On that gigantic super-planet, in a small continent with gigantic shield-walls, which was occasionally connected to a Pangaea-sized super-continent via a small land-bridge, Brad Fulton, now known as Andaros, appeared in a small walled garden, atop a small dais, within a small portico, within a small hamlet, within the Veil of Avelinn. Looking around, he saw the garden was well-kept, and a clear path lead to a gated exit with a rather open bar style gate. It looked like a wrought-iron gate, but as he stepped down, and neared it, he noted that it was made of wood.

First thing's first, Brad tried to figure out how to open his inventory, he saw that he had new items, and ability notices, and wanted to equip his psiber-armor. Thinking “Inventory didn't work, but he soon figured out that thinking “Inventory Menu” did, and the inventory appeared before him. He clicked on, and equipped all the items he could, having to take each out of his inventory and physically put them on each time. As he had his beginner clothing, he didn't have to worry about dressing, which was a relief. The first thing he did was to put on his psiber-armor suit. The strange thing was that it started out as a bracelet-looking item, so he had to figure out how to make it appear. It turned out that it activated just like his underwear, so he was able to make it appear after a few moments of thought. After that, he pulled out his spirit-guns, and the belt with their holsters, and equipped them, finally looking like a passable psiber-knight.

Once he felt ready, he opened the gate, and stepped outside the garden, to find a man calling out, “Ah, an unusual new sojourner has graced us with his appearance, and a psiber-knight at that! Good morrow friend, I am the guide of this hamlet, Percy by name, it is a pleasure to meet you. Few sojourners choose to start here, and fewer still are psiber-knights. I suggest you go that way, and visit your class trainer to gain your first skills, then return to me.” The man pointed in a certain direction.

“Thank you, Sir Percy,” Andaros responded.

“I'm no knight, my good man, may I know your esteemed name?”

“It's... Andaros, pleased to meet you,” he replied, nearly saying his name in his world, but stopping himself in time.

“Well then, Sir Andaros, until I see you again,” the man responded pleasantly.

Andaros quickly noticed a new notification, and looked at it as he walked away.

You have received a new quest: [Tutorial One: Skills]

All sojourners have access to certain skills based upon their class. You have gained a sum of coins for the purpose of purchasing these skills, and any necessary items. To start your sojourn off right, first visit your class skill trainer, and train in at least one skill.

Andaros was surprised, it seemed he had received a quest, and it was geared toward using the class trainer. He made his way over until he saw a man wearing an armor suit similar to his own, who waved him over.

“Good morrow friend, I assume you are following the tutorial quest?”

“Yes, Sir, my name is Andaros,” he responded.

“Well, Sir Andaros, let's get you through picking your first self-picked skill. My name is Bowman Arges, of the Clan Arges,” the man replied. “Well met! It's proper to name yourself using you family name, but as you are just starting and have not gone through the following quests, I do not expect you to know it yet. Here, use this window to pick your new skills. Most will have enough coin for the basic skills, but not more, so make sure to check your coin amounts in the lower corner.”

“Thank you,” Andaros responded, and looked over the list.

This list included a number of weapon skills, followed by a skill called [Psiber-armor Specialty], which was a passive skill that would grant him extra stat, and speed bonuses while wearing a psiber-armor. Following this was surprisingly the [Lay-on-Hands] skill, and a few Paladin-based skills, and then a number of basic armor skills. Andaros picked the leather armor skill first, as he would need it later, then checked his abilities to find that his psi-weapon was a [Psi-Short Sword], so he picked the [Short Sword] skill, and then took the [Psiber-armor Specialty] and [Lay-on-Hands] skills after verifying that he had five hundred mythril coins, far more than these skills cost at five to ten copper per skill. After that, he chose to get the other available skills, although he wouldn't likely use them. There were no more skills specialized for the psiber-knight class at this time. It turned out that the next level he would gain skills would be at level five, and that would be three skills. At level ten he would start gaining some Paladin healing skills, though not many.

Once he closed the window, he was surprised by a pop-up window.

[Skill: Lay-on-Hands] has been absorbed into your personal ability [Heaven's Touch] and [Heaven's Touch] has gained two additional uses per day.

Andaros's eyes nearly popped out of his skull as he saw this announcement.

“Something happen, Sir Andaros?”

“Ah, um, I just had a skill merge with my personal ability, and gained two extra uses,” he explained, not mentioning the actual skill. He didn't think it was wise to mention such a thing.

“Ah, a personal ability already, the Guardians must really like you,” the man told him. “Well, it's not my place to comment on such things, nor is it an uncommon thing for such to occur with a skill that such abilities are based upon. Head back over to Percy, and he'll direct you to your next quest.”

Quest: [Tutorial One: Skills] has been completed, return to Percy for your next quest.

Andaros did as instructed, and headed back to Percy.

“Welcome back, you should now have the [Psiber-armor Specialty] skill, if I am not mistaken, as well as any other skills you deemed worthy to purchase. Now, let's introduce you to your new family, Nimar!”

A man came running, and stood by the man, saluting. “Sir, Reporting, Sir!”

“I'm no “Sir” Nimar, how many times do I have to remind you. Please introduce young Andaros to the Terasien family patriarch and matriarch, he is a caelestial-born, so you know. Andaros, your next task is to go with him, and introduce yourself to your new family.”

Quest Received, [Tutorial Two: The Terasien Family]

Follow Nimar to the Terasien Family's home, and introduce yourself to whomever you find there.

“Sir, yes Sir!”

Percy looked helpless as he shook his head, and shooed the two off. Nimar quickly lead Andaros down a street lined with rather large houses for such a hamlet. They were each surrounded by a wall, with a gate at the front. It was not until the final house that Percy turned and approached it, leading Andaros up to the gate. There he rang a bell that was literally hanging within reach, yanking on the pull a couple of times.

From the gate Andaros could see the front door of the small house within the walls open, and a woman dressed in simple clothing came out from it, and walked down the path to the gate. “May I ask why you are here?”

“I am here to introduce your new son, Madam,” Nimar responded.

The woman looked over Andaros, looking confused, and nervous after seeing his rather unique features. “What's wrong with him?”

“Nothing is wrong with him, Madam, he is a caelestial-born,” Nimar explained.

Hearing his words, the woman let out a sigh of relief, “So he's one of the blessed children?”

“Yes,” Nimar responded.

“Blessed children,” Andaros asked.

“Being a caelestial-born is considered a special blessing on our world,” the woman explained, “but some people are born with creature-like features while not being caelestial-born. Usually there is something wrong with those children, so I was alarmed due to your... differences from what we were told.”

“Those with creature features who are not caelestial-born tend to have some... How should I put this? They display erratic behavior,” Nimar supplied, “There are tales of such children suddenly massacring a hamlet like ours one moment, when just before they were happy, normal children, and I can attest to their veracity. As such, we tend to be very careful in ensuring such children do not stay within our cities, towns, villages, hamlets, and smaller communities.”

Andaros couldn't help being shocked by such a response to what was not necessarily the child's fault. He wondered what he could do, if there was any way to help such children. He thought of how the people worshipped the Great Creator in this world, and how he was said to be a merciful creator, a God of sorts. From what the kids in his previous classes had said, there were a lot of parallels to the Judaeo-Christian faiths. The God of The Holy Bible he had heard of was a God who was a God of Justice, who visited the sins of the fathers on their children and children's children, but also a merciful God who was willing to forgive those sins for those who were willing to trust him, and turn from their sins. As such, he decided to pray to the Great Creator, hoping he too was merciful. He quietly closed his eyes, and bowed his head while inwardly praying a prayer that somehow he could help these unfortunate children, who likely were the victims of their father's sins.

Your prayer was heard by the Great Creator, and has been answered. Your [Heaven's Touch] ability now has the property if influencing a Caelestial-born Transformation in children with unexplained creature features. The transformation they undergo will be affected by the creature features they already possess.

Continuous Quest, [Caelestial Sowing] has been received, you can view details in your Quest Menu. What has been freely given, now freely give.

Andaros's prayer was answered in a way he never would have expected, and now he had a quest he didn't understand. He decided to ask about it.

'What's a continuous quest,” he asked.

Nimar looked at him with a curious look, his new mother, on the other hand, said, “A continuous quest is a quest that never truly ends. Once the objectives are complete, you will receive a reward, but the quest objectives will immediately reset. Why do you ask?”

“Because I just got one,” he said, opening up the quest menu, and looking at the quest information, “I have to use an ability I have to heal the children you and Nimar were talking about.”

“Heal them? There is no healing them,” Nimar responded.

“I can,” Andaros responded, “Apparently the Great Creator wants me to use the ability he just gave me to do so. They will become caelestial-born.”

“That's ridiculous,” Nimar responded, looking down on him, “No such ability has ever existed, and no one would help those monsters. The church of The Great Creator has issued a proclamation that such children are a blight and are not to be allowed into the communities of the Veiled Isle. The Great Creator is merciful, so those children are not culled, but once they reach six years old, they are run out of every community in The Queendom of Avelinn. The very one you have said gave you this ability was behind this proclamation, why would he give you such an ability and quest?”

Andaros looked at the man calmly, Nimar was aggravated, angry even, there was likely a tale behind that. Still, the truth was the truth, and so he looked the man in the eyes and said, “Because the creator of all that is is merciful.”

Nimar looked at him with eyes full of scorn. “I've done what I was instructed to do. If you wish to complete your quest, return to Percy. I will have nothing further to do with you. I'm sorry Dalah, but I just can't stand this liar, and blasphemer,” he stated, and quickly left the area, disappearing into the distance.

“Don't mind your uncle,” his new mother told him, “He hates those children because one of them was the reason for our family and friends' deaths. Yet, he's also conflicted, my own daughter was one such child. She would be your age this year, if she survived out there alone. He's also a devotee of The Great Creator, and such a case has never occurred before. You truly have such quest?”

Andaros nodded firmly, “Yes, Mother, I do. I hope I can find my sister, and save her.”

“It's unlikely,” she replied with a deep sigh. “I don't know with any certainty, but I think that my brother may have killed her. I'm stuck between a rock, and a hard place, my son. I love my brother, but it's difficult to face him knowing what he may have done.”

“Can I ask what happened?”

“Let's go inside first,” she told him, looking around.

Dalah let him in the gate, and lead him into the house, showing him into a small living room. “Sit, I'll get some refreshments,” she instructed and disappeared into another room. She soon came out bearing a tray with simple cookies and some milk on it. “We can't afford this often, but today is a special day, so I bought some sugar from the merchant. Not much, mind you, just enough for this batch. I've saved some for later, your father will want to share them with us. I wish it could be with your sister.”

“What happened to her?”

“When we first saw the signs of her creature features, your sister was nine years old, until then she hadn't grown them, but antlers began to grow from her head. Your uncle became agitated upon seeing them, and told the magistrate immediately. He hated those with creature features, the so-called bestial children more-so than he does now back then. Even if it was his niece, he wasn't willing to see her remain in the community. The magistrate wasn't willing to allow her to remain within the hamlet, even though she never showed any signs of aggression, he believed the rumors of children with no aggressive signs suddenly killing a village after all. I begged and pleaded, but my words fell on deaf ears.”

“I never believed her to be a danger,” she continued, with a distant look, “my girl was too sweet to become like that. So, I setup a small camp far from our little hamlet, and placed her there, stopping by from time to time to bring her food, and spend time with her. Your uncle learned of what I was doing, and confronted me, but I didn't believe the same way he did, so I continued to visit, and your sister continued to be just as sweet as ever. That all changed on her twelfth birthday. I went out there with a cake, and a hopes of spending the day with my daughter, and found only heart ache, and blood stains. As I stood there trying to understand what had happened, what had gone wrong, I found the signs. There were knife stabs in the tent, and obvious cuts from a knife in the wood of the tent.”

“I had lost my daughter, my sweet, precious girl, who despite all the things she went through was still hopeful that some day she would be accepted once more. I didn't want to see it at first, but as time went on, I couldn't deny my suspicions. My brother's erratic behavior, and the confrontation between us lead me to one conclusion, a conclusion I have been too afraid to verify.”

“Where was the camp?”

“Fifteen leagues to the east. It's still there,” she told him sadly. She shook her head, “It doesn't matter anymore, my daughter is gone. No matter how many times I go there, I haven't see any signs of her since then.”

“I see... I'll be back later, Mother,” Andaros told her. “I have to turn in this quest, and get the next one.” He hadn't touched a single cookie, nor his ceramic cup full of milk before he left.

As he left the building, Andaros looked in his Quest Menu, where a new quest had appeared.

[An Unsure Past]

Help your mother to put the past behind her, find out what happened to your sister, and return her, or her corpse to the hamlet. If you find evidence of a murder, make sure it sees the light of day, and justice is brought.

Andaros was unsure what he would find, but the starting point would be the camp. Still, if he were to just leave the village, suspicions might be aroused, and he would wait until he had an appropriate excuse to leave the hamlet and head there. Whomever was behind that incident would be watching, so he couldn't act suspiciously, or he would tip them off. If he did find a corpse, he would have to make certain to gather appropriate evidence. Justice could not be brought without the truth being brought to light, and without truth, captives are never truly set free. Right now, his new mother was held captive by her suspicions about her brother and the wish to not doubt him conflicting with each other. As a result she was held captive by the past, he would have to change that if he was to finish this quest. It was too bad the quest was lacking in direction, but he would have to worry about that when the time came. For now, it was more important to continue the quests he had.

Andaros wasn't sure if Nimar would become a problem, but he chose to have faith that the man would not interfere, and was not actually involved. He had no proof of what he chose, but then, wasn't faith the substance of things hoped for, and the evidence of things not seen? That was what all the people who played priestly sojourners had said in his old classroom.

Andaros headed back to Percy, and turned in the quest.

You have completed your quest, [Tutorial Two: The Terasien Family], and have learned a bit of the past. While you have not yet met your father, there will be time for such things later on.

“Nimar has a problem with you, it seems,” Percy told him, “He refuses to help you, so I will simply have to leave you to your own devices in finding those related to your quests.”

“It's fine,” Andaros responded, refusing to comment on what had happened. “If you can just give me some basic directions, I'll do what I can.”

“Alright, I guess I'll have you go to the merchant's shop next. We only have a general merchant, as our hamlet is too small for a variety of merchants. Speak to Adolpho, and complete a transaction, then return to me. His shop is that way, just look for the building directly at the T intersection, you can't miss it.”

[Tutorial Three: Shops and Merchants] received.

Andaros headed down the way Percy had pointed, and soon found a building that didn't fit with the hamlet at all. If he had to explain why it didn't fit in, he could only say that it was because the building was far too grand. It was a large, two story building with large pillars holding up an extension above a covered porch. The bottom level was already large enough to be a large warehouse, and the second floor was even larger. It didn't match a small hamlet at all. The building also have a picture of a large bag of money being exchanged for a weapon on it, and it was directly on the T intersection, so it was quite obvious as to what it was.

Andaros approached the building and found that the covered porch had benches lines up facing outward every so often along the wall, outside the windows. He walked up onto the porch, and found a pair of saloon style doors affixed in the doorway there. Entering inside, he found a rather large shop, and there was really a saloon inside. He walked through the place, looking around at the sheer multitude of goods, and eventually made his way back to a counter, where a rotund elderly man stood at the counter smiling at him.

“Well this is a pleasant surprise, it seems I have the pleasure of greeting a new sojourner for the first time in a long while,” the man greeted him, “My name is Adolpho, the third of such name, and I am the humble owner of this trading post.”

“Trading post,” Andaros asked, he thought this was just a hamlet and this was just a merchandise shop that didn't really fit in.

“Indeed, I'm sure you have noticed by now that the hamlet has only two main roads, and the crossroad leading off into the wilderness. One of these roads crosses the road leading into the large T intersection in front of my establishment and off into the wilderness, and runs parallel to the road my trading post is on. In truth, my trading post came first. My grandfather, Adolpho the first, began building this post, and as time went on it became quite large. With time other people came, at first those who supported the expansion of the coaches running though here, workers needed a place to stay. Soon enough more came to support those people, and the hamlet arose around the trading post, adding on the roadway that runs parallel to the one just outside. There was even a small inn when the hamlet had gotten larger way back, but over time the hamlet shrunk a bit, and the inn didn't survive. Eventually, a starter sojourner shrine was put in place, and the hamlet officially became a tutorial hamlet. My family's trading post was the origins of this place, and I was sure in time it would grow into something bigger. Sadly, few sojourners begin here on the veiled isle, and although this is the only starter place for sojourners here, the hamlet has not even grown into a village.”

“What's down the road which forms this T intersection?”

“The only remaining minor kingdom on the Veiled Isle, Core Blue. The other two directions lead off toward the Queendom's capital, The Citadel of Agremoore, and The Kingdom of Delsen's capital Valenmoore.”

“So this place was the perfect spot for a Trading post,” Andaros responded.

“Yes, it is actually neutral territory, based on an agreement between the three nations, and the Guardians, having been annexed from The Queendom of Avelinn. While it's a relatively small area on a kingdom scale, it's actually a fairly decent space nearly a hundred miles to a side in a roughly square shape. Unfortunately, the area is not allowed to belong to a nation, so we've been on our own, and the hamlet has been floundering slowly. There's only so many funds I can spare, and the magistrate is a magistrate in name only. Without a means to make money of it's own, the hamlet will never turn into a village, much less a town. Still, that's not a worry for young ones such as you, sojourners are notorious for their independence, after all.”

“With that being said, let's get to what you came here for,” the man said, “I'll get you a [Beginner Potion Pack], and a [Beginner Camping Set], those are the necessities, but they won't complete your quest. Find yourself something to purchase, but don't just grab the first thing you see. Find something that speaks to you, and something you can afford. Don't forget to check the options carefully, and confirm the value versus the cost. There are some items purposely set at higher cost than they should be, don't be foolish about your investment. It's a lesson you need to learn early, there will be swindlers amongst the merchants you deal with in the future, so I placed a few swindles beside genuine items, make sure you understand them, I've clearly marked them, as most sojourners don't start with identification skills.”

“So you made some purposeful swindles as a lesson, but you're telling me about it? Doesn't that defeat the purpose,” Andaros couldn't help asking.

“A word of advice, if you have an identification type skill, use it,” was all the man answered back.

“Thank you,” Andaros replied, and began to do as he had been instructed.

Andaros went around the shop, looking over the different items. He soon came across a pair of armor chest-pieces, that looked very much alike. He looked and found they were labeled, but he looked at them something seemed off. The problem was that he couldn't place what seemed wrong at all at. Eventually, he took Adolpho's advice and used the skill his eyes trait gave him, and found that the reverse was actually true, the fake was actually the genuine article, and the one marked as genuine was actually the fake. It was quite the revelation, and if he had just accepted the way things looked, he would have gone on believing the lie, and being swindled.

The goal of a successful swindle wasn't necessarily to sell the swindle to the person seeing it, but could also be to trick said person into remembering the item, and selling it at a lower price than it was worth when they found one later on, or having that person advise the swindle to another person who would then buy it thinking it was the right item.

Andaros decided to take the lesson to heart, and continued looking around the shop, carefully identifying anything he was interested in. He found a number of swindles by this, most not that much, but some being absurdly costly to those who fell for them in the long run.

“Is this your normal stock,” Andaros asked as he looked around.

“Perhaps, perhaps not,” the merchant responded, grinning like a Cheshire cat.

So, that mean's it's not, Andaros thought, and continued looking around. He had a definite feeling Adolpho wasn't normally a swindler, but then every swindler ever would hope to give people that feeling.

Wandering around the building, Andaros found his eyes drawn to a specific item. It looked like a small shield, with a design of a horse with antlers, a unicorn horn, scales, and a three fox-like tails. Little lightning bolt designs were displayed near it's hooves, and the design gave him a strange feeling of familiarity. Looking at the item's name, all he got was [Unknown Item], and the description was just as unhelpful. The name and description persisted even after using his eyes' ability, so it was no help here. He wasn't sure what was going on, but he felt he needed to get this item, why, he didn't know, but something about it seemed important. The item cost a whopping two hundred mythril coins, and the description wasn't helpful in this regard at all, there wasn't even a line listing the value at all. He looked at the item one more time before continuing onward, but his eyes kept being drawn back to it's position no matter what he did.

Andaros continued looking through the store, yet he was too distracted, and nearly missed one item. The item looked like a marble with a little glow originating in it's center. The name and description of this item, given by his ability, was extremely succinct, unlike the previous one that caught his eye.

[Item Set Catalyst{Binding}]

Item set catalysts are used to create an item set from other items. Up to five separate items that are in some way related can be used to create the resulting set. Unfortunately, item set bonuses are randomized, but the item created with this particular catalyst will have the effect of {Binding} keeping the items of the set from being dropped, or destroyed upon death of the owner. (Binding prevents loss of items with the affix due to death, and they will appear with the sojourner when they respawn.) A crafting class of the proper type is necessary to apply, this catalyst and link the items intended to be linked.

Andaros looked at the price tag and found an extremely modest price of twenty mythril coins, so he immediately picked it up. As he headed toward the merchant, he found he couldn't stop looking at the shield-like object, and so he went and picked it up as well. It would be costly, but he didn't want to give this up, for some reason it seemed very important.

As he was walking back to the old man, something else caught his eye, he had forgotten his eye ability in the active mode, it came in handy, and he wouldn't have thought much of them otherwise. A pair of handles that looked to belong to swords sat on a counter, but they were missing the blades. Had he not had the ability on, he never would have though anything more than that they were weird, but as his eyes alighted upon them they widened, and he stopped.

[Twin-linked Psiber-Sword{Indestructible}{Reduced Energy Cost}]

These swords have the ability to mimic the famous [Psi-Sword] ability of the Angaellis race, dealing 12-20 damage per strike. When used with the actual ability, they will produce an extra 6-12 damage per strike. These weapons are linked and act as a single weapon, thereby reducing the cost to maintain the [Psi-Sword] ability to the cost of a single psi-sword.

Damage: Base: 12-20 Psion Damage per strike

Damage when used with [Psi-Sword] Ability: +6-12 Psion Damage per strike

Energy Cost: 50 Tonchern/5 seconds, or the cost of summoning one Psi-Sword

Cannot be damaged under any circumstances, but cannot damage anything by physical contact with the sword handles themselves, on the blades will cause damage.

Reduces cost to summon two psi-swords to the cost of summoning one.

Can be used with any psi-sword abilities

Andaros was obviously surprised by these items, and checked their costs. Surprised once again, he found the cost of these weapons at 50 mythril, a quarter of what the shield-like thing would cost him. This seemed strange to him, why were these things so cheap compared to the other item. He somewhat suspected it might be a trap, but something deep inside told him it was not. He quickly picked up the psiber-swords, and headed to the counter with his four items, where he placed them on the counter.

Seeing the items, the old man raised an eye-brow and asked, “Are you certain? You aren't going to regret this? These items are quite expensive, especially that thing,” he added, pointing at the shield-like object.

Andaros hesitated for a moment, but then said, “I'm sure.”

“All sales are final,” the old man told him seriously. “Even if the item is literally trash, you can't take back your coins.”

“I understand,” Andaros responded, after some thought. “I still want to purchase these items,” he said, pulling out two-hundred and seventy mythril, “Is there tax on the transaction?”

“No, as we're in a neutral zone no kingdom controls, there is no tax. Here's a belt and scabbards for those weapons you have, you can transfer the scabbards to your gun-belt later if you wish,” the old man told him. He took the coins, and checked their numbers. “You have certainly paid for the goods you have chosen, and here are my two offerings for beginning sojourners just starting out.”

The man pushed a couple of parcels up beside his items, and Andaros put them all into his inventory. “It was a pleasure doing business with you,” Andaros told the man with a bow. “I must get back to Percy and complete my quest. Thank you, this,” Andaros indicated the store, “was quite informative.”

“You're welcome, young man, it's been a while since I came across such a polite sojourner. May your journeys and adventures be blessed.”

“And may your business be bless,” Andaros responded, then left the store .

Watching his back as he walked away, the old man stood there grinning another big Cheshire cat grin. “So it chose him, huh? May your business be blessed,” the man let out a cackle at the boy's parting words.

-----

Andaros headed back to Percy.

“Well, it appears you've completed the quest. Show me the items that were mandatory,” Percy told him.

You have completed your quest, [Tutorial Quest: Shops and Merchants]

Andaros brought out the two packs the old man had given him.

“Good, you got them, as for your own purchase, you don't have to show me that,” Percy told him. “I hope you found something worthwhile there.”

Andaros simply nodded at Percy's words, he had, in fact, found a couple of things he knew would be useful. There was also another item he didn't know with any certainty, it could be absolutely worthless, but he had the strongest feeling that wasn't the case. What use it could have, he didn't know, perhaps in time he would find out. It could still be a colossal waste, there was always the chance.

“A couple of weapons,” Andaros told him, and pulled out the belts with the psiber-swords.

“Those are unusual, but they're generally not much use. About the only ones those weapons would be useful for are nature Psions, and the angaellis,” Percy mentioned. “They're a fairly good find though. I haven't seen any of those since I was last in the queendom's capital. They might make a good gift for the queen's direct lineage, if you were so inclined. Still, if you don't have enough tonchern capacity they'd be fairly useless. It's why they are generally very cheap, despite their value to natural Psions.”

“I'll keep that in mind,” Andaros responded.

“It's been a fairly busy day, and we didn't get an early start. There isn't that much daylight left. Why don't you return to your new parents, and come see me in the morning,” Percy told him.

“Thank you, I'll do that,” Andaros responded, and headed back toward the house Nimar had shown him earlier. He needed to get some sleep and complete some things in his own world. He really couldn't think of Trinity Online as a simple game, this was all far too real feeling. He had another day before he had to actually get off, but he felt he should at least get off, get a quick meal, and finish any other business he needed to do, before getting back on and taking care of his next day's events.

“So, you're our new son,” Andaros met his new father upon returning to the home, and knocking on the door.

“Yes, sir,” Andaros responded.

His new father raised and eyebrow at his words, “I'm no knight, son. Just call me dad or father.”

“Yes... dad,” Andaros hesitantly responded.

“So, how did your day go,” the man asked as he let him into the house.

“Good, I think,” he responded, then asked something he had been wondering earlier when greeting his new mother, “Isn't this weird for you guys? Suddenly you have a new son.”

The man thought for a moment, before saying, “Sure, it's a bit weird, but we've been trying and failing to have a son for so long it seemed more like a blessing than anything. I heard you were told about your sister. I won't tell you not to look, the creator knows I'd love to see her again, but don't be surprised if there's nothing there for you to find. It's been three years since we last saw her. Just... don't hide anything you find, I don't wish you to get your mother's hopes up for nothing, okay?”

“Yeah, where do I sleep,” Andaros asked, “I have to wait until tomorrow to meet Percy, and go anywhere further in my tutorials.”

“Let's get some dinner first, we've been waiting for you,” his new father responded, and lead him to the table. “Your mother got a special treat for your first day in our family.”

“I know, I saw them earlier, although after hearing what had happened to my sister, I didn't have the heart to eat any.”

“At least eat one,” his father told him, “She made them for you after all, sit.”

Andaros didn't say any words, he simply nodded, and sat down where his new father indicated. His new mother then came in with a pot with a thin soup in it, which she then began to portion out. Andaros looked at the meager meal, and took out a hundred mythril, which he put on the table.

“What's the meaning of this,” his father asked calmly.

“I know money can't solve every problem, but I don't wish to just be a free-loader,” he told him.

“It's the privilege of the child to accept their parents good will,” the man responded, “This much money would make you a rich man in the capital of the queendom.”

“We are not in the queendom,” Andaros responded.

“Oh? Who told you?”

“The old man at the general store,” Andaros responded.

“Old man? Do you mean Adolpho? I suppose to you he'd be old. Anyway, he's not wrong, but that's still a lot of money, a lot more than we'll ever need,” his new father replied. “Keep it, we don't need it.”

“You're my family now,” Andaros responded, “There's no reason for me to keep all my money to myself. Don't worry, I have plenty left.”

His father stared at him fixedly for a few short, tense moments, then let out a sigh. “We'll only take twenty-five mythril,” he said, “Your mother can use them for food. We don't need more than that even in the next fifty years.”

Andaros nodded, but determined to get his new father some new gear, his looked pretty worn. No matter what, this was his new family, and he resolved to look out for them as much as, if not moreso than, they looked out for him. Sure, it was supposed to be just a game, but these were not just some NPCs he could treat as if they weren't real people. They had hopes and dreams, as he could see from his mother's words and story earlier that day, and they didn't act in some computer-like manner. He would treat them like an extended family, and take care of their needs as well. He took back 75 of the mythril, but kept this determination in the back of his mind. Looking at his new father with his eyes, he found he was much higher leveled than he had thought.

[Drevinn Terasien Lvl. 25]

Andaros decided it would be best to get him some decent armor at that level if he could, and left it at that. The three ate together as a family, and then Andaros was lead to his new room, and bedded down for the night.

-----

Brad logged out while his sojourner slept, rather than choosing to actually sleep within the game. He knew from the conversations of the other students in class that he could sleep in-game and get as good a sleep as in their own world, at a fraction of the time put in, but he wanted to keep his sleep schedule at least somewhat normal, so he would actually sleep only once every three in days within the game, while his character would follow the normal sleep schedule of the world of Aegis. It was hard to think of it as just a game, so while some things he didn't know how to think of otherwise, he decided not to treat Trinity Online as a game, but another world, wherever he could.

Brad used the restroom, and got himself a meal, then relaxed for a while, before logging back into Trinity in time for the morning sun to just be rising in the tutorial hamlet on the Veiled Isle. He soon got out of bed, and Andaros headed downstairs to find his new mother in the kitchen.

“Good morning, Andaros,” she greeted him, “I'll have your breakfast ready soon. Your father has already left to report in for guard duty.”

“Has... Dad's armor, is it okay?”

“It's not in the best shape, but it should protect him. It's... not up to his level, but creatures here aren't that high leveled, so it's sufficient,” she told him. “The armor at the shop is just too expensive for the hamlet to support all the guards, and they can't pay enough for very good armor for everyone.”

“I'll see what I can do,” Andaros responded.

“Your father wouldn't want his son wasting all his money on him,” she told him, “He'd want to provide for you instead. You, you could hurt his pride.”

Andaros thought about the situation for a bit, then responded, “While I can understand that, I'm much more concerned that we might lose him. Having my new mother lose my father after having lost my sister in such a miserable way... I don't want that.”

“Then, let me give it to him,” she told him, “I'll find a way to give it to him without hurting his feelings.”

“Actually, how much does a decent set of armor for his level, not including actual sets, cost? It doesn't have to be great, just good,” Andaros asked.

“Hmmm, a set of level twenty-five common guardsman armor would cost about five gold,” she told him.

Andaros thought on that for a few moments, “How many people are in the guards?”

“There are around a hundred people in the guard,” she told him.

“Do you think the guard captain would accept a donation of armor to outfit the guards,” Andaros asked.

“You know, I think she would,” his mother responded, smiling slightly.

“She?”

“Yes, the guard captain is a woman, but she's also a quava,” she responded.

“Isn't that that race with a reversed strength quotient for males and females? But, aren't their women hunted as concubines for the royalties of the world?”

“Perhaps elsewhere, but here? No one would dare try that here. The last person who did faced the wrath of the guardian of the Veiled Isle.”

“May I asked what happened?”

“The golem left his cave, and overnight their kingdom fell. A kingdom the sized of The Queendom of Avelinn fell in one night,” she told him, and shuddered. “Since then, no one has dared to take advantage of the quava on the Isle.”

“Is that impressive? I'm sorry, I have no frame of reference,” Andaros told her.

“Yes, it's very impressive! The Queendom of Avelinn is composed of four metropolises, and 8 cities, with various towns, villages, and hamlets! A kingdom of the same size was obliterated in one night. Not even a single hamlet survived the guardian's attack!”

Hearing the scale of the devastation, Andaros couldn't help but be impressed by her words. This guardian sounded incredibly powerful. “Wow, that sounds pretty crazy,” he told her. “Next question, would Adolpho's carry enough armor to armor the guards?”

“No, but the armor-smith and leather-worker trainers might. If not, maybe they can produce the quantity you need in a few days,” his mother advised.

“Alright, I'll go check with them,” Andaros told her.

“After you eat,” she told him, and placed some eggs in front of him. “These come from our ducks, so there's no need to hold back.”

Andaros looked at the eggs that looked like they were from an ostrich and said, “These are from ducks?”

“Yes, your father always eats two in the morning before going to work,” she told him.

“Aren't they too big?”

“Well, they are ducks you can ride,” she told him, and left him speechless.

“Ducks you can ride? They must be huge,” Andaros responded.

“They really are,” she told him, “I used them to go out to the camp, before that happened. The hardest part is not knowing, we never found a body, or bones.” His mother let out a grimace with her final words.

“Sorry,” he said, “I didn't mean to bring that up.”

“It's okay, there's not a day I don't think of her, and wonder about her, anyway. Nothing you could do would change that. It's not your fault that I thought of her,” she told him. “You should eat, and then go complete your tutorials. As soon as you do, you can begin to gain levels.”

Andaros nodded, and began to eat his food, thought he couldn't help thinking of how he would justify a trip out to the campsite, and wondering when he would even be able to do so. He hoped The Great Creator was looking over her sister, and had kept her safe all this time.

After finishing his meal, which was rather filling, Andaros headed off to meet Percy.