by James Patton
Midnight stared at her for several long moments.
“Be yourself. There is an intelligent warrior in you, trust that. I am positive I will see you soon.” Midnight told her. “Farewell, and good luck.”
The big dragon nimbly stepped around her and took off running up the beach. Each time his talon hit the ground sand exploded outward, and then before he reached the water his legs tensed as he sprung into the air. Wings caught the incoming breeze helping lift him upward, and he banked left as he headed out towards the sea. His wings and massive shoulders pumped up and down effortlessly, and before long he was a shadow in the sky.
Boh felt a wave of loneliness. It was not that Midnight left, but he was the catalyst. Her dad would have loved it here.
Despite the dragon’s egotistical nature, he was perfect in every way conceivable. She allowed herself to grieve this one time and stared out at the sea until the magnificent beast disappeared on the horizon.
Then she turned and trudged up the beach towards Osprey Harbor.
Boh
Chapter 5
Osprey Harbor
I was given a parakeet a few months after I was diagnosed with MS. My dad thought it might help me emotionally. If he wanted me angry enough get out of bed— he won. Asshole.
-from Boh, Audio Roll 1117
Scree piled against the sheer cliffs along the shore, building up over time like dust in the corners of an abandoned home. High tide eroded the wall going up about ten or fifteen feet creating a concave indention. It provided some shelter from overhead attacks, but the scree slowed her pace tremendously.
Further up the beach the cliffs she followed curved out into the sea, creating a natural partition between here and the harbor. Along the cliff wall was a cave opening and its mouth was large enough to fit several dragons. From her angle, she could see through the cave to the other side. There was more beach and sunlight, and she made that her destination. Not that she had any choice.
The debris became hard to travel on, so she moved closer to the water and walked in the sand. It smelled a lot better once she moved away from the area where she woke. Sea mist kept her cool as the tide crashed against the large boulders scattered along the shore.
The water and waves were calming, and it reminded her of the idyllic exotic beach locations. Places along the Carribean came to mind, except for this area had man-sized birds. Ospreys are raptors, birds of prey, and it made it so she could not enjoy the scenery.
Every caw, tweet, or screech she was looking to the sky. Mostly seagulls flew along the shore but farther out to sea the larger predators were swooping down into the water. On occasion, she spotted dog-sized crabs in the water but was not sure if killing them helped her growth. She neglected to ask about how to advance, and felt like that should have been her first question.
The cave, if she could call it that, was just a section of the cliff where the tide had eroded away the stone on both sides. It created a massive opening under the jut of rock. The ground inside was more stone than sand, and her feet slid a few times as she crossed through.
Climbing out the other side of the cave, she stumbled as she took in the pristine sand and the harbor itself. Even from her viewpoint, she saw several brick buildings rising out of Osprey Harbor against a pure blue sky backdrop. Some of the buildings were several stories high, and all of them were built along a wooden boardwalk and faced towards the sea.
A pier extended out from the boardwalk and ended about thirty feet into the water. On the far side of it, a floating dock had several fishing boats berthed; each one rocked gently against their fenders.
Offshore, she watched a seagoing vessel drop anchor and bob among the waves. It had masts with lowered sails, and smoke billowed from a stack that rose out of the center of the ship.
A tugboat? What kind of world is this? Her revolver was probably from the early 1900s, and the boat might be from the same period.
Getting closer to the harbor town, she saw the warehouse was at least three stories tall. On the side of the building was a sign that read Osprey Harbor Trading Company.
The warehouse shared a wall with the inn, which was also plainly named Osprey Harbor Inn. It rose a story higher than the warehouse, and both were the first buildings on the boardwalk from her angle. There was a gap between them and an even bigger row of buildings that had glass fronts. She assumed they were merchants, but could not see their signs because she was low enough that the pier blocked them.
These buildings felt like they too were from an earlier era because they were built to last. There was a sense of permanence to them that modern homes lacked.
On this side of the warehouse, she saw a ramp leading upward through the seawall. Further down the wall, she could see iron rungs built into the wall but angled towards the ramp instead.
Climbing the ramp, she realized it led into the warehouse itself. It ended quite a bit lower than the seawall and realized it was an entry point for the ship offshore. It was just waiting for high tide.
She almost slid all the way back down the wet stone ramp and heard someone laughing at her from the beach. Before she could spot the person, she heard the unmistakable approach of a giant bird. Ducking, she lost her footing and slid the rest of the way down. The impact against the sand was painful, but she rolled to her feet.
The osprey came back for a second pass, and this time she had her gun drawn with the hammer pulled back. Her hand started shaking as she squeezed the trigger and the sound of wood splintering let her know she struck the nearby pier. The cursing let her know she almost hit someone. Her shot was so far off she would have missed the broadside of a barn.
The osprey flew off, the sound scaring it away, and she noticed for the first time the break in the seawall underneath the pier. It was in those shadows that the saw the person she assumed was laughing at her.
“Damn, careful with that thing you almost hit me.” He laughed again and was shaking his head at her. “You sure you should have a hand cannon like that?”
“Piss off.” She replied. “You could have warned me it was incoming.”
“Why would I do that? It was much more entertaining watching you roll into the sand.”
She pointed her gun at him, and he shut up at first and then started laughing.
“I’ve seen you shoot, might have a better chance of shooting me if you aim at Hurk over there.”
She pulled the trigger anyway, and the man dropped to the sand well after the fact. Then she found herself laughing at him, and all was forgiven, at least in her mind. Her aim was awful, and she could not stop her hand from shaking when she held the damn gun.
“You are right. It is fun watching you drop onto the sand.”
“Go to hell,” the man grumbled, and she moved past him. “Seriously, stop shooting that thing, you are going to hurt someone.” The man yelled at her back, but she ignored him.
“Are you Hurk?” She asked the guy standing near the break in the seawall.
“M-m-maybe. Who-o-o are you?”
“Boh. Why are you talking like that?”
“I d-d-ied. It s-s-sucks for a few hours a-a-after. A-a-avoid dying, it's—not r-r-right.” Hurk replied.
“Does this go up to the boardwalk?”
“N-no. The inn.”
“Where can I find the Mayor?”
“F-follow the road b-b-between the inn and H-h-hershwig’s place. M-manor on the h-h-hill. C-c-can’t miss it.”
“Thanks.” She said, and he nodded to her as she moved up the dark passageway. Maybe ten feet in she found some stairs, but they were slick and dangerous. The stairs took several ninety-degree turns, and then she was at the door. It creaked a little as she pushed it open.
She entered a foyer, and to her left, she could see the boardwalk through the windows. To her right, she saw the innkeeper polishing a large wooden bar, and could not help but be impressed with the cleanliness and the ambiance in general.
Turning left she opened the door and stepped out
on the boardwalk. A cobblestone road split the inn and warehouse from the merchants, explaining the gap she saw below. Quite a few people were bustling about on the boardwalk, but no more than she would see in a small town.
The entire town comprised of roughly thirty homes, and each one was unique. It was because these houses were hand built, probably by the owner, which made them have an individual style. Several side streets were off the main thoroughfare, and this is where most of the houses resided. In small clusters with plenty of grass and vegetation between them.
The manor was further up the hill, and Hurk was right. It was hard to miss. It had nothing to do with its size, it was big. It was its location, and from down here it was always highlighted against the sky, making it appear more impressive.
It finally dawned on her that Hurk said he died. Midnight seemed to think death was a one-way ticket out, so why was Hurk still here? She would have asked him, but that stuttering was hard to take. The man seemed physically and mentally stressed.
While she processed that information, she had started to walk towards the manor when someone called out from the alley running behind the inn and along a dark three-story building that looked abandoned.
“A new Champion, and a female at that. Been some time since I’ve seen a new Champion. What’s your name?”
She was not about the approach the alley and called out from her highly visible location in the middle of the road.
“Boh, and you are?”
“Redemption, but you can just call me Red. I’m a Champion like you.”
“Why are you hiding in the alley?”
“Politics and drinking. Some people just have no sense of humor. Pissed a group of Champions off, and they removed my hand. Laying low for a bit until I heal.” Red waved a stump out of the shadows, and she could see new growth already forming.
“Your hand grows back?”
“Sure, provided it’s not a dragon wound. Those are a helluva lot harder to heal.”
Stepping closer to peer at the man, she put her hand on her gun. He was chuckling but coughed and spat up blood at the same time. Someone had worked the man’s face over, and hard. It was in various stages of healing, but the blood he spat up indicated internal damage.
“Holy hell man, you need a doctor.” She tried to keep the horror off her face but did not know how well she hid it. “Or… if Hurk was right, death isn’t permanent. I could just kill you, so you respawn.”
“NO! I’ll be fine by the end of the day, and my hand will be back in a few days. If you come across a healing potion, I would not mind the assist.” All color drained from Red’s face, and she pulled on the tip of her ear.
“Isn’t respawn faster?”
“Do not die. It's not faster, and some people never recover fully.” She realized Red was freaked out and had pressed back against the wall.
“Just tell me.”
Red vibrated with nervous energy as he glanced around, and it made her twitch in response. Shadows seemed to grow and become more menacing, but she shook it off. The man’s shoulders sagged as some of his fright left him.
“Death causes a system error. A lot of the Champions here believe we are supposed to get kicked out, but we are trapped here. Some do disappear, but it always corresponds to when a new Champion appears. Hurk was unlucky, had he died a little sooner he might have gained his freedom.”
Cycling through a menu, she found the system settings and saw a logout button.
“The button doesn’t work. Just trust me on that, and you do not want to click it. Works the same as dying. You get stuck in an error loop until the system spits you back out again. I never told you any of that, got it, newbie? Anyone finds out, and they’ll do more than take my hand.” Red nodded his head down the street. “The Mayor is a little bit eccentric, so watch out. I am not sure how much you know about dwarves, but few women can resist him, even Champions. Don’t say I didn’t warn you.”
“If he lays a grubby hand on me—”
Red nearly keeled over from laughing. “Gods, I wish I could move, I would love to see this encounter.”
Shaking her head, she moved off towards the manor. It had a stone wall surrounding it with a wrought iron gate and guards out front. Barbed wire lined the top of the wall, and she saw a small tower with wood decking about ten feet up. A man was up there with a long rifle, and he was watching her curiously. She waved at him and kept walking towards the gates.
Once through, she found herself in a courtyard. Off to the side, a little girl was gardening and digging furrows into the soil. There was a practiced skill to it, and she wondered how long the girl had been at it.
“Go on in. The only time you need an invitation is before sunrise and after sunset,” the girl said and went back to her gardening.
The door opened without a sound and she was in a reception area. There was a desk with guard seated behind it, and his rifle was on the counter before him. She was no expert, but there was no way that gun was going to fire. The barrel was rusted, and she could not see a trigger on it.
“Name,” the guard said, but she was pretty sure he was asking her a question.
“Boh.”
“Go on in,” he told her while scribbling in a book. He chuckled while he did so, and it was not helping calm her nerves.
Boh
Chapter 6
The Mayor
Sara, the girl that lived next door, once told me I never listen to her. Actually, I think her name was Sara.
-from Boh, Audio Roll 0018
“My first Mercury Elf!” A booming voice echoed through the small room, which sounded like a mountain collapsing. “Argh, my manners, come on in and have a seat. Please. I insist. Take mine if you must.”
A short man hopped down from his throne-like chair and waved her to it, but she politely declined. The man himself was stout, like a barrel, and well groomed. His feathered hair practically floated when he moved, and his long beard was braided and shimmered like silk. Big nose, broad face, and so much more that made him the most handsome man she had ever seen.
Her palms felt sweaty, and her breathing labored. In truth, the dwarf was gorgeous and—
“What the hell…?” She shook her head. Something was off because the dwarf was definitely not her type. Every time she spotted him she felt that same sensation of desire and fought it with every ounce of her body.
“I could give you the standard fare. A room in the inn, tasks to help pay for it, one free meal, etc. However, your pale beauty and delicate skin would not fare well there. I know of a huge soft bed, and I’d be willing to grant it to you for little in return.”
The rough dwarven hands touched hers, and she almost agreed on the spot. He smelled like lilacs and peaches, and she wanted to run her fingers through his soft hair.
Something was not right, and it almost made her sick to her stomach thinking about it. Pressing her eyes closed, she tried not to smell the man and concentrated on her breathing. It was a hard to block this dwarf out of her head, and as the effects of his sexual aura or whatever it was started to wear off, she realized he was not that good looking. He was only about four foot tall, and his ashen skin had the look of old leather.
“S-standard fare.” She coughed out. “I am fine with the standard fare.” The second time was much more confident, and she could practically sense his frown. Sexual attraction was not the only thing the dwarf could ooze out because she felt the disappoint as if it were her own.
“Very well.” He passed her a token. “Just take that to the inn, and the innkeeper can help you with the tasks.”
“And the Trials?” She asked, still trying to hold onto her self-control.
“There are three. The Guardian, the Crypt, and the Tomb. East of town you will find a cave that leads into a valley. Not unlike the one you crossed through to get to the harbor. At the end of the valley, a beast guards your Remnant. The Crypt is north of town, up the hill beyond my manor. Just stay on the road, and you will see it. There is
a Remnant inside. The Tomb I am not sure about, once you have the first two Remnants, I am told it would reveal itself.”
“So I need to gather three remnants to beat the trials?”
“Two. Not sure what the Tomb entails, because those that pass it leave the island.”
Quest: The Champion Trials
- Details: All residents of Seventh Talon are born with primary abilities. Champions come into this world without these abilities and must discover the Remnants of their Lost Abilities. Remember, in the Trials every action is assessed by the gods.
- Objective 1: A massive beast guards a treasure trove of Remnants, confront this beast and acquire yours. Good luck!
- Objective 2: Enter the Osprey Harbor’s Crypt, where danger lurks in the shadows, and every tunnel a trap. Getting your remnant is easy, but good luck getting out.
- Rewards: Gain a Primary Passive Ability and a Primary Active Ability. Once acquired, these are permanent, so make your choices wisely.
- Additional Reward: Once the Trials are completed your Charisma, Luck, Faith, and Willpower are assessed and you are assigned a base amount. Any bonuses gained will add to that base amount
- Bonus: Everything you do in the Trials is judged. Bonuses depend on how you handle situations.
- Quest Granted By: The gods
What the hell? How is this a newbie trial? Boh thought, struggling with all the details, and she was positive there were additional objectives not yet revealed.
“Anything to help a newbie out?” Sometimes things like this worked, and sometimes…
“You are a temptress, pouting at me with those gorgeous silver lips and porcelain skin. I am a man who enjoys simple pleasures, and when you are ready to entertain that, I will help you.” His hand went up to caress her face but she stepped back. Due to his short size his hand lacked the reach. She wanted to hurt him, but she barely managed to stop herself from kissing his thickly bearded mouth.
