Ted woke with a start, as someone banged incessantly on the door of his Inn room. He groaned in response and sat up, senses still majorly dampened as he tried to gain his bearings. He threw his legs over the edge of the bed, nearly stumbling as he shuffled to the door.
“Hold on…! Just give me a moment…” he said, clad in only some sleep pants as he pulled the door open, slightly peaking out, “Who-”
However, he was immediately cut off as the door was forced open by a seemingly mangled arm. As he stumbled back however he realized who it was.
“Rise and shine! Get your ass out here, Ted!” Sanet said, her signature toothy grin on her face as she strided into the room.
“Damn it Sanet! Okay, just give me a few minutes…!” Ted said, immediately turning her around nearly as fast as she came in the room and pushing her out.
As she was pushed out though, Sanet continued, seemingly unbothered, “Ori said, if we want to start on our mission today, we should leave early so we can get to Vonzar as soon as possible!”
“Alright, thank you…!” Ted huffs as he finally gets her out and slams the door behind her. The sound of her giggling slowly fading behind the door.
About half an hour later, Ted walked down a set of stairs to the main lobby of the Inn they were staying at. Which, of course, doubled as a tavern. A snoring man sat face down in one of the booths, with a half full glass of alcohol still in his hand. An older man behind the counter lit up, as much as someone who had to handle the presence of intoxicated adventurers could be, when someone in the same uniform came through the front entrance. He quickly put down the glass he was perpetually wiping clean and exchanged formalities with the younger man before making his way out.
When Ted swept over the room with his gaze though he spotted his companions as they chatted at one of the round tables. They both seemed a bit more conscious than last night. Clearly, as proven by Ted’s stunt, none of them really were conscious then, or were clearly in some kind of mental state. Nonetheless, Ted joined his comrades at the table.
Ted slid in, interjecting in Ori and Sanet’s conversation, “So, what’s the plan for today?”
Ori replied, “We should leave at our earliest convenience.”
Sanet sighed, “I would like to at least window shop before we leave. I think that a few more items could be good for this adventure.”
Ori said, “I know, but we should leave as soon as we can. The travel time is already rather long, and I would like to minimize the amount of time we travel at night.”
Ted replied, “Well, as much as I do agree, Ori, I need some armor. These rags won’t get us through the frontier.” Ted tugged at his vest, his outfit only barely surviving the fight.
Sanet had a victorious grin on her face, “See, Ori? We do need to go after all.”
Ori sighed, “I suppose if we are already going to shop, I shall do the same. How about we split up, and meet back in three hours?”
Ted said, “Sounds good to me. I should be able to get my shopping done at that time. What about you, Sanet?”
Sanet replied, “Well, I didn’t particularly have anything in mind, but I can handle the consumables.”
Ori started to get up, “I will check the local stock of cloth and threads. If I find anything cheap and useful, I’ll get it.”
A few minutes later, the three stepped out of the tavern and headed in separate directions. Ted went down the main street of Fort Trionis, where the majority of the finished buildings were at the moment. Down the middle of the street, the dark orange sun peaked over the horizon, casting warm rays upon the small settlement. The sky just around it was a light shade of amber that faded up into the blue sky. As he walked, the scent of baking bread drifted through the air as drowsy people walked to and fro to their morning tasks. Just when he got comfortable though, he spotted a sign with a spear and hammer crossed over each other down the road or block or two.
Eventually, he made his way to the rustic style building, and as he approached the door, he heard the rhythmic clank of metal on hot metal. Ted knocked once, twice, and even three times before he just pushed the unlocked door open. When he entered the building, he walked into a dimly lit shop area with swords and other melee weapons of the like hanging on the walls. Some more ornate looking items stood behind glass, with various sets of armor behind the counters. Though there seemed to be no one present at the moment, the only sound was still the rhythmic beating of metal on metal.
Ted followed the sound back to another, heavier looking door in the back of the shop area. After a moment of consideration, he pushed the door open, a wave of heat washed over him, immediately suffocating in the morning humidity. In the room was a man, hunched over a liquid basin. The in-progress blade was stabbed into the water, its steel screamed as the water boiled around it instantly.
Taken from Royal Road, this narrative should be reported if found on Amazon.
When the noise settled as he pulled the cooler metal out of the water, Ted spoke up, “Excuse me sir. Can I speak with you?”
The man, surprised, turned to face him, “Didn’t know I had company!”
The old man moved to set down the clamp with the blade on a stone countertop next to his anvil, before walking back up to Ted. He now got a better look at the man as he faced him. The man wasn’t nearly as tall as Ted was, maybe standing at a modest five foot six inches. However, he was stalky and looked extremely strong, even in his older age. The man's head was wrapped in a bandanna and had a big, bushy, ashen colored beard. Now, whether that was from the soot or his age, Ted had no clue. Considering the man's facial hair was seared and burned away at parts, there was truly no telling.
The man stopped in front of Ted, “What’s a young man like yourself doing here so early? The sun's just come up!”
“I don’t mean to be a bother, but I was trying to get some armor. Do you happen to be the owner of this store?” Ted said, backing up back into the shop area to let the man through.
The man stepped past him into the open far cooler space, wiping the sweat off his brow, “Alright what exactly were you looking for? ‘Armor’ isn’t exactly specific, and depending on what you want, I may have to make it myself.”
Ted looked straight ahead, “Well, I’d like something that can provide protection on my chest, with some partial protection on my arms and legs, but not so much that it inhibites my ability to move. Anything matching that to you?”
The man scratched his chin, “Well, sounds to me like a chestplate, some arm and thigh guards, and maybe chainmail underneath for around the joints.”
Ted just nodded, and followed the man as they walked out back into the store. The man meticulously gazed through his stock, looking in great detail over each item. His hand passed over various pieces of hardened and refined iron. Eventually, he ducked under one of the display cases, and pulled out a box. He rapidly dug into the box, throwing various other objects out, before pulling out a smaller box within the box.
The old man blew the dust off of it, and said, “This might be what you’re looking for, son.”
He opened the box, revealing a set of basic armor. There was a chestplate, arm guards, thigh guards, and a healthy amount of chainmail. It seemed like it was made with great effort. Ted could definitely tell that this was quite the piece.
Ted looked at the man, impressed, “This is quite the set. It reminds me of the armors of the capitol, with the way that it’s detailed.”
The old man replied, “Quite an eye you’ve got on you, boy. You’re right, though. It was one of my earlier works, made custom-order for a guard there. That guard never came, so I’ve just had it rotting in here.”
Ted asked, “So, why haven’t you sold it?”
The old man said, “My new work’s better, simple as. Not many people would want to buy old stock, and I can’t bring myself to price inferior work competitively.”
Ted raised an eyebrow, “You’re gonna have me pay full-price for inferior work?”
The old man replied, “Not at all. Y’know, when I see kids like you walk through, I don’t bother to talk long. Most of the time, I just give them the best I have, and send them on their way. Usually, they come back from the frontier scared shitless, if they come back at all.”
The old man then leaned against the counter and stared into Ted, like he was seeing deeper into him, “You’re a bit different. You’re a good investment.”
Ted almost rolled his eyes, before the old man continued, “Besides, I was rash and experimental in my earlier years. I liked to use more than I could afford in my work, if you catch my drift.”
Ted said, “I’ll try it on, that’s all I can promise.”
The old man smiled, and pushed the box into Ted’s arms, “The changing room is in the back, next to the door to my workshop.”
Ted shuffled into the changing room, a small wooden room, with a bench and a mirror on the wall. The room was quite cramped, Ted only barely being able to change and put on the armor. His vest and shirt were now mostly covered by the iron chestplate, and with the thigh and arm guards along with the chainmail, his outfit was quite different. The green and cream colors of his vest and shirt pierced through the few holes that were unblocked by the gleaming armor. Speaking of the armor, it was quite light for its size. Ted was surprised at that, as he had tried to wear such armor before, and it felt too heavy for his fighting style. This was far more manageable. He did a few basic stances in the armor, taking a few powerful but extremely familiar steps in the changing room. When there was little resistance, as he had assumed, just grunted in approval and walked out of the changing room.
He walked back to the front to meet with the blacksmith, who was writing something down in a leather journal. He looked up when the sound of Ted’s steps became obvious.
“Well, looks like it fits ya just fine.” he said, setting the journal down and smiling.
“Mhm. I just need a gambeson as well. It’s quite uncomfortable wearing this chainmail just over my clothes.” Ted replied, tugging gently on the collar of the chainmail.
The blacksmith just chuckled and turned to walk behind the counter again, “I think I got a few in the back, I’ll go fetch some.”
“Do you have any in green?” Ted asked instantly.
The blacksmith replied just as quickly, “Of course we do.”
About half an hour later, Ted walked out of the smithy, now clad in a new set of armor. A rounded chestplate covering his upper torso and cuisse covering his thighs. He also is now equipped with shoulder guards and steel vambraces. Under these metal protections though, was a set of chain mail for his upper body, along with the thick fabric layer of the gambeson, which was a nice dark forest green. The thicker fabric of the pants he bought were the same cream color of his last pair.
In contrast to his current appearance, Ted had quite the distressed facial expression, “I can’t believe it still cost all of that, even if it was half off.”
Ted held out his purse, which was almost halved as compared to what he left his home with. He started with eight gold pieces, and had five left, with some change in silver and copper. The frontier had no kindness for him or his wallet. Still, Ted grinned and bared it, the memory of the sharp pain in his side reminding him of the purpose of his purpose. He knew now though that he would never again be injured by someone so weak. There's no glory in dying to someone so insignificant. All these thoughts ran through his head as he walked back to their meeting spot. He saw that he was once again the last one to arrive, with Sanet and Ori already standing in front of the Inn. Ori had a bag that had various colored fabrics sticking out of the top of it, and Sanet looked proud as she stood there with a bag of her own, filled with various cheeses and bread, along with Ted’s favorite meal, hard tack.
Ori said, looking at Ted’s new armor, “I see that we have all finished our shopping?”
Ted groaned, “Yeah, not without sacrifices…”
Sanet raised her bag, “This should last us through our first mission at the least! Look at us! Our first mission, can you believe it?”
Ted replied, a small smile coming to his face, “Mhm, and hopefully the catalyst for many more.”
“Then we should get going. No time to waste, we’ve got quite the walk ahead of us.” Ori said.
He then turned and started to walk down the main street of Fort Trionis, the sun now a bit higher in the sky, with few clouds to block its warmth from reaching the small, to-be town. Ted and Sanet quickly fell behind, as their adventure finally began in earnest.
