‘When did it start?’
From the moment she met John… No, that wasn’t right either. She wasn’t sure at first. Even before that there was something problematic about the job before that. The information she received about the two felt eerie. Originally she believed all this was coincident. At most, maybe a legendary song. Type of story told that contained great happenstance. You know, those stories read about in books that just felt rehearsed. While unlikely, some of them were bound to be true, or based on some truth.
Even when she received the information. A tiny part of her, inside, could tell something was wrong. This part was very minuscule. She knew she had powerful instincts, they just weren’t that powerful. Only thinking about it after the fact. Information outside a network was slow to be shared. Knowing this, ask yourself this. If she was going to get information in a timely manner that would allow her to react and safe the mother daughter duo, would it be possible?
For context, she went to Fort George to play around. Most of her life followed that way of life. Go from place to place, don’t stay too long, don’t get noticed, and see if there is anything going on. Now she was slightly famous. More infamy than fame. Just imagine it, this tiny Grade F going around trying to save the day. She didn’t even have a cape, not a true righteous crime fighter, clearly. Nor was she so naive to believe every tiny bit of information she received.
Lo and behold, the information made it to her ears. Finding it heart jerking, she decided to check up on the situation. Now the information wasn’t delivered directly to her directly, therefore, making discreet inquiries around bars and inns. Finally, a fish took the bait and an address or, more precisely, a sighting location for the husband was found. From there, she had to scramble to look around. Finding his watering hole, he couldn’t have lived terrible far.
As if drawn in by fate, she heard screaming, not normal yelling mind you. This was beyond a normal argument, fueled with rampant emotions. Moving closer, she could hear a heart-wrenching pounding before suddenly the commotion stopped and a thick smell of blood was wafting through the air. Obviously it makes you scream, come on! That is obviously fishy. Problem is, she was living it. At the moment, there was no way to get around the emotions invoked in such a situation.
Slowly time flies. From there they made it out unscratched with no deliberation. Simply off the back of knowing a thing or two. How could she possibly accomplish something so far outside of her expertise?
It didn’t stop at just that. Running into someone that happen to see her? That person talking to another, them being an accomplished scammer? Partially responsible herself for not being more thorough. A deal is struck, and they happen to have information on a dungeon which turns out to not be a dungeon at all. Instead, this place is a fucking laboratory that is nothing like the rest.
Blah, blah. Blah. Coming out alive, having made the decision herself. Now she believed it really was a coincidence. Of her own choosing, Green River was just a small pit stop. While reasonably convenient, this was a place she truly did want to visit. Having been read the story as a child, one of her fondest memories was falling asleep on the old man’s lap as he read her stories and legends. One of the reasons she traveled around was for this very reason.
Whatever, probably a dragon, had caused the commotion. That might have been something she stumbled into. Only why did they stop. The only interesting part of her was Leo, that or her blood. Only she just said her dreams involved traveling the world. How is it that only now did she draw attention, and not just a little, enough she felt like she was going to die without even coming into contact with them. That had to have taken more than just a stare, possibly.
Then there was Izic himself. How the fuck was she supposed to tell Leo about it. It was clear Izic had an incredibly high interest in Leo. So why the fuck was he such a useless asshole. Why, why, WHY! If Leo was right this piece of shit was a god… Or at least close to one. So why would they shove the problem onto her. Becoming a middleman between a god and a pissed off sword spirit that was one of kind… Even when it was like a brother to her…
Her head hurt just thinking about it. Thousands of thoughts were raging through her head. Without the ability to think about anything else. Looking at the alcohol in front of her, she couldn’t help down drink after drink, after drink… So how did all this start?
Entering Aruna was a very happy endeavor. With excitement running through her veins. Childish as it might be, she couldn’t wait to see the old man. Two for one, she would likely find them together. Maybe even three for one, as long as Victorina was there. Though that was questionable. For one reason or another, the two didn’t spend any time together. In fact, she never saw the old man and Victorina together. Though she was sure it happened, just never with her in the room.
Even with all the excitement, she didn’t rush to the store. Spring was a wonderful time. The weather was great, and the cities were bustling. Being no exception, Aruna was filled with people. In between winter and spring, was the new years. There wasn’t anything special, at least not anything she celebrated. Though there were a few that did, she just wasn’t one of them. One special thing to note was that each year would be a change in style.
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This change wasn’t always huge. Sometimes there were small things added or just simply changed. From vertical stitching to horizontal on a sleeve. Anything and everything that would become the new style of the year. Leave it to the dwarves to work with merchants and come out with crazy and devious contraptions. Such incentives wouldn’t reach the lower class or random person on the street. While this held true, they weren’t the target audience to begin with.
Who was? The answer is obvious, that would be nobles. Only an aristocrat or a merchant trying to enter that society would be willing to spend money so wastefully. Or, in their terms, artfully. Having never had any positive feelings towards aristocratic society, Jessica took great pride in watching this take place. With a bit of hesitation, she decided to pull Leo along and sit in a small tea shop to enjoy the festivity, as she called it.
Not lasting long, the downer known as Leo didn’t enjoy watching and holding rather sharp commented fun at random people. Being the downer he was, even Jessica started to second guess her decisions. Huff and a puff later, they found themselves at Uncle Beast’s shop. Moving through the door into the empty store.
“Oh, look who it is, the princess herself decided to grace our humble store today.” A pleasantly sharp voice quickly dissipated throughout the showroom.
Sticking her chin up to an absurd angle as she had a bit of trouble walking when her sight was basically staring at the ceiling. With her physical gifts, she was able to stumble softly to the counter before sticking her hand out to the man behind the counter.
With a slight pause, the man behind the counter took her hand and gracefully kissed the back, “Princess, it is this man’s, Victorina Soandso, honor to be blessed with your acquaintance.”
Holding back a laugh, she couldn’t help ask, “Soandso? And is that really how nobles talk? I don’t think ever heard anyone speak like that.”
Sloppy smile on his face now, “Doubt it, and what is wrong with Soandso? Isn’t just majestically to the point?”
Not being able to hold it in she laughed, once she was done Victorina looked her in the eye after giving her a small once over, “Oh, princess congratulations on your breakthrough.”
With a hearty smile, she couldn’t help but reply, “Thank you, and stop calling me that. Gives me the creeps.”
“Alright, but you’ll have to look elsewhere if you're looking for those two. They went out to lunch in the usual spot.”
Seeing the nonchalant expression on his face, she couldn’t help but question him, “You didn’t join them?”
“Ha, as if. Your uncle doesn’t need the money, so anything that is sold in the shop goes to me. Unlike him, I don’t have such a high status. Man’s gotta eat, and man’s gotta have money to play.”
With a smile, Jessica soon left the store. The usual spot was the place they had dinner last time. Her uncle’s status was no joke. It appeared he was someone important in dwarven society. Living in this backwater was surprising considering that. Partially for that reason, he did live in a backwater. Liking the quieter things, this could easily be seen by the fact he has a shop, however it is almost always empty.
While most dwarves don’t enjoy the spotlight. Because of their greatly diverse nature, this can’t be said to be true for all of them. At most, only a slight majority. For this reason, a small number of people will support his lifestyle. In exchange, they get to come to him if they have any problems. This is why she usually gets to enjoy the finer things in life during her stays in Aruna. A small detour here and there, a small two-story building was quickly found.
Anyone dumb enough to break in would realize the door was never locked. For good reasons, the person that owns the building has their own idea of security. Similar to the shop and his workspace. Anyone random and desperate enough to enter would very promptly regret their actions. At most, even if they did get in, a few normal utensils and cutlery could be taken. Risk in this case had absolutely no reward.
Moving into the store, she came face to face with the two she wished to see. As she sat down, she noticed Leo did the same. Usually, he didn’t enjoy being out around other people. Almost nobody could see him. Though for one reason or another the old man was an exception. Though after the first exchange, at most they would nod at each other.
Looking at each other, the two smiled happily as they greeted her, “Congratulations!”
“I am so proud of you Jessica, while your talent might not be the highest. You never let it keep you down and continue to never stop striding forward. It is clear that instead of this old lazy chap you clearly take after this dwarf.” Laughing nearly hysterically, the old gruffly voice stopped as he gave a cheeky smile at his old friend.
Not giving him the time of day, the old man ignored him. “It is wonderful to see you back in one piece. Even though I know what you’re capable of. That doesn’t change the fact that I find myself always worried about you.”
She was happy, only it didn’t last terribly long. Her uncle kept stealing glances at Leo… Why, or more how? First the old man. He had those looks of supreme praise from the old elves. When she started to get similar looks with vastly less worship, it bothered her. Exactly who was the old man?
Now her uncle, who she shouldn’t be surprised by. He was not someone that lived quietly in a tiny settlement away from the world, as if in hiding. He might live in a supposed backwater, only that was because of his clear status. A budding city used his equipment to protect themselves. That was by no means simple. The treatment she received simply by being related to him was always oddly amazing.
Jessica could feel her heart beating quickly. Strangely enough she was talking and being talked to but as if it wasn’t her. Looking from a third perspective as her body continued to talk and laugh. She was even eating. But at the moment, her mind was racing. Everything from the beginning just didn’t feel right. Something was wrong. Paranoid by nature, she was always watching her back. She had always been alone, even with Leo by her side, she didn’t change that too much.
It hurt. Her chest hurt and her mind was going too fast. Unable to keep up with the racing thoughts, she started to feel light-headed and at the same time there was a stabbing pain in her head. The real her looked up and stared at Leo, he was talking to her, however she could barely hear him, “Have a drink.”
“Huh?”
This time it was the old man, “Go on ahead, it will be good for you.” Looking down at the cup in front of her. The liquid was clear, almost looking like water. Without much hesitation, she watched as her body picked the glass up and downed the entire thing. Very quickly her vision went black.