40 – Morning in Scarag

  ***Glyph of Resilience applied! This shield is now more durable!***

  ***Congratulations, Andy! You’ve gained a level in your Glyphwright class. You’ve earned an Improvement Point and 20 mana!***

  Andy sighed with relief; he’d stripped and re-enchanted that last shield almost twenty times, and he was ready to be done with his Glyphwright class for a while.

  “Level?” Lucy asked, looking up from the book she was reading. She’d found it in the side pocket of Bella’s pack while organizing their things. It was an old Stephen King book—hugely thick with tiny writing. Andy couldn’t believe she even wanted to try reading it with nothing but a candle for light.

  “Yeah, finally.” He set the shield on the table and leaned back, stretching. “Hope I find a better way to gain levels. I think, like most System-related things, intention might have something to do with it.”

  “What do you mean?” Lucy closed the book, but Andy noticed she kept a finger between the pages so she didn’t lose her spot.

  “I mean, I think grinding out a bunch of enchantments that may or may not be useful doesn’t count as much in the System’s eyes as something more…meaningful, I guess.”

  “Like how we’re not getting as much experience for killing hordes of rats in this city as we did back in the tunnels under the mesa?”

  Andy smiled. “Yeah, exactly.”

  Lucy pointed to where they’d nailed table-tops over the bay windows. A small gap above the left-hand table showed a sliver of gray light. “The sun’s coming up, I think.”

  Gord snorted, sliding a few inches down in his chair by the fire. Andy had been feeding it pieces of broken furniture, keeping it alive through the early morning hours. The big laukin hadn’t moved once. “I guess I should switch my class.”

  “I’ll keep an eye on you.”

  “Thanks.” It had taken almost five full minutes to change out of his Brimstone Stalker class, and he was starting to think that the higher level a person’s class was, the longer it took to change it. That said, he made himself comfortable, scooting up to the table and laying his head on his arms. He opened his status page, focused on the “Active Class” line, and then selected Brimstone Stalker.

  One small mercy was that the process didn’t invoke a piercing headache. He simply felt a wave of warm tingles, his vision went dark, his hearing was drowned out by a buzzing sound, and then, as though the entire process had only taken a few seconds, he blinked his eyes and sat up. Lucy was there, but in a different chair. The table had been cleared of weapons, and half a dozen laukin were milling about. The room was much brighter, illuminated by lanterns and the roaring fire, and the scents of cooking eggs and bacon filled the air.

  “Welcome back,” Lucy said, smiling over the top of a steaming mug.

  Andy sat up, groaning as his back protested. “How long?”

  “Had to be at least half an hour. I don’t think it was just the class change, though; you looked like you were asleep.”

  Andy chuckled, rubbing his eyes. “Yeah, maybe that had something to do with it. Weird, though—felt like my eyes were closed for about ten seconds.” He glanced toward the stairs. “Others still sleeping?”

  “Yeah, but maybe we should wake them?”

  “I will.” Andy stood, stretching his back until it popped. “I’m ready to be done with this place. Is Jilly up?”

  “Nope.” Lucy shrugged. “The laukin lady—the innkeeper one—tried to talk to me, but it wasn’t going anywhere. I think she was trying to say she was gonna give us some food.”

  “Well, I want to ask for directions. You know, to make sure we’re going toward the castle.”

  “I’m sure Jilly will come down.”

  Andy straightened the knife on his belt. He’d found a sheath that fit, but it was crude with big, looping stitches through poorly tanned leather. Grabbing his spear, he nodded toward the stairs. “Be right back.”

  After he tapped on Omar’s door—the same room he and Lucy had been using—Andy realized he didn’t know what room Bella and Bea were in. He frowned, looking down the long hallway. He was about to give up, not wanting to just randomly knock on doors, when one of them opened and Jilly slipped into the hallway. She wore a knit cap over her pointy ears, and from a distance, in the dimly lit hall, Andy could almost forget she wasn’t human. When she saw him, she padded close, her leather slipper-like shoes nearly silent.

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  “Morning,” she whispered.

  “Hey, um, yeah, good morning.” Before he could say more, Omar’s door opened, and he joined them in the hallway, his heavy mace clutched in one hand.

  “Did you wake the others?” he asked, stifling a yawn.

  “No—not sure what room they’re in.”

  Omar nodded down the hallway. “Last one on the left. I’ll get them.”

  Andy watched him go, then turned to Jilly. “Could we talk? Downstairs, I mean?”

  “Of course.”

  Together, they walked down to the common room and found Lucy sitting at the table while two of the other laukin piled plates of food at the center—eggs, bacon, and hard biscuits that looked a lot like thick, round graham crackers. Jilly spoke to them in their language briefly, then translated to Andy and Bella: “They say they wanted to bake fresh bread, but the vermin don’t bake, and they’d recognize the smell. The eggs and bacon should be fine.”

  “Interesting…” Lucy said, peering toward the boarded-up door.

  “Tell them thanks,” Andy said, sitting down.

  “Oh, I did. They’re insisting it’s they who should be thanking you all.” She joined them at the table and picked up one of the biscuits. “Speaking of all that, what’s your plan?”

  “Glad you asked,” Andy replied, scooping some eggs onto a plate and grabbing a piece of bacon. “We want to get to the castle. The System says we need to defeat the, uh, Baron of Corruption, and we figured we’d find him there.”

  Jilly chewed her biscuit, her eyes unfocused as she contemplated. After a moment, she nodded. “I think you’re right. I’m not familiar with local politics, but I’m sure the vermin leader would take up residence in the grandest dwelling in the town.” She pushed her chair back and stood. “I’ll go ask the others while you eat.”

  “Thanks, Jilly,” Lucy said, also chewing one of the biscuits. When the laukin woman walked toward the kitchen, she held it up, smiling. “These things are pretty good. They’re a little sweet. I’m not sure about the spice, but I think it might be nutmeg.”

  Andy sat down to eat, and he’d gotten a fair way through his meal before Omar and the others joined them. By the time he’d brought them all up to speed and everyone was sitting down with their food, Jilly returned. She stood by the table, suddenly looking a little nervous as everyone’s eyes fell on her. “I have some news.”

  “Go on, sweetie,” Bea said. “Nothing to be nervous about.”

  “Oh, well, it’s just that I wish I could be of more help. You see, Mari, the innkeeper, she says the baron isn’t one of the vermin. He’s a laukin who made a deal with the vermin leaders. She says it would be madness to go to the castle—he has soldiers and the strongest of the vermin will be there, too.”

  Omar put his wooden cup of water down and grabbed Andy’s shoulder. “We’re not worried about that, are we, boss?”

  Andy snorted. Was that the first time Omar had called him that? Despite the silliness of it, he felt his chest swelling a little as he sat up straighter. He glanced from Bella to Bea, then over at Lucy. As each of them met his gaze, undaunted by Jilly’s words, he slowly nodded. “That’s right. We’re here to defeat the vermin.”

  Jilly smiled, evident relief washing over her. “I was afraid you’d leave when I gave you that news. I’m going to tell the others what you’re doing—Gord and the other hunters. I’m not saying they’ll join you in battle, but maybe they’ll help when you need it. We Laukin have keen eyes, and we’re good at hiding.”

  Bella slapped the table. “I love it! We’re earning points with the laukin faction!”

  Jilly tilted her head at Bella and scratched her fuzzy chin. “We certainly appreciate you, Miss Bella.”

  Bella grinned, and Andy took the chance to interject. “Can you give us the most direct route to the castle?”

  Jilly nodded. “Of course! I’ll double-check with Mari.” She scurried off, and Bea clicked her tongue, shaking her head at Bella.

  “This isn’t a game. That girl’s real, you know.”

  Bella groaned. “I know. I’m just saying it feels good to be, like, doing heroic stuff. Helping people and earning their appreciation. Don’t you guys think so?”

  Lucy nodded. “Better than the alternative.”

  Andy had to agree with Bella and Lucy. “Yeah, I mean, that’s a good point. At least we’re not back on Earth trying to figure out who we can rob next.” After he took another bite of bacon, he asked, “Bea, did you refine your class?”

  “I did.” She nodded serenely, munching a biscuit. “I had to answer a bunch of questions, but to make a long story short, I decided to focus more on healing than on water magic. No new spells yet, but I’m excited to see what the next few levels bring.”

  “Oh! You guys!” Bella reached down beside her and lifted the satchel she’d commandeered from Omar. “Take a look at Chani!” She reached inside and gently lifted out her baby rat, though it didn’t look so much like a baby anymore. The little creature had to be closing in on fifteen pounds, but that wasn’t what stole the show.

  Lucy giggled, Bea muttered something under her breath, and Omar laughed. Andy was the one who asked, “Is she wearing a cloak?”

  Bella lifted the rat to display her underside, making it plain to everyone that it wasn’t a cloak, but a tiny, gray robe. “The System delivered the robes this morning. Aren’t they cute?”

  “But…why?” Omar asked.

  “Because she’s a sorceress rat,” Bella said matter-of-factly.

  “Don’t bother.” Bea snorted softly. “I already tried to make sense of it all, but the girl’s convinced that rat’s going to be working magic soon.”

  “She’s still a baby,” Bella replied, narrowing her eyes at Bea. She held her biscuit up to Chani’s nose, and the rat nibbled at it. “But she’s growing fast.”

  “Oh, Bella,” Lucy said, holding up the book. Andy caught a glimpse of the title—The Stand. “I started reading this last night. Can we share it? I’ll read it when you’re not.”

  “Oh my gosh! Yes! I love talking about books.”

  Omar nodded. “It’s a good one.”

  Bella looked at him, eyes wide. “You’ve read it?”

  “Oh yeah. I read a lot when I was in high school.”

  Andy sat back in his seat, listening to them talk about books. It was oddly comforting. Like the mundane Earth-based conversation grounded all the fantastical stuff going on around them. As if his thoughts had been an invitation for trouble, something huge roared out in the city, not right outside the inn, but not far away, either. Just then, Jilly returned, hurrying around the bar to approach their table.

  “I have directions for you, but there’s something else.” She glanced toward the kitchen. “Gord went out the back door a little while ago to poke around. He says there’s a group of blitz-rats not far away who’ve cornered a battle-bear. If you’re willing to help rescue him, Gord will show you the way.”

  ***Scarag Heights – Optional Quest: Rescue Rundle the battle-bear before the blitz-rats wear him down and kill him.***