2 | Explorer Guild

The town was sealed behind them once they entered and the sharp clop of hooves could be heard. Nito glanced down to see the vargan’s hooves stepping over wood planks. He followed the wooden walkway with his eyes to find it snaked through the entire town linking every box-shaped building together. The whole place was elevated off the ground by stilts.

“Guess you guys don’t like fire,” Nito said in jest.

“Ha! Not at all. Inside the walls, there’s heat and light to be sure, but no fire. We learned that lesson well,” Croll responded.

“The ground must be pretty uneven here for you all to take the trouble of propping everything up too.”

“Right you are mate. Now, We’ll take you down to see Devrik. That’s what he keeps sayin’ to do if we ever find any new folk.” With that, the three rode towards the south end of the town.

Nito remembered the first time he saw a place other than the rolling plains that stretched across most of Hyburn imperial province. Burning Lance had been contracted to a southern lord once, and from the battlefield, he could make out the Tark mountain range in the distance. He had nearly been decapitated while staring at it too long. Now, he was in the forest of bards’ songs and was even visiting a foreign town. These fresh sights evoked the bewitching wonderment he had only experienced before when staring at those cloud-touching white peaks. For a breath, his mind entertained what else might incite the feeling should he travel deeper in the woods.

They proceeded down the path between houses, a fur shop, and what was marked ironworks by a hanging sign. Nito was about to question how that ran without fire when a man strolled by balancing a ceramic jar atop his head, stealing his attention. In turn, he felt numerous gazes on his red-cloaked figure, but they were all averted when he searched for onlookers. The townsfolk continued about their tasks without voicing anything to the stranger in their midst.

The group arrived at a small two-story box paneled by worn timber just as the sun cast its dimming white light over the treetops. A makeshift sign was nailed to the door’s right with the words “Explorer Guild” scrawled on it. The building sat slightly off from others completely lacking the bustling activity present in the rest of town. Following Croll’s lead, Nito dismounted, pulled his spear from the saddle strap, and climbed the short steps.

“Here it be mate. The Explorer Guild.” Grig announced as he flung the door open.

Stepping over the threshold, they entered a dingy room. At its center was a reception counter piled with a few books and other trinkets, and next to it a large board stood dismally with nothing hanging on it. The walls were lined with shelves that only had cobwebs on display. Two windows were on either wall letting the sun’s last few rays in.

“Devrik!”

“Devrik you in here?” Croll called out.

Following a brief silence, a tall and slender man in cyan robes could be seen descending the stairs behind the counter. He moved steadily, each step timed out equally from the last. Once he reached the bottom, words were finally spoken.

“It’s a surprise to see you two here at this light. It seems you brought me a guest, however,” he said gazing past the two brawny men at Nito’s slightly smaller frame.

“We found him sleeping out by the signpost on patrol. I would have gone home to my son’s dinner already if you hadn’t been so adamant that we bring visitors straight to you. He makes a fantastic parnash stew you know.”

“I’d love to try it one day, but first let me get some light in here so I can better see who you’ve brought,” Devrik replied as he held out his hand. In it, a bright blue ball coalesced and floated up. As it reached the ceiling, it radiated even brighter, illuminating the whole room with cool light.

“What the hells!” Nito shook his head in surprise.

“Don’t worry greenhorn you’ll come to learn eventually, nothing to be frightened of. Croll, Grig, you may go home for the evening. I’ll take care of our new friend here.”

“Alright, we’ll be off then. Good luck, Devrik’s not a bad guy, he pays us well ha!” Croll turned to Nito and said before making his exit.

“Yeah, have fun mate.” With Grig’s remark, the two strangers were left together.

“Come come, have a seat. What shall I call you? You seem to know my name already,” Devrik motioned to a stool by the counter while he walked towards a cabinet.

“I’m Nito. I don’t really know much about where I am or what’s going on, but I’ve heard you can give me some answers.”

“Hmm… Nito. Yes, yes, I can be of help in that regard. Let’s see first, welcome the Explorer Guild branch that I run. I’ve only just set it up here, not even a half star-cycle ago, so things aren’t quite up to shape yet, you’ll have to forgive me. Have a bite to eat,” He came over from the cabinet with a plate of dried meat and some water.

Seeing the food reminded Nito how hungry he was and he scarfed the meal down as soon as it was set before him.

As he ate, Devrik continued, “This wondrous place is the Everwood. It expands eastward for I don’t even know how far and is much unlike Throne, the place you came from. It’s filled to the brim with creatures and plants of all varieties, and don’t let the name fool you. There’s more than just woods to be found. If it’s power, wealth, or knowledge you seek, you’re likely to discover it by venturing out. So, what do you think? Ready to become a registered explorer?”

“Registered? Can’t I just do all that right now anyway? Besides, I’m not looking for those things right now, except for knowledge maybe.”

“Well, sure. However, the Explorer Guild strives to provide resources to aid people in their adventures. We provide lodging services, information services, and if you find treasure to sell, auction services. All for a nominal fee of course. You may only access these if you register with us though.”

“Sorry, I don’t have any money right now…”

“Oh, that’s alright, joining is free! And you don’t have to pay for the lodging I’m giving you today, think of it as a gift in good faith. Also if you join, we provide an explorer log free of charge. Usually, I’d give you an explorer compass too, but a girl took my last one not long ago,” He explained and pulled a book off the stack on the counter.

Devrik placed the book in front of Nito, “This is the log, it’s a journal detailing known flora and fauna of the region. All information published is provided by explorers and confirmed by the Guild. There are plenty of blank pages for you to record personal findings too.”

Nito took it and paged through until something caught his eye, “This is it! The bastard that nearly killed me!”

“Oh? You encountered a horned reaver! Quite a dangerous beasty for you to run across already. Haha, you’re lucky to have escaped, it must have taken you for hard-to-catch prey. Such luck must only mean fate has ordained you to meet me and become a registered explorer, what do you say?”

“I’ll have to sleep on it. Honestly, I’ve only been thinking of returning to Throne, not becoming some adventurer. Though, all this does make me curious…”

“Truly, you must be exhausted and your body has yet to adjust to the Everwood’s unique climate. A good rest should turn your mind! For such sleep, a guest-chamber is upstairs to the left. But oh-” Devrik paused ducking behind the counter. He returned with a small powder blue orb in hand, “Here eat this. It will help you drift off and make your body acclimate faster.”

“No thanks, I’ll be fine.”

“Wha- why not?”

“I mean, it could be poison for all I know.”

“But, I could have poisoned the food I gave you earlier, or kill you in your sleep using that logic. I don’t see the reason…”

“Sorry, but I’ve been in a sticky situation recently because I trusted someone… You said it was to the left?” Nito asked. He had already gotten up and was halfway up the stairs.

“Y-yes it is…” Devrik replied with a dumbfounded look as he watched Nito turn the corner.

“The tricky shit! When else am I supposed to give it to him…” He muttered out of Nito’s earshot.

◈◈◈

Nito lay in bed, his body at ease. He had moved a chair in front of the door, so if Devrik did try to intrude, he wouldn’t go unnoticed. Then he remembered the orb of blue light Devrik had summoned out of nowhere and cursed himself for forgetting to question it further. But, he couldn’t ask now so he forced himself to shelve the thought. He then closed his eyes and tried to relax despite the uncomfortable situation and the questions still raging through his head. More than anything he wanted to sleep and wake up in his old tent. His body took the chance and powered down sending him into slumber.

At some point in his sleep, a dream world spread out in Nito’s mind. A dark void dotted with stars surrounded him as he stood at the center on a translucent platform. The intense feeling of being a bite-size fish in an endless ocean gnawed at his soul as he looked around. He opened his mouth to yell but nothing came out as if some force was keeping this place sacred.

With nothing else to do, he took a step. When it landed the floor rippled and the whole world flipped, hanging him upside down. It flipped back with another step. Again and again, it spun until he questioned whether he was actually moving forward at all and stopped. As he did, colossal double doors materialized before him, filling up his entire field of vision. From the gap between the doors, a thin line of light glowed, dully at first. Then it grew and grew into a blinding radiance as if trying to push its way out.

Watching the luminescence struggle, Nito felt an inexplicable urge to open the doors for it. He attempted to walk forward driven by his desire, but each step flipped him on his head. No matter how hard he trudged, the doors remained at the same distance. The radiance kept getting brighter until he couldn’t make out the doors anymore. Then, nothing but white filled his view and the dream world dissolved.

◈◈◈

Nito’s eyes snapped open and he sat up, met with the morning sunlight spilling in. He blinked the sleep from his eyes and looked around finding the chair still blocking the door and his spear at the bedside. He wasn’t back in his old tent as he had hoped, but there was nothing to be done about it, so he stretched and hopped out of bed. He tugged his red cloak over his leather undergarments and shoved the chair away from the door. Nito was just about to descend the stairs when he noticed Devrik sitting in the second-floor living area, a spread of food before him.

“Nito, good morning my friend! Come, join me for a meal,” He waved Nito over.

He followed the offer and made himself comfortable at the table.

“Eat your fill! We have much to discuss today, so don’t be shy. Say, have you decided to register as an explorer after the night's rest?” Devrik jumped straight to the point.

Nito thought for a moment as he munched on some pickled grovin leaves. Even though I want to go back, I’d likely be killed if I tried on my own. This guy clearly wants me to sign up for his thing, so he won’t help. Besides, maybe I’ll find a purpose more interesting than farming. I don’t even know what I’d grow. And that dream… Ah, fuck it!

“Yeah, I’ll sign up.”

____

Explorer Log:

Horned Reaver

Danger Level - [Gorgon] ★★★

Appearance - they are typically 4 to 6 nanoleagues tall with a lean humanoid figure; their body is banded navy blue and offwhite, sometimes grey; the arrangement of bands are variant between species members; they have long claws on their three fingers and a tail extending from the lower back; most notably they have one boney horn in the center of their face with no other facial features

Behavior - carnivore; though they have no mouth on their head, their tail drains the nutrients from prey through a hole at the end; They prefer to hunt prey that is easily slaughtered, thus avoid difficult battles; they are nimble yet strong, able to slash down trees with their hands; they sense vibrations with their horn

Habitat - Jabber Garden