Chapter 72: Final Errands

I spent a great deal of time enjoying Jengal's company. Like Cassie, it soothes my mind and makes me feel better. Cassie was more calming, whereas Jengal was a distraction.

“Thank you Jengal, I appreciate you spending some time with me… I needed it.” I say from the heart.

He just smiles brightly, unperturbed by my emotional state. “No problem, go get some rest.”

He gives me a soldier's salute as I walk away. I nod back towards him in thanks. I start walking towards my home. Trying to walk straight while exhausted was a difficulty. Rubbing my heavy eyes, I realize normally I would be fine staying up for long periods, but today… was more mentally taxing than normal.

Pushing through my door with an impatient yawn, I head towards my bed. My mind finally settling into a modicum of peace. I feel nauseous at the thought of food, so I simply drink some water to quench my parched throat. Ignoring my stomach’s grumbling I head to bed.

I go to remove my armor… but freeze. “Maybe I will keep it on, just for tonight.” I feel safer within my armor. I simply remove my helmet so I can rest my head on something soft. Falling backward into my welcoming bed, I slowly slip into rest. Turning my head, I gaze out the window, seeing a grey overcast. It’s a very dreary evening; I wouldn’t be surprised if it rained.

I slowly closed my eyes. Fragments of my day slowly floated by the black abyss of my closed eyes. With a great deal of effort, I ignored the terrifying images. Eventually looking past them, I fall into that peaceful abyss of slumber.

I shoot up, sweating and shaking in nervousness. Slowly I come to my senses. I am in bed – safe. My head begins drooping into my hands as I slow my breathing. Looking out, I see a gentle rainstorm passing the window.

“What a nightmare!” It felt so real as I watched him… drain them. I shiver at the memory. If I had a dream journal, I would definitely neglect to write that within. Moving about in my bed, I feel the sticky sensation of my sweat riddled armor. I contort my torso at the feeling. “I can't sleep like this.” I quickly remove my armor before going for a bath.

Moving my arms under the water, I feel some of the oppressive tiredness disappear. I must have slept less than 2 hours. I feel exhausted. Leaning back with a ‘splash’, I sigh underwater. As I look at my arms, I start to see flashes of images. Red dirt on my hands. I scrub my hands but… it doesn’t come off. As it starts to hurt, I give up and lean back. Taking a second look, I see my hands free of red dirt. Just reddish from my scrubbing – odd. Getting out of my bath, I dry up and chill for a time. I gaze out the window at the steady ‘pitter-patter’ of the rain.

Eventually, I feel like I am ready to sleep. I head back to my bed, stepping over my armor. I fall back into my bed and close my eyes.

An indeterminate time later, I awaken. I’m not tired, just awake. Looking outside, I see a hint of dawn’s light casting long shadows along the ground. I guess I should get up. Rising to my feet robotically, I complete my morning routine. I sorely miss music… dragon radio! I know what I am doing today.

With a goal in mind, I feel my energy levels rise. Without missing a beat, I begin making breakfast. My favorite; omelets. I dice some onions, peppers, and coriander. Tossing it all into the egg mixture, I then pour out a circular omelet. I create some large curdles before letting the bottom set. I sprinkle a heavy hand of grated cheese on top before putting the whole thing in the oven. When it comes out, I find a crispy, browned, and cheesy omelet ready for me to devour.

Finishing the tasty meal, I sit back with a decent book, enjoying a small and short read in a writer's world. I lost myself within, enjoying the poorly written yet fulfilling story. It was a short story, I finished it in less than 2 hours.

I shake my head in acceptance. I suppose it's time to sort out the final job from yesterday. Pushing aside the intrusive memories of the previous day. I can't wait to forget about it forever.

Stepping through the telepad, I return to my true home. I slowly walk through the winding hallways. Realizing I am unintentionally delaying myself, I mutter “damn, fine; let's go.” Picking up my pace to a jog and then a sprint, I find myself in front of the ordinary door in record time. Immediately regretting my rash decision, I start panicking. “What do I say? What do I do? I don’t know!”

Unbeknownst to me, my entrance was heard. In the middle of figuring out what I should say, the doorknob slowly twists. Looking down, entranced by the change, I realize he is trying to leave. I did lock him in after all. Giving up, I just open the door. I am face to face with that same strong muscular man, now only donned in his underclothes. A quick glance shows my pink armor disposed of in the corner.

Properly looking at him, I see that the fire in his eyes is weaker. Not gone, but he is at peace. I suppose that food, water, and bedrest really improved his state. His skin looks less tight and more relaxed, and his face is softer and not in perpetual hate. His shoulders are lower, and he just generally seems less wound up.

“Hi…” I say as I weakly wave. He just nods very, very lightly. Continuing on, “How are you? I hope you are okay.” He just nods again, slightly slower than previously.

Walking through, I take a seat, and invite him to take one with a hand pat to sit down. He walks over and does so.

I lean back, thinking about what to say. Overthinking myself into a frown, I shake my head. “No point overthinking it.” Looking over to him, I speak. “I know what you experienced was… evil. I won't try and pretend it wasn’t. Just a glance messed me up. I will give you some iron armor and a little money and contact the mayor of my town to see if he can do something. I can't do anything here, not for you. I am not good with this kind of thing, I am sorry.” I feel a tear in my eye at the thought of what this poor man went through.

He silently contemplates what I said as I start removing the iron armor and handful of silvers. He slowly picks the items up and wears them.

Realization striking me like lighting, “Oops, I forgot to tell you.” Holding my hand out, “My name is Aeternum.” He looks at my hand for a moment, zoning out before grasping and shaking my hand with a weak grip.

“Okay, let's leave this place and get you sorted. I am sure the mayor is going to hate me for bringing him more problems, but I am no psychologist.” Lightly grasping his arm, I use the dislocator to travel to the building the mayor works from. Guiding the scarily muscular man through the smaller seaming doors, I approach the front desk.

The clerk looks at me with a smile, “Hi Aeternum, how are you?” I am getting sick of that polite term by now. Replying weakly, I say “I am okay, thank you.” I pause for a moment. “Sorry, no time to stay and chat. I need to see the mayor; my friend here needs some help.”

The clerk looks over me questionably before speaking. “You sure you need the mayor for that? I am sure I can get someone to help.”

Leaning forward to rest my head on my hands, “He was a part of a sensitive situation, I don’t want it getting out. The mayor will know what to do.”

Rolling his eyes, the clerk just replies, “Fine! Don’t blame me when the mayor is grumpy.” He says as he dramatically shrugs.

We quickly get called in. Stepping through the doors, I see the mayor is a pale husk of himself with deep bags under his eyes. “My god man, haven’t you slept?”

He shrinks into his chair before lightly placing his forehead on the desk. “No, I haven’t; thanks to you.”

Wincing in apology, I say “Sorry.” Letting him rise back up, I make eye contact. “This man here was one of the captives I rescued. Sorry, I didn’t know what to do.”

He just lets out a deep breath of air, “I will… get someone to see to him. Leave him here and leave me alone. I am too tired of your bullshit.” He says in such a calming tone I can barely notice how annoyed he is.

Before I leave, I turn to the man. “If you want to contact me, speak with the mayor about it.” I then excuse myself, hearing their muffled voices as I walk down the hallway. I feel really bad about dumping him on the mayor's lap, but I can't help him. He is likely very messed up from the situation.

Pushing the guilt to the back of my mind, I move on with my day. Heading back home I immediately craft a dragon radio. I place it down impatiently, only to see a… normal radio. This must be some kind of joke. I play around with the dials before pressing play, and music does come out. But, it's not music from home. A couple radio channels exist with music being played, but it's foreign, unfamiliar music. Not bad, but disappointing. I was so looking forward to enjoying some music from back home, but I suppose that was nieve.

Changing the channel a couple of times, I settle on some rocklike music. I enjoy the beat of actual music, but it sounds far less controlled and intense. It comes across as a below-average recording from a home musician. Not like studio-recorded and edited songs.

After a while, I ended up even dancing, poorly might I add, to the music from the radio. I just moved with the beat and got the blood pumping. I eventually ran around so much that I collapsed with a ‘bang’, out of breath. I could have stayed standing with willpower, but I didn’t want to. I just fell to the floor, breathing deeply, with the occasional childlike giggle. “Sometimes, I just need to feel alive.”

Having enjoyed myself a little, I get started on my rounds. Checking the island, I changed out the hoes from the farm. I took a long walk around while looking for things out of place. Adding some more materials to my deep mob learning and, finally, I ended my rounds by playing with my pets.

Chic acted like normal, but I noticed Sling was far cuddlier and more attentive than normal, making sure to always stay close and jump onto my lap to snuggle me. It's strange having a gelatinous creature try and cuddle you, heartwarming all the same. Chic looks at Sling's actions with curiosity and confusion. He pokes and prods the slime stuck to my chest. Eventually, she gets bored and starts chasing the ball I threw. Play fetch for a while, I enjoy some quality time with my pets.

Eventually, I head off, having enjoyed my time with them. Before removing the slime, I gently whisper to it “Thank you.” To which I got a jiggle in reply. With a smile on my face, I go prepare some lunch.

I start by thinly chopping some lettuce into ribbons. I add some chopped dill, a dash of mint, and coriander. I combine it all together before tossing it with cherry tomatoes, diced sweet peppers, and a few pickled jalapenos. I finished with some honey, salt, and olive oil, ready to enjoy a fresh and tasty salad.

Enjoying the refreshing and light meal, I settle into a comfortable seat to start painting. Taking out a large variety of paint, I start with broad brushstrokes of red, brown, and black. What I am painting, I don’t even know.