http://www [https://em.wattpad.com/963b69b0d29df8dd1058284740002c60947da0a0/68747470733a2f2f73332e616d617a6f6e6177732e636f6d2f776174747061642d6d656469612d736572766963652f53746f7279496d6167652f3137377039557769537235766c413d3d2d3432333531373132382e313463363538653831393931393635393437383532343733303638352e6a7067?s=fit&w=1280&h=1280]

http://www.unlimitedrpgs.com/forums2/viewtopic.php?f=131&t=5058

It was many days later, but you finally find your way out of the Open Plains and end up back in the town of Harthorn, a small backwater place, home to drifters, adventurers, and sellswords. The town set up long ago by some dwarven lords to act as neutral ground between the Open Plains and Dwarven Domains but since a good few years ago back it had been mostly populated by lowlife scum that delighted in the misery of others. In some ways, it was almost like a second home to you.

Having rented yourself a room at the Lonely Boar Inn, a favorite of the locals here, you sit at the rearmost corner of the room to ponder your future plans. The many mercenaries that filtered in through the doorway checked over by a couple of orc grunts that took away their weapons before they could head inside. The tavern, a quiet cosy place where adventurers bragged of their latest heroics or dastardly deeds to a crowd of hard-faced men and women who’d also seen their fair share of battle with almost every single table packed to the brim with tired warriors, and nut-brown walls adorned with great tapestries of past battles that sat above a large fireplace that kept the common room nice and toasty. 

Proclaimed to have the finest brewed heart-knocker for leagues around, most were willing to forego their weapons for a chance to taste Glumdel’s golden liquor. The rule instituted by the dwarf to reduce the number of deaths in his tavern. Though that hadn’t stopped three fights from breaking out already since your arrival back in town. The worst of them between two mercenary outfits who’d taken to painting their armor with stripes on the shoulder guards to identify their allegiance. The chaotic brawl a bloody mess with at least one death. To which you had tried hard to not be a party to. If you were going to fight, you usually preferred to be paid for it.

Luckily for you, with a whole crew of hardened bouncers that looked equally up to the challenge, the fights were usually broken up rather swiftly and quite viciously with more than a few broken bones for their troubles, which in your honest opinion was a fair trade for getting to walk away with their lives.

You weren’t exactly sure what you’d hoped to find here, but since coming to the small city, you’d wandered the streets alone, been accosted by sellswords in alleyways, killed a few that pushed their luck too far, and had the pleasure of speaking with some fine looking women that worked at the bordello across the street from the Inn. Which was a good way to keep the business always flowing towards the tavern and offered a fairly pleasant sight for those who’d hired the rooms upstairs with the open balconies.

It was a pity, you couldn’t afford such grandeur for yourself, but not to worry you would find your way up there one day. After all, the day was still early, and there was still plenty of gold to be made in a town like this.

Head lifted from the empty mug you’d barely noticed was finished, you stumble up to your feet, right yourself and head towards dwarven innkeeper who sat behind the counter reading his ledger. The small spectacles propped on his wide nose and chubby face almost as ridiculous as the bright yellow overcoat he wore around his thick frame. 

Bleary green eyes looking up at him, Glumdel asked, “Whad’ye wan you? Cannae see I'm busy.”

“I had hoped you might have some work for me. Seeing as I was the one that stopped those last few idiots from ruining your fine establishment,” you manage to slur out.

Glumdel laughed and placed the ledger down on the counter. “Ohh aye, and Drusel is not like to forget ‘bout that. She’d been hopin to have those two fer supper,” said the dwarf with a pointed look towards the ogress who stood at the front doorway glowering at you. 

Slightly more slender than her male kin, Drusel was every bit the kind of ogrekan mothers told their children about to keep them in at night with a face ugly enough to give most nightmares. Wide of hip with baleful sapphire blue eyes and scraggly black hair, she was easily the size of the doorway herself and armed with a huge wooden club to boot that had nails driven into it. 

Face twisted into a grimace at the possibility of battling such a monster, you wave an arm up to her in apology to her, but judging by her flared nostrils and narrowed glare she was having none of it. “Well, let’s say that I make it up to you two some way. You need work done, and I need gold so I can get back on the road.”

Glumdel scrubbed his bearded his chin, before letting out a soft sigh. “Auck very well then, I wanne have it be said I didnae repay me own debts, and I do suppose I owe ya for that time with da elf,” he then leaned forward across the counter, “Na listen tah me good, I need ye to pick up a delivery of miin, and bring it back ‘ere. Otherwise, I may have to send her out lookin fer you. Take dis ‘ere note, it’ll show ye were ta go. Naw goon now, and get goin. And bring me that package before sundown.”

Thankful to finally have something to do, you snatch the note out of the dwarf’s stubby fingers before he could regret his decision and head for the doorway. The ogress all but giving you the stink eye as you collect your belongings and head out the door. The orcs on watch outside, nodding their heads to you as you gaze up and down the street. The scantily clad women on the other side throwing you seductive smiles that would have stopped you most days, but for now, you had loftier goals in mind. Such as sleeping in that massive bed upstairs with the enchanted feather pillows that didn’t smell of blood or the constant annoyance of bedbugs that gave you the squirts.

This story has been unlawfully obtained without the author's consent. Report any appearances on Amazon.

Winking at the red-headed dwarf with the ample bosom, you make your way down the cobblestone street and navigate a path through the rabble of cutthroats and mercenaries that lurk in the nearby alleyways. Your hand never far from your sword as you pull out the note Glumdel had given you.

Ha, you were always an easy one to fool, you. I knew the minute you walked into my tavern you’d been in need of work. So here you are and don’t say I didn’t pay you back for that damn elf in Aquila. 

Dardonel, a newcomer to town thinks he can cheat me out of me gold and get away by joining up with the blasted Wingdarts. Find the blighted bugger and bring me back my gold, and I do mean all of my gold as well as his head and you’ll be well paid.

Signed Glumdel.

Well, that cunning little bastard! You think with an amused shake of your head, you guess should've known the crafty old sapling would saddle with something that even ogress would be hesitant to do. A contract against the Wingdarts meant there could be a lot of blood to be spilled, yours as well as theirs. Not to mention you weren’t exactly comfortable with the idea of seeing your former comrades. You hadn’t exactly parted with them on the best of terms and completing this contract would only sour them further.

Cursing Glumdel every way you know-how, you decide you would look around town first and get a better lay of the land. After all, the task didn’t seem that urgent and if you were being completely honest with yourself, you were slightly embarrassed to go back. The last job you’d gotten from the Captain of this Chapter had not gone too well. Not that it had been entirely your fault to bear alone. After all, all you had suggested was that they shouldn’t waste time scouting around and lose their opportunity to finish their target off and so instead they had charged in. How were you to know they would listen to you and fall right into that ambush? 

Belly rumbling hungrily at the smell of food, you look up to see several food vendors on the side of the road hawking their exotic wares. The heavy scent of cooking meat on skewers enough to tantalize your senses. The roasted baby hobs that hung on the spit slowly rotating as they were glazed in a fine red sauce, the baskets of freshly spiced bread wafting an aromatic smell that burned your throat, and the goblin toes drizzled in honey, looked utterly delicious. Not to mention the bowls of hearty meat stew. 

(If you wish to pay for food, it will cost you 5 Gold Pieces for any item. Each item you pay for will boost your Health Points by 5. You cannot, however, purchase more than 3 items.)

Your hunger sated for the moment, you let out a burp to show your appreciation and continue down the relatively quiet street. The buildings on either side of you, stretching high into the sky at angles that shouldn’t have even been possible to create, but with thugs running most of the living quarters in the districts, safety wasn’t a concern for them. Luckily with a Mage’s Guild in the city, most people were willing to spend a little extra gold to get their homes enchanted so they wouldn’t die horribly if it collapsed in a heap of rubble which seemed like a real possibility.

Drawn in by a large crowd gathered around a signpost, you read. ‘Arm wrestling challenge, defeat Balron the Ogre and receive fifty Gold Pieces. The entry fee is 10 Gold Pieces.’

(Click here if you wish to challenge Balron to an arm-wrestling competition and have 10 Gold Pieces.)

Spoiler: Spoiler

Never one to turn down an opportunity for some extra gold, you push your way through the crowd of onlookers and slap your gold down onto the table. “Let’s see what you’ve got.” 

The huge bare-chested ogre dressed only in a loincloth looks up at you with a smug smile, his grey skin and bald scalp dry of all sweat despite the humidity.

Sweeping the gold off the table, he points towards a seat opposite him, and grunts, “Sit.” (To win the arm wrestling challenge, you must roll a single dice. If your score is lower than 5, then you lose the challenge and walk away with 10 less Gold Pieces. If you score 5 or above, you gain 40 Gold Pieces plus the 10 Gold Pieces you put up as stake.)

Head shaking from side to side at the way fools spent their gold, you press on towards the busy marketplace, where you hear the heavy buzz of voices as bands of mercenaries in painted armor patrol the streets. The several mercenary factions all but itching to draw their steel against each other, however since the bloodbaths tended to get quite a bit messy the three Captains had all agreed it wasn’t profitable to have their men killing each other out in the streets. So whoever drew first blood had to pay one thousand gold pieces to the one who died. A sum of gold so ludicrous, you often dreamed what it would be like to be paid that amount so many times, it had become your way of getting to sleep at night. In any case since that agreement had been signed, most wouldn’t dare to lift a sword against each other unless they had the approval of the three Captains. 

Most of those you see in the streets today wear the painted grey of the Ironclad company, an outfit that mainly recruited big ugly bastards that liked to wear heavy plate and knock each other about. Foolish, bellow-hearted pricks that often spoke of honor and were notorious for always going overboard when completing their contracts. Led by a Steel Claw, a werewolf from the Isle of Ne’even, they were the largest mercenary company around, even larger than the Wingdarts with Chapter Houses in almost every single country, except for Bloodtides of course. 

Hand lightly touching the hilt of your sword at the threatening looks you were getting from them, you make your way past the dozens of stalls in the marketplace that sold weapons, armor, potions, and other gear adventures would need while out hunting, and head towards the fountain at the center of the square. The air filled with the dazzle of music and spinning balls of blue light that sizzled with magical energy as you near the stone statue of Darkinn the dwarven god of war. The bearded stocky warrior bellowing to the sky with upraised arms. 

However, your more interested in the signposts that stand a little in front of it and the Questboard filled with contracts that could bring you some easy gold.

(You may choose as many of the choices below as you’d like. Once you are finished, select either one of the last two options to continue the story.)

Choice 1. Do you take a look at the contracts on the Questboard?

Choice 2. Do you visit the Mage’s College(Boost your Magical Resistance)? 20 Gold Pieces

Choice 3. Do you visit the Swordcraft Guild (Boost your Resilience)? 20 Gold Pieces

Choice 4. Do visit the Hero’s Guild (Boost your Health Points)? 20 Gold Pieces

Choice 5. Once you’ve completed everything you wished to do, click this option to continue the story.