When I was in the 9th grade I made a few new friends. They were good people to have around. They always pretended that the boxes I told them about were real. It was nice, even if it was a lie. We would team up in class projects, play games together, hang out or walk home together.
If felt so good to not be alone. While walking home one day we found something rather amazing. Down a side alley there was, well let me start from the beginning. Michael and Caleb were brothers that had moved in down the road from home where a new house had been built in an old lot.
It was a nice enough place but I never felt i wanted to go to their house and they never offered. It was the end of summer and the new school year was just about to start. Michael was the older of the two with brown shaggy hair and brown eyes.
He was slightly taller than I was and I stood at 5'6 so he must have been maybe 5'7 or 8. I was never good with guessing. Caleb on the other hand was short. He was only 4'3 and built like a bull. Shoulders wide and stocky, mom would say. He had blonde hair but his eyes were mismatched.
The right eye was blue and the left green. It was really cool. I had decided to check out their stats to see how they were different from me.
> Name: Michael
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> Age: 15 Gender: male
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> Stats
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> Str: 16. Dex: 19 Con: 14.
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> Int: 13 Wis: 14 Cha: 20
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> Abilities
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> Silver tongue
> Name: Caleb
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> Age: 14 Gender: Male
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> Unauthorized duplication: this tale has been taken without consent. Report sightings.
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> Stats
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> Str: 18 Dex: 14 Con: 20
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> Int: 13 Wis: 12 Cha: 10
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> Abilities
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> Sturdy
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> Toughness
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> Traits
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> Heterochromia iridum
That is interesting. I think the trait had to do with his eyes. His brother didn't have a trait list. The three of us grew to be inseperable. We did everything together. My mom would make us snacks when we were hungry.
Or drinks when thirsty though. Often I would accidently hog it all, but they did not mind. Often now I thought those days were by far the best days. Friends. Real and true friends that were as close as brothers to me. They were my blood as sure as anything else. My family.
At school people made fun of us.
They called us names and picked fights with us. I hated it. They can say what they wanted about me but they needed to leave my friends alone. Those days made a record in the amount of fights I was in. It was a miracle I wasn't suspended or worse.
"Hey Luke, I think we found something totally interesting you really need to see."
Caleb was in a good mood and a huge grin broke his face in two. The younger of the brothers had a nasty habit of getting people, namely us, in trouble.
"Alright then. Lead the way. Can't be as bad as your last idea. What is it this time?"
"We are going to be fighting a troll." I paused a moment as they laughed.
"Oh man the look on your face." I turned red and socked him in the arm.
"Ok but really. We found a troll. And a few goblins. We really need to take care of them." Michael noded his head.
Man of few words he may be, but when he spoke it was best you listened. It was close to 7pm when we arrived in the shadier part of town. Looking around I admit I was much more than afraid.
"This isn't funny man." They smiled and moved around a building to a gate. It was a chain link and looked to be a closed business. Maybe a warehouse.
Caleb pulled out a hammer from his backpack. A small thing that workmen used. Michael pulled two knives and handed one to me.
> Knife recieved
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> Knife is a weak weapon of slashing and piercing. Target takes 2+ Str for damage
I was shocked.
"What am I supposed to do with this!?" My voice was a sharp hiss as I didn't want to be seen.
"Fight of course." Caleb grinned and then the strange happened. Caleb spoke some strange words and his hammer grew larger.
"Now we are talking." They rushed ahead and I followed from fear. We moved slowly around the warehiuse and entered through a hole in the wall.
The place was a mess. Broken boxes everywhere. In the center of the building was a single troll and three goblins. Michael moved silently as he moved deeper. He circled around the mobs and waited for us. Caleb moved ahead and shouted.
"Hey there uglies!" He laughed and the goblins chittered. The troll growled and yelled something at the goblins that made them run at us.