The sun was high in the sky when Ward finally declared a break for lunch. He found them a nice little clearing off the side of the road that was obviously used often for this purpose, a series of stumps settled in a comfortable circle around a cold fire pit.
Ria slumped on one of the stumps, a sigh of relief escaping her. Although she considered herself to be in fairly decent shape, sitting behind a desk all day and then spending several days tucked away studying did not an athlete make. She was just grateful that she didn't have blisters where she hadn't thought to break in her boots before taking off on a journey of this magnitude. However, these boots were masterfully crafted and although her muscles were starting to gripe at her, her feet were still perfectly comfortable.
Ward offered her a wrapped sandwich with an encouraging grin, "You've been doing really well, don't hesitate to speak up if you need to take a rest."
She accepted the sandwich, her stomach rumbling loudly, "Don't you have a schedule to keep?"
He shrugged, sitting on the log across from her and opening his sandwich, "Eh, it's more of a window schedule. Because things can pop up that I need to deal with, people expect me in a general area between two dates. If I exceed the second date, they can send a message to check on my status. On the plus side, sometimes things go well and I can arrive in an area sooner than expected as well. We're making good time and should reach the next town by nightfall, so a few breaks here and there while you adjust to traveling is no big deal."
She nodded, taking a large bite of her sandwich. As she was chewing, there was a quiet ping from her guide. Wondering if it was Lynne messaging her to check if she was doing all right, she flicked the screen open. However, to her disappointment, the indicator was on the skill screen, not the communication one.
Ward laughed, "Lynne?"
She shook her head, covering her mouth so she could answer around her bite, "Skill."
Tapping the screen, a banner with two stars popped up, reading: Traveler (U)
A smaller script read: You've traveled beyond 10 km, further than most star travelers make it in their first month. This speaks to a hunger for knowledge and new experiences. In order to level up this skill, seek out new locations and experiences.
Then, beneath the skill was a small green button that read: Claim Reward
She frowned at that, hesitant to press a button that she had no idea what it would do.
Ward seemed to pick up on her unease, offering her his canteen, "Bad skill? Or another passive one?"
Curiosity filled her, "There are bad skills?"
He see-sawed his hand, "Not bad skills, per se, just ones that aren't really of any use at the moment."
That made sense so she set it aside for the moment. "Makes sense. No, I just got my first active skill and it's an uncommon skill at that."
He perked up at that, "An uncommon? That's pretty rare for a first active skill. Which one?"
She read the description again before answering, "Traveler. Is it true that star travelers don't travel much at the start?"
He picked up a stick and started drawing idly on the ground, "No, not really. Most star travelers arrive in a group and are taken to a center that helps them adjust to living in Audrilandre. They find comfort in staying with those who are familiar, even if it's just because they met them upon their arrival and they're all starting at the same point. Truthfully, even after they adjust, most star travelers stay within the same one or two villages that they start in, although a few dozen from each drop end up transitioning to the capital. Of course, there's always the outliers."
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She took a long drink before passing the canteen back to him, "Outliers?"
"Yep, there's always a handful that stay just long enough to gain their bearings and collect some supplies before hitting the road. They're pretty self-reliant, tend to end up staying away from populated areas. So, what's throwing you about this skill?"
She glanced at the skill again, narrowing her eyes at it, but the words remained unchanging. She gestured with her hand holding the sandwich, "At the bottom of the skill, it says 'claim reward'. None of my research indicated that these skills came with a reward. I haven't experienced any unpleasant surprises since I arrived here, I mean, besides the fact that I arrived here in the first place. However, I don't deal with the unexpected and this could be anything."
He laughed, "Ah, ok, that makes sense. As a matter of fact, only a few skills come with a reward if they aren't three-star skills. All three-star skills come with a reward. Often it is a tool or an item to help specifically with that skill, although sometimes it can be a monetary reward. However, I think that you'll appreciate this reward. Go ahead and click it."
Taking a large bite, she glared at him before setting the sandwich in her lap and dusting the crumbs from her hands. Taking a deep breath, she reached out and tentatively poked the button. Nothing happened for a long moment and then a large packet dropped into her lap. She managed to catch it at the last second before it crushed her lunch. It was wrapped in a dark blue cloth that was soft to the touch.
Intrigued, she carefully untied it to find another pack similar to the one she found in her inventory the first day, although this was made of a sturdier leather, dark and supple and obviously created with the rigors of traveling in mind. She looked over at where Ward was watching her with a small grin and offered him an apologetic smile.
He took another bite and gestured for her to keep looking.
Excitement bubbled up in her and she eagerly dove back into the pack, carefully laying the items out on the other stumps. There were another two outfits like her first one, one was in mottled deep purple, grey, and black, undoubtedly made to blend into the woods. The other outfit was a blend of beige, sandy grey, and a light sage green. Maybe for a plains area that she hadn't encountered yet? As well as a second pair of boots, these ones were lighter than the pair that she was currently wearing, maybe to go with the lighter set of clothing.
Tucked in the various pockets were a pocket knife, a sewing kit, a large canteen, fishing line and several hooks in different sizes, a pouch of lock picks, and a small but very well-stocked first aid kit. There was also a variety of foodstuffs, four different pouches of jerky, a few pouches of travel bread, ten different kinds of dried fruit, and one medium-sized pouch of assorted candy. As if this bounty was not enough, there was also a pouch of mixed raticas and yuples.
There was one large pouch left and when she peeked inside, it contained a hairbrush, several leather hair ties, and some hair ornaments that she had no idea how to use. She was marveling over the bounties when Ward said mischievously, "You missed something."
She blinked at him uncomprehendingly for a long moment before turning her attention back to the pack and going over it a second time, examining every inch carefully. Tucked into a pocket inside the bag, she found a veritable treasure trove. Not one, not two, but three blank notebooks! Not only that, but half a dozen pencils in black, two with blue, two with red, and one with purple lead. She clutched them to her chest and beamed at him.
He gave a soft laugh, "I knew that you'd appreciate that the most. Now, pack it back away, you need to finish eating."
She hesitated for a long moment, everything in her rebelling at having to part with such a treasure that she had just discovered, before mentally shaking herself. No one was going to take it away from her, it would still be in her possession even while she was eating lunch and she could use the notebooks later to record her observations. Her stomach gave a demanding grumble and she sighed and gave in, carefully packing away the items as neatly as they'd been before she'd pulled them out. Re-wrapping the cloth carefully around the pack, she sent it to the inventory page, checking the screen twice to make sure that it was secured and there before reluctantly closing the guide and turning her attention back to her neglected sandwich.
Ward was busy typing out some sort of message so she left him in peace while she quickly devoured her lunch, quieting her noisy stomach. When he closed his screen, she beamed at him. "That pack is amazing, no wonder it goes with the traveling skill. It has everything that I could've thought of and then some."
He nodded, "It covers the basics very well, although if you continue to travel with me, we'll need to augment it as we travel. Some cooking and camping gear wouldn't go amiss, as well as some rain gear. It never hurts to be as prepared as possible."
She pulled out the notebook that Ward had given her, flipping to the list of necessities that she'd started and quickly adding those to the list before tucking it back away into her pocket. "Good to know."
He stood and stretched and she did the same. "You ready to head out?"
She did a mental inventory and found that the rest had restored her completely, that and the unexpected gift of the traveling pack. She grinned, "Yeah, let's hit the road, I'm ready."