Violet light faded from the view of Riva, Leone, and the farmer as the barrier dissipated before them. With the bubble evaporating, the three saw the farmer’s house come into view, exactly where he said it was supposed to be. Next to the simply built structure, with his back turned to the rest of them, was Azim. “My house!” the insetoid shouted. “That’s my house! It’s back!”
Azim’s companions jogged over to where the robot was standing, the farmer breaking off to run up to his house. He ran up the steps and hugged his front door. Meanwhile, Leone and Riva were still worried about their metallic friend. “What the heck happened?” asked Leone in a concerned tone. “Are you okay, buddy?”
“Yes, I am all right,” the metal man replied. “All is well and the farmer has no more reason to be concerned over the well-being of his home.”
“Well that’s great, buddy, but tell us what happened! What was that barrier for?”
And so the android regaled his companions with a story of what occurred inside the bubble. He explained that after passing a certain point, he saw the house materialize, and out of the front door came a girl. He described to them the girl’s frenzied nature and how she had jumped at Azim with little provocation. He continued to tell them how she had summoned a sword out of nothing, attacked at random, and spoke in a frantic, repetitive manner. Finally, he told them about the eyes. Leone and Riva listened as the metal man described the eyes of the green-skinned girl who fought him. How the craziness of her eyes ebbed and flowed like waves during a storm, and how a spark of white calm flashed amidst the crashing tides, hoping for someone to notice it. He told them how instead of fighting the girl, he simply restrained her until she eventually calmed down and stopped fighting. The girl then released the barrier willingly and ran off, leaving Azim and the rest of them alone.
“So she found the house while the farmer was out and took residence, and then put up the Cloaking Barrier so it would appear gone when he came back,” resolved Leone. “And then I guess if somebody, most likely the farmer out of curiosity, stepped through the cloak anyway, she would change her spell to a Repel Barrier to lock them inside and anyone else out.”
“I can understand all of that, but what I’m curious about is…” Riva began. “Azim, hun’, you said the girl had green skin and spoke somewhat strangely?”
“That is correct,” the metal man replied.
“Well, it sounds to me like you encountered a Goblin. Green skin, sharp eyes, frantic nature… did she have pointed ears?”
“They were not particularly long, but yes, the girl’s ears were admittedly somewhat pointed,” responded Azim astutely.
“Well maybe she was a goblin, but she could have also been a Troll, right?” Leone checked. “I mean those barrier spells, that’s some really serious magic. Barriers like those take finesse. A goblin probably wouldn’t be able to cast those, but a troll could. They’re just about as sensible with magicraft as anyone else.”
Riva paused, thinking intensely. “That’s what bugs me,” she finally said. “I agree that the use of such fine magic doesn’t make sense, but I’m still thinking about Azim’s description. Her eyes, her repeated words, her frenzied demeanor. And then there’s what she was fighting over. Ownership of a house. Trolls are sociable, like other civilized species. Goblins, however, are greedy like that. They want everything they see, and fight tooth and nail for it. Everything about Azim’s description of her suggests she would be a goblin. So why would she have the kind of knowledge about magic that she did?”
“Ah, whatever, I guess it doesn't really matter, right?” Leone shrugged, breaking the tension of the conversation. “Azim got rid of the intruder, and the farmer’s house is fine, so job done, I say.”
The three finally walked over to the insetoid, who was still rubbing his face against his front door in relief. Noticing the travelers, he pushed away from the door in a flustered manner and returned their attention. “Ahem! Well, uh… thank you very much, travelers. I don’t know what I would have done without my house, or if I had been the one inside that bubble!”
“You do not need to thank us,” replied Azim calmly. “If someone seeks aid, I find it appropriate to assist, regardless of the issue.”
“Though the thanks are appreciated,” Leone joked.
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The three travelers wrapped up their discussion with the insetoid farmer, letting Azim know of the plan to head to Milkwood before continuing their quest to Lemaerk. The robot seemed content with the change of plans, though he was not really one to disagree in the first place. He even chimed in saying that he could look for materials to upgrade himself, though the rest of the group was not entirely sure what the android meant by that.
Azim and his friends headed out, wavering goodbye to the farmer. A realization washed over the insetoid, and he called out to the carriage as it strode further and further away. “Hey! I forgot to say!” the farmer yelled. “I didn’t get your names, but mine is Ki’tk! Let the people in Milkwood know your friends of mine! I hope to cross paths with you in town sometime!”
Leone yelled back on behalf of the group, “We will! Thank you, Ki’tk! Don’t be a stranger!”
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Twenty minutes later, the robot and his companions made it into Milkwood. It was a sizable town with a lot of life to it. Most of the houses were quaint with grass-covered roofs, and booths and vendors were sitting under tarped canopies littered about the whole area. Strings of unlit lanterns rowed along wooden poles every few meters, and residents of all shapes and sizes were walking farm animals down the dirt streets. There was even an ever-present aroma of morning dew that enveloped the entirety of Milkwood. The town looked like it belonged in a dreamscape.
Walking through the town, Riva and Leone admired the pleasant sights around them. They quickly realized this was the first time in two days that there wasn’t some pressing issue taking center stage as soon as they arrived or shortly after. For once, there was no danger calling their name, and all they had to do was enjoy themselves. It was a nice relief. Azim, not being someone who recognized taking a break or levels of stress, did not have as much of an option on the matter. The robot was simply enjoying a new place, and cataloged it in his back brain with all of the other things he had discovered while in Irvana. The android may not have known why he was here or how he was going to get home, but for now, exploring all there was to find in this new world was exciting, even to a robot.
The group decided to split up for a while so that they could all do what they felt like. Riva wanted to gather some supplies and see if she could sell or trade her fabrics for anything. Leone wanted to see if there was anything particularly interesting to be found among the various vendors. Azim just wanted to wander. They waved a temporary “goodbye” to one another and ventured off into the town in different directions, looking for fun. Azim watched as Leone jogged off and Riva rode her cart around the corner. For the first time in a while, he was alone again.
The robot walked along one of the dirt streets, passing several women tending to gardens in front of their houses, children running up and down the way, and a family of Sundoves perched atop one of the many grass-covered houses. The atmosphere of the neighborhood was warm and lively, which let Azim slow down his processors to a point where he was not on high alert about his surroundings like he normally was. The robot enjoyed the lighter stress on his coding and allowed the various stimulations of Milkwood to overtake him. The android was so distracted by his lulled senses that he didn’t even notice the boy in front of him until they bumped into each other.
“Ow! Ohh…” the boy groaned, keeping his head down and rubbing his scalp. “Wow, sir, your armor sure is tough. It bonked me real good.”
Looking up at the cloaked stranger, the boy was left somewhat stunned. “I apologize, young man,” Azim replied earnestly. “I was not maintaining awareness of my surroundings, and bumped into you by mistake.”
“W-Well, it’s alright, sir, I wasn’t looking too carefully either,” the boy admitted. “I was looking for someone to help me, so I didn’t really have my eyes on the street.”
Azim cocked his head to the left slightly, asking, “You require assistance? May I help you?”
The boy eyed the strange, metal man awkwardly. “Well, maybe, but…” he began, struggling to get the words out. “Who are you, sir? You look… strange, and… you’re not wearing any clothes…”
“I apologize for the unfamiliarity of my appearance,” the robot replied without much reaction to the boy’s words. “In truth, I do not belong here, and I am searching for a way home.”
“No offense, sir, but you don’t exactly look like a local,” the boy replied. “If you don’t belong in Milkwood, that’s okay, but where do you need to go?”
Azim paused. The boy had not understood him. Of course he hadn’t. Why would he? How could this boy comprehend the idea of not belonging here, not just to this town, but to this entire world? The android then thought about the boy’s question. Where do you need to go? Azim could not answer this. As out of place as he knew he was, as lost as he felt, the metal man was still not sure where he had come from or where he belonged. He decided not to worry the boy with such troubles, responding, “I will find my way in time. Until then, I am happy to get to know your town. My name is Azim.”
“Oh, uh…” the boy stammered, caught off guard by the metal man’s extended hand. The boy took the robot’s hand and shook it, mustering up, “Well okay, my name’s Wyn.”
A wind seemed to wrap around the two unlikely strangers as they shook hands. A chance encounter that, at first glance, did not carry much weight to it. However, the area around the two seemed to calm. The bumbling noise of the town seemed to fade out for a fraction of a second. As if these two were destined to meet.
“You stated that you were ‘looking for help’ before we crossed paths,” Azim remarked. “May I be of assistance to you?”
The boy informed the cloaked robot that his mother had sent him on an errand to pick some Turneeps. There were several farmers that grew them, but they did not have the money to afford them. Instead, Wyn’s family often picked them from the edges of Milkwood forest, where they grew wild. However, this was Wyn’s first time being sent on this errand, as normally his dad did it. Not having much confidence in himself, the boy was looking for someone to help him pick the Turneeps so that he did not come home empty and disappoint his family. Since they were counting on him, and since this was his first time to really prove himself, Wyn told Azim that he just really wanted to make his family proud.
The boy did not notice. He likely would he have understood any significance of the moment even if he had. If Riva had been present, she might have caught it, but no one else really understood. However, in that instant, after hearing the words of the boy, Azim clicked.