The beautiful view of the Kursk Sea, shining jewel of the Kingdom of Estelia, from the top of the tower did nothing to alleviate Aralen Wilaen's boredom. All around him, his fellow elves were rushing about, boxes of supplies in hand as they trudged up and down the staircase. And while Aralen knew he could be helping them speed up this lengthy process, he was stuck standing guard, though guarding against what, he had no idea. Whatever bandits or creatures could make it up to the sixth floor of the tower he was standing in would no doubt be stronger than anything he could put a stop to. After all, the East Alugala Trading Company's main headquarters were protected by layer after layer of magical enchantment and protective ward, all the better to protect the biggest economic powerhouse this side of Estelia.
So forgive me for feeling a little useless just standing here, he thought bitterly to himself as it neared the hour mark of him standing and watching the workers around him move boxes. And he was also employed to accompany the trade convoy once it was fully loaded to the neighboring city of Alvode, so he was a little impatient about getting started on their four-day-long journey.
His grip on his shortspear loosened as he switched his attention away from twirling his long blond hair to searching for something to grab his attention, his blue eyes darting across the room looking for anything interesting at all. One of the top floors of the Trading Company building, it towered over most of Alagula, giving a great view of the sea-green rooftops surrounding it through the crystal windows, alongside the stunning view of the sea, though he had seen all of it before. His gaze shifted inside, where the backdrop of the hustle and bustle was a spotless room with polished wood flooring, potted plants, and portraits of fancily dressed elves interspersed along the walls, their colorful flowing robes and intricate hairstyles popping out against the grey stone wall. As he idly looked around the room, trying to see if he recognized a single elf in the portraits, a set of footsteps approached him, drawing his attention.
Aralen looked up to see Kaevs Eisod approaching him, the head of this particular trade operation. He recognized the human man from the pamphlet given to him by his guild as a way to familiarize himself with the job, but the portrait of the man's head hadn't given away his unusual attire. The man was wearing a rather odd outfit, some kind of stiff, grey jacket over a white shirt, with similarly stiff and grey pants, and his hair was short and black, combed over nearly to one side. A well-kept greying beard framed his face and steely expression. He immediately stood at attention as the human Taskmaster approached him, causing the tough look on his gruff face to be replaced by one of amusement.
"No need for that, soldier. I just saw you admiring the view and decided to make sure my operation is in safe hands," he said to Aralen as he moved to stand beside the elven soldier, leaning back against the wall behind them both. "You're the new kid, right?"
Aralen felt 'kid' was a strange word for a human to use on an elf who was in his forties, especially since the man next to him looked to be younger than he was, although Aralen wasn't entirely confident in his ability to judge human age. He didn't say any of this out loud, of course, only responding with a brisk, "Yes, sir."
"Well, you look like you're competent enough. And this type of job should be pretty cut and dry. I heard the group around here do it once a month, never have any trouble. Perfect as a first-time job for someone like you." The human spoke with a confident smile as if trying to reassure Aralen, but he couldn't help but feel like had just been insulted. He didn't let that feeling show as he responded, his face the same stoic look it had been since Kaevs had approached him.
"That's good to hear, sir." The two stood in silence for a few moments as the number of elves carrying cases of who-knows-what around them diminished, with Kaevs seemingly content with just standing next to the elf guardsman. Aralen was starting to get concerned with the human's presence until Kaevs opened his bearded mouth to speak again.
"Alright, it looks like everyone's finishing up here. You better be on your way," the man said, "Make sure nothing happens to my goods." With that, he stood up and left Aralen standing there confused about what the point of all that was. Humans. At least I'm finally done standing here, though. He shook his head as he slung his shortspear over his shoulder and followed the last of the workers with boxes down the long set of stairs to the ground floor.
He pushed open the carved golden doors to the Trading Company building and was met by the loud noise of the city, with pedestrians rushing about and voices crying out to try their latest wares alongside the distant crashing of waves against the shore. The Trading Company was at the northernmost edge of the market district in Alugala, within a stone's throw of both the waterfront to the north and the busiest part of the district to the south, and Aralen started to wish he was back at the top of the tower where the noises couldn't reach his pointed ears.
"Ah, Aralen, there you are." A voice broke through the city din, and Aralen looked to see its owner walking towards him. Lithael Ryaenelis strode towards him authoritatively, the light catching on her captain's crest on her polished silver breastplate and her long platinum hair swaying gently in the wind as she did. Her measured gait and stoic posture, as well as the calm yet determined look in her ice-blue eyes all scream ‘authority’, and Aralen quickly stood at attention.
"You'll be with me as the front guard for this job, so stay close and don't slow us down. We'll be leaving momentarily, so be ready to ride out when we do." Aralen nodded, and with that, she turned and moved towards another guard at the rear of the convoy.
The sleek black horse that awaited him at the front of the convoy had been provided by the trading company, as had the leather armor that he currently wore over his black shirt. The shortspear slung over his back was his, however, and now that he was starting his first job as a guard, he was thankful for its presence.
This is it, huh. My first quest. And my first time outside Alugala. He felt the nervousness start to creep in and had to force himself to remember his extensive training. I'll be fine. Once I get started here, I can begin my career as an adventurer... just like mom. While the nerves didn't leave, not by any means, they were joined by determination, and Aralen knew he was as ready as he'd ever be.
- - -
The convoy started off riding through the twisting paved streets of Alugala, trotting their way through hordes of pedestrians as the wagons full of goods stayed close by the guards on horseback. As they continued west the crowds got thinner and the roads transitioned to rougher cobblestone, and soon they had reached the towering stone walls that surrounded the Estelian capital. Lithael spoke a few words to the pair of guards at the gate, and before long, they were moving again.
Slowly the outskirts of Alugala gave way to grassy hills peppered with trees as the convoy traveled away from the city and the ocean, making its way west and further inland. Before long, the occasional farmhouse or cabin still holding fast to the closeness of Alugala disappeared, and the convoy was surrounded by forest. The subtle rumble of the ocean waves and the salty tang in the air also disappeared, leaving a strange silence even as the sound of birds chirping and their horses clopping continued loudly. Aralen wasn't sure how he felt about it, as on one hand, the difference was very noticeable, while on the other it still felt like the same forests he knew from home, and even though it was his first time traveling away from Alugala it felt the same as any other foray into the forest.
After an hour or so of riding, Aralen started to regret not having trained his riding endurance. His legs and back were starting to get sore, and he had to resort to shifting around to alleviate the discomfort, to little effect. And even with the slow trot they were moving at, the constant jostling and bouncing on the saddle was getting annoying. Over to his left, Lithael sat on her bright ivory horse, looking poised and comfortable as ever, her posture almost unchanged since the start of the ride. I guess I should start building up riding endurance between jobs now, he thought to himself, shaking his head as he turned back to the muddy trail ahead.
Progress was slow, and even after a couple of hours, when the convoy stopped to allow the horses some rest and water from a nearby stream, it didn't feel like they had traveled all that far. The forests had only gotten marginally more dense, and no wild creatures had jumped out at them on their travels so far. As his horse went to drink with the others, Aralen took in the forest around him, looking up at the trees above and listening to the singing of the birds.
"First time out of the city, rookie?" Aralen looked up to see the captain herself approaching him, her armor shining against the forest backdrop. "All you newbies have the same look on your face, every time."
Caught off guard, Aralen gives her a sheepish grin. "That obvious?"
"No, not really. I've just been doing this job long enough that I can tell," she responded, her posture still as reformed as it had been earlier in the city, and even as it had been on the horses as they rode through the forest. "How are you enjoying the journey so far?"
"It's been fine so far. Not much to say, though. It's all a little more normal than I expected," he answered back, "My mother made it seem a lot more fantastical."
"We're still only a few miles away from the city. It all feels the same because it is the same," she responded, a small grin showing itself on her normally stoic face, "Wait until you get into another province at least before you start making judgements, rookie."
Aralen smiled and nodded but didn't say anything else as they stood watching the horses drink for another few moments. Eventually, the horses drank their fill and they were off on the path again, Lithael and Aralen taking the lead again, the rest of the wagons falling in line behind them along with the rest of the guards.
The caravan continued through the forest for another couple of hours with no interruption, and just as the sky started to darken and the sun began to creep below the horizon, the trees started to thin. In their place were fields of grain and orchards of trees producing fruit, and eventually the farmhouses that supported them showed themselves as well.
The small town of Oliraves was as if the ranches and farmhouses surrounding Alugala had shrunk down and congregated in the middle of a forest, with wooden structures much more robust than Alaren was used to in Alugala, and fields fractions of the size of the massive ones feeding the Estelian capital. The caravan trundled through the town until they reached the stables, with the merchants tying up their valuable-filled carts next to the inn and the guards preparing their schedules for the overnight watch. Alaren's watch was early in the morning, so after a quick meal he went to his room in the inn and laid down, glad to finally be able to rest his sore muscles after the long day of riding, and he soon fell fast asleep.
After a few hours of rest, he was awoken by knocking at his door, and with bleary eyes he made his way out of the inn. Sitting at the small wooden table set up against the wall of the roadhouse, engrossed by a leather-bound book and illuminated by a small lightstone was Lithael. She looked up at him and gave him a quick nod of acknowledgement then went back to her book. Alaren went to sit next to her at the table and simply looked up at the starry sky, appreciating the gentle forest breeze. Occasionally a villager would walk by, perhaps a baker or farmhand going to work or a guard doing their early morning rounds, drawing both Aralen and Lithael's attention for a short while until they walked out of their vision.
After nearly an hour had passed, motion drew Aralen out of his meditative stupor as he saw Lithael close her book and tuck it under her arm. "Well, my shift is done. I'll see you in a couple of hours," she said as she stood up and turned to leave, before stopping. "And I suppose now is as good a time as any to let you know what the plan is for tomorrow. Past this town it gets a little more dangerous, so it'll be our job to go a bit further ahead and clear out any trouble that may be there before the convoy arrives, while the other guards protect it from direct assaults. I'm not expecting there to be any trouble, but you should prepare yourself anyways. Good night." And with that, she stepped inside the barracks.
This book's true home is on another platform. Check it out there for the real experience.
Moments later a fellow guard joined him on the last watch of the night, with Aralen giving him a brisk greeting before returning to his thoughts. While he definitely was not hoping any trouble came to the convoy, especially on his first job, he also felt a sort of anticipation about potentially getting to use his combat skills for the first time.
"Hey, you're the new guy, right?" A voice shook him out of his thoughts, and he looked up to see the other guard looking straight at him. His long, pale blue hair and even paler skin indicated he was a snow elf, a rarity in these parts.
"Y-yeah, I am," Aralen responded, not anticipating any conversations at this time in the morning.
The elf grinned at him. "Me too. Not as new as you, maybe, but I took my first job just last month. It's pretty easy, huh? Just protect these wagons for a couple of days, get paid. No big deal."
Aralen just stared at him for a moment, wondering if he came off as even half as naive as the elf in front of it, before cautiously responding. "I guess it is pretty easy. I'm not really used to riding horses for so long, but other than that, yeah it's easy enough."
The snow elf leaned back, his arms crossed behind his head. "Well, that's the hardest thing you'll be doing in this job. I love it, personally. Easy money, right? By the way, my name's Eirik. How about you?"
"Alaren," he responded, wishing some of his annoyance with the overconfident snow elf would come out through his words and discourage him from talking any more, but if Eirik noticed, he seemed to ignore it.
"Nice to meet you, Alaren. So, why'd you choose to take on a career like this?" asked the naive snow elf.
I wish Lithael was still out here... It was so much more relaxing, he thought to himself before answering. "My mother was an adventurer, so I decided to try taking it up myself," he said, hoping that would sate the other elf's curiosity, to no avail.
"Oh, cool! Taking up the family business, huh? Myself, well, I've been a pretty good swordsman since I was a kid, so this is just the obvious next step. Figured I'd find a simple job that I'd be good at, and here it is. I get paid pretty well too, so that's a bonus. So, you have any cool stories from your mom?"
By the time Lithael and the rest of the guards came out with the merchants to get ready for the day of travel ahead, Alaren was almost looking forward to the uncomfortable horse ride and potential risk of combat just to get away from Eirik.
- - -
Compared to Eirik, Lithael might as well have been a brick wall for how much she talked to him, and Alaren was grateful for it. The two of them had started riding off fifteen minutes before the rest of the convoy to get a small lead, and other than quickly asking if he was ready, she hadn't spoken a word.
Slowly, as the pair traveled further away from the farming town, more and more trees popped up until it was a fully-fledged forest, a stark difference from the light smattering of trees up until that point. The canopy thickened until it started to dim the forest floor beneath their horse’s hooves and it became difficult to see very far past the trees on either side of the dirt path they rode on. All around him, noises started to pop up that he hadn’t been hearing in the thinner forest, and all of a sudden he wished there were more guards than just himself and Lithael.
Thankfully, nothing jumped out at them, and they made decent progress, trotting deeper into the forest on their steeds. After a few hours, another stream presented itself and they waited there while the convoy caught up and their horses refilled, a quick word exchanged between Lithael and a red-haired elf merchant. Apparently everything was as it should be, and before long the front guard was off again, taking a short lead ahead of the rest of the caravan.
Nothing presented itself for another hour of travel, so Aralen was stuck trying to keep his body from getting too uncomfortable on his black horse as they made slow progress. He was just in the process of stretching his legs slowly off each side of his mount when the horse stumbled and, balance lost, he slipped and fell from his horse. The landing wasn’t quite rough, but the thick grass underfoot helped soften the fall.
After a moment of trying to reorient himself and Lithael reprimanding him for being clumsy, he stood up and remounted his horse, eager to get going and leave the embarrassing fall behind him. His horse, however, had different ideas, instead trying to graze off the grass covering the path.
Grass? This whole path has been dirt this whole time, why is there grass here?
Upon further inspection, it wasn’t just grass. It was a veritable overgrowth, with vines, baby shrubs, and tree saplings joining the thick grass on the ground.
“Uh, Lithael? Is this normal?” he gestured to the plant life that had seemingly sprouted up randomly on the trail. It took her a moment to realize what he was referring to, but once she did her brow furrowed in thought.
“Interesting… this wasn’t here last month, and I don’t know why it would have grown this fast only right here. It could be a forest spirit, or maybe an elemental of some sort. I don’t think it’s anything we would have to worry about, but stay focused. It could be something worse,” she said.
Aralen managed to get his horse moving, and the pair cautiously continued on the now overgrown path, keeping an eye open for any threats. As they progressed, however, the duo got more and more concerned as the thickness and growth of the plants only increased, and soon the path was indistinguishable from the overgrown forest around them.
“This is bad. It’s way too easy to get lost in here. We should go back and meet up with the caravan, maybe try to find a different way through,” said Lithael, stopping her horse in its tracks.
Aralen nodded as they started to turn around. “Sounds like a plan.”
They had only taken a few steps back when suddenly a swarm of vines and roots shot up out of the brush, creating a threatening wall of tentacle-like plants around them. Beneath them, the legs of their mounts were getting wrapped up and constricted by growing vines, causing startled neighs and bucking as the horses tried to free themselves from the entangling roots. Aralen, fearing another fall, lept off his horse into the mass of vines, and they immediately started wrapping around his legs and torso.
Shit, that was a horrible idea, he panicked as he struggled against the growths. Individually, they were easy to break, but the sheer volume of them bogged him down, and he was soon restrained, the roots wrapped tightly around his ankles, arms, and torso as he watched his horse easily shake the restraints off and leap away into the forest.
Lithael, luckily, was a little smarter. She too jumped from her horse, but her short sword was already drawn as she leaped through the air, and she swiftly cut down the vines near her landing spot, staying mobile as she moved towards Aralen to not get trapped by the plants.
Before she could reach him and cut him loose a mound of vines that had been relatively immobile until then shot up. In its place stood a vaguely humanoid mass of roots, vines, and grass forming some kind of plant creature, and though it lacked a face its malice was still clearly shown. Thick knots of roots and vines made up its legs, and its arms were long and ropelike, with dozens of individual vines wrapped tightly together.
Aralen continued to struggle against his restraints as the vine creature and Lithael squared off, the elf swordswoman standing a safe distance away from the reach of the creature’s arms and warily watching for any further roots trying to entangle her. The creature lunged and was met by a swift sword swing, cutting several vines from its arm. It didn’t appear to be perturbed by that, and another swing of its ropey arms followed. A roll to the right by the elf dodged that second attack, but she quickly realized her mistake as vines moved to ensnare her. Another swipe of her blade put a stop to that, only to open her up for yet another swing from the plant monster, this one connected and sent her flying backwards, leaving a dent in her gleaming armor and putting her back within range of the enchanted roots.
“Lithael!” cried Aralen as he renewed his efforts, cursing himself for being so useless. He watched helplessly as the vines tangled themselves around Lithael’s silver armor and limbs and slowly started to lift her into the air. To make matters worse, a second shambling vine creature made its appearance from around a tree alongside several smaller creatures that looked to be made of wood.
It’s all over… my first job, already fucked up this badly. I couldn’t even manage to help Lithael at all. He watched as she struggled to free herself from the vines as the vine creatures slowly approached her while the smaller wood monsters had caught sight of him and were making their way over as well. He also watched as she closed her eyes, stopped struggling, and started to… glow?
The plant things continued to shamble towards her, unfazed by the bright glow that was now concentrated in her hands. Unfortunately for them, that was exactly what she wanted. In an instant, the light in her hands transformed into a wave of flames, and the roots restraining her and both the vine monsters were engulfed in flames.
The roots burned and dissolved into ash immediately, and the two vine monsters fell, as did Lithael as she was released. Oddly enough, the vines restraining Aralen similarly fell limp, returning to their natural state as motionless plants, and Aralen quickly swung his spear from his back into his hands, facing down the three wooden creatures that had been outside the fireball’s reach.
They were small, their misshapen ‘heads’ only reaching slightly above his waist, and if they weren’t approaching so menacingly, Aralen might have found them cute, with their short stump-like arms and legs. Now that the writhing vines had stopped and his spear was in his hands, the elf felt a lot more comfortable in this encounter, a small grin even forming on his face.
He threw out a quick thrust, striking one wood creature solidly and knocking it down. A quick swing from there connected with another, though it was stopped as the steel spearhead embedded itself in the creature’s tough wood skin, not quite sharp or hefty enough to slice through. He looked over to see the third wood monster taking the opportunity to close the distance, and Aralen responded with a quick kick square in the creature’s chest.
However, the creature stayed standing to Aralen’s surprise and used the contact as an opportunity to grasp his leg and pull him off balance. He fell into the limp vines, thankful that their magic had been lost as he scrambled to free his leg. A quick stab of his spear forced the creature to release him, and he scrambled to his feet, quickly throwing out another jab of his spear, this one penetrating deeply into the creature. It fell to the ground, motionless, as the other two began to move towards him again. Another pair of powerful stabs incapacitated the remaining two monsters and the clearing was silent again.
My first battle and I won! Thank goodness Lithael stopped those vine creatures. Aralen turned to congratulate Lithael, only to spot her still lying where she fell after the explosion. His blood froze as he rushed over to kneel beside her. Her face was covered in soot, a nasty burn on the right side of her face as well as her hands, and her once gleaming chestplate was dented in multiple places and darkened by ash. He put a hand on her neck and breathed a sigh of relief as a faint pulse was found. He looked up for his horse and the bag of supplies on his horse, but neither could be found.
Thankfully, Lithael’s ice-blue eyes fluttered open, and she let out a hoarse cough. “Lithael! Are you alright? What were you thinking, casting fireball at that close range?” Aralen nearly shouted at her.
“R-rookie? You’re alright… thank goodness,” she said hoarsely before coughing again. “I wasn’t sure it would work, but I’m glad it did.”
“Work? You nearly blew yourself up! I mean, I appreciate you saving me, but I feel like that was too risky to try…,” he said, suddenly worried that he might come off as ungrateful.
“I know my limits, rookie. It was a calculated risk and it paid off. Nothing else to be said.” She gave a weak grin, before her brows furrowed in confusion. “What’s that smell?”
“Smoke?” Aralen asked, taking a deep sniff. Indeed, there was plenty of smoke, but a faint sweet scent was starting to poke through. “Oh, I’m not sure… it smells like flowers? And honey.”
“It’s nice,” Lithael said, a content smile growing on her face as she closed her eyes. I should let her rest, thought Aralen, and he stood and looked around for either of their steeds, The rest of the caravan should be here soon.
The perfume-like smell slowly got stronger and stronger as Aralen spotted the trail of torn up plants, hopefully indicating the path their horses went. Soon it overpowered the smell of both the smoke and the forest scents, and became overwhelming, filling his nose with the sickly sweet scent. His hand found its way to his head as he looked down at the hoofprints at his feet, wondering what he was looking at. It was important, right? He couldn’t remember, a gentle fuzz starting to fill his brain and forcing him to think of nothing but the sweet fragrance. I can just sit down while I try to remember, he thought, finding a stump.
A thick fog now filled his mind and he simply sat there, enjoying the aroma when he heard some footsteps followed by a soft giggle. “Looks like we caught a strong one, Nylia. Ooo, and there’s another one over there. I call dibs on the man, though.” An annoyed sigh followed, and a second voice spoke up. “Fine, only because you summoned those creatures.”
Aralen couldn’t bring himself to look for the source of the voices as the perfume-like scent dragged him gently into sleep.