Chapter 5: Chapter 5- Pulling Your Weight

Ash yawned as he walked out of his new tent. His legs were still slightly trembling from his forgotten hallucination, but he ignored it as he looked around. "Dinner time! Hurry up and get it!" A voice called out once more. As the voice called, Ash spotted a young woman walking past him with a bowl.

"Hey, what's for dinner?" Ash asked. The woman gave Ash a questioning look since she didn't recognize him.

"Are you new here?" She asked. Ash gave a simple nod back. "Well, dinner is the same thing it is every night, 'full of shit stew.'" She said as she tilled her bowl toward him. In the bowl, Ash could see a clump of poorly chopped potatoes and at least three types of meat in a thick brown sauce. 

"Looks, uh, appetizing."

"Taste way better than it looks. Besides, it's a free meal. If you don't want this, you can go to the wall and pay for something else." The woman turned and pointed to the canyon. Ash followed where she was pointing. He saw a large building built into the canyon wall opposite the Tents. The building was marked with a knife and a fork, with big windows that lined the outside.

"Thanks," Ash said with a nod. The woman gave a simple wave back as she walked away and toward a group of people. 'Well, let's hope that place has something for me to eat. Thankfully I was able to find some money on those bodies.' Ash thought as he walked toward one of the bridges. From where he was standing, he could see an elevator that led to the building.

    ~R~o~a~O~

'Wow, this is actually like a real diner.' Ash thought as he entered the building. Just like any diner found in the Unity Kingdom. Booths lined the windowed wall, while a few barstools lined the counter. There were a few people in the diner, eating and talking. But the one that caught Ash's eye was a beautiful woman with long red hair sitting on one of the barstools.

"Have a seat. I'll be right there." A young boy said as he stood behind the diner's counter. Ash simply nodded as he made his way to a booth. He was still feeling a bit shaky after waking up. 

Ash had only been sitting down for a moment when the red-haired woman sat opposite him. Ash looked at the woman in confusion as she stared back with a smile. "Hi, my name's Alex," She said softly. A voice that was low, seductive, and charmingly fake to Ash's ears. "You're new around here, right? What's your name?" She asked.

"Ash," He replied simply with a fake smile of his own.

"Hmm, Ash and Alex… Doesn't that sound good together?" Alex slid a lock of her long red hair behind her ear. Ash had to admit the woman was beautiful. Her bright smile, flawless pale skin, and striking red hair were all accented by her outfit. A light spaghetti strap blouse and a pair of shorts. A simple outfit but showed plenty of skin, and Alex knew how to use it. But he was not going to be fooled so easily.  

"Sorry, but I like 'em bigger," Ash said as he stared directly at Alex's flat chest, causing her smile to twitch. Ash knew the game Alex was playing, and he wouldn't fall for her tricks. He'd met thieves like her during his past four years of crime. A bright smile and a warm feeling in your stomach kept you from noticing the money being sucked from you. Ash knew she was the most dangerous kind of woman. 

"Really, Alex, you're doing this again?" Before Alex could reply to Ash's words, the young boy from behind the counter walked up to the booth. He was carrying a notepad and looking at Alex with a disappointed look. 

"What do you mean?" Alex asked in a sweet tone. "I'm just getting to know the new guy." 

"Yeah, yeah, whatever," The boy said as he turned away from Alex and toward Ash. "What can I get you?" He asked.

Ash looked over the boy's head and at the menu hanging over the counter. 'Great, besides tatos, it's all meat.' Ash thought. "You got any fruit?" Ash asked.

"Uh, we have some pickled spikers. That's the closest thing you'll get to fruit out here." 

Ash fought the urge to sigh in disappointment. He'd been spoiled by the food choices the Unity Kingdom held. "I'll take a plate of fried potatoes and some of those spikers chopped up in a bowl," Ash said.

"Uh, you sure? Okay then." The boy said while writing down Ash's order. Once he was done, he turned to Alex but didn't say anything as he turned to leave.

"You're still here? Didn't notice." Ash said as he gave Alex a blank look.

"Strange taste you got there. What's wrong? Don't eat meat?" Alex asked, completely ignoring his remark. 

"Nope, what about you? Why didn't you order something to eat?" He asked.

"Oh, I'm just waiting for someone," Alex said, and as if on cue, the familiar skull-face-painted woman walked in. As soon as Roxy walked in, she spotted and glared at Ash, but a moment later shook her head when she saw Alex.

"Really, Alex, doing this again?" Roxy asked as she walked up to the table. "And with this guy of people." 

"Huh? What do you mean? I'm just meeting the new guy. Why is everyone making a big deal out of this?" Alex asked with a pout. 

"She's just jealous," Ash said, gaining the attention of both women. "She already said she would do unspeakable things to my cock." He explained, mocking Roxy's threat. 

"Oh really now? Sorry Rox, didn't know you-" Alex started to say but was cut off.

"Shut it," Roxy growled. She then grabbed Alex by the arm and pulled her out of the booth. "Come on, we don't have time to waste on this exiled trash." With one final glare, Roxy started pulling Alex along toward the door. 

"See you later, Ash! Let's talk more, okay!" Alex called out as she was pulled through the door.

'Maybe I should kill them first.' Ash thought as he watched the pair go. 'Maybe I should just go to Bramblethorn and hide out.' Ash sighed as he turned to stare out the window. As amusing as the pair was, Ash still had a job to do. At least he had a job he was told to do. But as he stared out the window, watching people walk around the Canyon base, Ash had only one thought. 'I wonder if they have a brothel here.'

~R~o~a~O~

It was early in the morning, and Ash let out a yawn. He was lying on the sleeping bag inside his new tent, just listening to people as they walked by. 'What am I supposed to do?' He thought as he let out a sigh. He lifted the studded metal club he'd looted. 'Dear Mist Mother, give me a sign. Should I just take my chances and start killing people now? Or should I wait and just see what happens?' Ash's question was met with silence as he was left holding his weapon. 

"Hey, new guy, you in there?" An unknown male voice asked from outside the tent. Ash gripped the club when he heard the voice, but he forced himself to sit up.

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"Yeah, one sec," Ash called out as he crawled to the tent's entrance and walked out. "Need something?" Ash asked as he met with a tall, lanky man. 

"Names Jack. I was told by a headache beating down my door to put you to work. It's supposed to be my day off, you know." Jack said with a sigh and a shake of his head.

"This headache, is she kind of short, more paint than face?" Ash asked.

"That's the one she told me to take you hunting. I'm guessing she's hopping you'll get killed out there." Jack explained with a shrug.

"Ah, if I'm going to die today, mind if I take a shower first? Oh, and I need to buy some new clothes as well." Ash asked. He felt his skin crawl from being covered in dry sweat and a few drops of dry blood on his clothes.

"Oh sure, sure, a nice hot shower, some fresh clothes. What else do you want? Your nails painted, and your balls slapped around?" 

"Well, if you're offering."

"I'll offer you some advice, do your job first, then you can do whatever you want. Now, do you have a weapon?"

"Yeah, I have this," Ash replied as he raised the metal mace he looted.

"Good, follow me then. The faster we get this done, the faster I can enjoy my day off." The man, Jack, said as he turned and started walking.

'Yeah, I might just kill you first.' Ash thought as he started following Jack. 'Maybe even today… No, that would be too obvious.'

~R~o~a~O~ 

Ash followed Jack to a rear gate at the edge of the tents. After hopping into a small truck and leaving the bandit base, the pair traveled through the desert.

After only a few minutes of driving, Jack pulled to a stop. "We're here," Jack said as he parked the truck. "This is the Desert Hounds' hunting grounds." The pair exited the vehicle and walked a few feet to the edge of a cliff. 

"Whoa, looks like a nice place to die," Ash said as he looked out to a vibrant green forest below the cliff. Through the trees, Ash could see a large river running through the middle of the forest. His eyes followed the river. The water led out to the ocean he could see in the far distance. 

"This monster-infested forest is the main source of food for our base. We usually send in a few teams every couple of weeks to hunt some monsters, but today it's just you." Jack explained as he patted Ash on the shoulder. 

"What, you're not coming with me?"

"What part of 'day off' don't you understand? I'm going to be up here taking a nap." Jack said. The lanky man then pointed to a wooden structure held together with ropes, and random metal plates bolted to it. "Look, just take the lift down, kill the first thing you see and bring it back. That's all you need to do, and we'll be done for the day." He explained. 

Only one thing was on Ash's mind as he looked at the makeshift wooden lift. "Really? You guys have all those fancy elevators back at base, but use that thing out here?"

"Hey, whatever works," Jack replied.

"I don't eat meat. Can I bring back some fruits or herbs I find?" Ash asked.

"I'm not telling you to eat whatever you kill. Just kill something and bring it back. Besides, all the fruit you could find down there is in areas swarming with monsters. Places our teams don't go. In fact, I'll give you some friendly advice. Never go to that area over there unless you like spiders. You see that area, don't go over there unless you want to be dragged underground into an ant nest. Or attacked by swarms of honey bees." Jack explained as he pointed at different areas of the massive forest. "Now get going, and if you're not back within an hour, I'll just assume you're dead and head home," Jack said with a wave as he walked back to the truck. Left with no other options, Ash sighed and walked to the wooden lift.

'Getting some honey does sound good… Dammit, if only I had a gemstone weapon.' Ash thought as the wooden lift took him down to the forest below.

~R~o~a~O~

'For a monster-infested forest, I haven't seen any monsters yet.' Ash thought as he made his way through the trees. 'But I guess monsters are smart. They probably learned not to come around here near the lift.' Ash noticed something moving on the ground as he walked through the leaves and trees. 'A snake? A pretty small one, but he did say kill the first thing I saw.' 

The dark green snake was only half as thick as Ash's arm and just as long. Ash followed the small monster as it slithered over the dirt and slid into a large dead tree lying on its side. 'Damnit, you better not bite me.' Ash thought as he dropped to his knee. But before he could reach for the snake, he heard the sound of footsteps rushing towards him. 'Shit!' Ash quickly rolled to the side, narrowly avoiding a hammer strike. The strike's impact shattered the tree and sent shards of wood flying.

Ash pushed himself to his feet as he eyed his attacker. "Are you a member of the Desert Hounds? I'm a new member, you know." Ash called out. The hammer-wielding attacker was dressed for camping and even had a backpack strapped to him. So Ash assumed the man was a Hounds member keeping an eye on the forest.

"You Hound trash," Hearing the man growl those words and seeing him clench the hammer made Ash realize he was wrong. No more words were spoken as the man shifted his weight, ready to fight. Ash did the same as he gripped his metal mace.

In an instant, Ash rushed forward, swinging his mace with the force of his Mist-enhanced strength. His attacker did the same. Mace met hammer, and the impact sent a shockwave through the trees. The superior weapon was victorious, and Ash's mace was snapped in half. 'Cheap crap!' Ash shouted in his mind while throwing the broken handle at his attacker's face. His attacker moved to dodge the handle, allowing Ash to tackle the man to the ground. Quickly straddling his attacker, Ash tried to pull the hammer out of the man's iron grip. But as the two struggled for the weapon, the snake Ash was following sprung out of the shattered tree and latched on the attacker's shoulder.

"Gahh! What the hell!" The hammer-wielding attacker shouted. The sudden shock allowed Ash to knock the weapon out of the man's hands. Then without missing a beat, Ash gripped the snake's tail and wrapped its body around his attacker's neck. Pulling the snake tight, Ash didn't stop until the man stopped struggling. 

Once the man was dead, Ash let go of the snake's tail and let out a deep breath. "Who the hell was that?" Ash mumbled as he stared at the man. The small snake was still wrapped around the man's neck and biting into his shoulder. Reaching out, Ash gave the snake a small pat on the head. "Good boy," He said. In return, the snake quickly let go of the dead man's shoulder and latched onto Ash's hand. "Those little fangs can't pierce my Mist harden skin." Ash taunted. "But I suppose since you helped me, I'll let you try to eat me while I deal with this guy," Ash said as the snake moved to wrap its small body around Ash's arm. 

Standing up, Ash looked down at the dead man. "I guess I should take you back. Jack did say he wanted me to bring back the first thing I kill." Ash mumbled as he got to work, grabbing the man's hammer and throwing the man over his shoulder. "If only I were paid by the body," Ash groaned as he walked toward the wooden lift. 

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