//------------------------------// // 30-Quests for the Feeble and Frail. // Story: This Beautiful Darkness Shall Protect Me... // by Timemaster //------------------------------// Hours pass of cleaning up the large planning room, where we plan our rise after I get some game among the people. He pushes me out the room afterwards, telling me to "go on a quest or something to improve the people`s view on me. He never told me how, but he shut the door behind me. I see a few large piles of paper being lifted by sailors, so I help them out. Another couple of hours pass as we dogged up the peace in silence, none of them asking my name. After finishing up the work in the tepui, I am finally allowed to leave work for a moment to 'find a quest or something that will make me a renowned citizen', which was repeated to me several times by the leader. I did not really listen to what he meant, though. I look around the hall as I am leaving. Though I am of a different species, the people around here seem not to care so much as I pass them down the hall. Each of them smelling of the sea, I could only guess that they were sailors. Probably the ones I saved, since they smelled of stale fish, not fresh fish. One of them opens the door for me, and I nod a thank you to him. On the outside of the tepui, I see ten or twenty more around me. A dirt path runs from the front of this door, so I follow it. If I am right, it should lead me to a place where there will be people awaiting me. Looking around while on the path, I see that the land seems very fertile, and even see some farmland off to the north. I wonder what the economic situation is here, considering that they did not seem to care much for a boat almost burning down. I mean, as I approached a cross-road, I saw a group of happy sailors, who I feel like I recall. Unlike the Ruby Dogs, these sailors look more rough and old than the others. I wave to them as they pass me, smiling a way I hadn't in a while. My mind wanders a bit as I walked passed the Ruby Dogs. These creatures, human-like in appearance, were still savages compared to humanity, but in a lovable way. They reminded me of my pet dogs, but smarter. I could get used to this kingdom... if it was a kingdom? 'Would this be a kingdom?' courses through my head for a bit. 'No, not really, but it would be a city-state,' I decided. Seeing a few large tepuis, each lined with small, cross-shaped, holes in them, I believe they must be protecting the town square-like thing. I scratch what remains of my black mustache as I jog a bit faster, for there is no use in wasting magic here. I look to my left, to the farmland way out there, and see quite a few houses. I never thought their population was large, but oh well. I arrive at the two tepui opening to the town square, and see beauty. Intricate metallic statues to Ruby Dogs fill the place, as if a cultural boom had happened, and the smell of magnificent food fills the air! I find it amazing that humongous murals pan across the backs of the surrounding tepuis, depicting a starry night and the arrow slits as stars. This is so outrageously stunning, coming from mutts, that I freeze in place. [Thunk] I fall face-first into the ground, but my magic prevents me from feeling pain. I almost curse, but I see a hand reach out to me. I take the hand, rising up by my own power, but I don't tell her that. "Thank you, miss." I say, my voice turned into a kinder one, but still sarcastic. I am angry, but I must behave to the local's wishes to get my deserved treatment. She, looking pretty young compared to the woman behind her, replies, "You're welcome, and I am sorry, Mister...?" "Just call me Allen, miss." I say, letting go of her hand. She look at me inquisitively, "So, what are you?" The older woman behind her pokes her, "What?" she says. The older woman facepalms. She blushes, looking at me, "Oh! I am sorry for not introducing myself," her blushing toned down, "I'm Vanessa Highlands, " she raises her fist, "adventurer supreme!" She looks proud now, making me realize she had armor on and more. She was a brown Ruby Dog, young yet strong, and had an entire suit of armor and a small shield on her. No weapon, though. "Well, I am Allen Travis, the herald," I rub my chin, "and I believe I am a better adventurer than you, missy." She looks at me with sly eyes, "You really think so, human? I've heard of your kind—magicless." "Then how about a duel?" I say, hoping it would boost my renown to beat a true adventurer. She did look healthy and her eyes were strong, so she must have done some good adventuring. She was about to say yes, but the old woman interjects, "She would, but she really has to go do her duties as a boun—" "Shh! I don't like that title!" Vanessa said to the older woman, who then proceeded to roll her eyes. "How about we do it along the way?" I say, my smile growing, "Money and renown would really help me right now." The older woman rubs her chin, holding the mouth of the younger woman in an astounding clamp of strength, "It would allow us to take the 3+ group bounties." "The what?" "Eh, that's the way all bounties are sorted ever since the black market got into the picture." "What happened?" "A great many things, but we have no time to explain such things. Come now, get about 20% of the total revenue." I rubbed my chin, this time actually pretending, "Sure, why not?" She motioned me to follow her, letting go of Vanessa's lips. She looked a bit angry, but not at me. She doesn't speak back to the older woman, and we just walk quietly down another dirt path down a place called "HAMMERFALL" on a sign that showed out direction. It made me feel like I had sentenced myself to something horrible. Thousands of lives keep on ending before my eyes, each of them going further back in time, and each of them giving me more and more clues as to what is going on here. Sadly, though, there remained only one that was extremely far from me by about a mile or two. It was huge, I was sure of that, for it is still growing after walking a half-mile. The picture grew bigger and bigger as I came closer, but unlike the others, it was already grey from here. I felt odd knowing this face, but I wished to know more. My little boat of knowledge of the origins of the charred man has sailed only a small bit of the large, expansive, ocean of history, and I wish to travel farther. Farther I went, until I finally reached the point of no return, seeing the colors of the picture enraptured me entirely. I could not look away from the face-melting horror that was shown... A man in regal blue clothing walks around his city, full of amazing sculptures and works of art about the newly discovered book of literature that was translated and spread through the city. Worshipping the many unfathomable gods, gifts and beings began to appear on their island. The amount of things that are changing drew most people mad for some time, but they calmed after a few months of speaking with the visitors from the deep. Many of our women have been given to the visitors as brides, which seemed to give everyone else a great many more of things. He looks to the sea, holding onto the safety bar from his tower that the kind visitors made him, seeing it teem with aquatic life. The sun was setting, showing a beautiful scene of the visitors and our men playing a good sport on the beach. He smelled the air, which was always crisp now, wishing to read a book at this hour. He picked up the flesh-bound book, reading the many tales within... He found an odd tale a few hours after midnight, and is astounded by it. It shows many things that make no sense, but do, to him. He walks downstairs to the alchemy lab that was made by the visitors, pouring everything that the book said he needed for a special kind of spell. A spell to become a god. Using all of his force, Wright looked away from the scene he felt would happen, but the picture followed him. Wright screams, but nothing comes out. The regal king drinks half the potion, he laughed, watching as millions of little orbs crawled on his skin. He did not laugh out of good fun. He watched as darkness surrounded him for a few moments, and muffled screams could be heard through the picture. The picture began to rumble and shake, faster every second, and suddenly snaps into two pictures. Wright began to cry, but he did not know why. Suddenly, the picture to the right depicted a young man in a robe, running down the stairs. He looks at his king, who seems completely fine. He says things to his king, but the picture cannot create sound. The king shows him the bottle, laughing, and explains something. The young man agrees with his king and picks up the vial. He chugs it down like a drunk, feeling his once beautiful mind shatter into nothingness... Wright's vision was covered in tears following this point, but he was forced to blink them out a few minutes later. On the first picture, the king was in mid-air along with his friend, both of them fighting over the volcano. Neither of them seemed to be winning, and their fight was only causing more destruction across the once beautiful city. After a flurry of shining globs are fired from the king, the young man creates an air-shield, sending the globs straight down. Into the active volcano. [Gurgle...] The young man looked at the volcano, horrified at what he had done, but was hit by a glob from the king, sending him flying straight up into the sky, the king laughing. The king, no, his entire island being covered in smoke in only a second as it sunk somewhat into the sea. The young man, still loving his king, tried to fly into the smoke to get him, but the smoke ate at his power, as it had been tainted with anti-magic globs, and he began to fall. His last vision was being burned alive before falling to the bottom of the sea. Wright then got up from the floor, his tears stopping, and he looked to the blank right picture. He closed his eyes and ran... After getting a 'Wanted' poster (that she did not show me), Vanessa began talking to a sailor a meter or two away. I looked to the old lady. "What is your name, miss?" "Ah thought you would never ask," she said, smiling, "I am Janet, Vanessa's mother." "She brings her mother on adventures?" "Think of it as a family tradition, even back when we were just Diamond Dogs." "That sounds interesting." "Yeah," she said, coughing a bit, "it is." I look back to Vanessa, "What is she doing?" "Just trying to get us a boat to whatever island she chose to raid." "Raid?" I say, my face turned back to her, surprised, "I thought she was a bounty hunter?" "She is, but this is the black market we're dealing with," she clears her throat,"they like to hide on random islands, but they are generally easy to take out, for most are ponies or griffons." "How many have you taken out?" "Me?" she asks, I nod, "About fifty this year, to give perspective." "What month is it?" "I believe it is October." "Huh," I rub my chin, "how would you react if I said I could kill them all if I wanted to?" She rolls her eyes, "But then we wouldn't be paid for the kills." "I guess not," I say, nudging her. Vanessa walks back to us, "We got a boat!" 'Hopefully this one doesn't get sunk.' I think, smiling at Vanessa.