Chapter 17: Chapter 17 On the Town

Nathan woke to the smell of baked pastries. He made a note to get multiple sets of clothes that actually belonged to him, then put back on the borrowed clothes he’d been wearing for days and emerged from his room. Artha was sitting on one of the cushioned chair-like objects. He was talking to a bleary Vhala who’d apparently just emerged from her room. There was no Emerald or Wiam visible and their doors were closed. Nathan’s attention was drawn to a tray of pastries and a pitcher of milk set on the central table.

He hastened to break his fast, finding that the pastries were incredible, sweet and stuffed with honeycomb or fruit syrup. The milk was rich and warm, sweetened with honey. Either adventurers were treated like nobility or the logistics of food preparation were different than what Nathan expected. Well, Nathan wasn’t about to complain.

He tuned into the conversation Vhala was having with Artha. It was about going shopping and being able to afford various pieces of equipment with the money for the rescue. Apparently they’d been saving for a more serious set of ranged armament for Vhala and Wiam, aiming for paired weapons and ammunition that was rated to crack [Mage Armor].

Nathan joined in, mentioning in between bites of pastry that he had some basic supplies to buy, and asking when ‘Jolba’ was likely to arrive. Vhala answered that it might be anytime, but was unlikely to be this early. That's why they were planning to go shopping sooner rather than later. Assuming Nathan wasn’t in the market for anything magical, it shouldn’t take too long or be very expensive. At least on the scale of adventurer paychecks for successful whole-town rescue missions.

Soon enough, Vhala, Artha and Nathan had left the remaining pastries on the table for whenever Emerald and Wiam awoke and departed the Adventurer’s guild. There was a cluster of shops nearby that focused on selling mixed high-quality mundane and magical goods to adventurers. When they picked up a travel pack for Nathan, he looked sadly at the displayed bags of holding. They weren’t even as expensive as you might expect - it’d wipe out a bit more than half of Nathan’s cash. But a bag of holding was a bag of holding. It was magic that really messed with the rules of reality, and that sounded like fun. And he could carry a hundred feet of rope without any compromises!

But there was that line of his [Magic Resistance] that read “weaker magical items degrade when in prolonged contact with you”, and he wasn’t willing to test that out yet. Especially on something that might explode when it failed. Maybe when he was an actual adventurer and had more money to burn, or further developed the Talent. At a shop run by another short orange-skinned woman they picked up a couple sets of tough clothes, thick woolens in basic patterns that wouldn’t rip easily and would stay warm through rough weather, while also being possible to loosen for warm conditions. A thick blanket for cold and rough conditions completed the purchases before they set out to another shop.

On the way, Nathan asked about the different species of Gemore. Especially the short orange-skinned people like Xarian who were the second-most common after humans. Artha explained.

“They’re called the Knulds. An old race, though not as old as humans. Pretty widespread, and their culture emphasizes appearance and poise. Knuld apparel is never the cheapest, but it’s always high-quality and they set the styles. The other peoples here are the Treeborn, four legged like me, and the various kinds of folk. Wolfolk, catfolk, birdfolk… We all tend to live in our own rural communities, but there’s a neighborhood with many who have decided to come to the city from outside.” He snorted.

“Giantsrest is the much bigger city, but they don’t take kindly to any peoples but yours. There are a smattering of others here, often from far away. There’s an orcish empire across the plains, but they think us uncivilized. A few Elementals as well, but their peoples are new, and very insular.” He shrugged.

Nathan was trying to formulate a question to that, but they soon arrived at the final stop, apparently another cousin of Vhala’s named Beatred. The smith clapped her cousin on the shoulder and showed them around some of the newly made and enchanted gear. Nathan was really impressed by the quality of the metalwork. The weapons and armor looking smooth and flawless. Many of the enchanted pieces had elaborate engravings and cutouts that looked machined. Nathan peeked into the working space and saw that it was a lot more than just a forge. There was some kind of fly press back there, as well as a grinder and what looked like a drill press, though Nathan had no idea how they were powered. Magic maybe? Or just good old fashioned muscle?

Artha guided Nathan to purchase a pair of sturdy knives, one with a wide blade the length of his hand, the other just a couple inches long. They weren’t enchanted, but had a heft and balance to them that Nathan hadn’t felt with kitchen knives.

 

They returned to the guild to find Emerald sitting awkwardly with a grizzled man with reddish-brown hair and a scruffy beard. He was dressed in a sharply embroidered but badly stained coat, and sipping from a jeweled rectangular flask. He looked worn down and tired, haggard in a way that seemed bone-deep. He also couldn’t have been older than forty.

Vhala inclined her head to him. “Jolba. Apologies for keeping you waiting.”

The man stood and limped slightly towards the door, slipping the flask into his jacket. “I just arrived. Keep up the good work, all of ya. I’m here for this one,” he waved a hand in Nathan’s direction. “You ready to go? Best say your goodbyes.”

Nathan hesitated, looking at the Giantraiders. It wasn’t like he wasn’t going to see them again. But he wouldn't be part of their crew anymore, however transient it’d been. They’d been something he could trust in a strange world, answering his questions and providing a strong arm in danger. “Thank you all so much. I hope to talk to you all again. Artha, I look forward to your lessons.”

The big elk-centaur nodded. “Yes, there are times for personal training during the adventurer training. I will see you then.”

Nathan turned to Emerald. “Good luck. I’ll keep working on what you showed me. It doesn’t matter what it’s called if it does what I need.”

The armored fighter nodded back resolutely.

Finally Nathan turned to Vhala. He stepped forward and gave the stout black woman a hug. “Thank you for everything. In a few years let’s talk about that plan again.”

She returned the hug, then slapped his back and stepped back, a sharp grin on her face. “I’ll wait for it.”

Nathan turned to follow Jolba, who was waiting at the door. “When Wiam wakes up, tell him that I’ll miss his lessons, and that he should drop by sometime.”

Jolba led Nathan down the corridor and outside. They walked toward another building farther back in the complex. On the way, he detoured to a small park, with a stretch of grass and a few trees. It was set on a steep slope and Jolba gestured toward a stone bench before he sat heavily.

He waited until Nathan sat next to him, gazing out towards the outer wall of Gemore and the taller ruins peeking over in the distance. “I don’t like you joining the course this way. The Guildmistress is trying to change our ways, with the training course. Teach all the adventurers some basic competence, enforce some standards. Get Insights flowing, and help shape the teams of the next generation. Make the course into tradition, instead of just sending idiots out to die and calling the ones who survive Adventurers.”

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He paused after those words, staring off into the distance with a cruel twist to his lips. Jolba raised the flask and took another slug. He passed it to Nathan after a moment. Nathan sniffed the opening. It smelled like fruity alcohol, and Nathan took a cautious sip. It was strong and sweet, like a peach brandy. He handed the flask back.

Jolba took it and continued. “I’m behind all that, and every exception undercuts it. And you Nathan, are an exception. Guildmistress told me that you’ve got two amazing Talents but are under level 27. And that I shouldn’t ask where you’re from, just toss you into the most promising team we’ve got.”

He shrugged. “But this year, that means more than most. We just had to take somebody out from the Heirs last week, so that’s where you’re going. But I gotta caution, you’re not stepping into a simple situation. You’re old, low-level and your hands are soft, you ain’t used to rough living and you’ve got the guile of a beached fish, so I’d not do this without Sudraiel’s order. But I won’t throw a kid to the Flayers, so you deserve to know what’s what. The Heirs are exactly what their name says, the inheritors of some of the strongest of Gemore, and their Insights.”

He slipped the flask back into his jacket. “But they’re also a right mess. Kia’s adopted kid is trying to be the leader like his ma, but he’s too busy being righteous and intimidating to think smart. The Caxol kid is smart, but is also a spoiled brat up her own braid on her magic. The Crusens twins are serious, but it’s just them trying to be their ‘legendary’ da. They all need to loosen up and figure out who they are, instead of being wrapped up in their parents’ legends.”

Jolba sighed, then turned to Nathan and waited until Nathan looked back to continue. “I’m telling you all this because you’re older, and you’ve stared the ghoul in the eyes in a way that few in the training have. The Heirs are a bunch of horny youngsters who expect to be the heroes of the age. And they stand a half-decent chance, if they don’t run towards the first stupid threat that comes along and get themselves killed. So. I don’t want you to break the sky. I want you to keep the Heirs grounded until they can. Do you hear this?”

Nathan grimaced. Not because this was a bad idea - he could see where the Guildmistress was coming from. If Nathan was going to get targeted by Giantsrest, might as well put him with the other targets so they could all be protected at once. He was also guessing that she was trying to tie him to Gemore with powerful comrades. But on the other hand, it sounded like college drama all over again, and Nathan thought he might prefer to go fight a Guardian Golem.

Still, he returned Jolba’s sigh, and spoke. “Yeah, I think I can. Do you have any recommendations to make a good impression?”

Jolba eyed him for a moment, then seemed satisfied. “It’s not hard. They didn’t think the last guy was good enough, so they pushed him hard enough that he snapped. They’ll test you, but if they think you’re worth knowing then it’ll all flow downhill.”

The grizzled man slapped his knees, then got up. “Time also flows, so let’s get to it. Schedule is pretty simple: three meals in the dormitory, classroom work in the morning, then group training after lunch. There’s time for individualized training after that, before dinner and sometimes after. We do bigger exercises at night sometimes, but not usually. The Giantraiders said they’d cover your individual training for the near future, is there anything else you want to ask about for that?”

Nathan sighed. “I was granted this language by spell, and it didn’t teach me how to read. Can we take care of that during the morning classes?”

Jolba waved his hand. “I’ll have a clerk take it over. Glad you don’t need convincing that reading is important, the number of times I’ve had to convince kids without two decades that their job is more than killing things…” He shook his head. “We’ll see it done. Anything else you think I need to know?”

Nathan hesitated, then decided.

If he wasn’t told, then he needs to know. This, at least.

“There’ll probably be agents of Giantsrest specifically coming after me. I made a personal enemy of an Archmage.”

Jolba sighed, hand reaching for his flask before they stopped and smoothed his stubbled chin. “Sudraiel mentioned that’s part of why we’re tossing you into the Heirs. They’re all targets. But if you pissed off an Archmage…” He shrugged helplessly. “Be careful. It’s not like there’s much more I can do for security. To get to the training grounds you need to go through the entire guild, and everybody knows everybody ‘round here. And there’s no teleportin’ on the hill.”

Then he stood, straightening his stained coat. “Well, let’s go introduce you to your team. They should be just having lunch.”