“Thaton’s Rebellion” - By Almea Livotchka ~100 A.C (After Crusades)

The land of Vertex and all its inhabitants lived in an era shrouded in darkness and death, a time of a great loss of life, a war to leave a wound so deep within the people that even four millenia later, stories of Xyraena’s Conquest echo throughout folklore. Children are told of the horrors as a way to scare them into behaving well, entire armies are taught about it, learning of the vile, repulsive tactics used by the generals and commanders involved in the conflict. The world is dying, entire cultures wiped out, famine and disease run rampant across the globe and the smell of rotten corpses fills the fields at which titanic clashes took place.

Deep within the Volcanic Wall of Fire, a man began to ponder the reason for such violence, why what started as a war to reclaim what was once theirs has turned into a swirling typhoon of horror. Thaton Rogulus sat by the fire, accompanied by a few of his Bloodhound Shieldbrothers. The encampment was quiet at this time of night, with only the night’s watch and members of the Logisticus scurrying around, working their share. But the Bloodhounds were different, they were human mercenaries, hired by Xerra Virroth to be a scouting company, sent ahead of battle, setting fire to enemy camps, plunging towns into chaos before the main force’s arrival, sometimes kidnapping people and torturing them for information.

The group happily sang songs, shared stories of their victories against the “Efi scum”, completely enamored by the Volcanics' tall tales of land long lost to them, tales of blood debts and betrayals. Thaton however, was a pragmatic man, while not the smartest or the strongest, he tended to look at things from the perspective of a simple man. A saying of his became popular amongst the more openly opposed to the war, “The common man will laugh and smile when you tell him to, if the sword you have is pointed at him.”. Through the years of his service, the growing popularity of him has caused eyes from above to look and take notice. While some touted him a war hero, a man to write songs and poems about, others thought he’s too popular for his own good.

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Five days later in the log shed…

I’ve spent the past week or so recovering from my injury. I still don’t have any feel in my left arm but I am able to slightly move my fingers. Valerie and Xerra have been taking turns making sure I’m doing fine, changing my bandages.

From what I’ve been told so far and what I can see the wound is healing fine. I lost a lot of blood and because of that I lost consciousness. While the wound was pretty brutal I was lucky that the beast missed the major artery.

I’ve been thinking a lot for the past week. Thinking about what I saw when I was out and what’s been happening for the past couple of weeks.

The last thing I remember before appearing in Vertex out of nowhere is sitting down by my PC and clicking Yes. Right after I woke up here. Ever since then whenever I expected to wake back up in the mundane day to day reality I’ve had until coming here, it didn’t happen.

Going to sleep in the Inn only ended up with me starting the next day, the traveling so far led me nowhere. The closest I was to going back was by nearly dying, trying to hunt down a monster. And even then it seems that wasn’t the reality where I come from.

I don’t necessarily want to go back. That life was boring and the days were blurring together. But that specific segment I’ve just gone through… It gave me something I’ve been longing for and then took it away from me.

Whenever something good happens, life will find a way to fuck it all up as usual. Anyway, I’m not going to bitch about my real life anymore. I have to figure out how I got here, not to find a way back, rather I want to know why. That’s all.

At least as a positive note. I have two very good looking ladies taking care of me. Yes, that is my take away from this. There’s been a few moments where I look at Xerra and It’s like I’m looking at Veronica all over again. I had a few panic attacks as well which threw the girls off but I guess that’s understandable.

I’ve been slowly recovering from the battle. It’s still extremely hard to stand up and usually Xerra or Valerie help me out when I have to go to the bathroom. I try to shoo them away as far as possible but they insist on being in eyeshot of me. Normally I wouldn’t mind if a lady was looking at me but y’know. The situation’s a bit different.

Anyway, I’ve reached a point in my recovery where I think I can start training again. I have to find out what’s going on and how I got there and if I have to be scared of every violent encounter on my path I’m not going to get anywhere. I call in Valerie from the other side of the hut.

- “Hey! What do you think about me restarting my training? I can’t do anything physical while my arm is like that but I could at least learn to tame the Wave as much as possible?” - I try to paint me going back to training as brightly as possible. Selling it like: Hey might as well do that right?, should work. - “I’m stuck in this bed and It’s fucking killing me Valerie, come on.”

She looks at me with her big green eyes. Tapping her chin as usual when thinking.

- “Sure. But no way we’re letting you do it alone” - Overbearing, Doting, Mother. That’s Valerie…

- “Fine, help me up then. Let's get started right away” - I start lifting myself off the ground. A few grunts and gasps later, with some help from Valerie, I’m on my feet.

My left arm is most definitely out of commission right now so physical training’s out of the question for real. But sitting around focusing and learning the depth and reach of my ability is just as important as being able to kick ass.

Xerra is outside herself, doing some runs back and forth. Everyone’s seemingly trying to keep in shape and have some semblance of normalcy after the mishap.

It takes us a little bit but we make it to the same field I trained at before. I don’t know how fast grass grows but at this time it looks like we’ve never even fought here. Lush grass everywhere, pretty sure it’s taller than it was before.

She takes me over to the middle of the flat section of the field nad helps me sit down.

- “Any chance I can convince you to use your gravity?” - Probably not, but worth a try.

- “Unless you want your left arm to rip itself off, no.” - Noted Valerie.

Let's begin the process all over again… I begin to focus up, the strands of grass brushing against each other and the cicadas in the background blend together into a wall of noise that surrounds me.

Time to clear this noise up as much as possible. Unfortunately this time it’s not that simple, there’s something underneath. A noise of sorts that keeps interfering with my focus.

It’s hard to put into words but it’s a high pitched noise that weaves around the senses. I have to tune it out to make sure I can get my brain into the right spot.

There it is… I can sense it slowly dissipating as I tune out the other noises. Everything I don’t need gets pushed out, the grass, the bugs, local animals, Valerie and Xerra. Everything goes out. Focus only on myself, what do I feel, hear…

Most of my muscles show strain from the battle and lying around for the past week. I know, strain from laying down, it’s a real thing. Other than that I can’t ignore my left arm. At max focus as I am right now I still don’t feel anything.

I can just about move my fingers a little. If I’m not mistaken, tendons don’t heal fast, sometimes never allowing for a full recovery. I grip my left arm… Nothing. I don’t know why but my focus with everything else turned off is fixated on it. Like there’s something there I can do?

Time to let things flow, my thoughts automatically connect to the limp body part, no pun intended. I’m not sure where we’re going here Wave but I’m letting you do your thing.

My focus shifts even more onto the arm, I tunnel vision onto it. I’m completely absorbed by how it feels, what’s there, what I can do with it and what I want it to do. As the feeling continues I notice my individual muscles making sounds, weaving themselves back together like a fabric that’s being mended.

The ripped tendons reattach themselves and connect like wires. The crushed bone connects like puzzle pieces, forming back the humerus as it was originally. Flawlessly even.

As my arm puts itself back together on its own I begin taking down the bandages as fast as possible to see what’s going on. At the same time Valerie runs over to me and grabs my arm but she’s just a bit too late. Most of the bandages are off…

There’s only scars where I was bit. The ripped flesh, bones and muscles are back together and the only thing left behind are the surface marks of the bite. And even that I can feel healing, slowly disappearing.

No! I want them! Stop! I drop my focus as fast as I can, preventing the healing from completing. I can’t let those go away, they’re currently the last connection I have back to the real world. To where I’m from.

- “It’s healed…” - Valerie's voice rings out next to my face as she begins examining my arm. - “how.. HOW is it healed? That wound was as close to fatal as you can get without killing someone!”

She’s frantically examining my forearm piece by piece, checking each scar and everything in between.

- “But the scars are still there, so is there still damage? What is going on Leshy!” - She’s now glaring at me. Why’s she so mad? I should probably explain this as much as I can.

- “Well, I focused on the wave as usual, got myself into the right headspace and removed everything out of my ability to sense things.” - I mimic the over exaggerated motion of focusing by pushing my fingers into the temples of my head. - “And as everything left my perception my arm stood out. So I focused on that. I suddenly started feeling my wounds healing, considering my heightened perception I felt literally everything come back together.” - Right right! I nod to her - “So I focused even more and the healing progressed faster.”

- “But why are the scars still here then? If your crushed bone was fixed, why not the scars?!” - She’s trying her best to connect the dots here… Actually kind adorable, she looks more like a researcher trying to figure this out than just motherly curiosity I guess.

- “Well. I let those be… I want to keep them, as trophies, a mark of something lost. Stuff like that.” - That’s not all but… I can’t really tell her what I saw when I was out. - “You know how scars are kept like trophies!”

- “No I don’t. I don’t have any of my own…” - A somber note from her, clearly touched something deeper. Not the time to pry right now. There’s a time and a place for those talks. - “That’s very impressive Leshy! I think that might also be part of your abilities. Healing! I’d love to know the extent to which this works, but considering you just healed out of a wound like that? It’s pretty powerful!”

I’m OP! Let's go! I instantly bonk myself subconsciously and go back down to earth. I want to mention the static but it could’ve been the arm for all I know. No reason to dwell into it right now.

Oh? I’m out of juice! My consciousness is slipping and I’m pretty sure Valerie noticed already as she’s holding me quite firmly by the shoulders.

- “Let's get you to bed. We’ll continue this training tomorrow, for now you gotta rest. You’re still strained after the battle and I’m sure the healing put a number on your mind as well.” - She’s right, I follow her instructions and she effectively drags me into the hut and puts me to bed.

We call it that but it’s literally just a few sacks filled with straw I lie down on.

Anyway, that’s basically it for my day I guess. I’m absolutely drained and it doesn’t take me long to fall asleep.

Valerie’s perspective, outside of the hut

He’s out right now. It’s an impressive power we found ourselves, the Association will have a lot of use for something like this during missions.

I am however conflicted on the mental aspect of this battle. The way he reacted after regaining consciousness. That was not fear, I have seen plenty to know.

He looks fine for now though. There’s no spotter without scars of any kind, he looks stable enough for now.

I take the moment of respite from taking care of Leshy to stretch my legs and breathe in some fresh air. The sun is still pretty high up. I should be able to get some practice in myself, I’m getting out of shape.

- “Valerie!” - If it isn’t the “short temper” yelling my way. I look over to Xerra running over in full gear, sweating excessively from the morning run of hers.

She calls it a morning run but she does nearly 10 kilometers as a warm up. She’s not normal, but I guess it’s expected from a Volcanic. I wonder what she’s up to next…

- “Glad I caught you! Leshy’s sleeping i assume?”

- “Yeah. He insisted on doing some training, so I let him do it under my supervision… Turns out the kid can heal himself at a rapid pace. His arm is healed” - I explain some of the details Leshy mentioned to Xerra.

- “Keeping the scars huh? Must be either an ego trophy or a way of fighting the emotional damage of that fight.” - Xerra’s face turns into a slight shadow. - “He was a wreck. I’m glad he’s got the guts to keep training.”

Without any more words, I just nod in agreement and tap my chin. I think a spar would help me relax… Considering I have my number two right next to me I might as well let it loose a little.

- “Xerra, wanna punch each other around a little? I need to unwind.”

- “Only if you promise to not use the gloves to their full potential. We’d also need to leave Leshy and move a few kilometers out to not disturb the locals.” - She’s right, our sparring sessions are… eventful.

But, I need to stretch those noodle arms of mine. There’s only so long you can keep your needs on a leash. I give Xerra a nod of agreement.

She waves her hand to follow her and without a second thought blasts off the ground with a light shockwave. Two deep imprints are left where she stood just a second ago.

I follow suit and send myself flying after Xerra. The liberating feeling of flight cannot be described. But having no ground beneath you, feeling like you’re weightless, it’s incredible. I catch focus of the Wave and slam on my gauntlets.

A puff of smoke comes from where Xerra landed. With a metallic woosh Xerra’s Glaive flies at me. Easy enough.

The force of the flying Glaive slows me down a little in my flight after I grab it. Without a moment's hesitation I turn the pointy end towards Xerra’s location, upping its weight and my own.

I focus on my right arm, Shhhhht. I throw the Glaive right back at Xerra and continue moving towards her.

In a split second, another puff of smoke and a loud bang is heard where I threw the weapon.

- “You were supposed to not use the gauntlets to their full potential…” - After landing in front of Xerra I hear her disgruntled complaint.

She’s holding the glaive as if she just caught it, smoke coming off both her hands.

- “That was just my arm, don’t flatter yourself kid.” - Time for the fun part. - “I hope you won’t mind me letting loose a little bit like we agreed. Ha!”

I don’t give her time to settle down after the hit. Before she can blink I sink my left gauntlet into her stomach. Sending her flying a few hundred meters.

I can’t help but grin and giggle!

No reason to stop here! Just as Xerra’s about to get herself back into gear. I’m right here.

I’m not going to let you have even a moment Xerra if you don’t speed up!

I press my index finger against the thumb and stop right in front of Xerra, aiming my index at her forehead.

The face of surprise on Xerra’s face brings me joy. I flick her forehead and let Xerra’s body tumble through the air a few meters more.

Let's pause and see what she does now!

There she is! The erupting volcano lady, standing proud with a fierce face.

- “Ooh! SO ANGRY! Rawrrrr!” - My heart’s pumping, having anyone even close to an equal fighting me makes my back tingle. - “Ohh nooeee! Please don’t hurt me”

I pose towards Xerra like a maiden in distress. She’s angry now!

- “Don’t get too ahead of yourself bitch. I’ll curb that ego by the end of this fight!” - Xerra’s tone is serious but with a tone of playfulness to it. She’s also enjoying the fight.

That means I can go ham! giggle

Xerra pushes off the ground and in the blink of an eye is in front of me. The blunt side of her glaive hits one of my shins.

I’m off balance! She doesn’t let off though and grabs my face with her full strength. I can feel her nails push into my skin. The next moment I’m off the ground.

It’s not that powerful, I land on my legs after catching myself mid flight. Oh my, I’m blushing!

Xerra Isn't letting off, before I can settle down she’s already on me, this time full swinging at me with the Glaive. I block!

Tang

The ground around us buckles, unable to hold the force of the hit. A small crater forms around us.

The shockwave of our armaments colliding disintegrates any living thing besides us as it travels outwards. The strands of grass now float gently down like feathers all around us.

Aaaah~. I gently boop her nose with my index finger, clench my fist and punch Xerra in the face. She backflips away from me holding her nose.

Oh no~! I cover my face with one hand and pull down the lower part of my battle dress with the other, clenching my thighs together.

- “Xerra, pause! I need a break…” - That almost went too far. She nods without hesitation and wink at me.

- “Was the fight against Ludocanis such a bore that you can’t hold back anymore?” - That’s not it. I sit down on my knees on the ground and take a few deep breaths. - “The Jewel of Death, it’s been a while since I’ve seen you let go like that”

- “Don’t call me that. I didn’t ask for this name” - I poke Xerra on the forehead again. Just without any malice behind it.

Back at the log hut

The familiar sound of Cicadas enters my ears as my eyes flutter open. Above me? The straw roofing of the hut. I look around to find that nobody’s inside the hut and the fire is out.

Without any problems this time I get out of bed. Where’s my gear? Ah! There it is, Valerie was working on mending some of it as much as possible.

I want to keep it beaten up though. I put on boots that still show some blood stains. The long sleeve shirt I wore now has one long sleeve, with the left one ripped off around where I was bit.

I kinda like it. It gives me a nice look. I slide on the shirt, it weighs heavy on my shoulders. My left pauldron is gone, probably still back where we fought that monster. The rest of my armor looks fine with the occasional blood mark on it. I try to wipe it with a cold towel but not all of it comes off. It feels good to be back in gear, while it’s not my real life clothing it still feels normal to wear it for some reason.

The sword on the other hand is pristine. Flawless condition. I don’t know what they make those things out of but it’s sturdy.

…! The door to the hut opens, Valerie and Xerra enter together, their clothes dusty. Valerie looks flushed on her face.

- “All good?” - I ask the girls who are settling down on some stools, drinking water.

- “Yep, went to spar a bit to get the stress out of our bodies.” - Xerra looks satisfied, Valerie more so. - “I see your arm is alright. Valerie didn’t lie about what happened huh.”

- “Yeah, I’m still not sure how but it seems I have the ability to heal myself.” - Probably not just myself… - “If I were to guess, considering I’m still learning the extent of my ability It’s safe to assume I can at least partially heal others.”

- “Well, why don’t you give it a try. Valerie has an ugly scar on her…”

- “If you even attempt to do something about it I’ll rip your head off Leshy!” - The ground rumbles and the gravity is clearly being affected by Valerie right now. It’s slight but most of the dust in the building just poofed up into a cloud.

It gets quiet REAL fast. Clearly that’s not something anyone should ever mention around her unless she’s the one starting the conversation…

- “Sorry. Don’t do anything with my scar please.” - The switch was flipped. We’re good everyone! Everything’s fine!

Xerra looks towards Valerie with little to no concern, like she expected this to happen for one reason or another. Valerie on the other hand looks a bit down, dejected even. A few seconds pass, Valerie lets out a sigh and Xerra slaps her knees.

- “SO! How about we talk if Leshy makes the cut?” - Makes the cut? I’m not sure about that Xerra. - “Sure, he nearly died to a Ludocanis but we didn’t know that the Alpha was going to be there.” - Xerra stands up from the stool and walks over to me.

She begins to examine me, poking at my biceps, stomach. She then pinches my cheeks and pulls on them.

- “You’re a sturdy man now! Not this bone and flesh before training!”

- “Xerra, while I’m not entirely opposed to it, he did just recover. Can’t this wait?” - Right! We should train some more, get me up to speed more and try another hunt or something.

- “No it can’t Valerie, we’re out of time on the request anyway and you have to return to the Cowbell before it all collapses in your absence.” - Xerra and Valerie are now in full “Ignore the subject” mode. - “I want him certified. He’ll do fine.”

- “Xerra, I understand your eagerness to get his power into your unit but he doesn’t even know the power structure of the association.” - Valerie sounds like she’s making any excuse she can to stop me from becoming a full fledged spotter right away.

- “Valerie, you are the boss, but It’s under my authority as Guardian to have him listed or not. You’re here just because you wanted to come along for the fun.” - Oh! Power struggle. - “He’s becoming a Spotter.”

- “Fine. I’ll give in on this since I’m not supposed to make the decision on that. Under one condition though.” - Pulling rank! For some reason this feels like what Valerie would do. - “He works directly under you. There are two reasons for that. One: He’s too new to go solo, Two: You’ll be responsible for making sure that he’s up to speed when the first request for him arrives.”

- “Deal. That means I’ll go on to do some easy work for a little bit. I’ll take it over all that politicking” - Seems that there’s more to how Spotters work. I mean, we already went out of the established lore by hunting Ludocanis.

But this seems like a full on organization that manages Spotters, deals with local protection, politics and whatnot. I wonder how deep the rabbit hole goes.

The two girls shake on it and Xerra pulls out of her backpack a sealed scroll with my name on it. She walks over to me and does an exaggerated motion similar to knighting me with her hand.

- “There you go, you’re a spotter now and my boot.” - Boot? What, are we cops now? - “You’re here under special circumstances, this gives you an opportunity to get ahead of the game. Don’t blow it Leshy”

- “You’re not going to call me boot on the daily, right?” - Xerra hands me the paper as I ask her the million dollar question.

- “No. It’s your rank Boot, or Boots on the Ground if you want to be correct. Now open the scrolls, this is your first task as a Spotter.”

I look up at Xerra and unseal the scroll. Ooh, interesting.

There’s a description of the task, what was done. It describes in simple terms the training, hunt, learning about the tracks, etc. Like a report about this quest. Below that, about half the page is filled with items. Some of them I recognize from the game, some are completely new to me.

One thousand Ri - That’s the currency, Ri. Should be enough to gear myself with higher quality stuff.

Ludocanis Hide - Likely from the big boy.

Revertium - That’s something I don’t know. Guess I’ll find out.

There’s a list of potions I get as well, most of them are quick on the spot drinks that heal you a little bit in game. I wonder how they function here.

- “And that is?” - I know what this is, but I could be wrong. You never know.

- “Your stuff for this mission. I’ll carry the hide and get it processed for you.” - Yup, it’s loot! - “Valerie will let you know when it’s ready to get picked up. I personally recommend making a cloak out of it.”

- “Nice… So what’s next? Do we return to the Cowbell? If we leave in the morning we should make it back before noon?”

- “Yup, back to Nova Vertex we go. But we leave now, you’re up to speed with the Wave so we can book it full speed. We’ll be back before night hits.” - What? We’re leaving right now? Of course we are, the two are already picking up their things.

I hastily grab my bag and make sure everything I had left from the trip is in there and my scroll’s at the bottom to not get lost.

- “How are we going to make it back this fast?” - I have to make sure I understand what’s going on or I’ll look like an Idiot. Xerra just giggles at me and responds.

- “Well, you let the wave rip basically. Like how you’d focus on your power, but instead focus on your muscles and push off the ground with all your might. You did it already during our sparring, the wave doesn’t just work as your ability but it also gives you superhuman strength and stamina.” - Xerra’s actually a pretty good educator huh? It makes sense now that I think about it. It’s all a bit blurry but I do remember there being a lot of force behind my swings when fighting Xerra.

- “Focus up and keep up kid.” - We exit the building and I immediately start getting my focus ready. This time however I let it go and don’t bother going any further than where the noise is.

The high pitched screech is still in the back of my head when I’m in this state. I push it to the back of my head and focus on keeping myself in check and not ripping my muscles like before.

- “You won’t see us once we take off. Just follow the direction I’m pointing in” - While there is a road, I guess moving at a speed fast enough to make 60 Kilometers in an hour or so, everything blurs.

Xerra points more or less West with two fingers. Then she puts those two fingers on her forehead and gives me a salute. After that it happens too fast for me to see but she’s gone with a shockwave pushing me a bit off balance.

Valerie gives me a smile, giggling to herself. Another shockwave.

They’re monsters I tell you!

Alright Leshy. Belly full of courage, you can do this… I push all my focus and strength into my legs. It feels effortless as I push off the ground with all my might. I’m flying!

BAM

No I’m not… The taste of dirt is definitely not something I expected. I’m able to handle distractions while maintaining my focus but face planting on the ground is not what I expected here. It was supposed to be epic.

I gather myself back up, focusing even more on my legs. My muscles pulse, that’s it Leshy. There you go, you can’t just focus up and hope for the best. Remember this feeling. This is it.

I crouch down and support myself with the now healed left arm, aiming myself in the direction Xerra pointed me at.

Like a sprinter, I imagine a starter gun firing and at the same time I slam into high gear. Suddenly I feel weightless, the force of the air around me feels like a wall I’m pushing with me. Behind me a puff of dust as the Hut gets rapidly smaller and smaller, quickly going out of view.

Considering I eyeballed the jump I might have to do this again. Can’t lose focus now. I’m definitely flying though, REALLY FAST. Faster than I imagined I would.

The ground beneath me blasts into the background as I continue forward through the air. I try to make out some details, recognizable landmarks to see where I’m at but it’s all too blurry.

I look ahead as much as I can, the biggest landmark I can think of is the first camp we were at. There! I see it coming rapidly.

There’s more or less 30 kilometers difference here. AN HOUR to make it back? I underestimated this, a lot! I just made 30 kilometers in a minute. I can’t get excited now. I have to keep focus on my legs and arms.

I don’t even want to know what happens if I slam into the ground without the Waves enhancing capabilities. I’d be people soup… Seriously.

Understand the rate of speed you’re at Leshy, what’s the arc! Where am I going to land? I’m definitely dropping right now, the ground is much lower than before. Considering how fast I’m actually going I’ll land… I don’t know where but definitely before reaching Nova Vertex. I’ll hop small hops the rest of the way if I have to.

I’m close. Very close, the moment of truth is mere seconds away. I can see Nova Vertex already. I’ll land no more than a few hundred meters away from it.

Brace Leshy, everything into your arms! My muscles bulge from the amount of power pushed into them, my left sleeve rips open even more from the gained volume. My pants get tight around my legs as I swing them in front to take the brunt of the impact.

I face planted on the start but I’m landing like a champ! Watch me!

The ground rumbles and a cloud of smoke envelops me as I slam into the ground. Nailed it! My body is crouched down after taking the force of the landing.

My ears are ringing, I can feel my joints creak as I slowly lift my body up. Initially I thought I’m going to land a few hundred meters away from the gate. But somehow, the universe was on my side this time.

Taking a look around I see a few residents look at me, in shock? No shock? Wait, they’re not even looking at me. Is it THIS normal for Spotters to just land at the gate out of nowhere?

No Xerra or Valerie anywhere. I guess we’ll meet in the Cowbell proper then. When beginning to walk I notice… My legs are half a shin deep in the ground.

Luckily the wave gives me enough strength to just pull them out of the ground. Knowing what happened last time I let it rip with the wave I decide to drop the focus gradually over time while making my way to the Cowbell.

I enter the bustling town, it’s still day outside, although not that far off from getting dark. Folks are running around me, moving things from point A to point B. I left this town thinking it’s all just for fun, a dream for me to live out but… Now it’s obviously more than that.

Each and every person here has a life to live. A place to be and goals of their own. I move further into town, I have to get through the town square if I remember correctly.

Tracing back our steps from a couple weeks back I easily make it to the square. Literally a square in the middle of the town.

I walk through the square, cutting through the middle. I’m a bit dazed after the flight so it takes me a bit but right in the middle of it is a Pole, a wooden Pole stuck into the ground with hooks at the top.

Tied to that log is a familiar girl… My stomach sinks and my heart stops beating for a second. I stiffen up and all of my focus immediately shifts to her.

I didn’t let go of the Wave. I don’t want to let go. Her cheeks are sunken and there are bags under her eyes. Her rag clothes are torn and leave her with basically nothing to cover with as she hangs from the pole by her wrists.

The chain is long enough to let her kneel but not long enough to let her lie down. Her eyes are hollow as she’s looking around the place, dazed.

Hungry, Tired… Her mind is begging for death. How long has she been here for? Her eyes lock onto me, for a split second I feel disdain, but it’s gone as quick as it came.

I don’t need to use the wave for this. Her eyes beg for death, she wants to be done with… I could let it all disappear, not be bothered and continue on. Drop my focus and deal with the physical pain. But… I did this, this is all me.

I could just drop my focus. I wouldn’t have to feel anything from her anymore. But I can’t, It’s not right. She stole some food, this is not right! I’ll find a way… There has to be a way to fix this!

Each step I take after carries the weight of everything I’ve done so far. The sound of my boots hitting the dirt as I walk reverberates through my body.

I don’t know when or how long it took me to get to the Cowbell but I finally make it. I open the double door with both my hands and make my way inside.

Just like before, the wall of rowdy noises, smells of mead and wine contrast wildly with the now winding down streets of Nova Vertex. I instinctively look at the front desk, Valerie’s not there.

I look around a little bit more to see if I can spot the girls… Red hair, big glaive. There we go! With some more energy in my step, now that I’ve seen familiar faces I make my way to the ladies.

- “...He face planted right as he jumped off the ground for the first time” - Funny, they were talking about something else and Xerra immediately started making fun of my failed launch when she saw me. How did they see me anyway after fucking off like that?! - “Oh! Didn’t see you there Leshy!”

- “Save it Xerra. Not in the mood” - Fuck, letting it slip. Keep yourself calm Leshy.

- “Whoa! Alright there buddy, mad ‘cause bad? Last one pays for the drinks” - Valerie is also in a playful mood. Did they not see it?

- “Why are you two so happy, huh? The thief girl make you so chipper you’re making fun and drinking?!” - I can’t handle these two right now. They make this whole fucking deal with me when I first showed up. - “You spend the first few days fucking around with me because I caught a thief. Xerra nearly crushes my skull because of it and now you two are just having fun!?!”

This story originates from a different website. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.

Don’t let go. Might as well let it slip for a little longer.

- “You stroll into town all victorious with a new Boot and walk by the girl hanging off a damn pole. The same girl you were so close to Valerie! Whoop tee doooo, lets drink mead and celebrate while that thing starves to death.” - This feels good, they don’t know me from my old life… I can let go this time. - “She has a life to live and instead I put her in those chains. I made the decision like a jackass to catch her. I could’ve looked away, walked away like nothing happened and we’d be just peachy. But no! Mister ‘Look at me I’m great’ has to step in and save the fucking day”

- “hey…” - Shut up Valerie! She’s trying to grab my hand but I slap it away. The people in the inn are slowly starting to look our way and the noise around us gets quiter.

- “I’ve walked through hell, moved the fucking earth to learn everything I can as fast as possible. I rip the muscles out of my damn body into pieces, get slammed around by you Xerra, Valerie’s always pretending to be the protector but in the end it DIDN’T WORK!” - My chest is filled with air, ready for the next words to come out.

- “Leshy, slow down please…” - Xerra’s pleading with a low tone. Doesn’t matter, she doesn’t understand.

- “Slow down!? You have all the time in the world you fucking monster. Nothing can stop you! There’s nothing you can’t do! That ego of yours nearly had me killed, I still remember my work, Veronica everything!! You took it all away.”

The inn is now dead silent, everyone’s looking right at us, some people covering their mouths. Others looking at us like we’re psycho.

- “I had a life to live, a dream to live for and now it’s all gone! It’s never coming back! And what is the first thing I do when I come here?! Oooh noo. I can’t just let it be with fucking up my own life, no no. I HAVE TO DRAG SOMEONE WITH ME!”

Xerra and Valerie at this point look… Guilty? They better fucking be!

- “I could’ve just NOT caught her! I could’ve just LET her go. Now she’s hanging off a damn chain like a Slave. IT’S NOT RIGHT. THIS ISN’T RIGHT!!!”

I couldn’t stop it. I thought I had some semblance of self control but it’s all gone now. Before I know it my fist blasts through the table that Xerra and Valerie were sitting at, a shockwave of compressed air slams through the building, paintings fall off the walls and some drinks are thrown off the tables.

- “AAAAH!” - It’s done. I’m done! I can’t anymore…

- “Leshy! Stay with me please…” - It’s like through a wall I hear Valerie asking me to stay with her.

I’m hyperventilating, sweat’s coming off my face and dripping at the now crushed table beneath me. I’ve let it out, I’ve let too much out.

- “Hey buddy, calm down okay? We’ll talk about Nyxie in a bit. Just… Just relax please.” - Xerra grabs me by the arm and pulls me towards an empty chair. I don’t have the strength anymore to resist.

She sits me down on it and looks at the other Tavern patrons.

- “The fuck are you all looking at? You out of booze?!” - The folks scramble to get back to their thing, whatever it is. Pretending like this never happened.

- “Leshy, we didn’t know what happened to Nyxie. We had to stop a little out of town for something and came in through the south entrance. We never went through the square.” - Valerie kneels down in front of me and begins explaining what’s happening.

They didn’t know… I said all of this and in the end they just… Didn’t know? I laugh at myself audibly and grab onto my face with my hands.

They didn’t know! haha! And here I was acting high and mighty again! My god I’m horrible.

- “You didn’t know…?” - What was supposed to be a question came out a whimper. All the gas behind my words is gone and burnt.

- “No we didn’t. But now that you’ve told us we’ll figure this out. Ok?” - Valerie and Xerra both grab onto my elbow and help me out.

I’m not weak.. I could stand on my own but I have no will to stand anymore.

- “Let’s go Leshy. We’ll take you to bed and you’ll rest up for the day, alright?” - Xerra’s not saying much anymore, aah… Right. I said some words about her. She probably hates me now… Now? Like she didn’t hate me before.

We slowly walk to the lifted area behind the bar where the rooms are. Step by step I’m carried by my companions to the same room I’ve spent my first night in Vertex at.

Valeire opens the door and they both sit me down on the bed.

- “Do you need water? Food?” - Valerie’s concern everpresent I see.

- “no…”

- “Take this, put your hand on it if you need help and I’ll come. Ok?” - She hands me a piece of paper with some markings on it.

- “Why would you do that after what I said?” - God I sound pathetic. I should just off myself right here.

- “Why would we hate you? You did what you thought was right, it should be applauded, not frowned at.” - She’s too gentle, tears start streaming down my cheeks. Xerra who’s been quiet this whole time looks at me and puts her hand on my head.

- “I’m sorry…”

The two girls stand up soon after and leave me alone in the room, closing the door behind them. I decided to lie down on the bed, I have no strength left to move about after today.

The room folds onto me, squeezing me with how small it is. The window is already open and a breeze enters the room. It’s dark already. I don’t know how much time has passed.

All of this makes no sense anymore. Why was I put here, this is not how I imagined a new life with superpowers to be.

Right… Superpowers. I forgot to let go of my focus all this time, that’s why the table blew itself apart from my fist…

I breathe out and relax my body. The bulging muscles shrink, my clothing now fits me well. The pain from straining myself for so long seeps in but I welcome it.

This feels right, I should hurt. The least I could do is hurt physically.

As the muscles take over my senses with the screaming pain I slowly slip into a slumber. The room turned darker and darker until I close my eyes and let this day finish.

While my brain slowly shuts itself down there’s a scratch at the inside of my skull. Something planted its seed and now it wont go away. Aaah, no reason to think about this anymore. To think about anything anymore.

I let this day end for good.

Valerie’s Perspective

I close the door behind me, leaving Leshy in the room to rest. This is not something I expected. Looking at Xerra she didn’t either. She’s a wreck herself only letting me catch on with her eyes. They’re barely glowing right now.

Let's give her a bump. I poke her back and nod to go back to the bar area. She moves without saying anything. My workers are already making sure the broken table is cleaned up, quickly picking up the pieces and splinters, sweeping the floors. Sarah’s dealing with the spilled drinks, pretty sure she offered a free round for everyone who was here during the outburst.

I sit down at a table near where we were originally and Xerra joins me.

- “That was my favorite table…” - That’s not what you’re dejected about. Don’t humor deflect on me lady.

- “Stop it, we need to talk about Nyxie.”

- “I know Valerie, but what are we supposed to do?” - I’m not entirely sure but we have to deal with this. Both for Leshy’s sake and for Nyxie.

- “From Leshy’s outburst I can only assume what state she was in. And I don’t suppose the guards were gentle with her…”

- “Valerie…” - Xerra looks at me, right in the eyes. - “I’m a horrible person…” - My heart sinks looking at Xerra. Her eyes are dead, empty.

- “Leshy only reacted like that because he thought we ignored Nyxie. Everything he said after or before… That was just emotions. Don’t let it get to you like that.”

- “He called me a monster…” - Xerra’s facade is gone, her face is still normal to some degree but the tears give it away…

- “You’re not a monster Xerra… Never were.” - I pat Xerra’s head as we sit there for a little bit. Taking some time to collect our thoughts.

Early morning of the following day…

I open my crusty as shit eyes from crying through the night. I’m a real softie in this body. Yesterday’s… Situation still fresh in my mind. I muster up the courage to get out of bed, if preferable I’d rather stay and sleep the day away, but there’s a problem I have to address in one way or another.

The girl, Nyxie’s captivity. There has to be something I can do to get her out of that situation. I look around for my gear but it turns out I slept in it. Good, no need to waste time getting dressed.

I pick up my sword and attach it to my belt. Time to head out and face the demons. After opening the door to my room the bustling sounds of an active Inn blast me in the face. It’s barely sunrise and these people are always here. There’s always someone here.

Getting my ass down the stairs proves difficult, I'm still very stiff and exhausted. I know it’s all psychological and I’m actually rested from sleeping through the night. But I just lack the battery capacity to do anything more than walk in a straight line it seems.

After descending down the half stairs I look at everyone inside the Inn. It’s hustling and bustling in here, mead and singing fills the room. I look around to find a more secluded spot. The newbie table as I called it. It’s empty.

I shouldn’t be a full fledged spotter anyway. Before I go to that table I make my way over to the bar where one of Valerie’s aide’s is taking care of drinks and food. That reminds me, I have the loot scroll but no loot happens to have entered my hands. I should ask.

- “Hey, could you help me out with something? Valerie didn’t explain this to me…” - I hand her the unrolled scroll. - “...What should I do to receive the reward?”

- “Exactly what you just did! Hang on.” - The woman taking care of my scroll right now is a bit taller than Valerie, she also has pointy ears like her and the signature beige blonde hair along with green eyes adorn her face. - “There you go! The hide will have to wait as it’s still being processed, ok?”

She hands me a pouch rustling with coin and looks at me with some confusion on her face.

- “About the Revertium, we have it on hand but… It’s a BIT heavy, by a bit I mean that the amount you are entitled to would need a small cart to move around with you.” - What? How much of that thing are they willing to give me? - “We can hold on to it for you while you search for a suitable smith to make gear out of it. Once you find them, let us know and we’ll handle the transaction for you if you want.”

- “That sounds wonderful, I’d rather not drag a pet rock around town with me. Could you also prepare something stronger for me to drink? I need to let loose”

- “Anyone would want to let loose after yesterday” - She gives me a wink and pours me some mead.

- “You saw all that? Cool, another reason to be embarrassed”

- “Naah, don’t worry about it. We’ve had bar fights here before that ended with people getting arrested. Someone getting mad because they want to help another is nothing to be embarrassed about.” - The waitress gives me some words of encouragement, but I know they mean nothing if I don’t fix this.

- “How much do I pay for the drink?” - The lady shakes her head and points to a board behind her. It says “Registered Spotters: Eat, Sleep, Drink for free”

Valerie’s really making sure her subordinates are content and happy. I nod at the lady and without any more words I walk over to the newbie table and sit down.

I’m generally not someone who enjoys alcohol of any kind, at least not without reason. This mead though, it’s fucking amazing. It’s JUST right. I start sipping away at the mug, leaning back in the chair and thinking about what to do next.

Xerra and Valerie are not here, if I’m going to leave it’d be better to leave a note with the waitress so they don’t worry about me. While contemplating my next possible steps the sound of footsteps gets closer and closer.

They’re coming up behind me and I hope they’re not directed at me. Unfortunately for me, I get poked by someone on the shoulder. I look behind me to see a young lad, about the same age as me… Well the Vertex me.

He’s got an unbuttoned shirt on him. He’s well built with a square, american like face and a buzz cut on him. No facial hair, and any facial hair that he does have looks like fresh grown stubble. He’s still a kid.

- “Hey! I couldn’t help but overhear your talk with Valerie and Xerra yesterday.” - Nice try mate. I was yelling through the Inn. - “From what I understand you’re the new Spotter for Xerra’s unit, which means you’re a Boot with me and the other guys there!” - He points to a group of four other people laughing and drinking the morning away.

- “You might say that, I got certified yesterday and got assigned directly under Xerra for some reason.” - He gives me a wink.

- “So you’re her Aide huh? I heard they end up beaten or thrown out of the Association most of the time when working with Xerra. I hope it doesn’t happen to you.” - Is he really just making small talk with me? What’s the purpose of this? I’m half hoping he’s going to start joking about the outburst and how uncalled for it was.

But that’s not what happens.

- “Look my friend. Me and the gang are locals, we know about Nyxie’s situation. She's quite a celebrity with how the citizens handle her theft and stuff.” - So, everyone knows about her life and the social standards. And now everyone knows that I made sure she starves to death hanging from a pole? Cool, fun, kill me please. - “You might not know this yet since you JUST started. But there’s a code in Xerra’s unit, Loyalty, Family and Overwhelming Power.”

- “What do you mean? Like Xerra set commandments for people to follow?” - I ask for some clarification. I’m not sure where he’s going with this but if this conversation doesn’t show any reason to exist soon I’ll cut it short.

- “Something like that. Family means that everyone in her unit is her family and by proxy that means you’re now ours.” - I raise an eyebrow at this. What is this guy on about? - “To put it simply, I know that you feel guilty about Nyxie’s situation, but she brought it on herself by stealing.”

- “If you’re going to give me a monologue on the morality of me catching her, save it.” - Let's cut this short…

- “I’m not, you did the right thing. But the punishment is definitely too much for petty theft. So I did some digging after you left with my team. We found out something that might help you out.”

- “Help me out?” - You have my attention, friend…

- “Yes, you can pay off Nyxie’s fine and she’ll be let go on the spot, no questions asked.” - What? Solving problems with money? Sounds like the rich and famous from my real life… - “But the price isn’t small. She’s racked up quite the fine over the years and it currently stands at 900 Ri. I was thinking of forking it up myself but when I heard…”

- “900 Ri?!” - That’s it? I grab onto my pouch of coins! I have just enough to pay it out right now! - “Where do I do that? Who do I talk to?”

- “Well, if you head out of the building…” - He gives me instructions on how to get to the guard post. It’s a small building a short walk away from the square.

- “Listen, could you let Valerie or Xerra if they come down to the bar know where I am and to wait for me?”

- “Sure! We’re still waiting for our next job so nothing better to do anyway.” - Fuck I didn’t ask for his name!

- “Hey. Thanks, you really helped out. I’m Leshy, you really brought me up on my spirits here.”

- “Better than a mug full of mead? Doubt it! Jax is the name. Let me know how it goes when it’s all done and dusted ya?” - I nod and raise my mug to him, he raises his and we both take a sip as he walks away from the table.

So I can pay off the fine and deal with this like that. That’d solve one problem but introduce another. What happens with Nyxie after she gets released. She’s on the street starving, of course she’ll get back to stealing. That literally solves nothing then…

For now let’s figure out how does paying the fine work and what I need to do. I get up off my chair, check to see if I got my stuff on me and quickly head out of the Cowbell.

The walk is short, for now I avoid the square. Seeing her there would knock me off my balance again and I just got it back a little bit. I quickly make my way to the Guards station, it’s a stone shack, like literally that. It’s a shack with stone walls, no windows and a single door… frame? Hole? It’s barebones.

I walk into the shack where two guards are sitting and drinking something warm, likely tea of some sort. They immediately look at me, one of them stands up.

- “You’re here for lost and found or are you here for other business?” - Straight to the point, clearly a trained introduction.

- “I’m here to talk about the girl hanging off the pole at the town square” - Their faces immediately shift from bored to intrigued. - “I’m the guy that caught her a couple of weeks ago. I heard there’s a fine she needs to pay?”

- “That’s right, 900 Ri. What’s it to you?” - Cautious but clearly curious. Let's play along. See what I can dig up about Nyxie here.

- “Could you tell me anything about her? I’m curious why her punishment is so severe and the fine seems quite big.” - I don’t know if 900 Ri is a lot but remembering Jax’s reaction to the price tag it must be substantial.

- “She’s a known thief, it’s a sad story really. She’s a really bright kid when she’s not stealing, smart and nimble could grow up to be a great guard or spotter herself with her street smarts.” - I nod in acknowledgement, the other guard chimes in.

- “The punishment is representative of her known crimes and the fact she got caught while stealing. Her family’s a terrible influence and I feel for the kid. But we have a job to do, even if it’s punishing kids for trying to survive” - So they know this isn’t right morally. I understand it, they have to do their jobs. Just like I thought I should catch her, a thief’s a thief as I thought back then.

- “Do I need to do anything special to pay off the fine? Paperwork, anything?” - Let’s see how many hoops do I need to jump through here.

- “If you pay the fine then that’s it from you. We deal with the paperwork on our own. You’d only have to sign off that you were not coerced or threatened to pay the fine.” - So the basic legal system here is more complex than I thought, they even have precautions for gang-like activity. Interesting.

- “Alright. I’ll be back later to buy out her fine for her.” - The two guards nod at me without further words and I make my way back to the cowbell.

This time however I decide to make my way through the town square. I walk over to the girl, still chained to the pole, she looks like she’s been napping.

I crouch down in front of her and rub her head with my hand gently.

- “I’ll get you out, just wait.” - She looks at me with clear surprise, this must’ve pushed some energy into her. Just hang on tight Nyxie.

I speed over to the Cowbell and enter the Inn slamming the doors open getting the attention of nearly everyone inside for a second. No matter, the plan’s set in stone. The girls are sitting by a table on the left side, eating and drinking.

- “Leshy?” - Valerie is trying to assess my state of mind, it makes sense after our last interaction.

- “Shush, I found out something from Jax that can get Nyxie out of her chains.” - Xerra’s eyebrows rise at the mention of Jax and Valerie has her signature “ooooh?” face when I finish the sentence.

- “And how can you do that Leshy?” - Good question Valerie!

- “The fine! I can pay it and that will mean her immediate release. Before you ask, it’s 900 Ri. To my shock and surprise the reward for my fake hunt request was 1000 Ri.” - I don’t know if they planned it, but their faces tell me it’s just a coincidence.

But just like with everything, nothing is simple. Not THAT simple at least. Valerie puts down her food and looks at me.

- “And have you thought about what will happen after she is released?” - Of course I did. This is not entirely relevant to this world, but punishments for criminals that are inadequate to the crime just makes them commit more crimes.

And since it’s her family that seems to be the influence for her thievery, Nyxie’s definitely ending up in those chains again after a while.

- “Yes, but she can’t starve to death tied to a piece of wood. We have to do something.”

- “We don’t have to do anything, Leshy. Not until we have a set idea of how to deal with this. I’m not going to allow you to pay her fine, only for her to steal again. Xerra, suggestions on how to make this happen would be very appreciated?” - Xerra scratches her jawline, thinking heavily on what to do next here.

- “Train her to be a spotter, you’re a boot, you can technically have someone follow you on requests and observe if they are not old enough to be trained themselves just yet.” - Valerie claps her hands with a smile on her face upon hearing Xerra’s proposal.

- “You heard the lady. Here’s the deal then, I’ll pay the fine myself but you have to take on Nyxie as your shadow, she’ll watch you and Xerra work, you’ll teach her the Wave and combat.” - Valerie calls over the head Aide who instantly comes over. - “Bring me 1000 Ri. Pronto.” - She snaps her fingers and waves the Aide away who disappears in the rear of the bar, searching for a bit.

It’s strange, Valerie’s so far been the nurturing mommy. This is a bit out of character for her, to just bark orders at someone. But then again, I’ve only known her for a couple of weeks at this point.

- “I’m supposed to train a girl of her age? Me?” - I point to my left shoulder which is scared and exposed all the time, my sleeve ripped from the Ludocanis’s bite.

- “Let me help you understand something. You were supposed to fight a Ludocanis, the biggest one of the pack.” - A shadow goes over Valerie’s face for a second - “That thing you thought? It makes trainees run away crying just from how it looks. You however took it on, not only that, made all the effort possible to NOT die on us and then proceeded to keep a cool head and make sure it’s drawn between me and Xerra to take care of it.”

That’s a lot of praise for a failure, more than I likely deserve.

- “So don’t give me the ‘I failed’ attitude. You did REALLY well, all things considered.” - Interesting, now that I think about it… Didn’t Valerie oppose me being made a Spotter afterwards because of something? I don’t remember…

What’s most likely is that Valerie will not step on Xerra’s territory, if Xerra decided to make me a spotter, she’s not going to be the other parent to oppose it, instead whatever her Guardians decisions are, they are also her decisions.

- “Fair enough. I’m not going to argue… The question now is, how do we convince the girl to join us, Valerie?”

She taps her chin with a finger for a few seconds, considering all the options available.

- “The easiest way would be to offer a financial incentive to her family which would be lucrative enough to let her go with us.” - Interesting and makes sense. You eliminate the reason for her being a thief and she’d have the option of doing other things.

- “So… We’d buy her? Literally? Does the association have the budget for that?” - Xerra asks Valerie with a slight frown.

- “You can take half of my income Valerie, whatever it might be.” - I offer a solution to this but Valerie just waves me off and smiles.

- “We’re not struggling Xerra, don’t worry. Anyway, I guess we’re getting you a kid to look out for Leshy.”

Xerra and Valerie stand up and the Aide comes back with a pouch filled with coin. Without further ado we head out to the guard station. On the way Valerie explains to me that once Nyxie’s under my protection I’m responsible for her well being. Whatever coin she earns goes to me and it’s my responsibility to provide Nyxie with everything she needs.

She also warns me that any harm done to Nyxie due to my incompetence will land me in jail for a long time. That definitely puts my mind at ease, whew!

Valerie’s perspective, at the guard station…

- “Hello friends! I’m looking to buy myself a ‘fine’ girl!” - I stroll into the station like I own the place. There’s not exactly a rivalry between Spotters and Guards but more of a friendly competition as to who does more for the people.

- “The whore house is on the other side of the town Valerie. Though I doubt anyone’s going to touch that ugly mug of yours.” - One of the guards stands up and firmly shakes my hand. - “Seeing the guy behind you, I’m guessing you’re here for Nyxie?”

- “That’s right.” - I throw them the pouch - “There’s 100 more in there, take it as a distraction for when I talk to the family”

- “Bribing an officer of the law means the death penalty, you know that?” - He smirks. We both know how this works, he pockets the money without any further complaints.

- “Consider it a donation then. Xerra, Leshy… Please leave me and the officer alone” - They look at each other a little confused. Xerra probably understands what’s about to happen but is willing to walk away.

In tandem, the officer waves off the other guard present and they leave promptly with a nod.

- “What is it Valerie, we can talk freely now.” - I nod to him.

- “I’m going to effectively buy Nyxie off her family. Nobody can intervene when it comes out. And it’ll come out.” - The cards are out on the table. How will you respond?

- “The first time we met 40 years ago, you paid me a large sum to make sure everyone in the town got well equipped and trained guards. Then on another occasion you paid off a destruction of property after your redhead friend went on a rampage when you brought her around.” - His eyes narrow at me and his mouth contorts into a displeased one. - “And now you want me to look past human trafficking? Are you mad?”

- “You know what they used to call me, right?” - He knows all about those stories. Though he’s definitely on the fence of how true they are. - “Look, I can’t have the girl out on the streets and with her family because that’ll just make her steal again. That defeats the point.” - Time to explain the reasoning to him and hope he allows this… - “So I want to pay her family a certain amount every now and then to get Nyxie under my wing and get her trained as a Spotter.”

- “That’d do it for sure, if you don’t want me to intervene, I’m going to need an agreement from the girl. She needs to know what’s happening and she needs to agree to it. WILLINGLY, understand?”

- “I can make that happen. That’s very helpful from you, as always!” - I wink at him and exit the post.

The officer barks at the younger guard to get the keys and let the girl loose. We follow that guard all the way to the pole, Leshy looks quite excited, like a young puppy. It’s kind of cute, I just hope he knows where this might lead if he fucks it up.

Once we make it to the town square nearly everyone’s looking at us. No wonder, if me and Xerra are involved then something interesting is happening and the locals know it. The guard quickly undoes the girl's chains that she’s still hanging by.

- “Xerra, can you carry her to the Inn?” - Leshy holds the girl up so she doesn’t plant her face on the ground right after being released.

- “Sure, hand her over.” - He quickly picks the girl up and puts her in Xerra’s arms. Leshy then begins to walk off towards the market district. - “Where are you going?”

- “I’m going to get her some clothes, shoes… and a doll or something, I don’t know.” - Just as fast as he rattled this out, he’s gone.

Leshy at the market…

Alright I have no clue how to buy girl clothes or what girls wear. But I can’t have her in those rags. I should probably find a woman, in fact I should’ve taken Valerie or Xerra with me. Shit!

I walk around the market district looking for stalls with clothes. I notice one that has some trinkets and jewelry. The dots in my head connect, there’s something I have to get here.

- “Excuse me ma’am. Do you have any rings, bracelets, necklaces that are on the expensive side?” - The woman behind one of the stalls thinks for a little bit then bends over and brings up a sealed metal box.

- “I do indeed have some rarities, have a look.” - Have a look, she says. Inside there’s a whole selection of trinkets and jewelry of all kinds.

Since I don’t know what is considered fashionable or good looking in Vertex I’m going to go off feeling. If there’s anything that catches my eye, I’m going to buy it.

There's a phenomenal brooch that almost instantly speaks to me. It’s not large. It’s adorned by a black gem that looks almost as if it’s holding a grayish mist inside. The metal adornment around it looks like rose gold and has intricate patterns snaking throughout its body.

- “How much is that brooch? I’d like to purchase it!” - The lady smiles and picks the brooch out of the box, presenting it to me on her hand.

- “You have a fantastic eye, sir! This brooch is 5 Ri and contains an enchantment. Unfortunately its nature is unknown and the creator died a long time ago.” - Enchantment? There are enchantments?

- “Only 5 Ri? I’d like to buy it.” - I pull out 5 coins out of my coin pouch. The lady gives me a weird look, her eyebrow is raised as she hands me the merchandise. I probably said something off.

I wave at the lady who wishes me well as I leave her stall.

While searching for clothes I realize that I have no real clue where to start, the market’s quite big. So I decide to poke a couple of people here and there and they all lead me to the same area around the entrance to town.

And no wonder, it’s clothes on top of clothes. Simple linen stuff, high end fabric, leather and some armored clothing as well. Everything is here, it’s insane!

Here’s the question though… Do I go with something girly or boyish for Nyxie? I have no clue… I scratch my head a little trying to figure this shit out when one stall hand approaches me.

- “Hey mister! Are you perhaps looking for clothes?” - Perhaps? I’m standing in between six or seven different stalls with clothes, thinking.

- “Yes. I need young female clothes. Thirteen, fourteen years old.” - The stall hand gives me a “huh” look but proceeds to wave me over to his stall anyway.

- “Well. We have everything if I’m being honest, could you be a bit more specific sir? Functional? Pretty? Uncomfortable but VERY pretty? What seems to be your taste?” - What would a girl like Nyxie like? Street rat, thief, rough around the edges probably…

- “A mix of Functional and Cute. Definitely pants instead of a skirt or dress. Pretty colors and all, nothing too frilly though.” - The stall hand bows and begins to assemble a few outfits. It’s missing shoes though… - “And shoes, whatever smaller sized boots you have, they just need to work.”

The stall hand bows again lightly and after a few minutes I have four outfits. They all look a bit bigger than Nyxie, but that’s good, she’ll grow into them with time. Especially since she’s about to hit puberty hard considering her age.

Let's have a look. The first outfit, the one on the left is VERY functional. Beige cloth shirt, not just straight up linnen, it’s definitely higher quality. The pants are simple as well, green though, not sure I’m a fan of the Robin Hood look. The boots are boots, knee high roughly, leather, tied with rolled leather laces.

It’s too functional, too simple. I want Nyxie to not feel overwhelmed with pretty but also feel like it’s a gift.

The second outfit. Much better, The clothlike beige shirt has been replaced with a sleeveless tunic/shirt combo. The Tunic is a nice, vibrant blue while the shirt is now complete white instead of Beige. The pants turned to leggings and boots now have a puffy rim around the foot-hole. Nice, but let's look at the other ones.

Shockingly the third outfit is a onesie. Like a kigurumi. It’s fuzzy on the outside, colored a nice warm burgundy. And that’s it, there’s a pair of boots for it and it’s laced up in the middle. There’s literally nothing more to say. It’s kinda plain. looks like Pajamas.

The last outfit though is interesting. A black Leather top with a gray undergarment of some kind. It's not a normal shirt. There’s all sorts of intricate details on the leather, either pressed in by hand to add texture or in forms of embroidery. Someone’s worked hard on that… The pants are also interesting, it’s a mix of leather on the outside and cloth between the legs, they also end with boots. Like the pants and boots are one and the same. It kinda speaks to me, I want it.

- “I’ll take all of them. How much?” - The almost audible shock that shows up on this guy's face. I’m pretty sure he expected to like, negotiate or something, luckily for him Nyxie needs clothes and he can offer them to me.

- “That would be…” - He pauses for a second and thinks. - “Let’s say… 3 Ri?” - I nod to him and whip out the coin.

- “I expected it to be… more expensive?” - While looking at the clothing I note the low price of these things.

- “More expensive? Sir, you flatter us but anything more than that would make a Duke reconsider the purchase.” - I begin packing Nyxie’s clothes into my backpack, making sure they are carefully placed inside to not crease.

- “Well, you should charge more, these clothes you presented look really good. Thank you for your help, I’m sure the girl will enjoy them.” - I wave and head out from the stall.

After making sure I have everything for Nyxie I start making my way back towards the center of town where the more jewelry or trinket type stands are.

There’s a person looking similar to Valerie managing one of the stands. He looks very young. Too young to manage stalls, so out of human curiosity I walk over and check out the items for sale. There are dolls, books, paintings and scrolls. Looks like most of the things here are items you’d consume in one way or another, be it reading, looking at, admiring.

- “Hey, could you call the stall hand over? I’d like to ask about some items.” - The young kid looks at me a bit confused and tilts his head.

- “Are you not from around here? Or do I look that young for an Efi?” - Efi? What’s that? I’m obviously not going to ask directly, this conversation is starting off on the wrong foot as is. - “I’m the owner of this stall. You can ask me anything”

- “My apologies if I came off disrespectful. I’m indeed not from around here.” - I scratch my head and give him an awkward smile - “The only other person I know that looks like you is the owner of the Cowbell. So you’re Efi?”

- “Yep, we look like kids, and people not from Gallahan think of us like that.” - His chipper delivery tells me it’s not the first time someone’s mistaken him for a kid. - “Don’t let my youthful appearance fool you, I’m 400 years old! So, what are you interested in? Anything catch your eye?”

Excuse me, what? How old? He looks maybe 15? Valerie looks around 20-25… Oh god. So when she called me a boy… Fuck.

- “Heh, I was wondering if you have anything interesting to read on hand. Something rare, maybe even cough one of a kind?” - There’s a lot of books there, but none of them mean anything to me. “The history of Darius the Challenger”, “Rough work makes soft hands”, “The Volcanica Brides”. Those are some of the books right there in front of me but none of them mean anything.

- “Actually, you mentioned you know the Cowbells owner, Valerie, right?” - I nod in response while reading the first page of “The history of Darius the Challenger”. - “Well, I have something that might interest you then. It’s strictly between us, alright?”

After closing the page of a book I was skimming through, the Efi's words catch me by the chin. I nod over to him and he without hesitation pulls out a small journal. The presence of it in front of me is thick. The book forces itself into my eyes, making sure that it's the only relevant thing in my world. It's old, very old. It has a simple, skin binding with its pages tied to it with pieces of rope. It's held closed by a leather string, neatly tied in front.

Clearly there’s a massive age difference between this book and all the others he has.

- “This is the original journal from Fox, one of the Lead’s that took part in the battle for Fort Varux” - Fox? Fort Varux? I don’t know what that is, but I want it. Something about this Journal just speaks to me, and as I said before… I’ll buy anything that speaks to me. - “As far as I know they were outlawed long ago, but here in the boonies nobody knows about them so there’s still some in circulation”

Outlawed literature? There are very few reasons to ban a book… Since other books are not banned and it’s just this, I’m willing to bet that it most likely contradicts some history or has been shunned as inaccurate or repulsive in some ways.

Well, I want it…

- “I’ll take it, how much do you want for it?” - The Efi picks up a piece of parchment, writes down a number and shows it to me. - “Alright.”

I hand him the coin and he gives me the Journal. Battle of Fort Varux… I think the first page of the history book on Darius mentioned it as well? Fox and Darius, they could’ve been at that fort together then, huh.

Or it’s two different battles that are decades, centuries apart, who knows.

- “By the way, do you have anything that would work well as an apology gift for Efi’s? I don’t know the way you guys deal with this kind of stuff, so if you have anything I can use to boost my apology…”

- “Of course, we’re talking about Valerie I assume. From what I know about her she’s a hardy leader and protective friend. Why not buy this?” - He hands me a bracelet made of small teal gems strung together with a simple wire.

- “This is a bracelet Efi’s make for people they wish good health for, doesn’t hold any real enchantment though, just so you’re aware.”

- “So it’s like a cultural thing you folks do… I’ll take it! How much is it?”

I pay 1 Ri for the bracelet and shake the Efi’s hand, thanking him for all the help. Now I just need something for Xerra, that’s someone I have some knowledge from the game about, I don’t know how much it aligns with this Xerra.

She should have a softer side, liking cute things? Like dolls and jewelry, I wonder if I can find anything that fits her.

What would Xerra like… I scratch my head while walking, looking at the stalls. There’s so many things here, I didn’t actually take the time to even appreciate the variety of items available.

This is literally a Modern Mall, just put outside, on wooden stalls and uses golden coins instead of FIAT currency. Yes, I’m nerding out a little.

Something for Xerra… Something for Xerra, what the fuck could that be. She has everything she wants so I have to think outside the box here. Valerie has a good health bracelet that is made by Efi’s, Xerra… What did I say to her specifically, maybe the gift should be related to that?

My insides sink a little when remembering myself shouting at Xerra. I called her a monster… So I should get her something that makes her the opposite of that… A doll? Porcelain doll of some kind? Something cute and fluffy is the way then.

While continuing on my way down the market road, towards the Cowbell I continuously scan the stalls for anything resembling a doll. One fancy stall catches my eye after a bit of searching. It’s mostly kids toys like plushies, rattlers and other wooden things that look toy-like. But the part that caught my eye is a small selection of porcelain dolls.

One in particular looks like it would fit Xerra’s personality. It’s got that signature red like Xerra’s hair dress on it. Black hair that looks like it comes from a horse.

The porcelain face is very intricately made, while it doesn’t have any painted on detail other than the eyes, eyeshadow, lips it does have a very smooth surface, almost glass like. It looks like it was manufactured by a machine with that precision.

- “Excuse me. I’d like to buy this doll please, how much is it?” - The lady behind the stall looks at the doll and makes a surprised face.

- “My apologies, but it seems the stall hand made a mistake. This doll is not for sale my friend.” - Not for sale? That complicates things.

- “Is there any amount of coin that could compensate for the loss of such a fantastic piece of art? I’m willing to pay a lot of money for it.” - I take a closer look at the doll. It really is a piece of art.

The dress isn’t just red, it has embroidered patterns, small buttons to keep it on, the neck hole is adorned with a black Ruff around it.

- “You see, I have to make amends to a very special woman in my life. I could buy her gifts and clothes and all the things a woman could want, but I feel something from this doll.” - Not really my style of speech but the woman herself looks a bit eccentric, I’m hoping to get her attention by acting like an artist myself.

- “A special woman you say?” - The woman ponders a little, pressing her index finger against her lips. - “I can sell it to you for 100 Ri. This doll was made for the Crown himself, getting another one of those will cost a lot of money.”

- “I’ll pay for it! Thank you!” - While counting 100 Coins I take a look at the lady and ask. - “Out of curiosity, why would a doll like that be here? I’m not from this nation so I don’t fully understand the customs yet.”

- “Well, me and a few other merchants are going as representatives of this town's commerce to meet the Crown and present what we require from them, logistics, sale licenses, all of that goes through the royal palace directly. It’s just customary to bring a gift to show gratitude for their rule.”

- “Aaah, that does indeed explain it.” - I hand over the coin. The lady's surprise actually catches me off guard as well. - “You thought I’m not going to pay the price?” - I’m asking more out of curiosity than anything.

- “To be frank, yes. This is a small fortune after all.” - A small fortune? 100 Ri? How much money did I spend today?

- “Well, the lady’s worth it.” - I bag the doll and head back to the Cowbell.

On the way back I skim through the market, maybe I’ll find something. Unfortunately though, no such luck. It’s fine though, I got everything I was supposed to.

Time actually flies by when you’re shopping, I’ve been strolling through the market for a few hours now. It’s not evening yet, but it’s definitely late afternoon looking at where the sun is in the sky.

Back at the Wandering Cowbell

I enter the cowbell, generally in a cheery mood. Xerra is sitting by one of the tables alone, as I approach she notices me and waves with a smile.

- “Valerie’s currently taking care of her. She didn’t want to eat after we brought her back here.” - She knows me well enough, didn’t even have to ask.

- “What’s her general condition though? Is she generally fine?” - As fine as you can be after hanging off a pole for a long time.

- “Physically she’s better than we thought, she’s definitely starved and physically exhausted. Her mental state is another story. Hanging off a pole would break most petty criminals.”

- “Well, we’ll cross that bridge when we get to it. For now she needs to get better physically. I bought her clothes and some other stuff while I was at the market.” - I open my bag and pull out the things I purchased for Nyxie, doing my best to hide the doll and bracelet. - “I have no clue what girls her age like wearing so I just bought a few outfits for her.”

Xerra looks at the clothes, picks up a shirt, then the shoes and looks at them with a smirk.

- “You didn’t spare a single coin, those look expensive.”

- “Price is irrelevant, as long as she doesn’t have to wear those rags anymore.” - Xerra pats me on the head after hearing my words.

Right on cue, the door behind the bar opens and Valerie exits out into the open area of the inn. She comes over to our table and snaps her fingers repetitively. She’s clearly in work mode or rather “mother” mode.

- “Leshy! How was shopping?” - Valerie asks and begins rummaging through Nyxie’s new clothes.

- “His daddy instinct kicked in. Look at those outfits Valerie, Nyxie’s going to end up a princess with clothes like this.” - Xerra jests at my expense while resting her head on her hand.

- “I see that! They’re a bit big, but she’ll grow into them over time. Well done!” - High praise coming from you two.

- “Speaking of purchases, I got you two something as well.” - I get up and pull out the bracelet from my bag. - “Valerie. I have no clue if this is true or if that Efi merchant done me dirty, but apparently your people make these to wish good health for people you care for. So, for my outburst yesterday without even attempting to talk first, take this.”

Valerie’s eyes widen and she quickly takes the bracelet from my hands. She looks at the gems, inspecting each one of them as if to make sure it’s the real thing. Once satisfied she pulls the bracelet on her wrist and bows gently towards me.

- “Leshy, that is very thoughtful of you. But it’s also unnecessary, it is a real thing we Efi’s make for someone’s well being. Thank you.”

Next, Xerra! I pull the doll out of the bag and sit it down in front of her. Valerie covers her mouth with both hands as if she just saw her favorite k-pop artist in real life.

- “For you I had a harder time picking things out. Originally I thought a hammer and nails for you to nail me to a wall or something would’ve been fun.” - Xerra giggles a little, her eyes locked onto the doll. She’s caressing it’s face with her fingers, fascinated at the details. - “In the end I found this doll. It was made for the Crown themselves as a gift during an audience… Look, the details of what it is really don’t matter. I called you a monster, yelled at you and broke your favorite table.” - She’s looking at me right now. - “You’re not a monster Xerra. You’re an amazing person and I should treat you as such.”

Xerra looks back at the doll. After a few seconds she picks it up under the arms and hugs it, the doll facing outward, looking at us. I don’t know what it is about Xerra’s face right now but she looks… smug?

- “I don’t know how you are still single, but you really do know what to give as a gift. This is a perfect, wonderful gift, Leshy.” - Xerra nods while holding the doll to her chest.

That is probably the cutest look Xerra has had ever since I’ve met her. This war-machine of a woman, looking like a cute puppy, holding a doll. What sort of image am I looking at here?

Valerie stops losing her mind over the doll and composes herself.

- “Anything else you bought? I’m sure you got something for yourself, right?”- I nod at Valerie’s words, rummaging in my bag, looking for my things.

Even before the Journal exits my bag I see Xerra and Valerie both rush to put it back into the bag.

- “Are you insane? You know this is illegal right?” - Valerie is looking around to see if anyone noticed the Journal.

- “What do you mean? It’s a Journal, and yes I do know it’s illegal to own this.” - Xerra facepalms while Valerie’s massaging the bridge of her nose. - “It can’t be that bad to own this, it’s a damn journal. Written by Fox and it’s from the battle of…”

- “Fort Varux, yes. I know, I was there.” - What? - “Look, I’m not going to stop you from reading it, just do it without anyone around. Ok? And remember, whatever you read in there, that stays with you. Nobody can know, understand?”

- “I understand, but why are you fine with me reading it, if nobody’s supposed to know?”

- “Just, do as I say. We can talk later about this…” - Valerie without any further words turns around and begins walking away - “I’m going to check on Nyxie”

Xerra looks at me with the same confusion as I have.

- “You know what this is about Xerra?” - Xerra shakes her head

- “No fucking idea, but you clearly found something interesting. Just don’t tell me anything, if Valerie doesn’t want anyone to know outside of you then I’ll respect that.” - She wiggles a little… - “This will eat at me now. Fucking curiosity!”