Chapter 3

Roden woke up with a start. He sat up abruptly, he looked about the room. He noticed that sitting on the table within an arm’s reach was a wooden mug. Upon pulling the mug closer to himself, he recognized it was full of water just as he had asked.

Looking down into the mug, he saw his reflection and observed that his clothes were different. He was no longer in a sharp colorful doublet and durable pants. Now he wore leather armor with a short sleeved white shirt. His pants were a darker green color and draped over his shoulders was a long cloak of black and white with accents of very faint golden colors near the bottom.

Oddly enough, it was all just as he imagined. He closed his eyes and focused for a moment looking deep within himself, grasping for what he hoped was there, Just as he hoped, he felt a power. A warm, kind of power that seemed to be missing something.

His mind began to fill with thoughts of magic, faith, and spells. The intermingling of the three and how strange it was to have faith in a being of your own creation. It was in that moment where Roden felt a connection to that being. In that dark space with his eyes closed, he began to see an image of a sunrise.

Then the light of a new day pierced through the utter darkness of his closed eyes and with that light, he felt knowledge passing through his connection with the divine of this world. Roden needed no time to consider his choices. It was as if the power knew already what he wanted and in a matter of moments it was done. The power he felt before was now whole.

That magic was now his to command. He could feel it and knew it would come when he called for it. Roden opened his eyes once again. He felt great. Even the sensations of being in the world of Mir somehow made sense, as if he did in fact belong there. That uncanny familiarity was no longer present and was replaced by a sense of nostalgia for the world. The one he had spent so many hours building in his mind.

Truth be told. He had great love for this world. He had put so much time into building it and had spent hundreds of hours in it with his friends. Somehow, he now had the opportunity to live in it and while exciting, that came with its own fears. Mainly, how the hell to get home.

It was then that Roden heard the sound of the tavern door opening and in walked just who he was waiting for. Two figures moved into the tavern. One stood quite tall, perhaps two meters in height. The definitive gray scales and draconic features made it clear the man was a Dragonkin. He wore a brown traveling cloak over his shoulders with the hood down, matching dark brown pants, and a dark green shirt with a generous neckline that exposed a good portion of the man's muscular chest.

Muscles that undoubtedly assisted in wielding the large hammer strapped to his back. By his side was an equally strange figure. A Birdfolk with white feathers and the face of an eagle. He wore a loose fitting orange and yellow shirt, with pants tied at the waist with a blue strip of cloth. In his hand was a full height wooden staff whose head was carved in a pattern reminiscent of symbol of the goddess of the sun.

As strange as these two figures were, Roden saw them and felt an overwhelming sense of camaraderie. Memories of sitting at a table with his two friends, Lee and Jo, flooded his mind. All those hours playing in his small apartment. So much time was spent creating these characters and going through all of their exploits.

If Roden was being honest with himself, he had to admit, there was no surprise that this was the campaign he found himself in. If he had to choose one, out of all the campaigns he had ever run. This is the one he was the most proud of and of course, if he was going to do a self-insertion. It only made sense that this was the one to do. That campaign was full of action and drama. Now, there he was with all of those memories inserted right at the beginning of that very campaign. It was as if it was a strange form of time travel now that he found himself in what would be the past of his fictional world.

The thought , 'Will things behave in the same way as time travel did in fantasy stories?'

All the complexity made his head hurt. He considered all the implications and came to the conclusion that it would be best to attempt to maintain as much continuity as possible.

'Of course, small things will change along the way, but as long as the big picture remained the same, it couldn't cause too many problems, right? Or wait, is that the point? Is he supposed to change things because he's supposed to be a new addition? hell, maybe now, isn't the time to figure this out.'

Roden knew that he needed to get these two characters to agree to bring him along. 'Why else would he be here at this moment, right at the beginning of their journey?' That is why he made the choices as he did moments ago. Knowing what he knew, Roden believed he had selected the perfect character to blend into this campaign.

Now was the time. Roden stood and made his way across the tavern portion of the Outpost toward the door and raised his hand in greeting to the men.

"Hello mates, name's Roden. I was told I could meet up with you here by a mutual friend." He said trying to sound as nonchalant as possible, knowing that these two were going to inevitably be suspicious.

The two non-humans looked at him quizzically. Eyebrows raised with suspicion evident across their faces.

The dragonkin spoke, his voice deep and resonant with deliberate enunciations and inflections that made his voice commanding and unique.

"And who would that mutual friend be?"

"Oh yes, I'm sorry I was sent and told to meet you here by Master Rolan. However, I know him by a different name. I call him father."

At the mention of their master, both showed signs of surprise.

The birdfolk spoke up, his voice had a childlike quality to it full of energy and upbeat.

"Why did thaster Rolan send you? He never said he had a son or any thamily."

Initially, Roden was shocked at the way this birdfolk sounded. He remembered during character creation way back when, Lee had discovered that birdfolk couldn't make certain sounds because of their lack of lips. Being unfeasible for a player to do at the table on the fly. They agreed that instead of trying to do a full birdfolk accent, Lee would just talk normally. However, they did have a little joke that whenever Lee would talk in character, he would end his sentences with a cacaw so that it was clear he was speaking in character.

"Hello?" The bird folk waved his hand in front of Roden, who was lost in thought and didn't respond in a timely manner.

"Oh, sorry, I zoned out there for a second. You will have to forgive me I am incredibly tired and It's wild finally getting to meet you two. My father sent me because he had a feeling I would benefit from having you two, his star pupils, around guide me. I also suspect he thought my skill set would be a good addition to your team on your adventure."

His answers seem to defuse the situation. A little of the suspicion his friends' characters had dissipated as the conversation continued.

"If I'm being completely honest, My father told me very little and really didn't have much to do with my upbringing. I lived primarily with my mother who took very good care of me. Rolen provided for us, but he lived the life of a monk. When he found out I was heading out on my own pilgrimage after completing my training he suggested that I head here and wait for you two to arrive."

Roden knew that the entirety of this story was fictional until a few moments ago, when he came up with this backstory during his character creation. He wasn't positive that it would stick or become truthful in the world, but he figured it would buy him some time. Mainly, because he knew these two never once contacted the temple during their campaign, he hoped that wouldn't change now.

Roden continued, "My father spoke very warmly of you two, the illustrious Errrkkkk and Riakon. I imagine he had great aspirations for you too and was probably hoping I could come along for the ride." Errrkkkk and Riakon looked at each other. Riakon shrugged his large shoulders, moving them up-and-down jostling his equipment.

"Well then, I guess you're along for the ride, cacaw."

Errrkkkk’s sudden change in syntax and pronunciation was both humorous and unexpected. Roden had a hard time keeping a straight face. Now that this character in front of him in the flesh, well, feather, was speaking just like the player at his table.

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"Oh well, excellent, great. I have a table, but perhaps we could get one, maybe not so much in the open. I just grabbed a random one because I was dead on my feet when I walked in and then we get some drinks and take a load off."

"Yes, now we're talking," said Riakon in his resonating voice.

The newly formed group quickly found a booth off on the side of the tavern section of the Outpost.

"So Roden, what exactly were you training for, cacaw?"

"Oh I was undergoing the initial training to be a Cleric Of Era."

"Oh, then why weren't you at the temple with the rest of us?"

This was exactly the question Roden had prepared himself to answer. When he made the character for himself, he knew he needed a way in with these two. While his initial instinct was to play a Bard. Once he knew he'd be meeting these two, it only made sense to be a Cleric.

With these two being raised in a monastery deep in the mountains, a monastery dedicated to Era, the goddess of the Sun, among other things. It would just be significantly easier to integrate himself if they worshiped the same God.

"Oh, it's actually quite simple. My father is a very secretive person and didn't exactly want everyone to know that I existed. If he had put me at the temple with him, it might make it a bit too obvious. So instead, he had me train with the priests and priestesses in Port Sept and Coastall. My training was also a bit different from the training that went on in the Monastery.

"Different, how, cacaw?"

"Oh well, you see, I'm led to believe that there was a lot of emphasis on Era’s domains of the dawn, nature, and justice. The monastery put a strong emphasis on martial combat. Whereas my path had more of an emphasis on being a guardian, the last light in the dark, and the protection of those who need it when the Sun goes down."

"So what can you do?"

"Oh well, as I'm sure you're well aware, I can prepare a few spells. Each day, I usually will prepare some healing and some that can do some damage."

"Healing! That's always handy."

"Okay. What about if someone gets up close, cacaw?"

He let some uneasiness slip into his voice. "Well, I'll be the first to admit I'm not the best in a fist fight, but in that case, hopefully I have a spell handy. If not, I'm gonna do my best with this." Roden reached back along his belt and set on the table a coiled whip.

"I know it's not the best thing, but I always kinda hoped it would be intimidating enough to keep something far enough away from me." He said sheepishly, not at all feigning the sentiment. Roden had been in a few fights in his day, but didn't relish the thought of being raked with troll claws or having the jaws of a dire wolf clamped around his thigh. There was a pretty big difference between taking a punch and having a six inch talon stuffed into your chest.

"What about the two of you? What is it that you do?"

"I hit things with this large hammer until they stop moving." Riakon said with little fanfare. A quick glare from Errrkkkk caused Riakon to continue. " Ummm yes well I can also do a bit of healing as well."

"I hit things fast, I've also got some energy attacks in the works."

Of course, Roden already knew all of this already. Riakon was a paladin, the typical knight in shining armor, but replace the armor with hard Dragonkin scales. He was going to take hits and deal massive amounts of radiant damage when he could get a critical hit. Errrkkkk, on the other hand, was the opposite, He was the flying martial artist who eventually was gonna be throwing around chi powered energy blasts, but it was too early in the campaign for that.

This moment was their humble beginnings, before they would reach their full potential.

"I gotta say guys. I'm just really looking forward to being able to travel with you all. I was not excited to be walking around on my own."

"Yes, well I can't say I'm disappointed to have a cleric on the team." The dragonkin said with a laugh.

From there, the conversation devolved into musings about their journey to the Outpost. During their chatter, they ordered food and drinks. In the midst of they're respite, Errrkkkk’s eyes narrowed.

"Hey, Roden. Did you get a room yet, cacaw?

"Oh no, I hadn't had the chance yet. Why?"

"I just don't see any gear with you or is this everything you brought, cacaw?" He said gesturing at Roden with one of his claw like hands.

'Shit...' He thought to himself.

A cold sweat began to break out across Roden's forehead, he hadn't considered his equipment. Just as he began to look around he heard a familiar voice.

"Are you looking for this love?"

Roden saw the barmaid from before who'd taken his order for his water. She was holding up a large backpack with a bedroll strapped to the top of it.

"Oh my God, thank you so much." The relief evident in his voice.

Taking the pack from the woman, Roden opened up his pack to find it contained all of his equipment except the things he was already wearing. However, inside the bag Roden found something curious. There was a small case that looked to be about two feet by one foot; the case itself only a few inches deep. Roden pulled the case out of the bag and set it on the table in front of him.

Feeling around the outside of the case. He quickly located two latches that opened with a flick, carefully he opened the lid and in the case he saw a small guitar like instrument with four strings. This truly was an amazing experience. It felt like moments ago, he had come up with this vague backstory for this character he was embodying and yet here he was having the memories that this character would have.

He got images of his younger self, practicing with an instrument, just like that one. He had flashes of learning simple songs and playing them for his mother.

'Well, not actually his mother, but the character's mother, but he was the char-. The fictional mother that he invented for the back story.'

Between his own thoughts and the memories of this fictional backstory, all flooding together was starting to give him a headache.

Cutting through the disorienting static was Riakon’s voice "Oh, you play an instrument! Well, go on and play something." He goaded.

Roden's palms grew sweaty. He knew in his mind that he did not know how to play this instrument, but yet he had memories of playing this instrument. He had a foreign sensation of wanting to grip and touch the strings and before he knew it, he had pulled the instrument out of the case and was holding it.

Roden had always felt there was something intimate about holding an instrument. Perhaps that was because he didn't know how to play them. He had tried playing various instruments throughout his life, but none ever stuck or came easily. He loved to sing, but never loved music itself. All of that was probably why every one of his Adventures and Antics characters always had the ability to play some kind of instrument. Here he was with an instrument in hand and the skill to play. Yet, he had no idea what to actually do.

He scoured his mind for a melody that he could remember and when his mind latched onto that song from the Lion King, his fingers started playing. The music just sounded like fun to his ears. He played softly, only loud enough for the song to carry to the most nearby tables. He couldn’t help but hum along tot he song about sleeping lions. His instrument had a bright sound. Definitely different from the lute music he remembered, but not quite the same as other instruments Roden knew.

In the few moments he played, it was a dream come true. He was able to close his eyes and just feel the melody and allow the music to flow out of him. As his song continued, he knew that he was nearing the ending, but didn't want to stop. He decided the lions needed to sleep after all and couldn't if he kept playing. He had to consciously force himself to not repeat the melody and end the song. His two new companions gave him a small seated clap reasonably impressed with his display.

"Well, it looks like we will have some music on our journey! Aye brother.”

"I think so, cacaw."

After his song, the three men grew were more comfortable with one another and the night slowly slipped into something more casual. The men ordered more food and ate. At one point in the night, one of the barmaids came by with a round of drinks purchased by one of the nearby tables as a tip for the song. After that, the night divulged into a spirited bit of revelry. After a few drinks, Roden summoned up the courage to head to the stage where he played one of the few pieces he remembered from his time, attempting the piano. Lucky for him, he imagined that would also be a melody his character would have practiced on this instrument.

The familiar beginning rang out across the tavern. His fingers tripped the strings, the sound beautiful and complex. Just as he threw himself into the song, his fingerings went to shit and the song fell to pieces.

'Okay perhaps Fur Elise was a bit too much for my second performance.'

An unfathomable sense of embarrassment washed over him like a torrential wave smothering him in its attempt to drown him. He could feel himself go bright red. As the audience laughed and clapped, he looked toward Errrkkkk and Riakon. He could see Riakon giving one jeering tavern patron a look that demanded he shut up which he did. In his shame. he started to move off stage before he heard a raucous grow from the back of the room and when he looked up, he saw Errrkkkk trying to rouse the tables around him to cheer Roden on.

It was then that Roden went to his go-to karaoke song. When he started to strum, it sounded incredibly strange to his ear. The jazzy tune was not made for this instrument, but he powered through and started to sing "Fly me to the Moon" just like Frank. He pitched his voice down giving it a mellow smooth quality. He sang out putting all of himself in every word and note. By the end of the song, he had the attention of the majority of the room by the time he sang the final word and the song came to an end.

Overly enthusiastic clapping could be heard from the back of the tavern, which very quickly picked up into what became a mostly seated ovation, but he'd take it for his first live performance. After a bit of back peddling, he made his way back to the table. They were bombarded by a plethora of drinks. To the point where they had to start a tab of credit with the bar, banking the drinks for another time.

As they headed off to bed, Roden spoke with the bartender and was able to exchange some of his credit for three rooms. He hadn’t earned much, but it was enough to cover the rooms and maybe there would even be enough to cover some breakfast in the morning.