Not much later, I noticed many players riding their mounts away and around to my left. If I remembered correctly, this was the first of the new quests in the expansion. Knowledge of the quest had been widely available even before the expansion was fully released, as the company was a strange one and released a demo of the new expansion before the full release, allowing people to play The Merchant and the Djinn as they tested out the gameplay of the new classes.
The thought of joining the quest made me grimace. It had a monetary reward, which would be a great boon for Sinbad and me. But. It was a fetch quest. Previously, I had heard of the horrors of fetch quests and used them as one of the many reasons not to play. Now, I’d experienced the frustration of being led along by a string that offered little to no real challenge, only movement. In my eyes, and in the eyes of many others, fetch quests were among the worst of side quests. They were only eclipsed by ‘escort’ quests, of which I encountered once and swore never again. Learning to keep Blaze alone alive was challenging enough, but an additional person? It was laughable. In a hysterical type of way.
I’d eventually succeeded in the escort quest after suffering many, many deaths and many, many setbacks. Luckily, my items had been low-leveled enough that I’d been able to recollect them before they were acquired by anyone else.
Thinking on it all, however, in my real, physical body, a fetch quest might not be the horror it was when you used an avatar. It would be nice to have a way to gain money, knowledge, and experience without having to put myself at risk when I still didn’t know how being in a video game would impact me.
As a bonus, the sidequest would take us into the city anyway.
I halted my steps, garnering Sinbad’s attention. “Do you mind if we make a small detour? There’s something I want to check out over there.”I said, pointing in the direction everyone was gathering.
“Is it related to your earlier discussion?” Sinbad asked, with an earnest look on his face. If he was hoping for an explanation right now, he was out of luck. I still hadn’t found the proper words.
“No, it’s related to our finances. I don’t have any money, and I assume you are out as well.” If my memory was accurate, which it usually was, Sinbad’s money had been left behind on the mothership.
Sinbad slid his hands into his pockets, rummaging through them. “You would assume correctly.”
“Right.” I turned course in the direction of the Merchant, Sinbad and Ani following in my wake. It wasn’t long before I saw a large gathering of players centered around a specific spot. Disturbingly, some areas were so packed that players clipped through each other, meaning odd monstrosities were created when players stood in the same place, with limbs and heads growing from random chests as the ‘playing cutscene’ icon hovered above their heads. A frown tugged at my lips. I hoped that speaking to NPCs wouldn’t always be this crowded.
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Sinbad’s eyes were bright as he looked forward into the crowd. “Do you wish to speak to him?” he asked, pointing in the direction of the crowd.
“Yes,” I answered as I picked my path through the people, “but this crowd…”
Sinbad strolled forward, unbarred by the passage of player characters. Right. They weren’t a part of his novel, and he couldn’t interact with them. That, too, would take getting used to. He stepped right through them, disappearing quite literally behind the cluster.
I eyed the unpenetrable-looking wall and followed him forward. My elbow brushed through someone’s torso. I didn’t feel it, but I shuddered all the same and tried to avoid touching the frozen players when I could.
At the front of the crowd, Sinbad squatted in front of the Merchant, listening attentive as the other man lamented. “...and now, the Efrit will come for my soul in three days! Whatever shall I do?!” The Merchant wove his fingers into his hair, tugging on them as he rocked back on the log.
[Subquest: The Merchant and the Djinn available. Details: Find three powerful stories to tell the Djinn.
I accepted the quest as Sinbad consoled the man, saying, “We’ll do whatever we can to help you. Do you have any ideas on why the Djinn might spare you?”
The man sniffled and dabbed at his eyes. “He gave me three extra days after I told him my story. Maybe if he heard more sympathetic stories?”
“We’ll come back with a story for each day he granted you,” I interjected.
Sinbad patted the man’s knee as he rose to his feet.
“Oh, thank you! Thank you! Take this letter to Farah, the owner of the Inn. She’ll set aside rooms for you for the three nights as you search.” he glanced up at the sky, “and you’d better hurry. The monsters have been getting nasty ever since our king took his new wife.”
Sinbad eagerly took the letter from him, and we promised the Merchant we’d return soon. With the mission in hand, Sinbad reminded me of a puppy, loyal and eager to please. I led him through the gates of the city up ahead, continuing to use mental magic sparingly to avoid any trouble. The city was surrounded by smooth red clay logs, with brilliant white strips of light on the top and surrounding the windows, preventing players from slamming into the walls with their flying mounts. The city itself was much the same, constructed of square, adobe-styled homes with a futuristic cyberpunk touch added to them, an odd mixture of ancient and modern.
The Inn the Merchant had mentioned was the only one in the city and had conveniently been placed right next to the east gate for easy access in and out of the city to the main area of the island. The Innkeep took the letter from Sinbad’s hand and skimmed through it briefly. She handed us two separate keys, thanking us for our offer to help her husband and promising us the best meal we’d ever had.
We sat down at the large round table, Sinbad’s patient eyes resting on me as we waited. With a sigh, I broke and found the words to explain.