“Oh my, I believe I must be going soon,” Riva remarked.
She and her new friend Ovi’en had been gabbing away the entire afternoon, enjoying their conversation so intently that the woman had lost track of time. Sitting on a nearby countertop was a candle embedded with nails at various heights. The nails acted as alarms, such as when the candle would burn to a certain point, the nail's wax imprisonment would melt and let it drop, alarming anyone in the room that a given amount of time had elapsed. At the sound of one of the tiny metal rods clanging against the candle’s aluminum tray, Riva was reminded of her titanium travel companion. She thanked the elf for the tea and the lovely conversation before bidding her adieu.
Riva rode her carriage down the various blocks of Milkwood, looking left and right for her fellow travelers. Eventually, she stumbled upon Leone, who was talking up a vendor for an unclear reason. Getting closer, Riva began to overhear the conversation.
“Come on, dude, you’ve got to have something for me,” the young man pleaded.
“I’m sorry, sir, I don’t think I have anything of serious value,” replied a disappointed older man, with tan skin and dark eyes. “Most of my stuff is made for people with magic level 4 or lower. Not because that’s all I can make, but just because that’s most of the company in these parts. It’s all basic magic enhancers, real beginner stuff.”
Leone slapped his face with both hands and dragged them off slowly, groaning as he did. “Ahh, fine… thank you for your time, sir,” he finally conceded.
“What’s going on over here, Leone?” questioned Riva.
“Oh, I’ve just been looking around for cool, unique stuff, but not a lot of these shops have any,” the young man replied. “It’s mostly just crops, meat, clothes, souvenirs, and the occasional magic item or weapon. But those all suck.”
“Hey!” the older man interjected.
“I’m just sayin’!” Leone checked, facing the man for just a second before returning his attention to his friend. “Anyway, I thought this guy might have something, but all his magic stuff was really low-level. The only neat thing I found was some medicinal milk from this one lady.”
“Well that’s nice, I suppose, right?” remarked the woman, trying to find a positive in the young man’s story. “I was hoping to sell some of my stuff but I couldn’t. Apparently only locals can, and any visitors that try to sell their goods just get the cold shoulder.”
“I’m sorry. That kinda’ sucks.”
“Oh, it’s alright, I understand. This nice young woman explained to me that it’s all about keeping the town’s economy and culture protected and so forth. I couldn’t really have a problem with that.”
The two companions walked along together, continuing their conversation. They discussed what they had seen and where in the town they had visited. They asked if the other had seen Azim recently, to which both of them said they had not. Wonder filled their mind as they thought about what the metal man must have been doing while they were going. Riva even started to get a little worried, thinking he might have been too naive and inexperienced in Irvana to be left alone. She questioned if he was all right, nervous he might be getting into trouble, but Leone reassured her that even considering how unfamiliar he was with his surroundings, Milkwood was an easygoing town with not much cause for concern. Of all places to leave him alone, this town was one of the safest and most carefree. Still, she couldn’t help but fret.
Soon enough, Azim showed up in front of the two travelers. They smiled at him. Azim regaled his friends of the quest he had helped the little boy out with, and the awkward meeting of his mother. Riva asked him, nervous, if it was something they had to worry about. He assured the woman that despite the uneasy start with the boy’s mother, he was able to put her nerves to rest by the end of their interaction, leaving her to thank the android for helping her son.
Riva was delighted to hear of the naive robot’s adventures, and proud that Azim had handled himself so well, despite any initial awkwardness. Just then, Leone groaned yet again, to which Azim asked what was wrong. The young man explained what he had been looking for while out on his own and how nothing had stuck out to him. All that he had to be proud of were the 8 bottles of milk he had acquired from Helma. The robot admitted that he now had something he was hoping to find as well. Something he might acquire to give himself an upgrade, similar to what Leone wanted. For now, however, the android would simply have to wait. Milkwood was not the place to find what he was looking for.
Before the group headed out, Wyn caught up with their cart. “Hey! Heyyy!” the boy shouted.
The robot looked back and saw, in the boy’s hand, stretched forward as he ran toward them, was the bulb of a turneep. “Hello, Wyn,” Azim addressed. “Why are you here?”
A case of literary theft: this tale is not rightfully on Amazon; if you see it, report the violation.
Wyn glanced to the robot’s left and right, noticing the two strangers behind him. He didn’t pay them much mind. Returning his attention to the android, he stuck both his arms out, the turneep tail bulb laying flat on his palms. “I wanted you to have this,” the boy said, smiling. “After all that hard work you did, you deserve some of the rewards. I asked my mom if I could give one up to you, and she said it was okay. Here!”
Azim stared at the vegetable in the boy’s hand. He had no need for it, for the metal man did not eat. Blankly, he explained, “Thank you, Wyn, but I do not need this.”
The boy pulled his hands back, looking confused. He didn’t understand what the robot meant, and it hurt his feelings that his new friend did not want the bulb. Riva quickly cut in, attempting to salvage the situation and the robot’s relationship with the boy. She explained to Wyn that Azim was simply not hungry at the moment, but she would be happy to hold onto it for him. She then turned to Azim and asked him to reassure the boy he was not trying to hurt his feelings. Azim, realizing he had made a mistake, turned back to Wyn and leaned forward. He told the boy that he really did appreciate the gesture, and was thankful that the boy had both thought of him and wanted to see him again before he left.
Wyn smiled softly, understanding his new, admittedly weird friend. The truth about Azim may have eluded the boy, but the provided explanation was enough to appease him. He said one more “goodbye” and ran back home to his mom. The android and his companions, in turn, headed off toward Milkwood Forest.
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Dozens of subtle sounds carried their way through the forest. Birds whistling somber tunes to one another. Tiny creatures rummaging through shrubs on the ground. Pitter-pattering critters crawling along the trunks of fallen trees. Only faint rays of sun shone through the stretching limbs of the trees, leaving pockets of sunbeam-graced land surrounded by shadowed planes. Riva found it funny that despite the elements that made up the woods around them, which would otherwise be ominous to journey through, the particular arrangement of Milkwood forest was about as scary as the town it was named for. Even the shaded areas were not worrisomely dark. In its entirety, the forest seemed like where one might set up a romantic dinner surrounded by nature for a loved one, without any worry of something lurking in the darkness.
The group trekked the shifting landscape, eyeing the changing sights around them as they bounced from pocket to pocket of sunlight. Creatures in their path scurried out of the way as the horses came along, tree-climbing residents of the forest shuffling out of sight. A few minutes into their ride, Azim noticed something.
From behind one of the trees, only half in light from a nearby peeking sunbeam, was a strange animal staring at the robot. He could not quite tell what it was, or even make out its features, but he was sure it was gazing right at him. Only its head and shoulder crept out from around the trunk, even as other animals slid out of sight at the sound of the passing carriage.
Azim hopped off the cart without waiting for it to stop. Alarmed, Riva lightly shouted, “Azim, hun’, what are you doing, where are you going?”
“I am curious,” replied the robot without another word.
Riva turned to look at Leone, who looked at her with a matching face of confusion. The android continued his slow walk, leaving the cart to approach an inconspicuous tree. His two friends had not the slightest idea of what their metallic companion was doing.
Azim cautiously made his way to the tree, being careful not to startle the mysterious animal. Getting closer, the robot saw what the strange creature was. It looked like a large cat, about the size of a lynx, but it was green. Dark green. Azim noticed that it was not just green fur that the creature displayed. It was something else. It looked textured and compact, notably different from the look of typical animal fur. But there was something truly special about the look of the cat-like animal. It was growing flowers. In place of a nose, as well as on the tip of its tail, was a purple flower with seven petals and a yellow center, though the one on its nose appeared bloomed while the one on its tail appeared dormant. It was a beautiful creature, with one disturbing trait that stood out to the android. Around the cat’s neck, amidst the rich, deep green, was an iron collar, slightly rusted with several chain links hanging from its lowest point.
The metal man acknowledged that, if it was possible, he would have been unnerved. The display before him made him curious about where the creature had come from, as he figured it was most likely not a local of this forest. Azim reached a hand slowly forward, but the large cat flinched back. The robot paused. It thought about why the creature would have been eyeing him, why it would have been fascinated enough to not get scared off like everything else. Despite taking a step back, the green-covered cat had not left. It was still staring into the illuminating eyes of the android.
Azim looked at his upper right arm. He eyed where it connected to his shoulder. He looked back at the cuff wrapped around the animal’s neck. Finally, the robot grabbed his upper right arm with his left hand and ripped it out of its socket. He was careful, being sure to move precisely and short. Rather than swinging his arm back as he pulled, flailing his right arm as it left its socket, he only pulled it an inch out of its resting place, so that it barely changed position. Then, he slowly pulled his bisected arm away from his shoulder and held it out to the cat.
The green-covered creature eyed the loose arm suspiciously, glancing up at the robot and back down. Slowly, the animal opened its maw and bit down on the arm, before taking a couple nervous steps back with it still in its mouth. The one-armed android stared at the creature that now held his arm in its mouth. It continued to stare at him intensely. The robot started to take a step closer, but the interaction was interrupted by Leone yelling, “Yo, Azim! What are you doing?!”
Green and silver flashed about as the strange cat ran off, startled, before Leone had even finished calling out Azim’s name. The metal man watched the creature leave, making no attempt to follow it… or get his arm back.
Azim turned around and walked back to his friends. Riva was speechless at the sight of the robot. His cloak now folded in on one side, filling in the space where his arm used to be. Leone was the one to speak up. “Dude! What the hell happened to your am?!”
“I was curious about something I saw in the forest,” the robot replied calmly. “I offered my arm as a way to relinquish any threat of danger I might have imposed.”
“Well, are you going to get it back?” questioned Leone, who was still reeling from what he was witnessing. “I have a feeling you’re going to want that.”
“There are many who are not born with certain parts of their bodies that others of their species inherit. There are those who lose limbs or other pieces of themselves due to battle, accident, or illness. To consider myself imposed because I currently lack what a fraction of thousands others lack in tandem… would be to belittle the entire existence of every one of them.”
The young man did not know what to say. He put his hand to his head, scrunching up the twists of his hair. “Uh…” he began. “Yeah… alright, buddy. Whatever you say, I guess. As long as you’re cool with it, I’m not gonna’ worry.”
“I thank you for your understanding,” replied the robot stoically.
“Alright, then!” Riva finally chimed in, pulling herself together. “Let’s keep on moving, shall we?”