Today was going to be a nice day; John Egbert could feel it in his bones. Then again, it was always a nice day in the land of Sburb. The skies were always shining brightly, the clouds were fluffy, and the bakery smelled as horrible as always. John was the son of a famous baker in the kingdom of Strilonden, but he absolutely despised the goodies that were created in their bakery. His dad usually made cakes that were so sickeningly sweet, it made John want to throw up. Sadly for the blue-eyed boy, his father was going to give the bakery to him when he turned sixteen, which was only two years away. His original plan was to sell it when he inherited the place, but his dad found out and told him we wasn't allowed to. So, John came up with a new plan. He was going to ditch his dad and travel Sburb in search of adventure.
That wasn't the only reason John wanted to explore Sburb though. There were so many stories about the different kingdoms and mythological creatures that lived in the land. From what he knew, there were seven kingdoms that ruled different sections of the land. Each kingdom had a king and queen, a prince and princess, and royal knights and priests. There were also the townsfolk, but they had their own system. John and his father didn't technically live in the kingdom of Strilonden, but they lived on the land around it. Mr. Egbert sheltered the curious boy for a while now, and John had no idea why. He didn't remember the last time he went into town or the last person besides his dad he had a conversation with. It angered John, and today was the day he was going to break free of the chains that bound him to this god forsaken bakery. He knew it was the day because of the royal-looking boy that had just appeared from beyond the forest outside. He was standing at the counter and looking right at John, who had been daydreaming out the shop window moments ago.
"Hello, Mr. Egbert? I'm here to pick up some food and stuff for my journey," he said. John's dad went out around an hour ago, saying how he was running low on ingredients, and left him in charge. The baker's son then realized that the boy thought that he was Mr. Egbert. Smiling brightly, he stood up from the chair he was sitting on and looked up at the foreigner.
"Sorry, I'm not Mr. Egbert, but I'm his son! I can find the order if you give me your name though." John replied and grabbed a sheet of paper with a list of names on it. The customer seemed taken aback when he didn't know him, but quickly regained his composure.
"Strider. Dave Strider," Dave said as he looked around the small shop. "Where's Mr. Egbert?"
"He's out in town getting ingredients or something," he spoke as he searched the list for Dave's name. When he found it, he just stared at the order. That was one of the largest orders he'd ever seen! "This orders huge! What is all this for?" John was shocked he could even afford all of it. He could see Dave slightly smirk; probably thinking his reaction was funny.
"I'm going on an adventure to find Prince Dirk and bring him back home. I don't know where he is or how long it'll take, so I'll need all the food I can get my hands on," Dave replied, a slightly impatient look on his face. It was obvious he was expecting this to take less time. "Can I get the food now?"
"Sure thing, just give me a moment." John went into the back room and hunted down the box with Dave's name on it. Here in the bakery, they had a unique storage system for big orders; they placed everything their customer ordered into a big crate with their name on it. Usually they didn't have big orders though, so his dad rarely used the crates. The pale boy finally found the crate, and, with some difficulty, lifted it up and carried it out to Dave. He already had the money out, but John refused it. He had an idea for the payment Dave could give him.
"Why don't you pay me in some different way?" John smirked, and leaned over the counter. He was going to get out of this bakery even if it killed him.
"Sorry, but I'm not into dudes," Dave quickly stated with a nonchalant look on his face. John quickly realized what he meant, and flushed bright red.
"No, not like that!" He shooed the image out of his mind. He was only fourteen! "Take me on your journey!"
"Wait what? No can do. I don't even know your name! Besides, it's a solo mission," Dave argued. John came to the conclusion that he was the loner type, but he was going to change that.
"My name's John, John Egbert. And c'mon Dave, I'll be useful to you! I can cook, and I promise I won't slow you down!" His tone quickly turned desperate.
"Well John, why do you even want to come with me? It's a dangerous and long journey, and you might not see your daddy for years." Alright, it was time for the big guns.
"I hate this place! The smell of baked goods makes me want to throw up every time I smell it, and I have no idea what's going on in the world! My dad shelters me from everything, so I haven't been to a town in years. Please, take me with you!" John was practically begging him at this point. There wasn't going to be another chance like this in a million years. After a few minutes, Dave sighed and gave into his commands.
"Fine, you can come. You have to do everything I tell you to do, and no wandering off!" Dave frowned, not happy with the sudden turn of events. The blue-eyed puppy sprang over the counter and hugged him.
"Thank you so much, you won't regret this!" he exclaimed happily, and quickly let go. They loaded the food up in Dave's backpack, and John carried it. It was only fair, after all. And soon, the two boys left on an adventure that would change their lives forever.