South Jaga City, Trade District – Year 1344, Month 1, Day 7. Spring

Olea Munroe

After extricating myself from the clutches of the evil manipulator Doogan and his chefs of questionable cuisine, I headed for the lobby. It was still a riot of random conversations and colorful garb, as well as some not so colorful garb. I saw a man wearing a potato sack today. Not that I can be one to judge as I came in the previous day wearing a dozen rat tails over my shoulder. Anyway, enough of that old news stuff. Time to work! With that slight adjustment to thought I headed for my favorite person of the week, Sicily!

“Hi!” I exclaimed as I approached her counter.

“Hello… Oh, it’s you!” she said.

“Me.” I agreed.

“Did you enjoy your training, and lunch?” she said, and with a completely blank face.

“It was awesome. The food, not the training.” I replied.

With an oh so adorable lift of one eyebrow she inquired, “Really?”

I nodded emphatically, “It was wonderful, spicy, and robust. I loved it, only slightly less after I found out what was in it.”

“Alright then.” She said a little too slowly.

“Question! Did you happen to know that I would be receiving such special service today?” I could not bring myself to think that she had some part in this devious plot to make me hate food in any form. Food is not for jokes; it is the very reason for living. Ok, maybe not but it does have a broad role in support.

“I may have known something of it, it happens at least once a month. New people get new menu items, usually something exotic.” She continued, “You just happened to catch your own. Sometimes Doogan will page through a bestiary with frightfully disturbing creatures and ask the newbie what they think of this or that. It makes them think the most ludicrous thoughts, he had once convinced a recruit that they were eating a snot-oozing slime from the council hall privy.” It seemed she remembered this last fondly as her eyes took on a look of recollection while a smile briefly played across her features. She had a wonderful smile.

“Yeah.” I answered smartly.

“Yeah?” she asked, “I suppose you are here for the forms Master Doogan provided me earlier?”

“I am. Mostly. I mean, do you have plans for dinner?” I stammered.

“I do not, and neither do you.” She said with authority. “You will be in basements and sewers for most of the day, I would greatly appreciate you not bringing that kind of work-related material anywhere near me for at least a day.”

“Harsh.” I said sadly.

“I call it good sense. Do you want people to associate your presence with foul smells and brown smears on the floor?”

“Ugh, point taken.” I admitted.

“They have a private bathing area in the back, take a left at the first door in the hallway you entered from the training grounds. Any occupied rooms will have a visible lock in place. Extremely hard to open from the outside without bringing full hell down on any unwanted peepers.” She said attempting to lighten my mood, it worked. Mostly.

“Ok, then.” I said, taking the papers from Sicily. Our hands touched briefly or not so briefly as I enjoyed the tactile contact. Warm. “I’ll see you next time then, Doogie is evil.”

“Master Doogan.” Sicily corrected. “Also, not evil. He is more of a stern parent with ample eccentricities.”

“Tell that to my bruised shins. And my butt!” I laughed, “The things he did to me... That did not sound right at all. His blades hurt, even using the flat end he made me remember it.”

“Complain later, work now.” Admonished Sicily.

“Yes, mam!” I exclaimed, attempting an extremely poor salute.

“Go away now, I have a line forming.”

I turned to look and saw that no, there was no line forming. As I turned back to ask what she meant I was greeted with the pleasant and yet unpleasant sight of her retreating in a not-so-sneaky manner to the rear of the shelving area. I had been dismissed. Blah.

“I’ll be going then!” I said to no one.

And so, I left headed south along Imperial Way. The roads were still the same haphazardly cobbled together road they were yesterday, though today I did notice a few more things I had missed. Some of the shops carried more esoteric items than I had seen yesterday. A few had the common items, pastries, weapons, armor, and a few with fancy clothes. Some shows however seemed to specialize in a variety of monster parts, I saw a collection of claws and fangs arrayed on shelves through one window while another store had odd and magical looking beasts in cages or in the case of a large cat-like creature wandering the aisle.

I was beginning to think it may be a clever idea to get a pet when I heard a loud CAW from the air above. Great. I did not want a creature to annoy and pester me all day. Who needs a friend that will eat their meat pies and then take off at the first signs of adversity. Nope, not me. I continued walking ever onward to my destination, pointedly not looking up.

I arrived at my first stop, a storefront next door to the Bakers’ Bakery. The sign read simply, spices at fair prices. Admiring the complete lack of effort put into a name I headed in through the Dutch Door entryway, I had not even seen one of these on earth outside of the Home and Garden VidCasts.

“Hello the store!” I called into the gloom.

“What was that?” came the reply from somewhere in the back.

It was a store, assumedly for everyone to browse, so I headed further in. I navigated the sacks and barrels, ducked under a few drying racks, and soon found a small statured man sitting at a stool behind the wooden counter. Correction, he was standing on the stool. He was short, I mean I am almost five foot tall, but this fellow was probably in the neighborhood of three foot six. I found a gnome!

“Hello! Are you the owner of this fine spice shack?” I asked.

“Spice shack? I daresay this is more than a shack.” He replied.

“No disrespect, it just sounded better than No Name Spice Store or Spices at Fair Prices.” I answered back. “A lot easier to say while conveying my meaning.”

“I suppose you are right, huh.” Said the little man, “My name is Sam, it is nice to meet you.”

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“Olea, Olea Munroe. New in town, here to kill your rats.” I answered bluntly.

“Rats? Rats! I have no rats here madame.” He nearly shouted himself off his stool. It did not sound sturdy enough to support loud outbursts.

“You may have rats; I was sent here to verify the claim. All your neighbors have rats, it stands to reason that a place that sells such a variety of fine spices and flavorings would attract some of these dastardly rodents just as surely as fine culinary clientele.”

After a few brief moments of him digesting my semi-nonsensical chatter, he relented.

“Come with me.” Said Sam the gnome.

I followed dutifully, ducking under the gnome height bar between counter and storefront. The bobbing head of the gnome was easily tracked between the shelves and strategically places step ladders of the storage area. I caught up with him as he was exiting the building to the rear alley running behind the buildings on this block. He led me to a large set of doors set into the ground at the base of some stone stairs, Déjà vu.

“This would be the basement, if I have rats, they would be there. I have not seen a one in my store yet and I would rather not ever see them. I will be at my counter so if you would please let me know when you finish, I would appreciate it.” He said, adding as if an afterthought, “Is this going to cost me?”

“Nope, no costs sir. I was sent to kill the rats to prevent an infestation. I assume the city will cover if, or the Jobs Hall maybe.” I said, adding “It’s free for you!”

That got a chuckle, “I will take your word for it, elf. If you need anything let me know.”

Words delivered and message received I took some time to think. Last time I went in unprepared for the size of the rats, how was a girl to know that rats here would be the size of small Dobermans. I would be ready this time, I had Ratsbane after all.

“Hey, Help-chan. Where do I stand in progress?” I whisper into the air.

“Now you need me?” came the sing-song voice in my mind.

Name: Olea

Level: 2

Archetype: Merciful Blade

Attributes:

* Strength: 10

* Dexterity: 13

* Constitution: 10

* Charisma: 16

* Intelligence: 13

* Wisdom: 7

You have no Attribute Points Remaining

Experience Till Next Level: 4940/5000

Skills:

Three skill points remaining.

Stealth – Rank 1

* Pierce – Rank 1

* Sneak – Rank 1

Piety – Rank 2

* Cure Wounds – Rank 2

“Don’t be so trite.” I whispered to myself, at least I assumed anyone seeing me would think so. It was odd. “I only said I did not want spoilers. Something tells me without a little more basic information I may end up locked away in an asylum or thrown into a dungeon for study by some ancient sect or cult.”

“Probably.” Answered the voice in my head. Almost whimsical in its assessment of my statement.

“What can you tell me about my skills? I mean…” my head was moving in circles, “I have Sneak, but anyone can sneak around. What is the use of having a skill for something most children learn to do on Christmas Eve?”

“Madame has me at a loss, what is Christmas?” came the reply.

I began to think of all the Christmas celebrations of my past. There were a great many bad years, the presents did not matter, not to me… mostly. I cherished any time I could be happy on earth. No, the few good Christmas times were those spent with the Murphy’s. They believed less in presents and more in presence, there was this one year where…

“I see, splendid imagery. I had assumed it was more akin to a night of demon’s where the children would cower in fear for their lives as everyone huddled inside.” Came Help-Chan’s interruption.

“Are you reading my mind?” I whispered harshly.

“I can only glean images and feelings broadcast on the surface of your mind; your secrets are your own unless you think on them with your public mind.” Supplied my inner voice.

“What do you mean when you say public mind? Never mind, save that for later. Back to the Sneak skill.” I amended; I would be getting back to the mental invasion later.

Sneak: This skill allows you tap into the knowledge of the world adding a small correction to successful sneak attempts based on Dexterity and skill level. People are less inclined to take notice of people or creatures actively employing this skill. Can be checked against clothing, terrain, light levels, as well as a host of other unique things.

“So, it will make my attempts at sneaking better? I won’t become undetectable, just harder to see.” I muse aloud.

“Correct.” Was the incoming observation.

“What about the Stealth skill again?”

Stealth: This skill serves as the foundation for all things related to stealth, having it is essential for learning the finer arts of surviving and thriving in the shadows, or in broad daylight if you are confident enough. Skills in this category include Sneak, Hide, Backstab, Steal, Misdirect, Dodge, and many others associated with the rogue personages of this world. Embrace the shadows and master the night. Governs your ability to perform actions requiring subterfuge and subtlety.

“Fantastic.” I mutter. “Would there be a benefit to sneaking into this basement?”

“Aside from potentially remaining unseen and thus being unmolested by whatever denizens lay in wait?” I could practically feel the sarcasm dripping down from the words. “You will receive a small percentage bonus for damages done and actions taken before Sneak is interrupted.”

“Neat.” I said, “One other thing. I remember when I leveled last that I received three skill points, afterward I upgraded two skills. Is there a reason I have only three skill points remaining? I thought I should have four left.”

“Acquiring skills consumes one skill point, advancing an entire school of skills requires greater commitment. To level your Cure Wounds you used one point. To advance Piety to Rank Two, thus unlocking access to Tier two skills and spell under that Path you needed to expend two skill points. Advancing Piety to Rank Three will require four and advancing the Path to four will require the use of eight skill points.” The helpful voice continued, “This is why many people shun the generalists of the world, they gain diversity but suffer a definitive handicap by locking advanced skills and spell behind a mistakenly assumed, unsurmountable wall of progress.”

“Ok, ok. What about Doogie’s suspicions concerning me learning skills without serving in a temple? Is it odd to have healing but not be a priest?” This question was niggling at the back of my mind for a few hours.

“To that I would assume that he is curious as to how you are learning without a standard teacher.” said the very courteous font of knowledge. “Citizens of this world need to grasp the basics of a thing before they qualify for assistance from the system. One would normally observe a priest and offer prayers while serving the injured, ill, and lame to learn spells and benedictions to aid the many. Just as someone would need to observe the magic of the world and begin to build a sense for the arcane to unlock Arcana.”

“Hold up, I haven’t prayed or done anything of the sort. I had not even used a knife for anything other than chopping vegetables or cutting ropes before I learned the Peirce skill.” I blurted out, “Is that a benefit of not being from here?”

“It is but one of many special attributes bestowed upon you by the heavens. The one knew that your very existence would be threatened by outside forces the moment you arrived on his world, as such he took measures to help ensure you could survive until you reached a point where you could defend yourself.” The voice continued, “You will gain other benefits as you advance. Traits, Talents, Affinities, and even innate or passive effects.”

“Well… Okay.” It was one thing being brought into this world of fantasy and being able to live the life I only ever experienced in books and stories. It was a whole new thing to be even absently doted on by a higher power. “Praise the one, I guess. Or the three?”

“That blasphemy aside could you at least pretend at being genuine?” I sensed irritation in the voice now.

“Fine, fine.” I relented, “Let us be on with it then. There is work to do.”

With the impromptu conversation out of the way and a whole new carton of things to think about I mentally flagged my skill for activation and began trying to be sneaky. It was simple; walk softly and carry a big knife.

As I descended, I could feel a little more with my feet, as if the pebbles and grains of woods were releasing an aura for me to sense so as my feet feel evenly with each step. Even the air passing by my face and through my dark hair was more easily felt. I was not sure if it was thanks to the Sneak skill or the Stealth passive bonuses, but it was a rather odd sensation. As if I had opened the windows in a different room and the ghost of its passing was stirring everything around me in a way not random but also not as direct as an overhead ceiling fan. Every movement was a different possibility or path for the future. I am sure I would be able to shunt together better comparisons, but I still lacked the experience to adequately describe how this felt.

Time to explore the basement, hopefully I could practice some of my sneakiness on some stupid ratties.