, looking at the still crimson Brandy apologetically.
“It’s fine,” Brandy suddenly sniffed, “I mean…I Know Emile likes someone else already, so I’m…it’s fine.”
“Likes someone else?” Jenny blinked, “Wait…who? You’re definitely a better catch than them! Emile’s just being an idiot again!”
“Oh dear,” Brian muttered as he watched the show, “I think I know where this is going.”
“No one! It doesn’t matter!” the boy shouted, “Let’s just collect the ears and never talk about this again!”
“No!” Jenny shouted back, “You’re breaking Brandy’s heart here, Emile! Be a man for once and accept some responsibility! Who would you even like other than Brandy?”
“You!” Emile screamed at her, tears starting to form in the corners of his eyes, “I…I like you, okay?”
“Me?” Jenny blinked, a look of shock on her face.
“And I’ve been pulled into a teen drama love triangle plot,” Brian groaned quietly as he moved around the camp, cutting off the goblin ears as neatly as he could, “Great.”
“W-wait, you…you l-like me?” Jenny blushed, “But…but Brandy likes you?”
“I can’t help the way I feel,” Emile muttered, “You’re just so…you. I’ve liked you for years.”
“Okay, enough of this,” Brian sighed as he approached the three teens, “You lot ever heard of polygamy? Multiple people in the same relationship?”
“Poly-what?” the three blinked as they looked at Brian in shock, Brandy somehow turning an even deeper shade of crimson as she spoke, “You can’t be suggesting that we both date Emile, can you?”
“Yes, that’s exactly what I’m suggesting,” Brian said flatly, “Hell, you and Jenny could even date each other for all I care. I just don’t want to see you all stuck in some awkward situation because your hormones are making you act like idiots.”
“Idiots?” Jenny blinked, “Hormones? What’re those?”
“Chemicals your body produces when you’re a teenager to help you grow and physically mature,” Brian explained briefly, “Look, we don’t have time for a whole lesson on puberty, and I’m pretty sure I’d mess some things up, so let’s just get back to the city, okay?”
“Okay,” the three stunned teens nodded as he started to walk off, giving each other embarrassed looks as they followed after him.
“Hey,” Brandy whispered to Jenny after they’d been walking for an hour, “About the thing Brian said…about both of us dating Emile?”
“Yeah?” the other girl blushed harder as she glanced at her friend.
“I…I’d be okay with it.”
“Oh,” Jenny blinked, thinking for a moment before speaking again, “I mean…so would I, I guess?”
------
“Ten goblins, and a goblin shaman,” the clerk behind the desk said as she looked over the collection of ears and the bone necklace, “Well, the bounty is five copper per goblin, and one silver for a shaman, so that’s six silver coins for the four of you. Would you like me to divvy it up for you?”
“Thank you,” Brian nodded as he accepted the four purses, turning to look at the still silent teens with a sigh, “Come on, let’s go get a celebratory meal, my treat.”
“Are you sure?” Emile suddenly blinked, looking at Brian in surprise, “I mean, we can afford to pay for ourselves and-.”
“I have some spare money,” Brian chuckled, patting the boy on the shoulder as he checked his rings, seeing he still had a considerable amount of gold coins, “So yes, I’m sure. Just don’t go too crazy, I’m not made of money.”
“R-right,” Emile nodded as the three followed him out of the Adventurer’s Guild building, heading towards a fancy tavern.
“Private booth, please,” Brian said as he led the party into the building, the man at the front nodding as he guided them towards the back of the tavern, the three teens sitting silently as they pointedly avoided making eye-contact.
The group sat in silence for a while, before Brian eventually sighed, sitting back in his seat.
“Okay, so I may have pushed the idea of polygamy on you guys a little too fast,” he said, “Sorry about that. It’s just, I’ve seen the situation you three are in before, and it kind of irritates me, so I just…said it.”
“It’s fine,” Brandy nodded, “We’d probably just have been stuck like that for ages if you hadn’t said anything. The party might have fallen apart because of it.”
“Yeah,” Jenny nodded, “I mean, I had no idea that Emile even liked me. I always knew he was hard-headed, so it made sense for him to not see Brandy’s feelings, but now I find out I’m the same? Feels kind of bad.”
“Hey!” Emile huffed, “I’m not hard-headed! I just…well, didn’t really think about it.”
“And now you are,” Brian interrupted, “All three of you are. So, I’m going to make a suggestion; go slow. Don’t rush into this relationship, any of these relationships, just because you know about each other’s feelings now. Take your time to feel out what makes you comfortable and uncomfortable, and communicate with each other, okay?”
“R-right,” Emile nodded, “I mean, it would be kind of weird for me to have two partners all of a sudden.”
“And what makes you think the Brandy and I won’t just get together ourselves?” Jenny asked, her cheeks going red in a blush.
“I…wouldn’t be against that,” the other girl chuckled, also blushing as Jenny looked at her in surprise, “What? You’re really pretty, and fun to be around. I may have had a crush on you before I fell for Emile.”
“Wait, seriously?” Jenny gasped, her entire face now red, “Oh, wow, I never realised.”
“Who’s the hard-headed one now?” Emile chuckled as the two girls turned to glare at him, “What? I’m just joking.”
“Right, well you three seem to be getting along much better now,” Brian nodded, “So, enough talk about love and sharing, time for some food!”
“Yeah!” the three teens cheered as Brian called over one of the servers, each of them ordering their meals as they fell into comfortable conversation.
------
“Goodnight, you three,” Brian said as he dropped the teens off at their inn, “And remember, don’t go rushing into anything. Seriously.”
“Right,” Emile nodded, swaying slightly on his feet as he blinked drunkenly, “Don’t want my first time to be when I’m not sober, anyway.”
“Who says you’d even get to do that?” Jenny chuckled as she leaned against him, “Brandy and I are the ones sharing a room, so maybe we’ll have a go with each other first?”
“Enough, you two,” Brandy sighed, “Let’s just go get some sleep.”
“Good idea,” Brian chuckled as the three blushing teens entered the building, turning to walk away.
The night was cool as he slowly made his way back to his own inn, Brian taking a deep breath as he walked. Looking up, he marvelled at the stars in the nearly cloudless sky, the half moon casting its light down onto the city, providing more than enough light for his to see by. Even so, he still let his new magical sense spread out, feeling the people moving about or sleeping in the nearby buildings. A bright flash on the edge of his sense made him pause, before hurrying towards the alleyway he could feel it in as quietly as possible.
“Where is it?” the voice hissed as he drew near to the entrance, the owner pinning someone against the wall of the building, “Tell me. Now.”
“I d-don’t have it!” the other person whimpered, “I-I swear!”
“Where is it?!” the first person snarled again, Brian hearing the sounds of creaking bone as the figure gripped the other’s shoulder, “Tell me!”
“I-I sold it! A Magic shop in the East Quarter!” the pinned person replied, Brian able to make out the tears streaming down their face, “I’m sorry! Please don’t kill me!”
“That’s enough,” Brian said as he stepped into the alleyway, immediately casting his Paralyze Ability on the figure pinning the man to the wall.
The figure’s eyes swivelled in its head, startling Brian as the golden circles reflected the dim light of the moon even in the alley’s shadows. Suddenly, they flexed, Brian gasping as he felt his hold of his Ability break, the figure leaping back into the shadows. Brian scowled, about to cast his Ability again, before the mana of the figure vanished, leaving only him and the sobbing man in the alley. Shaking his head, Brian hurried over to the man, kneeling beside him where he’d slid down the wall.
“Are you okay?” he asked, the man just letting out a terrified whimper, “Come on, let’s get you somewhere safe.”
“Kill me…” the man muttered as Brian helped him to his feet, hooking one arm over his shoulders, “It’s going to come back and kill me!”
“Whoever that was is gone,” Brian said, “Trust me, I would be able to sense them if they were still around.”
“N-no, you don’t understand! We…we took something…it wants it back! It won’t stop until I’m dead! All the others are dead!”
“What did you take?” Brian asked as the man shuddered in his arms, suddenly falling still, his ragged breath starting to calm, “Shit, he’s unconscious. Right, I think there’s a Guard Station somewhere near here, let’s take him there first.”