Joe spread the items he had purchased yesterday out on his bed. Today would be his third day in Fort Coral, and he was feeling ready for a rematch.
He had spent the day before following Kendell’s advice. He trained with both throwing axes and the [Grit Razor] until he felt he understood the rhythm of each and how his healing fit into that beat. Myllo had been there and helped him train. The half-fey trainer used a skill to manifest a couple of clockwork creatures for Joe to spar with. He continuously enhanced the constructs throughout the afternoon, pushing Joe to work even harder every time he ranked up a skill. They quit when the strategist decreed Joe had reached a solid foundation with his skills.
He had hoped to see Kendell again but she had not been at the guild. Myllo stated her family was fairly domineering and that they were not accepting of her desire to become a guild trainer. Myllo guessed that most likely she was trapped at home today. This made Joe reevaluate how the day before had ended with her. Maybe he had misread her hasty departure and had not messed up after all. He hoped that was the case. He really liked Kendell. It would be awful for things to be awkward between them.
After he wrapped up training, he decided to make a few purchases for the quest. He bought a pair of throwing axes. They were well made but affordable, running only 20 gold each. The only enchantment they had on them was a minor durability boost. With only about 550 gold left to his name, he knew he was going to have to wait to afford any high-end weapons. Cheap and sturdy seemed like the best way to go for now.
Joe also spent 200 gold on a pair of oils. Each vial would coat four small weapons such as daggers or his hatchets, two longer blades like a scimitar, or one big weapon. One vial was full of an Oil of Cutter’s Edge, which would boost his base damage. The other was an Oil of Weeping Wounds, which could inflict a Bleed condition. They cost almost half of his remaining funds but he figured it was better to have them if the axes were not doing enough damage on their own. It’s not like they would not come in helpful someday if he didn’t need them today.
His last purchase was the most expensive of the three but even then it was only 250 gp. It was called a [Jotun Bullet Bag] and all it was was a leather pouch that had the [Arming] enchantment on it. Joe needed rocks for [Grit Razor]. While he could just grab them off the ground, Joe did not want to have to search for ammunition during a fight. He could store them in his dim-bag but he had not bought a bag with a rapid search enchantment. Joe could call out what he wanted from the storage but it took some concentration to do so. Between using his [Fetching Fist] to retrieve axes, working [Grit Razor], healing, and everything else that came with a fight, he already had plenty to focus on. He did fill a large crate in his dim-bag with spare rocks to refill the bullet bag as needed.
Joe felt ready to try the [Encroaching Apes] quest again. He could always try for some additional training, but Myllo felt he was ready for a test run. Also, there was not much more he could do financially. Joe had 62 gold left. That was enough to live off of for a while if he was not extravagant with his spending. It was not enough if he needed to reequip himself if this quest attempt went terribly wrong.
As he put on the axes and his bags, he pondered for the twentieth time whether or not to go see if Hah’roo wanted to join him. Even though he had trained up new skills, Joe realized that one bad [Nut Shot] and he’d be helpless again. A partner on this quest seemed like a good idea.
The reason he did not go knock on her door was that she had been in the company of a lovely selkie sailor last night. The two had been sitting very close together at the bar-table and Joe had no idea if they had spent the night with one another. While he and Hah’roo had a very relaxed friendship, it was still fairly new. Drawing her out of bed should she be sharing it with another was a boundary Joe was nowhere near ready to cross yet.
He finally decided that if she was downstairs for breakfast he’d ask if she was interested in questing with him. If not, he’d grab food and head over to the Adventurers Guild. Maybe Kendell would want to go.
Alas, Hah’roo was not downstairs. Joe even sat down and had a leisurely breakfast but there was no sign of the white-skinned huntress.
He had to force himself not to overeat but the breakfast spread was almost beyond compare. The amazing quality of the food made up for his disappointment of not seeing his friend that morning. Even if Joe ended up rooming somewhere else soon, he would still probably come back here and treat himself to the Glass’s meals every now and then.
He left the Captain’s Glass and crossed the main square to the Adventurers Guild. There was still the same guy from the day before, an archon named Tezeno Rhal. While the orderly young man was exceedingly helpful, Joe could not help but notice how much of Kendell’s natural warmth and charm was missing.
“Morning Tezeno, Is Kendell in today?”
“Good morning, Healer Joe,” he stated in the almost robotic voice common to his race. “She is not. I believe she is not scheduled to work again until Starsday. Can I assist you?”
“I was going to tackle my quest today. Guess, I am going solo.”
“Are you looking for a teammate, Healer Joe? I do have someone here this morning that was expressing an interest in questing over training today. Ranger Earcellwen is at the archery range now. She is of a comparable level to your own.”
Tezeno pointed to a large marble slab, much like the one Joe had seen in the courtroom of the Cathedral of Glauri. His name was there as well as his level and classes. There was a Roman numeral 2 as well to indicate he was a bronze-ranked member.
It took Joe a minute to find the archer’s name as Tezeno had pronounced it ee-AR-cell-wen but when he found her name he saw she was 13th level, one level less than he was. Her classes were ranger and something called [Wildbow].
“Yeah. I could really use another.” Joe stopped and then took a step closer to the guild front desk. “Maybe,” he said in a lower voice. “What is she like? Anything I should know about her?”
“I have noted that she does not like to be called ‘Ears’ as many tend to do,” the archon rattled off with his expressionless voice. “Her accuracy scores are well above average for her level. Being a gruagach, she is blunter than you would expect for an elf but she has completed several team quests and I have heard no complaints regarding her behavior regarding those undertakings.”
Joe knew the gruagach, pronounced ‘gru gah’, were one of the wood-elven races. They were also known as wild elves. They were fierce protectors of the woodlands.
“My quest is about exterminating ape nests. Do you think she will object to that?”
“Incorrect, Healer Joe. Your quest is to remove the monsters known as badboons from the Mount Serabuk trail. While badboons are classified as beasts, they are monsters. Ranger Earcellwen will not have a conflict with a guild-approved monster hunt regardless of the creature's classification.”
“Good to know. Thanks, Tezeno.”
“You are welcome. The fastest route to the archery range is through that door,” he stated pointing at a door across the room. “Turn left when you get outside.”
“Thanks again.”
“It is my current purpose, Healer Joe, but you are welcome all the same.”
The tale has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation.
While Tezeno was always helpful, Joe had to admit he would much rather have Kendell be the one behind the desk. It was not just that he really liked her, She was fun, whereas Tezeno was just pleasant and accommodating.
He heard the archery range before it came into sight. The rapid thunking sounds of arrows hitting a target were so close together that whoever was shooting must have had at least two or three arrows in the air at a time.
The young woman shooting was a little over five feet tall with orange-brown hair that hung well past her waist. She was an odd mix of willowy-thin and muscular. She looked like a reed but each time she drew back the bowstring, Joe could see muscles swell under her skin. She did have very lofty pointed ears that contained numerous piercings. It was no surprise that between those prominent well-adorned features and her name “Ears” was the nickname most people assigned her.
“Hello, Earcellwen,” Joe called out trying to make sure he accentuated the second syllable without overstressing it. “Tezeno Rhal mentioned you were looking to quest today. I have the quest to clear the badboons off the road to Mount Serabuk. He thought you might like to team up with me.”
“You are the new guilder. I saw your name go up on the board the other day.” The ranger looked him over, still holding an arrow to her bowstring. “Well met. It was Joe, right?”
“Yeah, that’s me,” he replied, closing the distance. “So what do you say? Quest?”
She looked him over with a quizzical expression. “I considered the [Encroaching Apes] quest but it was not a good solo quest for me. I would need someone who could anchor the fight. I have to say, you don’t look like you are geared to be a front-liner, Joe. A gambeson and leathers and no shield?”
“I’m more durable than I look. I’m a healer primarily but I have been adding hunter skills to that recently.”
She tilted her head a bit and replaced the arrows into her quiver. “That could work. You don’t look like you’re from the Dunes. My father told me stories of battles he fought alongside the desert healers that live over the Malrenet Mountains. Those are the only battle healers I have heard of.”
“Are these the Wehlians?” Joe asked becoming more and more curious about the people of the Voiceless Dunes.
“Yes. They, like you, don’t wear heavy armor, too impractical in the desert heat. They offset the lack of physical defense with magical resistances and strong healing abilities.”
“That is pretty much how I work too. It means taking probably more abuse than a true tank,” Joe stated feeling a bit embarrassed that his combat style was about getting smacked around, “but I can heal a lot of damage and resist or clear many debilitating conditions.”
“Alright. Let’s try this, I have been just below fourteen for a few months now. I think one more reasonably tough quest should finally level me up.”
Joe's first thought was ‘How could it take months to level?’ but then he realized that most people did not fight battles way outside their weight-class. Having to fight Sougath when he did, skewed his development. Joe had way more experience points than he had actual experience.
“Great,” he exclaimed. With a thought, Joe extended his willingness to share the quest.
Earcellwen Rhuival (Level 13, Ranger/Wildbow) has joined your party
You have shared [ENCROACHING APES] with Earcellwen Rhuival
“Do you need to get ready?” Joe asked.
“I just need to stop by the locker rooms quickly to change into my battle gear. This is just my workout outfit. Ten minutes and I’ll be ready.”
----------------------------------------
Around half an hour later, Joe and Earcellwen were back at the edge of the forest. The elf had set a grueling pace. Joe did not think that she was trying to show off. She was just amazingly fast. Joe realized that she had an aura that boosted his movement speed as well. With [Hunter’s Pursuit] and [Efferous Endurance] he could keep up with her as she kept accelerating her gait down the roadways. Joe was not sure if the pace they settled into was her top comfortable speed or his. He was guessing it was his.
Either way, they made it past the fey-knight's farmstead in half the time it had taken him to cover that distance a few days earlier. Joe had decided not to stop at Corra Loigen’s again. He knew sooner or later he would like to talk to the ex-fey knight about what it meant to be a changeling but that was for another day.
“Ok I know where the first nest is, Earcellwen,” Joe stated pointing just off the road. “About a hundred yards ahead and on the right is a glade with a little pond. That is where I fought the first group.”
The elf stopped on the road and held up a hand. “Thank you for not using the guild shortcut for my name.”
“You should thank Tezeno,” Joe countered. “He’s the one who noticed it bothered you.”
“That makes sense. He has a sharp eye,” she mused, looking back towards Fort Coral. When she turned back to him she had a resolved expression on her face. “My whole name does not flow off your tongue. I take it you do not speak elvish?”
After Joe shook his head, she continued. “If we are going to go into combat together, you’re going to need to be able to easily get my attention. So we need a shortened name. Since we have spoken of Tezeno, I guess you can use the one he calls me. He uses RC sometimes. As in the letters. Archons like orderly things and you can’t get too much more orderly than just two letters. ”
Joe noted that she did not sound very enthused by the nickname. “Are you sure? You don’t sound thrilled by RC.”
“My father always told me names have meaning. RC does not mean anything but I understand in this instance how it would be beneficial for us to have a shorthand. Joe and RC make sense in a skirmish.”
“Ok. RC in battle. Earcellwen otherwise,” Joe offered.
“That would be nice. Now I am almost certainly to be more stealthful in the woods. Give me to the count of 80. Paced 1 … 2 … 3,” she measured, with each number a second apart. “That will allow me time to place a trap and get into a good ambush spot. I’ll stay hidden until you kick over the urn.”
Joe gave her a nod, liking her version of “kick-off”. He watched her walk to the edge of the road, where in less than a second, he lost sight of her as she vanished into the vegetation.
As Joe counted he took a rock out of his dim-bag, leaving his bullet-bag full. The stone was a chunk of obsidian about the size of a baseball. He and the two trainers had experimented with the types of rocks that were the most effective with [Grit Razor]. Volcanic rocks were by far the best. They broke down faster than sedimentary stones and the shards they fractured into were razor-sharp.
Joe reviewed the spell one more time while he counted to eighty.
[Grit Razor] The spell does escalating minor damage per second the spell is held in readiness. The length of time the spell can be held is equal to 1 second plus 0.5 seconds for each skill rank you have with this skill. The spell’s area of effect is an expanding arc that reaches medium range. Requirement: one rock or portion of rock that is consumed in up to 2 seconds during the casting. Minor mana per second held.
When he hit the magic number, Joe used his own [Stealth] and [Tracking] skills to quietly make his way back to the tree where he had leaned his staff last time. Unfortunately, it was not there. He drew his axes and coated them in the sharpening oil. He could only have one oil on at a time and this time he wanted the bigger hits than the slower wounding damage. Holding both hatchets in one hand, he activated [Grit Razor] on the chunk of obsidian in his other palm.
Carefully sneaking a peek at the clearing, he saw the apes were still right where he expected them to be. The pool and glade around the seep looked just as they had two days ago. A dozen badboons were on the ground or lounging in the shallow water. More could be heard in the trees.
As the stone crumbled, Joe summoned his new force hand. [Fetching Fist] was more than just a stronger version of [Helping Hand]. It was more responsive and more dexterous. Using it felt so natural it was almost as if he had had a third hand from birth. Another change was the spectral digit had changed color from blue to red. It now looked dangerous.
Handing one of his axes to his force fist, he settled the other into a throwing grip in his left hand. Feeling the last of the stone break down into coarse sharp gravel, Joe took a deep breath.
Showtime!