Prologue
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As long as I could remember, I'd always wanted to be an adventurer. The yearning to explore new places and see new things had always been a passion for me. My parents didn't see the point of adventuring. They said that The Call enthralled people, and entangled them in those thoughts of going places. They call it a disease, one that my elder brother had caught, and sent him off to die. I believe The Call is within all of us, although perhaps it grows weaker when one grows up and reaches adulthood. When you're young is when it's strongest. Perhaps this truly is a disease, and I truly am doomed to die. I'm not certain. But if I'm sure of one solitary thing, it's that The Call has latched on to me, beckoning me to follow. I feel that the day I told my parents was the day that I finally truly succumbed to The Call. I remember it clearly. My parents were appalled by the thought that they would lose another. But I swore to them that I would send home spoils that I would be paid and, reluctantly, they agreed. We were a poor family, so I suppose they would do anything to survive, and in a way I was doing both adventuring and assisting my family at the same time. I watched as tears fell from my mother's eyes as I explained that this was probably the best way. My father said nothing, but watched with hateful eyes. I looked at my younger sister, Thalia, and smiled. It was her idea to do this in the first place. I remember that too.
"The family's out of money." She'd told me as we were lying in the grass, looking up at the stars together, as we always did.
"What?" I said, astonished. It was the first time I had heard of it. Thalia looked at me. "We've been like this for a while now, mom didn't tell you?" I was still stunned. "No." I answered.
"Pa?" Thalia asked thoughtfully.
"You know him, he wouldn't tell me anything, even if there were a horde of Orcs raiding the village."
Thalia let out a short burst of laughter. "You're probably right." She said, Suddenly, her eyes lit up. "You could become an adventurer!" she said. "I heard they're paid really well! You'd get a lot of money for that, so you could help us and be well off at the same time!"
I sat up. "That's a great idea!" I said, looking over at her. She was staring into the night sky. "Besides, The Call. It cries out to you, doesn't it?"
"How do you know about that?" I asked, intrigued.
"It calls me, too." She said sadly. "Though it's faint, I can hear it whisper, like a gust of wind."
"It's not just me, then." I said quietly. "I'm not the only one."
"So how loud is The Call for you?" Thalia asked.
I thought hard. Nobody had ever asked me before. "It's like… It's like a wolf's howl, when it's on the hunt."
She looked at me. "You should follow it." she said.
"What?"
"If it's that loud, maybe it's a good idea to follow it." Thalia said, finally sitting up.
I thought about it. Perhaps Thalia was right. "I'll try to get through to them." I said.
I looked behind me, expecting to see my mother crying, but she wasn't. I suppose she'd gotten over it now. My father watched on, but something in his eyes was different. Longing, perhaps? He walked over to me, placing his hand on my shoulder.
"Good luck, my son." He said. "If you ever want to return home, We'll always be here, waiting."
I winked at him. "I know, Pa, I'll write home whenever I can, I promise."
He smiled weakly.
"Yusuke!" Thalia cried out. "Tell me all about your adventures! I wanna hear all of them!"
I waved. Will do, Thalia!"
The day of my departure was finally here and, to be honest, it was exhilarating. I fixed the position of my wolfskin cloak and shifted the weight on my knapsack, and I breathed in a breath of fresh air.
I waved. "Farewell! I love you all!"
And my journey began.
Chapter 1: The Adventurer's Guild!
"Quinn, you idiot!"
Soren looked around. Where the heck was her insolent brother? The last she'd seen of him, she'd been trading in their elvish currency for what the Kingdom of Delmorth called "global currency." The next moment, her fool of a brother was nowhere to be found!
She cursed. She knew this would happen the moment she took her eyes off of him. That dork was always disappearing, the escape artist. She thought for a moment. "If I were Quinn, where would I-"
Then her eyes spotted a certain building, and she knew.
Oh, she knew her brother far too well.
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What was this place?
So many new things, so much to do! So vivid, full of life!
And so incredibly terrifying!
Tatsuki ducked around, trying to find his way through the crowd of people, afraid to bump into someone. Judging by the looks of them, they didn't exactly take kindly to him.
"Where's your master?"
"Get back to your work!"
The words filled his head as he expertly navigated himself through the crowd. He was used to this talk. this was how everyone treated his kind. This was nothing new. He was almost to the town's gates when he was grabbed by the back of his shirt collar. Choking, Tatsuki clawed at his neck, trying to break free of whoever had him in his grip, and before he knew it, he was being dragged into some kind of building. Whatever- or rather whoever it was finally let go of his collar. Rubbing his neck, Tatsuki looked up. Looking at him was a young looking fellow wearing a loose fitted white shirt, a pair of loose fitted brown pants, and a funny looking hat. Tatsuki was still scared though. Standing at only a mere 5'4, Tatsuki wasn't exactly what you'd call imposing. But staring into Tatsuki's big, frightened sky-blue eyes was the tallest elf he'd ever seen.
{-}
I stared at the little… what was it, rat… human looking… thing?
No, not a rat. Its tail was too bushy to be a rat. What was it? I must've accidentally hooked onto his shirt collar while trying to steal that guy's wallet back there.
Great. Now how was I supposed to pay for the booze they got here?
I looked around. The Tavern was pretty full, not what I was expecting for a typical Wednesday. But, I thought to myself, It's a perfect way to blend in with the crowd.
I looked down at what I finally decided was a weasel… thing, and asked the big question I was dying to get out. "You got any cash on ya?"
{-}
"What?"
This wasn't the kind of question Tatsuki was normally asked. It was usually more of a derogatory taking whenever he was usually spoken to. But here this guy was, asking for money?
"N- No"
That was all Tatsuki could utter as he stared in disbelief and terrified shock at the elf.
"Dang," The elf said disapprovingly. "I thought I could squeeze something out of ya. I thought everyone had money in this town. Guess I was wrong."
The elf sighed deeply, but Tatsuki managed to just barely see his eyes darting back and forth. This guy wanted something out of him.
Tatsuki blinked. Wait a minute, this guy said everyone had money. Clearly he's never seen a therianthrope before. Like pocket money was a thing that his race could get! Unless one was in an extremely successful party, there was no possible way a therianthrope could get extra money. Tatsuki didn't even have money in general, let alone extra! He was here because he'd been trading skins from animals he'd hunted during the day. He'd been trying to get money, but the people who were nice enough to accept Therianthrope items would only trade for them, no more. It was a nightmare to begin with, and here was someone asking for money! The elf clearly didn't understand how Tatsuki's race was treated. The elf grabbed Tatsuki by the arm and dragged him over to the counter. Tatsuki struggled to escape, but an Elf's grip is surprisingly strong. And this one was no different.
"Hey!" the elf shouted. "Bartender! Over here!"
One of the bartenders, a tired, baggy eyed man who looked like he drank more of the bar's selection than all of his customers combined, Tatsuki noted, sauntered over to the elf.
"Whaahmbglegh." He mumbled some kind of language Tatsuki couldn't understand.
"Yeah…" The elf said, then grabbed Tatsuki by the neck, pulling him up onto the counter. I seem to have forgotten my wallet. Would you, perhaps, consider this… Um…" He looked down at Tatsuki. "Actually I don't know what the bloody heck this thing is… Rat? No… couldn't be… weasel? No. Anyway, want it?"
The other bartender, a female, looked over, and her eye caught Tatsuki, who was futilely attempting to wriggle his way out of the elf's grasp.
"What is that thing?" She asked the elf. "I dunno. You tell me." the elf shrugged.
"No, I mean… Ugh. What is it doing in this tavern?"
"I dunno. You tell me." The elf shrugged again.
"Those things are strictly prohibited inhere. Tavern policy."
"What?" The elf turned around. He'd been talking to a woman standing next to him this whole time, paying no mind to the furious bartender.
The female bartender turned to the other one. "Fred, you're done for the day." she said empathetically. "You can rest now."
"Mleblegthpppt." Fred, the other bartender replied with such little enthusiasm that one would think he was being mind controlled or something. "And you." She said with an evil glare in her eyes at the elf. "Had better get that thing out of here." she said, gesturing to Tatsuki.
The elf grinned stupidly. "And if I don't?" He challenged.
{-}
Well that was no fun. Those selfish bartenders in there wouldn't even consider my bargain!
"Bugger!" I said, Kicking a rock at my feet. I scanned the area for another tavern, but there were none in sight. I sighed and looked down at the creature, who was still trying to escape. Now what was I supposed to do with it? I still had him by the neck, so I decided that the first course of action was to let it go. So I did, grabbing its arm before it could get away. Next? Get acquainted with it.
"I'm Quinn." I said, sticking my other hand out towards it. It looked up at me, not knowing what to say. I decided to give him a boost of morale. "Your name, Dimwit." I said as encouragingly as possible. "Tell me your name."
"Tat- Tatsuki." it squeaked. "Could you… Uh… Lemme go?"
"Well, Tat- Tatsuki, looks like you and I have our work cut out for us." I said, not answering his question. "I want money. You want to be let go. I won't let you go until I have money. So, I think we can find something that will leave us both satisfied and fulfilled." I looked around, my eyes darting back and forth. Then I spotted it. It was perfect!
Tat- Tatsuki didn't think so, I could tell that much because it started squirming its way out of my grip. Ah, well. According to the way everyone saw it, it's opinions didn't matter.
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I counted the money I'd been rewarded. Fifty-two gold coins! That was a lot of money for a weird looking thing such as that thing. I put the cash into my pouch on my belt. This was too good! I grinned, the gold coins ringing against the side of my leg. I hope those slave traders could find a better use for it. I thought, satisfied with my bargain.
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I took a breath of fresh air as I stepped out of the armory back into the town. I looked around. There was still a lot I had to do. First, sign in to a guild. I walked through the busy street, looking for the guild, but I just simply couldn't find one. I saw a place that read Inntuition on the sign, and I had a gut feeling that that was the place. Most of the time, a tavern or inn doubled as the adventuring guild headquarters. If any place was gonna be a Guild in this town, Inntuition was probably it.
I walked in. For a Wednesday, it was pretty crowded, but I knew that this was definitely the place. There were adventurers everywhere here. I walked over to the counter, where a woman with fair hair was reading a book. She looked to be the sort of person who registered people to be adventurers. "Um… I've…" I'd been practicing what I'd say all morning, but all that was forgotten. I felt like an idiot! "I've… Come to register for adventuring."
The woman looked up from what she was reading, and for a moment, I thought I'd walked into the wrong place, but instead she said, "We don't really get many new adventurers through here, but welcome! You're actually the second person to join up this week." She said, brushing a strand of hair out of her face, First was… actually she's right over there. Why don't you two get acquainted, while I get you set up, ok?" she said, taking the forum I'd filed out before heading off to this town. I looked around at all the other adventurers merrily taking swigs of beer and ale. I didn't drink, so I decided to go over to the rookie adventurer, a young elf who looked to be around at least 20 years old.
"You're new too, eh?" she said, looking at me with a cold, intense stare in her eyes. This elf was hardwired for combat, and it showed. "If you've come to join my party, don't worry. You're in."
"What?"
She looked up at me. "You've a strong look about you. I can tell. I need someone like you on my team."
Sure, why not? I shrugged. I noticed her eyes were always elsewhere. Almost as though… "Are you looking for someone?" I asked.
She laughed briefly. "You could say that." she said. Suddenly, she tensed. "But not anymore." She spoke softly.
She got up, and snuck effortlessly over to the counter. Then, she grabbed someone sitting at the counter, and slammed him against it, his drink spilling out onto the wood. "There you are, you ****ing idiot! Where the **** have you been?" The person, well, actually, it was another elf, looked up at her with pleading eyes that wouldn't fool anyone. He belched. "I've… been around." He said innocently. "Don't give me that." She said, "I know you've… Hey, wait a minute. where'd you get the money to buy that?" The elf asked her companion. I was sure now they were companions.
"Some guys on the street. They gave me some."
"Bull**** Quinn, Where'd you get it?"
"I ain't no thief, Soren." the male elf wailed. I didn't steal nothin', I promise!"
"C'mon." Soren said, grabbing Quinn by the arm "We're gettin' out of here."
As Soren dragged the flailing Quinn out of the tavern, I got this weird feeling inside me. Just like that, I'd found my first party members!
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Soren didn't think she could be more livid at her brother until he casually mentioned that he sold a thing to some slave traders. Soren was appalled. She knew the lengths her brother would go for a drink, but this? This was way too much. She thought about that nice looking guy with that cloak. He was kind of peculiar, and he was even shorter than both Soren and Quinn. But he was strong. He had that hardened look in his eyes, like he didn't have anything else to lose... Quinn, who was still complaining, interrupted her thoughts. "It wasn't my fault, Soren!" He whined. "They gave me an offer for it that was so good, I really couldn't refuse, see, and I figured, 'why not? we're gonna need money anyway' so I sold it to 'em. Besides." Quinn was trying the unreasonable reason approach. "There's plenty of them around the woods, what's it's family gonna do, feel sad?" he said, removing his tunic mid sentence.
Soren glared at him. "That's enough, Quinn!" She hissed. Maybe a bit too harsh, Maybe not. He deserved it nonetheless. "Now I know what we're doing tonight."
"Partying at the tavern because of that amazing deal that I made?" Quinn asked hopefully.
"We're breaking it out, dimwit." she snapped.
"Great. Just what I wanted." Quinn wept dramatically.
Soren slipped out the window of our room. "If you're not by the entrance to the tavern in five minutes, I swear..." she warned him.
"Ok, ok." Quin pouted, then reluctantly began putting his clothes back on.
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I stared up into the night sky and thought about my plans for tomorrow. Watching the stars reminded me of Thalia back home. I decided not to think about it too much. I sat up and looked to my left. I jumped. That elf who recruited me to her party was right next to me! What was her name... Sora? Soren, that was it!
"You wanna go on a quest?" she asked me, a playful glint in her eye.
"Already?" I asked, still slightly startled from before. She pushed back a strand of hair. "Yeah, I... um... Got a quest earlier. Figured might as well start it up now."
"Uh, Yeah, sure." I said. getting up. I pointed downwards. "I should... probably... uh, get my armor from my room." I said awkwardly. "Um, yeah..." She agreed. "What were you doing on the roof anyway?"
"Oh! That! Um... Nothing."
"I see. well, see you down there." Soren said.
"Mhm. Oh, right. What's the quest?" I asked, and she laughed briefly. "Just some slave trader busting. You're gonna love it." She dropped down gracefully from the building.
Oh. All right. Slave trader busting. Sounds fun. How hard can it be?