An Adventurer's Heart

by Tao Wong

  “All sewer quests receive a token for use at the bathhouse too!” the attendant adds, leaning forward and continuing his hard sell. “It’s really a good deal.”

  Asin nods firmly, pushing the quests forward and shoots a look at Daniel. Daniel grimaces, shaking his head and she growls at him. The young Adventurer grimaces again, eyeing the stack before giving in, “Fine. Can you sort them by location and earnings and what we can finish in one day? We’ll then take that pile and a map.”

  The attendant nods, pulling the stack back and working quickly to do as requested, smiling as he does so. Asin nods happily, already counting their earnings in her head as Daniel mentally grumbles. After they receive their quest papers back along with their requested map and have put down their deposit, the two finally exit the Guild Hall to return home.

  “You know, we were supposed to take it easy tomorrow,” Daniel grumbles at Asin, waving the stack of quest papers in front of her. “Not go on Quests.”

  “Money. Good money,” Asin says, licking at her paw as she walks along, her tail waving out behind her in happiness.

  “Uh huh. You’re buying dinner,” Daniel states and Asin just nods her head, content to have won that fight.

  Chapter 8

  Deep in the sewers the next day, Daniel grumbles as he holds up the map to ensure they are in the right spot. Satisfied, he tucks the map away in his leather armor, reaching beyond the glowing mana stone he has attached to it and promising himself he will get his armor cleaned for the umpteenth time that day. He rubs at his nose through the cloth covering, glad that they had taken the time to purchase the enchanted cloths which reduce the smells of the sewer. Otherwise, he knew, he would be regretting this day even more.

  For all his grumbling, Daniel still had to admire the extent of the sewers around him. Silverstone’s city council had spent the money to hire Dwarven architects and Earth Mages to tunnel the necessary sewers beneath the city, an enlightened act compared to many other smaller cities and towns where waste was allowed to collect on streets or at best, was hauled away late at night by waste carts. The creation of the sewers was an act that was greatly praised by the Healers of the city and one that they continually pushed for in other cities but which was often opposed by the City Guard.

  By diverting a small amount of the Arq river through the sewers, the city ensured that the accumulated waste was constantly washed away. However, as the Arq changed in height as the Spring thaw and Autumn rains swept through the land, the sewer tunnels had to be built to accommodate the varying flow rates as well. This ensured that most days the tunnels were not filled to the brim, allowing all manner of monsters and ruffians to use them, creating the reason for opposition by the guard and consistent jobs for the Adventurers.

  For Daniel and Asin, they have been in the sewers for two hours already, and they have cleared out the first rat infestation. As natives of the plain, the Devil Rats could grow to enormous sizes if they were able to find sufficient food but both Asin and Daniel had yet to fight one larger than three feet long - not including the tails which were currently stored in Asin’s backpack as proof.

  Even through the enchanted cloth, the smell of the accumulated waste seeped through, making Daniel take short, careful breaths as he led the way through the carved sewer tunnels. The sewer tunnels started off with a single, large corridor that immediately split into a half dozen smaller lines, each of which then split into smaller tunnels which were fed by lead, clay and metal pipes that ran into the various buildings above. While the initial construction of the lines had been extremely orderly, over time the additions and tearing down of buildings had ensured that new sewer pipes now dotted these smaller corridors which Daniel and Asin traversed. As such, they often had to keep a wary eye above them, skirting around these unorganized additions to the gray stone walls.

  As they near the next turn off, Asin runs ahead and grabs Daniel’s arm, pulling him to a stop. Daniel frowns, glancing over to the Catkin who has a pair of enchanted cloths covering her face as she raises her other arm with a pair of throwing knives in them. Nodding slightly, Daniel crouches down and waits for her to duck around the corner, her knives flashing forward the moment she does so.

  Daniel follows soon after and sees what she heard over the ongoing roar of water, a giant black dung beetle. Her knives burrow into the creature’s flesh, sinking deep in and Asin skirts close to the wall to let Daniel rush ahead, lashing out with his mace as he does so. The beetle is soon dispatched, the monster barely more dangerous than a Kobold Chieftain and the pair had dealt with a large number of those. The monster slain, Asin walks forward and extracts her knives and removes an antenna before kicking the body into the stream of sewage.

  It was pretty clear to both Adventurers by now why the more experienced Advanced Adventurers of the town declined to complete these quests. The monsters in the sewers were little threat to experienced Adventurers and the quest rewards, while decent for a pair of beginners like themselves, held little attraction to the coin one could make in a Dungeon. Not to forget that they would need to wade through the sewers the entire day.

  Grimacing, Daniel moves on. It had taken nearly two hours to make their way this far, and they had at least another half dozen locations to sweep. Still, Daniel pushes on without a word. They had taken the quests; they would complete them. That’s what professionals did.

  Hours later, the two stump into the Guild and to the nearest free attendant’s desk. They are immediately rerouted into the Quest room, the main hall devoted to the Dungeon and trading mana stones while Adventurers and attendants hold their breath until they leave. Walking to the Quest room, the pair leave behind looks of disgust and wrinkled noses. Even grumpier than when they started, they finally manage to make their way to the right desk, and Asin drops the bag of rat tails and beetle antennae without prompting. The attendant looks the two over, sniffs and receives the quest notes from Daniel silently, pushing the bag aside without even inspecting the contents.

  Minutes later, he has their pay, and their bath tokens, and the pair hurry out, intent on cleaning themselves, their clothing and their armor thoroughly. At the bathhouse, they each hand over their armor and clothing to the attendants to be magically cleansed before they head into their respective sections of the bath houses. Asin, within the female section, is redirected again as she is sent to her own private room due to her fur.

  Having washed thoroughly, Daniel relaxes in the hot water pool with his eyes half-closed. Like most other buildings, even the bath house in Silverstone was larger and more grandiose than the one in Karlak. The hot water pool is lined with white marble and situated next to a smaller cold-water pool that is similarly outfitted, sculptures of leaves and vines carved into the lip of the pools. Eyes half-closed, Daniel barely pays attention to the other bathers who move around him till one comes by, letting out a blissful groan as he sinks into the water. Cracking an eye open, he notes the large bruise that covers the man’s thigh and hip, and which crawls part-way up his back.

  “That looks painful,” Daniel says.

  “Yes.” The man grins, flashing a smile at Daniel as he stretches out in the water and props himself back against the wall. Now that he has more time, Daniel sees that the middle-aged blond man also has numerous other smaller bruises and scratches around his body and a series of older scars. “Life of an Adventurer.”

  Daniel nods, rubbing his nose before he speaks, “Why don’t you get that healed?”

  The man laughs, looking at Daniel more closely. “Kid, you don’t spend good money on Healers or potions for something this small. Not if you want to save up for any of the good equipment you won’t.”

  Daniel nods slightly, ducking his head down as he realizes that not everyone would have the ability to handle injuries like he did. It had become so routine for himself to fix his or Asin’s injuries with minor healing or his Gift that he had forgotten that not everyone had access to that. After a brief pause, Daniel looks up, “I could heal that fo
r you. I know Minor Healing.”

  The adventurer blinks then laughs, sticking a hand out, “The name’s Roy. And I’d be real grateful if you would.”

  Daniel shakes the man’s hand and then while still holding Roy’s hand casts his Minor Heal. Roy takes a deep breath when the spell hits him and then relaxes, a wide grin splitting his face as the bruises across his body fade. “Well, isn’t that a thing. You actually can Heal. Mighty kind of you.”

  Daniel shrugs and then blinks as he realizes a number of other Adventurers have come up to him, murmuring about injuries and pointing to them. Daniel twitches, hunkering down a little at the barrage of requests and casts a quick series of spells before claiming to be out of mana. Lips pressed together; Daniel watches the ungrateful Adventurers wade away, the lucky few who were healed laughing at their good fortune and the others quietly grumbling about the Healer who did not have enough mana to heal them all.

  “And that’s the reason Healer’s don’t work for free.” Laughing, Roy shakes his head at Daniel’s pout. “You’ll get used to it, kid, you surely will. When you have to fight varmints for everything you get, you start taking whatever you can get for free without thought.”

  Daniel grunts, unwilling to accept that kind of thinking and regretting opening his mouth at all. At least when he worked at the Clinic in Karlak, he provided a service to those who needed it and who couldn’t pay for the services they received. The Adventurers were just cheap and ungrateful.

  “So, you’re pretty raw for this city. Visiting?” Roy says after watching Daniel mull for a few minutes.

  “Yes,” Daniel replies, nodding.

  “Mmm… and you be having the look of a melee fighter with those muscles,” Roy says, eyeballing the broad Adventurer next to him. “What city are you from?”

  “Karlak.”

  “No surprise. Pardon me for asking, but have joined a guild yet?”

  “Guild?” Reluctantly drawn in, Daniel leans forward.

  “My apologies. I always forget Karlak doesn’t have one. No surprise, they rarely bother with Beginner towns, too many flatfoots who will go nowhere there. Adventuring guilds are just a bunch of adventurers who work together in a more formal-like fashion to help each other out,” Roy says and his eyes sparkle as he continues. “It just so happens I’m the Vice Guildchair of the Red Roses in this city. Why, we’d be real grateful to have us another Healer.”

  Daniel blinks, shaking his head slowly. “As I said, I’m just visiting.”

  “Of course, no rush. As I mentioned, we don’t normally recruit Beginners, but you seem like a mighty fine fellow. The guild can provide you some training, some equipment and even have you work with some experienced Adventurers. Nothing like a good old head on their shoulders to keep you safe, you know.”

  “Okay…” Daniel says, pushing himself up from the pool slightly and smiling back slightly. “Well, I’ll think about it.”

  Roy continues smiling as he nods, “Sure. Sure. Just remember, it’s Roy Inverness of the Red Roses. Just drop my handle, they’ll know to expect you.”

  Standing up fully, Daniel wraps the towel around his body once again and nods jerkily, moving away from the rather pushy Adventurer. He sighs when he finally makes it out, relaxing slightly. Well, that was different.

  Lip caught between his teeth, Daniel finishes with the letter, setting the quill down with relief. He eyes the sloppy handwriting with distaste, slightly ashamed again about how ugly it looks compared to the flowing script used by scribes. Still, it was what it was. Letting his eyes track over the words again, he wonders if he missed anything.

  Dear Khy’ra,

  I am writing this letter to you from Silverstone. We have arrived safely and have met with the trader who carries Max’s items. Everything looks to be there, but unfortunately, there are no caravans returning to Karlak directly for a few weeks. It seems it will take us even longer to make our way back than we initially planned.

  Have you ever been to Silverstone? It is so much larger than Karlak. So much larger than any place I’ve been to, truth be told. There is so much to see and do! While Asin has been making me do quests with her every day, we still have time to see a little of the city in the evenings. I can’t wait to stop owing her money for the armor.

  Last night, we went to see a play at a theater. The city is so busy, they even have a dedicated building to host acting troupes all year round! They were doing the Seven Warriors, and it was amazing. They even had a musician playing alongside them. I wish you were here to see it with me.

  There is so much to see in this world. I am glad I took this quest even if it took me away from you for a while. Even the quests here are different, and if we ever finish with the sewers, I want us to take a few delivery quests. They are boring and hard work, but it’ll give us a chance to see the city more.

  We’ve been invited to test out an Advanced Dungeon with an adventuring party we met on the road. Asin and I are excited to do so, but I must admit, I’m a bit worried. Still, we should be safe with experienced Adventurers around us - they have made it down 6 levels! It’s really nice of them to show us around. Don’t tell but I think one of the Adventurers is sweet on Asin.

  I will see you in a few weeks. By the time you get this letter, it might only be a few days.

  Finished reading, Daniel pauses as he wonders how he should sign off. Should he sign off with something other than his name? Perhaps a declaration of love? Yet, neither had said it in person and adding it to the letter seemed wrong. A more formal salutation felt off too. Lips pursed, Daniel stares at the paper, wondering what else to say. Did he even have a right to do so after he slept with another? Did they have that kind of relationship that such things mattered? It didn’t seem like it, but then again…

  Daniel rubs his temples, making a sudden decision and signing off with only his name and then folding the letter and sealing it. A quick addition of her name and the city and Clinic was enough. Tomorrow, he would hand it to the innkeeper for delivery. Many royal messengers stopped at inns to make some additional coin doing personal deliveries after all, and the innkeeper assured him he had a good relationship with one particular messenger. Lips pursed, Daniel blows the candle out and lays on his bed, troubled thoughts about his relationship keeping him up for a while longer before sleep finally claims him.

  Chapter 9

  On the second day, the pair finds themselves standing before the Wandering Rooster greeting Iyas and Tevfik. Niko rushes out a few minutes later, still wetting his hair and attempting to get it to stay down as he does so. He grins, waving to the pair as he comes out. Having spent the past few days running the sewers for the Guild, the pair of Adventurers are excited to check out the Advanced Dungeon.

  “I see you two brought your bags. Good. And the oil flasks and holy water?” Niko asks, and as the pair nods, he grins. “As we mentioned, we’ll take you through the first floor today of Porthos and maybe, depending on how it goes the second floor too. Porthos is better than Aramis for beginners, Aramis being the tougher of the two Dungeons to clear.”

  The pair nod again at Niko’s words, Daniel adjusting his belt to seat his mace better. Niko waits for a moment and looks to his friends before taking the group to the Dungeon entrance. The entrance itself is a simple stone building where a small detachment of guards stand, watching the doors and the Adventurers that enter them.

  “Niko, Iyas.” The lead guard nods to them, his eyes flicking to Tevfik before moving on to land on Asin and then Daniel. “Additions to your party?”

  “Grady. Just showing them the first floor. They’re registered Adventurers,” Niko replies blithely.

  “On your heads. And theirs,” Grady says, not even attempting to stop the pair. Why would he after all? Their job was only to stop monsters from coming out and unregistered and foolish children from going in.

  Leading the party into the foyer of the dungeon, Daniel blinks as the simple stone room is broken up by a glowing silver portal where a doorway lea
ding to the dungeon itself should be located. Asin beside him lets out a little yowl of surprise and Daniel finds his throat suddenly dry.

  “Advanced Dungeons all contain these portals,” Iyas replies and claps the pair on the back as he gently guides them forward. “Gave me a real fright too first time I saw one. Don’t worry; they work just like the portal stones you’re used to in Karlak except that if you’re not registered, it sends you directly to the first floor.”

  “Right then. We’re here to give Daniel and Asin a taste of an Advanced dungeon, not kill them. So, Daniel and Asin will be in the center working their long-range weaponry,” Niko says. “I’ll be in front with Tevfik while Iyas, you’ll be scouting. When in the dungeon, my word is law. We’ll share the stones and other drops four ways, with Daniel and Asin splitting the fourth share. Any questions?”

  Receiving none, Iyas steps forward to the dungeon portal as Daniel hefts his light crossbow and locks a bolt in. As the other party members disappear without a single ripple in the portal, Daniel takes a deep breath and wipes his sweaty palms against his pants before stepping in.

  What greets him on the first floor is nothing that Daniel could have imagined. Instead of a small cave, they appear in a single large cavern that seemingly stretches for miles beneath the small ledge that they stand on. Stone walkways are arrayed across the cavern, elevating them thirty to forty feet off the ground immediately, crossing and meeting other walkways that lead higher above to other stone platforms or down to where a rolling white mist forms. Screeches and screams from wheeling birds and other animals echo, along with the slow-grinding of stone as walkways detach from platforms and swing through the air to connect with other platforms or walkways. Light from the mana-saturated stone fills the cave, illuminating the sense-defying scene and giving everything a blue sheen.