Having gotten everything prepared Bethany would be lying to herself if she didn't admit she had slightly expected a rapid response time from her request. After all there were so many planets with so many people on surely somebody would be ready for her mission any minute and yet despite that nobody was arriving. The first day she spent constantly on edge, checking over her shoulders every 30 seconds or so to see if somebody new had appeared and was ready to get her mother out. Pete was much the same. Whenever Bethany had got out of his sight for more than a moment when she reappeared, he would eagerly enquire if somebody had appeared yet. The answer was always a disappointed no, and the pair would get back to their meandering conversation where neither was paying any real attention, and both would frantically look around at the mere suggestion of movement dropping whatever half thought out topic they had been discussing without either noticing.

That evening they were similarly stressed. After all what would happen if the Trial was initiated while they slept? The pair wanted to stay up for as long as possible or even take shifts but they both had been up late the evening prior, and sleep was calling their names in a tone they couldn't resist. By lunchtime the second day Pete had lost his sense of urgency in the situation. He still checked in whenever they had been apart a while, but he no longer sprinted about with wild abandon and would allow himself to leave Bethany for longer periods of time. It took Bethany until day three for her to personally lose that obsessive drive. Until that point, she had still been checking her screens obsessively pulling up the Sponsored Trial screen to check if it had changed from the pending display that also stared back at her. She started to relax again and accept it wasn't going to happen on her schedule no matter how much she willed it. As her mother had said, a watched kettle never boils, and she was watching this so-called pot like a hawk.

Eventually on the fifth day something changed. The pair were sat for their morning meal, having finished their work out, when a hand reached across the table to grab a roll off the table from below it. Bethany went to slap it, assuming it belonged to a small child hoping to steal away a meal of their own. However, the hand deftly dodged the slap, somehow also grabbing another further roll as part of the fluid movement. The hand was attacked to a short figure who hopping up and joining them at the table.

It was a short man, a very short man, with a long beard that resembled seaweed more than tradition hair. He wore a black outfit that was very form fitting but exposed at the neck. Far more attention grabbing though, at least in Bethany's opinion, was the fact he was eating her breakfast. Bethany was ready to snap at the man, she was so hungry from the work out that she didn't connect the dots until she received a sharp elbow to the ribs from Pete. This caused her to re-examine the man and take in his nameplate. An act that still hadn’t quite become automatic for Bethany despite her time spent on planets where it was commonplace to do so. After all habits take a while to learn no matter how exciting and different, they are at first. [Swimmer Simon Pearsival, 13] she read. Clearly this was the person they had been waiting to arrive. Bethany immediately forgot about the food theft situation and instead was eager to begin talking to the short chap. Whenever she tried to speak to him however, he held up a single finger and pointed to his mouth that somehow was constantly full of food. Fortunately, the man ate like a thing possessed and in no time all the food that had been on the table had vanished, though neither Bethany nor Pete were feeling more full from the situation.

Having finished eating the man wiped his whole arm across his mouth smearing off some of the breakfast residue but smudging more into his tangled beard. He then offered that same hand towards Pete to shake. Pete pointedly didn’t take the offered hand but instead gestured to Bethany. To his credit the man quickly rectified his mistake and took his hand out to Bethany to shake, which she did.

“Simon Pearsival at your service, but you can call me Pearsival, here for a rescuing Sponsored Trial. My rates are a flat 3 Credits for 15 days work. After which we will have to renegotiate.”

Bethany was taken aback by this forwardness. Was this how most people entered Sponsored Trials? The deal seemed reasonable. After all, 15 days’ work was commonly accepted to be 5 Credits, or at least that was what she had been told. Personally, she hoped it wouldn’t take that long, but she was willing to pay that much to get her mother back. In fact, she realised she was willing to pay more.

“I'm Beth. Counteroffer: 10 Credits but you break her out within the next 5 days.”

Pearsival shook his head. “I’m not saying no, that’s a very attractive offer but I would need more details before I accepted such a thing. After all the case might not even be possible in 5 days.”

Bethany quickly outlined the situation to Pearsival who had pulled out a small pad of paper and was making notes. Occasionally Pete would chime in with a small detail but primarily it was Bethany’s show and he respected that.

“Okay, okay” Pearsival said “If the details you’ve given here are correct-“

“They are” Pete chimed in causing an annoyed look from the short man.

“IF they are correct I can guarantee to break her out within 5 days for the offered 10 Credits.”

Bethany was over the moon and quickly shook on it. This caused the Sponsored Trial screen to pop up. Bethany was dismayed to find it was much more detailed when she was the one who had issued the Trial. She’d had access to all this extra information about Pearsival and the situation but hadn’t thought to check it. Fortunately, she doubted it would have made any real difference to her approach to the situation.

Name

Simon Pearcival

Visible title

Swimmer

Level

13

Sponsored Trials

10

Relevant Skills:

Rescuing (uncommon)

7 (35 Trial Credits)

Stealth (common)

4 (23 Trial Credits)

Daggers (common)

5 ( 29 Trial Credits)

Sponsored Trial: Rescuing (uncommon) 7

Rescue Susanna Oakfenny.

time limit: 5 days

Reward: Rescuing Trial Credits (0-10), 10 Trial Credits

Concentrate here to cancel Trial (warning cancelling the Trial will be reflected on you and consequences may follow)

Both Bethany and Pearsival were getting up from the table to go look around the prison when Pete interrupted, he'd stayed as silent as he could, but it was clear from the way he was bouncing his leg that he had been burning to say his peace for quite some time.

“Sorry I know this isn’t all that important right now but how are you after such a specific skill. I mean the chances of you having such a high-level rescuing skill seems so unlikely. Are you constantly going around saving princesses from towers like in the stories?”

Pearsival paused for a little while clearly deliberating over his answer before respondinhg.

“We lot are the Merwarfs and our young remain as more fish than man until they mature and take on a more bipedal look like I'm sporting.” At this he gestured to the gills on his neck, that neither of the others had noticed before. They seemed to be covered in a thick goopy substance.

“While our young are still, well young, they more resemble fish and are deprived of reasoning. They are also seen by some cruel people to be a delicacy in much the same way some cultures like young animals or those reared in a controlled environment. There is a particular market on the land, among the richest and cruellest of people, for capturing a young merwarf and keeping them in captivity until they are showing signs of maturing. Then then are slaughtered allowing for maximum food gain before our young become officially sapient, a line even they aren't willing to cross. As such we train small squads whose job is to be ready and able to rescue these young cutting down all who stand in their way."

Both Bethany and Pete had turned slightly pale at the story. Neither had expected quite such a tragic or bloodthirsty story to come out. Bethany quickly explained to the man while she wanted her mother out, she wasn't willing for anybody to be killed or permanently hurt for such a thing and got him to promise not to use lethal force. She also vowed to herself to avoid all fish, if possible, in the future. She was aware it wasn't the species as pearcival she would in all likelihood be eating but still for the time being at least she had been turned off from the concept. Pete stayed in the inn. Partly to digest what they had just heard but primarily because he didn't want to get in the way. He'd have suggested Bethany hung back too and let Pearcival do his work if he wasn't 100% certain Bethany would ignore him and be angry at him for the suggestion. He watched them leave and moved to pay as Bethany pushed Pearsival towards the door trying to rush along the situation.

Bethany stood outside the prison and took it in as if looking at it for the first time. She tried to picture it like she imagined a burglar or spy would. Somebody from one of the books she had read. She kept jumping form plant to plant trying to be hidden from the guards and instead drawing not inconsiderable amounts of attention towards herself. Pearcival on the other hand was generally trying to remain inconspicuous something not helped by Bethany occasionally darting over to inform him of an irrelevant detail she had noticed that she thought would prove critical but in actuality was completely irrelevant.

Eventually, when a stage whisper from Bethany had drawn the attention of a number of guards in their general direct Pearcival snapped at Bethany.

“You don’t actually have to be here for this bit you know. If anything, you are slowing me down. I’m not paid to baby sit.”

Feeling put out Bethany quickly left, not wanting to argue and distract him further. Instead, she went to find Pete and convinced him to talk about anything and everything to distract her from the situation at the prison she was powerless to do anything about. To his credit he quickly picked up on what Bethany needed and began to regale her with stories of exploits from his youth. Stories that weren't big deals but helped pass the time and pointedly weren't to do with his family or anything else that might remind Bethany of the current situation.