At the farm, Korrom had stayed busy. A small alchemy lab stands on his kitchen table, with flasks bubbling and seething. It’s an impressive setup, but judging by his grinder he’s an accomplished tinker. Tiene is going to be annoyed that I left her behind.

As soon as he sees me he lifts a pair of goggles from his eyes.

“About time you made it back. What did you find?”

I hand him the packages, and he spreads them out across the table. Some hemming and hawing later, he turns back to me.

“Time to make a decision boy.”

He points to the first batch, a purple tinged puffball mushroom.

“The Blowhat will create a volatile mixture. I’ll put it on a bottle for you, and when the bottle breaks, gas will fill the closest area. It won’t kill anyone outright, but anyone who breathes it in will need magical healing to breathe properly again.”

The next batch is the Orcwart. A knobbly brownish green growth.

“This will kill a person if it gets on naked skin for too long. I’ll extract the active ingredients and mix it with some grease. Don’t touch it without gloves.”

He points to the last open bag. The polkadot red Common Flycap.

“Using the flycap is trickier. It’s not nearly as poisonous as it’s reputation insists, but it has to be ingested to have an effect. I can turn it into a paralytic poison easily.”

Turning towards me, his eyebrow raised, he waits for my decision.

I’m not sure about killing them. They talk like they’d happily kill us, but that’s all it is so far, talk. Killing them with poison would be premeditated murder, in cold blood. I discard that idea. The flycap seems the safest choice, if I can get it into food. It really depends on whether they’re about to eat or not. I’m tempted by the Blowhat for it’s simple delivery. It’ll make it hard for them to come after us, and they won’t heal until we’re miles away. The only problem is Yadra. If she’s around, I don’t want her to be caught up as collateral damage. If she eats a paralytic, I can just carry her with me until she wakes up.

“Make the Flycap poison. I think that’s the safest choice.”

He nods, a look of relief in his eyes.

Your standing with Korrom Gennet has increased to Accepted.

“It’ll take me an hour to finish the dose. Go make yourself useful in the field while I work.”

He turns around with a grunt, indicating that we’re done talking.

***

Working the field is nice. Nobody dying, no pressure to perform, nobody shouting at me.

“Come on up here you waste of good air. It’s done!”

I let out a suffering sigh as I put away the hoe. One of these days.

Korrom has removed his mad alchemist garb, sporting a simple leather vest and dark trousers. A bandoleer crosses his chest with several knives, and a vicious looking meat tenderiser is hanging from his belt.

“Let’s go.”

He starts moving, only turning back when her realises I’m not following.

“What’s the matter, lost your virtue to a scarecrow? Daylight is burning, and we should get there before supper if you want to get anything useful done.”

I shake my head at him.

“You’re not going.”

His eyes show shock.

“Are you serious? You can’t take on a job like this without backup. Who’s going to make sure you’re not ambushed and beaten? Who’s going to secure your escape!?”

I clap my arm on his shoulder.

“If I die, I come back. If you die, you’re gone. Simple as that. If I fail, we get another chance. Give me the bottle and keep a light burning for me. I’ll be coming in hot, and I’ll be bringing company.”

He mutters a curse under his breath, condemning a substantial portion of my innards to a state of restless hell as he hands over the little glass container. The liquid inside is clear, slightly viscous and when I hold it against the night sky, vaguely luminescent.

“I added a touch of fairysugar. It’ll mask the bitterness of the poison. Don’t worry, the food won’t glow, though they might be startled the next time they urinate on purpose.”

We chuckle a bit and shake hands before I leave.

***

The mill is a fair walk away, and I get there as the sun starts setting. The red moon grows larger in the sky as the lumberjacks light lanterns along their huts and camps. There are a good hundred people here, spread across twenty odd camps. I go to the most solid building I see with a smokestack and check inside.

There’s a large room with tables, counters and a kitchen, with a storage area to one side. Five men are scrambling to cook a meal larger than anything I’ve tried to do. I saunter in and catch the attention of one of the cooks.

“Hi there, I’m looking for a couple of friends of mine.”

The man doesn’t even slow down as he heads to the storage area. A minute later he’s back with a large sack of potatoes.

“Sorry, excuse me, could I just have a moment…”

The biggest man there turns to me, bright red.

“Does it look like we have a bloody moment?! Either pick up a knife and start chopping or get the hell out!”

Used as I am to work time abuse, I put my gear to one side and accept his challenge. I find their pace much faster than what I’m used to, but I have enough skill to keep up with them.

Your standing with the Hogsmudd Lumbermill has increased to Above Neutral.Skill increased: Cooking.

After the food has been prepped and cooking is underway, the atmosphere relaxes noticeably. The biggest man, Bontar, turns out to be the head chef.

“Thanks for your hard work stranger. What is it you wanted earlier? Looking for a friend was it?”

I smile as I clean off another knife.

“No problem at all. I came into your kitchen at a bad time, least I could do is work for a favour. I’m looking for a man named Fred. Pointy face, ratty moustache, a bit unkempt these days.”

Bontar screws up his face in disgust.

“You’re a friend of that piece of filth? I may have to scrap the food you’ve touched then.”

I start laughing, and he joins in nervously after a moment.

“I get it, he’s a total knob. Lets just say I he owes me an apology or two, and I aim to collect.”

Grabbing a nearby meat cleaver, I flourish it the way Yadra had a few days ago. Bontar smiles at the thought.

“Ah, that makes a lot more sense. Him and his buddies are holed up in a camp outside the main site. They stay up late making noise, so nobody wants to stay too close to them.”

He points me in the right direction, and I thank him.

“Any time friend. If you need a job, I’d be happy to take you on as an apprentice. Any man willing to work like you would be an asset.”

I hurry towards the campsite, careful to stay out of the main paths. When I get to the edge of the mill site, I move into the bushes to stay hidden. Soon, I’m near their tent. It’s a larger affair than I’d expected, easily the size of a small cabin. A large central tent of rough canvas was flanked by three side tents of a white material I couldn’t identify. The entry was more ostentatious than the ones in the main camp, leading me to wonder just how these guys could support themselves, considering their work ethic. I sneak closer to wait for my opportunity. Inside, I can hear Fred speaking to someone.

“I don’t know, you don’t seem that into it. Maybe I should just go back home.”

He laughs raucously, making me cringe. Is he talking to Yadra now? I hold the bottle of flycap poison in my hand, feeling some regret that I didn’t pick the more vicious options. Without warning, the world explodes in pain, and I pass out.

***

HP: 80%You are stunned (15s)

As the debuff counts down, I find myself being dragged by my feet into the tent. I see the tall form of Lout pulling my weight as if I weighed nothing.

You are no longer stunned.

He drops my legs when I’m in the middle of the large tent, and I sit up carefully. The back of my head hurts like hell. Fred has the good grace to look surprised to see me. Leaning forward he grins.

“Well well, if it isn’t our old friend cabbagehead. What brings you here?”

Sal comes in from one of the other tents, adjusting his crotch with a grim smile.

“Sal, we have company. Don’t gross out the poor man.”

Lout bends down and lifts me up by my shirt. As I’m hanging there, Fred searches me quickly, removing the dagger he left with me. In the corner, I see Torg eating a piece of fruit, intently ignoring what’s happening here.

“Oh ho, I think he’s just here to return my knife. And he even cleaned it!”

Sal stands behind me as Lout puts me down. I ball my fists, staring at Fred.

“What’s the matter friend, nothing clever to say this time? Where’s that silver tongue of yours?”

I look at the others. Their eyes are gleaming with savage joy.

“Is Yadra here?”

Fred's smile grows wider.

“Yadra the bar wench? Or, just a wench now, I guess. She’s been in our employ for the last few days, earning her keep. Isn’t that right Sal?”

Sal lets out a wicked chuckle.

“You should let us go. Maybe we’ll let you off with a warning. I’ve got the sheriff coming soon.”

This makes Fred and Sal laugh. Lout makes a wheezing, clucking sound.

“I don’t think you appreciate the situation you’re in, little green man. A quick lesson is in order.”

Sal pushes me forward, right into Louts waiting uppercut. I fold like a sack of potatoes, curling up as much as possible as kicks and punches rain down on me. My only solace is that I’ll probably respawn in a nice bed somewhere. I lose consciousness after I lose count.

Ability increased: Endurance.Ability increased: Endurance.Skill discovered: Resilience.Skill increased: Resilience.

***

I wake up with more pain than I’d expect. My health is at 40% with no sign of regenerating. I look at my debuffs.

Severe beating- After a severe beating, your max health has been temporarily reduced by 30%.- Time remaining: 24 hours.

Bruised kidneys- You will be peeing blood. Max health reduced by 20%.- Time remaining: 12 hours.

System shock (mild)- Your system has received a shock. Max health reduced by 10%- Time remaining: 1 hour.

I groan while I’m looking around this new room. There’s an unwashed aroma here, and it’s too dark to see any details.

“My hero awakens. Dumbass.”

Yadra’s voice seems less than impressed.

“I don’t know why they let you live. Maybe they want to have some more fun with you. I don’t think I’ve seen Fred do that much exercise since… Ever.”

I try to sit up, finding myself hogtied.

“A little help?”

She snorts.

“And put myself in the line of another beating? No thank you.”

I wriggle around a bit until I find a more comfortable position. This is not the life I signed up for.

“What are you doing here anyway? There’s no way you’ve come here just to set me up again.”

A laugh turns into a painful cough.

“Heh. I owe you a favour, remember? I’m not going to make excuses for what happened, but there’s no way I’m going to let you hold that over my head.”

Another snort turns into a giggle. Then a brief sob before she goes quiet.

“I’m not getting out of here. Even if I did, there’s nowhere for me to go. I may as well stay here where my skills are appreciated.”

My answer is interrupted by a person coming into the tent. The shape of Torg is briefly visible against the light. He moves to Yadra, handing her a tray.

“Here. Use this to clean yourself. Help him too. There’s a little food there as well.”

He turns to go.

“Wait, Torg was it?”

He stops without turning back. I wriggle around until I can see him.

“Are you happy here?”

Yadra kicks me lightly, but Torg doesn’t answer. He doesn’t leave either.

“If you help me, I can help you. You want to leave here? I can take you with me. You’re big and strong. I could use someone like you where I’m going.”

A shuffling sound from his direction.

“I can’t. Can’t leave my ma.”

I can sense the bitterness in his voice.

Skill increased: Social Perception.

“Then help us take out Fred. People like him are all pride. If we humiliate him badly enough, he’ll leave on his own.”

Another shuffling sound.

“He’ll hurt my ma.”

Yadra puts down the tray and moves closer.

“Torg, you’re not like them. Listen to Tee, he’ll have a plan.”

He turns back towards us, kneeling next to me.

“How?”

“Outside, where they found me. Search the ground. You’ll find a bottle. Put that in the food, and they’ll all go to sleep. It won’t kill them.”

He nods, grabbing my hand.

“I’m sorry. I’ve spent too much time here. Scream.”

You have received 10% damage.

There’s a crushing feeling as he closes his fist around my hand. I scream. Yadra shouts. Torg leaves the room to the sound of laughter coming from the main tent. Yadra sits next to me comforting me as much as she can.

***

The noise increases from the other side of the tent flap for hours. My health creeps back up to 50% and I feel much better. Suddenly the tent goes quiet, and Yadra sneaks across the room to look into the main segment. She turns back to me with a strange expression.

“I’m going to leave now. Maybe we’ll meet again one day. Torg will release you.”

I shout after her.

“Wait, no! Come with me instead. We’ll work together again, but this time we’ll keep the profits, we’ll make the decisions.”

She laughs, a strange, sad sound.

“I don’t think that’s a good idea. I come with a lot of baggage. I forgive your debt though. I forgive you for your mistake. I’ll take care of Fred as well, no need for you to dirty your hands.”

Your standing with Yadra has increased to Friendship.Your debt to Yadra has been repaid.

She leaves the room. From the other side of the tent I hear a shocked expression. Torg is shouting. Something is thrown. Then silence, before he comes running into the room with me.

“Quick, you have to come. She… She…”

He stutters, unable to continue the sentence. With trembling hands he unties me, and I stretch before running into the tent. There’s a lot of blood here. Sal and Lout are both lying on their faces, cuts on each of their legs. She severed their achilles tendons. Fred had a much worse experience as he’s sitting in his chair, his feline grin frozen on his paralysed face, tears running down his chin. Blood is running down his leg without signs of stopping.

“What the fuck! Torg, lay him out flat.”

I spend the next while stopping the bleeding. When he seems stable enough, I run and get the local medic. Thanks to the nature of sawmills, he had experience with bad cuts and managed to stabilise him completely. We were questioned for a while, and Torg gave up Yadra as the perpetrator. I disapproved, but wasn’t really in a position to disagree. Eventually we were let go. On our way out of the mill I stopped Torg.

“Look, you’ll need some work to support yourself and your mother. How do you feel about working at an inn?”

Skill discovered: First Aid.Your standing with Torg has improved to Like.

Quest update: Help staff the Salty Swine.- Through an unexpected twist you’ve sent Torg to take up the slack after your departure. Time will tell if this was a good move or not.