About an hour has passed since Pebble shook the Throne Holder's hand. Afterwards, they simply went to the table and signed some contracts, took some more pictures and met some more gods that all seemed to have something to say.
Pebble's head was spinning as a massive amount of information had just been dumped on him all at once. Every god around him has been feeling his thoughts and analyzing his character. Several gods that he didn't even know came up and provided feedback on his fighting style, or thoughts on his feelings of guilt, reminding him that goblins are inherently creatures of evil.
More than once someone mentioned to him that he needs to keep his momentum after today. He had no idea what that meant, but simply nodded and did his best to show the utmost respect to each being around him. He's been through enough, he didn't want to offend anyone and end up with a whole new list of problems.
Another recurring pattern that Pebble noticed was that the ladies in the room kept giving him glances. He was unused to this as his old life, women would normally try to look the other way. He felt uncomfortable in his own skin.
'How do I stand? Am I slouching? What do I do with my hands?' His mind was racing again.
Glurt's hand appeared on Pebble's shoulder, startling him briefly, "Time's about up, kiddo. We will be sending you back home soon. Probably for your own good too, you can't control your thoughts and the ladies are finding it flattering. I, on the other hand, think you should find some hobbies or something to fill your time. Don't go down this path, little guy! I've seen it happen too many times. Good men get turned into pathetic little horn dogs, chasing tail all day."
Pebble laughed, "Are you sexist, Glurt?"
"How is this sexist? I'm simply saying don't fall for it." Glurt responded.
Pebble removed Glurt's hand from his shoulder, turned around and put his own hand on Glurt's shoulder. "It will be okay, big guy. Whoever hurt you can't get you here."
Glurt laughed, "If you weren't adorable, I'd melt your flesh, you little sack of sh*t."
Pebble stopped laughing and was about to apologize, but Artia appeared suddenly, "I hate to see you go, Little Rock, but we will be in touch." She flicked him a coin and he caught it. "Put that in your inventory and keep it safe." she said.
Pebble looked at the coin and questioned its purpose, but more pressingly, he had no idea how to access his inventory. His eyes began to twitch as he opened his menu and went to the inventory screen. It was blank. Pebble saw nothing but darkness when he had the menu opened.
"I really appreciate this quarter, but how do I put it in my inventory?" He asked Artia.
"First, it's not a quarter, it's a Coin of Communication. Second, simply hold it in your hand and breathe the item in through your fingers." She said pointedly.
"What? What does that even mean?" Pebble scratched his head.
"Just try it!" She smiled and looked at him expectedly. Pebble shrugged and held the coin in his hand and closed his eyes. After focusing for a moment, he started inhaling deeply. Nothing happened.
"What are you doing? Just absorb the coin into your inventory." She insisted. Pebble looked at her like she had two heads, but after a few more attempts, it finally happened. It felt like his fingers phased through the coin until his thumb and index were touching. The coin disappeared and when he looked back in his inventory menu, it was right in front of him, waiting for him to grab it.
A big smile appeared on Pebbles face and he ran over to the cute reporter in the red dress, Lilly. He quickly took the pen from the table in front of her. "Mind if I borrow this?" He asked, but immediately started focusing on absorbing the pen into his hand.
"Sure, hot stuff." The reporter replied as the pen entered Pebble's inventory. He was so focused on the task at hand that her comment completely went over his head.
The sensation was extremely odd, one second he was holding the pen, but the next it was being "breathed in" through his calloused fingers. He opened his inventory and the pen was right where the coin was. When he wondered where the coin went, the pen floated back slightly and the coin appeared in its place. He thought about the pen again, it moved back towards him and grabbed it.
Just like magic, the pen appeared in his hand. "This is amazing!" Pebble said.
The reporter looked taken aback by Pebble's little magic trick, but when he handed the pen back she simply smiled and accepted it.
Pebble rushed back to Artia with a big smile, "I put the coin in my inventory!" Lilly sighed and walked away after losing Pebble's attention.
"Good job!" Artia replied in a manner that would be suited for a child. Pebble felt kind of lame, but he was still excited about the future possibilities with his new inventory system.
"Does everyone on Tiamat have an inventory menu?" Pebble questioned.
"No, only Heroes have access to the system and its various menus." Artia pointed behind Pebble and he turned around to see the Throne Holder was waiting for him. "You should probably get going! If you ever miss me or need someone to talk to, just flick that coin." She winked and walked away.
'Did I just get her number?' Pebble thought. 'Wait, did I just get a god's number?'
The Throne holder power walked over to Pebble and put both hands on his arms , "Boy, you're being insufferable right now. Get your ass over here and say goodbye to the nice folks who you know can read minds. Don't make yourself look like a newborn." He sighed and relaxed his shoulders after seeing Pebble look down at the ground.
"Look, I know this is a lot. I'm unable to put myself in your shoes right now as I'm not a mortal. I'm not someone who has spent their whole life playing video games. I'm not someone who has to worry about rent, or girls, or a job, or hell, I don't even have to eat if I don't want to." He looked back at the hooded benefactors and waved. "My point is, we come from different worlds entirely, but I'm on your side. From today forward, you're not one person anymore, we are now 'Team Pebble' until the end. I can't explain much to you right now, but when the time is right and we are able to speak without unwanted ears, I promise we will talk. Actually, we'll do more than talk, I will train you."
"I'm going to be trained by a god?" Pebble asked.
"Listen Pebble, if my plan works… Nevermind, all you need to know is that I'm more invested in you than you'd think right now. Furthermore, I've been told that I have a rough exterior, so don't take it personally. I actually really care about your future as a person as well as a weapon. I know you didn't ask for any of this. Outside of bragging about being willing to take on double the challenge." He coughed, "But I've been waiting a long time to find the right person to bestow that challenge card to, and you were the only one that ever made sense. I could have given many others this power, but I didn't."
Pebble was genuinely shocked. Growing up he didn't really have a father, as his Dad died in the war when he was just a baby. The feeling he felt right now was exactly how he imagined a son would feel after hearing, "Son, I'm proud of you." Pebble's eyes went wide and he looked crazy as he sniffled and sucked in any tears before they could fall down his face.
"Thanks man, that somehow ended up being the nicest thing anyone's ever said to me." Pebble choked.
"Yeah, alright. Come on, let's say goodbye." The Throne holder replied.
—
Back in the City of Aegis, Bard, Fred and Phil had actually managed to locate a tavern that served both beer and fried chicken. They were all very happy for the find. However, what blew them away was when they entered the tavern, the interior was more akin to a modern day sports bar.
The building had flat screens, a stage with an amp and an open drum set, a full bar with beer taps and the waitresses had short skirts and small jerseys that said "Puffy's". It was a stark contrast from the cobblestone streets outside. The hostess stand was a statue of a gnome with bloodshot eyes smoking a pipe.
"Welcome to Puffy's! How many for your party today?" Asked the pretty hostess in the Puffy's uniform.
Fred was beyond happy, "Three!" The hostess went to grab some menus and he turned to his friends, "Guys, personal quest, I want to own this establishment."
"Oh yeah? I can see the appeal." Phil replied.
"Can we split it?" The intense look on Bard's face showed he meant business.
Right then, a beam of light pierced through the ceiling and right in between the group. The light vanished and Pebble arrived face first on the stone floor. He quickly got up and his nose fully healed itself like it did when he was in the city before.
"Hey guys." Pebble said with a forced upbeat tone. As he swallowed the pain.
"What the hell, bro? Look what you did to my roof!" Fred looked at him with a pair of his own bloodshot eyes.
The roof repaired itself as if on queue.
"Nevermind, we cool. Where you been, Alain?" Fred asked.
Pebble flinched, "Ouch, yo please call me Pebble. Sorry guys, I got summoned into a challenge thing. It's over now and they said I'm free, kinda."
"Are you good, man?" Bard asked as he offered his hand to help Pebble up.
Phil slithered in, "Welcome back, broski. We smoked those trials, how about you?"
"I passed." Pebble replied.
"Oh uh, waitress! Sorry, it's a party of four now!" Fred shouted. The waitress returned with four menus and asked them to follow her.
The party was seated at a table and the waitress switched the channel to a game of gnomeball. They sat in silence for a long while, processing the day and watched a sport they didn't understand, in a world that they couldn't comprehend. Life sure could change in a blink of an eye.