Puffy led Fred, Phil and Bard through the woods, east of Kris. He would occasionally stop and cast a quick spell to locate Pebble and his new unexpected ally. The sun was still rising in the sky, so the team knew they had ample time to clear out the goblin cave.
Puffy just got done casting his Ping skill one last time, which consisted of him waving a wand in the air and then pointing it straight up until he received a mental signal from the rods, "Alright boys, Pebble should be just up ahead. He has a new friend with him and we need to vet this guy before Pebble gets screwed over. He trusts the man, but he also only has 5 intelligence and charisma points, so I don't trust his judgment." He declared.
"Yeah, I'm not sure about this. Let's get in there." Bard said urgently.
"Are you stressed? I mean, he should be safe right? He contacted us and has been flicking your rods this whole time without an issue." Fred pointed out.
"Never talk about Pebble flicking my rods ever again please." Puffy said dejectedly.
"You guys are taking too long! He could be in trouble!" Phil said before darting through the bushes, towards the direction of his good friend.
"Didn't see that coming. Guess we follow suit!" Bard shrugged and chased after Phil.
With Phil and Bard running off ahead, Puffy began to follow, but stopped and looked back at Fred, "Want me to walk with you?"
"Nah, I'm good, go off ahead. I'll be there shortly." Fred said with a smile. Puffy shrugged and ran off. Fred was now alone.
"Alrighty, time to test out some new sh*t!" Fred said excitedly. He spread his stance and put his arms out in front of him as he began channeling his Sentient Tool skill. After a moment of intense concentration, Fred pulled out Pebble's Mana Stone and began absorbing its energy. Finally, a wheelchair appeared floating in front of him.
The chair bobbed with joy as it beheld its creator, "Hello little guy! Look at your big beautiful wheels! They will do much better than my feeble old legs!" Fred cheered to his new companion and the chair jumped with joy at its newfound purpose. Fred beckoned for the chair to lower onto the ground and it did so with glee. He sat down and the chair vibrated with joy as it held its master.
"Perfect! Okay, buddy, bring me that way!" Fred pointed to where his friends ran and the chair began to roll forward at a rate comparable to their running speed. It attempted to get off the ground and float instead of wheeling its way over, but Fred weighed too much for it to fly. "This is great! Look how fast we're going!"
The chair squeaked its wheel in response, "Here's the real test, I put two additional points into the Sentient Tool skill, which is awesome for you, but I also unlocked a new Skill." Fred informed the chair and it waited with anticipation.
"Here it goes, a little skill called Wind Gust!" Fred summoned his staff and let it rest on his shoulder, aiming it behind him. He braced on to the chair and activated the skill.
—
Pebble and Larry sat on top of the downed log. They heard rustling in the bushes and both looked up. Phil, Bard and Puffy appeared in view and Pebble cheered, "Aha, hey guys!"
"Hey, we made it." Bard announced.
"Are you good, bro?" Phil asked Pebble.
"Yeah, I'm great!" Pebble replied as he dismounted the log.
Puffy was about to say something, but was interrupted by the sound of whistling winds. Suddenly, Fred shot out of the bushes at incredible speeds. He was riding a wheelchair and shooting wind backwards out of his staff. The wind lifted everyone off the ground and flung them back, except for Pebble, who struggled but ultimately succeeded in holding his ground.
Fred continued forward wildly until his trip was ended by the very same ditch that Pebble triggered the trap in. The sharp log had since been removed, but Pebble's blood was still a prominent feature. Fred landed sprawled out in the middle of Pebble's blood and the wheelchair was folded laying next to him. Both were slightly damaged, but nothing serious.
The team came rushing over to the ditch and looked down at Fred, "Holy sh*t, what the f*ck just happened? Did Fred just die!?" Phil yelled as he looked at the bloody pit.
"No, I'm alive," Fred groaned.
"That looked like fun." Puffy said thoughtfully.
"It was," Fred grunted.
The team assisted Fred to his feet and Pebble gave the original members of the team their new Life Rocks. Once they were done dusting off, they looked at each owner blankly.
"Huh, now what?" Bard asked.
"Pebble said he has a map now." Puffy shrugged, "Let's see it!"
"Well, I don't have the map. That would be my new friend, Larry!" Pebble responded.
"Hello everyone!" Larry said happily.
"What's your story?" Phil asked while peering at Larry wearily.
"Not much of a story, really. I've been down on my luck for a while. Ended up doing some smuggling to get by. Recently I found a job working as a pack mule for some thugs and that sucked. Found the almighty chosen one, and well, the rest is history!"
"The chosen one?" Bard laughed.
"Yeah, what's this nonsense about?" Puffy scoffed.
"Don't insult us like that, please. This is my religion. Pebble has been chosen by the Great Mountain God Reeki. I worship Reeki." Larry shrugged, "Meeting Pebble was fate for me. This is clearly my calling in life." He said nonchalantly.
"Uh," Bard looked at Puffy for guidance. "Does that check out?"
"Well, I definitely heard Pebble's announcement when he was summoned, but I didn't think much of it." Puffy looked at Pebble, "Is it true?"
"Yeah, I have a couple gods who sponsor me or something. I'm not quite sure how it all works." Pebble omitted any information about being watched. He was not ready for any potential discussion that might follow that.
"There's no way you're already involved with the inner workings of the gods. Are you lucky or unlucky?" Puffy said incredulously.
"I feel like it's a two sided coin to be honest." Pebble said earnestly.
"I told you guys Pebble would be fine!" Fred said happily.
Larry held up a hand, "I do want to say, if I were in your shoes, I'd also be weary of me. I'd like to do you a favor by disarming myself as a token of trust. I truly feel like my path has led me to this place for a purpose. The dread I felt moments ago has been replaced with pure hope as I have met my Messiah!" His face appeared to be full of bliss as he looked up at Pebble. He looked like a child staring up at his father.
Pebble shrugged, "Look guys, I know it feels sudden, but I trust this guy. Also, I overheard him talking about wanting to run away and start a new life. It's a win win!"
"Okay fine, we can accept him for now, but you need to have him become an official squire." Puffy nodded sagely, "Squires are required to sign a soul oath to their masters. I'd feel a lot better once that's the case."
"That sounds horrible." Pebble shook his head, "He doesn't need to sell his soul."
"I didn't know you were a Knight! Consider it done! I'd be honored to be your squire!" Larry smiled.
"Perfect, you two sort that out. For now, can I please see the map? You said the cave was closeby?" Puffy held out his hand.
"Absolutely! Here," Larry handed the map over and watched as Puffy opened it up, "The goblin cave should be around here. My associates should have arrived there not too long ago. They are probably doing half of your job for you right now." He sighed, "Violent bastards."
"Cool, let's set course. We need to clear out this cave and report back. How strong are your friends that you think they can take on hobgoblins so easily?" Puffy asked Larry.
"Hobgoblins? There were only normal goblins at the cave when we visited." Larry suggested.
"The report says they had hobgoblins in the area, so maybe they were just gone when you were there?" Fred speculated.
"Hmm, well in that case, then my associates are probably dead." Larry said without any sign of pain or guilt.
"Are you okay with that?" Puffy asked him.
"They shove me to the ground whenever they needed to use my backpack. They've never once asked me to open it up and just hand them whatever item they wanted. That was the job I agreed to, they literally could have just asked me." Larry looked forlorn for a moment, but he snapped out of it, "Whatever, everything happens for a reason right? I hated that job, I stayed for as long as I could, and just when I was about to say f*ck it, I met Pebble. When I look at it with this perspective, it was all just a means to an end." Larry said as his shoulders relaxed. Having voiced his thoughts out loud, he felt like a burden had been set free.
"That flies with me," Puffy conceded.
"Honestly, it felt like therapy for a moment there. Thanks for asking," Larry smiled.
Pebble gave Larry a pat on the back, "I'm happy you signed up to be their pack mule, Larry. Let's reach out to the King and figure out what the process is to make you my squire."
Larry looked at Pebble in wonder, "I don't believe you understand just how much this means to me. Thank you again, Sir Pebble"