Here, at last, is the actual job. Chapter 3 is in the works. Let's hope my creativity doesn't burn out. I still own nothing!
Episode 2
"Ashei? It's dawn and Rusl is wanting us up, posthaste," Shad's voice cut into the archer's consciousness.
"Tell 'im ta shove it up his…" Ashei grumbled, rolling over and pulling her blanket over her head as Shad opened the imitation curtains that Ashei had fashioned from a cloak, the previous night.
"Now, now, Ashei, it would pain him to hear that after he comes back with breakfast," Shad replied patiently.
"If it's anything like supper, I'm gonna smack him one, yeah?" she sat up, rubbing her eyes. Shad looked around as her vision adjusted to the surplus light in the room, taking in her way of ordering her belongings. Her armor, weapons, and training gear were piled in a corner, with only a semblance of any organization and her suitcases were scattered everywhere. "Don't even start with me about neatness, city boy," she warned, getting up.
"Fair enough, I should be…attending to other matters. Yes," he hurried out. The woman stretched with a groan and headed out of her room, seeking the outhouse.
"Well, I did manage to find some fruits," Rusl held out a satchel of odd-looking red fruit.
"Well, they aren't poisonous," Shad commented, looking through his books. "It says that they're Blood Apples. Bitter, but not actually poisonous, though they stain like the dickens,"
"Is that what we're having for breakfast?" Ashei asked, coming into the kitchen area with her armor on. Shad took a fruit and bit into it. He shuddered at the taste, but he managed to chew and swallow.
"It's not…completely inedible," he managed to say with a weak smile.
"I fetched some water," Rusl pointed to the bucket in the corner of the kitchen. Shad went over and drank a good amount from it in an undignified way that was most unlike him. Ashei cautiously took a bite and fought to avoid spitting it out.
"Great, first I have to use an outhouse that has a broken drain and a few old leaves for wiping, and now I have to eat this crappy fruit," she growled, turning away. "Nice job running the agency, Rusl, yeah?"
"Well, you're welcome to forage for the next meal, Ashei," Rusl replied with a frown.
"I will if it'll keep us from having diarrhea like those Holodrum Fountain Berries that time," she retorted. "Even you almost died that time, yeah?"
"Fortunately, we were in that village with that wonderful doctor," Shad commented from the sidelines. "At any rate, if we're to complete our proposed job within the day, we best hasten to Faron Woods and collect that sand,"
"Right, Faron is a couple of hours from here and so is Castle Town," Rusl agreed, breaking away from his glaring match with Ashei. "At least six hours in all, not counting the time spent searching," The archer crossed her arms.
"Fine, let's get moving, yeah?" she grudgingly agreed.
"Who hires a detective agency to collect sand, yeah?" Ashei complained as they stepped into the Faron Woods, a couple of hours later.
"Well, about that…" Rusl scratched the back of his neck.
"Don't tell me that your flyers said that we'll take any job?" Ashei said warningly.
"Okay," Rusl replied, hurrying ahead a few steps.
"RUSL!" she shouted, prompting him to take off past a confused Coro as he came out to greet the wayfarers. Ashei took off in hot pursuit.
"What's goin' on, guy? Did I miss somethin'?" the afro-haired lantern merchant asked Shad.
"Oh, yes, for many a year," Shad nodded with a sigh.
"Well, wanna buy a lantern? Only 40 rupees," Coro offered, holding one out.
"As much as I'd like to, we cannot afford it at this time," Shad politely declined. "Now please excuse me, I must find my companions before one kills the other," He took off at a brisk pace into the underbrush, trying not to focus on the damage his fancy outfit had to be taking.
"It's about time you arrived," Rusl commented as Shad walked up to him and Ashei. The swordsman looked a little scuffed and had a black eye, but he was, otherwise, fine. Ashei looked like she'd been decked by a tree branch and fallen down a hill, but was all right as well.
"The dirt's around here, yeah?" Ashei commented brusquely. "Apparently, it's behind the Faron Spirit's Spring,"
"Well, let us mosey on over then, shall we?" Shad replied.
So they set off again, Ashei bending a branch and decking Rusl in the face with it as he came up from behind. He grunted at the blow and ducked the branch as he moved on. Shad also ducked the branch as they proceeded into an area with simmering sand that gave at the slightest footfall.
"This must be it," Rusl announced, pulling out a satchel. "Now let's start gathering," Shad pulled a small trowel out of his belt pack.
"Well, I suppose I'll be the one digging, as we neglected to bring any sort of digging implement," the nerd stated.
"Fine by me," Ashei said indifferently, going to lean against a tree. Shad frowned at the lack of enthusiasm to help him and sighed as he got to work.
After about thirty minutes, a sweating Shad wiped his forehead with a handkerchief.
"I suppose that this shall suffice," the nerd indicated the nearly-full satchel.
"I agree," Rusl nodded. "Let's get it over to Castle Town to collect our fee,"
"Just as well," Ashei commented, slapping a bug that had lighted on her shoulder armor. "I'm gettin' sick of this place, yeah?"
"I wish that we owned a pack animal," Shad commented as he shifted the sand satchel to Rusl for the fifth time as they passed over the bridge that led over the shallow brook that ran through Southern Hyrule Field.
"Who orders sand, anyway?" Ashei complained. "This whole job's stupid, yeah?"
"Well, I hear Agitha pays well for jobs involving her bugs," Rusl panted slightly as he spoke and trudged. "It'll be worth the effort," Ashei gave a skeptical humph and crossed her arms. Shad chuckled slightly.
"What, nerd boy? What?" she snapped.
"N-Nothing…" Shad replied quickly, holding his hands out defensively.
They finally came into Castle Town as the church clock chimed noon.
"Finally made it," Rusl commented as he looked around the bustling streets. "Now, according to the letter, the address is…this way," he led them down the first right turn up ahead and down a street that passed a circus tent.
"Good sir!" the guy in green that ran the place, Purlo, called out to him. "Care to try the path to stardom?"
"No, thanks. We're on business," Rusl declined as they hurried past to keep from having to talk to the cheating game guy.
A ways on, they came to an area where the street narrowed in the wake of more buildings.
"This must be it," Shad commented, examining the sign on the front that clearly read, 'Agitha's Castle'.
"I'm not goin' in this eccentric bug nut's house, yeah?" Ashei grumbled, dropping the satchel in Shad's arms, almost making him fall over with his surprised grunt from the sudden weight.
"Suit yourself, Ashei," Rusl shrugged. "Come on, Shad," The nerd groaned a bit as he tried to get the satchel through the door as Rusl held it open. Ashei looked on with her arms crossed, her expression set with indifference.
"Greetings! Are you here with something for the ball?" Agitha asked, curtsying, as the two walked in, careful not to step on any of the dozens of bugs that crawled around.
"Yes, we're here in response to your add for Spirit Sand," Rusl took the satchel from Shad and presented it to her.
"Oh, thank you. The bugs were getting uncomfortable in the rough sand I found outside the city," Agitha took the bag and, somehow, managed to put it in a corner without straining too much. Rusl shook off his many questions as she held out a silver and an orange rupee. "I must share this happiness with you," Rusl took the money and put it in his wallet.
"You're welcome for the service," he replied. "Feel free to call on Team Eye again," He turned and saw Shad studying the bugs with nerdish interest. "Shad? We need to go,"
"But these are Golden Bugs! They're most rare!" the nerd protested. Rusl sighed and put a hand over his eyes.
Scholars will be scholars…"Ashei is waiting outside," Rusl explained. "I'm sure neither of us want to make her wait," Shad slowly rose.
"Very well," he agreed grudgingly. "I shall return another time for study,"
"Took you long enough, yeah?" Ashei grumbled as another passerby gave her a curious look, which she replied to with a glare.
"Sorry," Rusl answered.
"Well, what say we head to Telma's for foodstuff and a stout drink?" Shad suggested. "It is the noon meal as we speak and it would be rather pleasant to see our old friend again,"
"I suppose," Ashei said noncommittally.
"Might as well, we may get a discount," Rusl added. So they headed up the road and went straight at the intersection. The tavern was still down the two flights of stairs and as lively as ever.
"Hey, honey!" Telma greeted them as they walked in. "Been a while since I saw you here!"
"Our apologies, we have been rather industrious, as of late," Shad replied.
"That's fine and good, but you could at least write!" Telma pouted.
"Hard to do with no paper," Ashei commented shortly in her flat tone.
"No paper? What's that mean?" Telma asked curiously, cocking an eyebrow, as well as her head.
"Well…" Rusl scratched the back of his head, as he had removed his helmet indoors.
"That's not good," the barkeeper said when the story was finished. "But I like you, so I'll give you food and drink half-price!"
"Hey! More mead over here!" a random soldier called from where he and a couple of buddies were sitting.
"Just go sit down and I'll be by to take your orders in a minute," Telma said to Team Eye.
"Barkeep!" the soldier repeated.
"I'm comin'! Hold yer horses!" Telma snapped, grabbing a few wooden cups and filling them with mead as Team Eye walked over to an empty table.
"Well, this place hasn't changed," Ashei commented.
"No, but I rather preferred it without the discourteous soldiers," Shad added.
"They were here then too," Ashei reminded him.
"Well, not these, in particular," Rusl interjected. "Telma ran those louts out the door when they turned cucco over escorting Ilia and that Zora boy to Kakariko," The other two looked at him. "We weren't here, but she mentioned it to me,"
"What's your pleasure?" Telma's voice interrupted them as she stood at the side of the table with a pad and quill.
"Three simple dinners, if you don't mind," Shad answered. "We're rather short on capital at the moment,"
"Comin' up, honey!" she winked and walked away. They were used to this behavior, and disregarded it, but Ashei still elbowed Shad in the ribs, hard.
"Ow!" he whined. "What was that for?"
"Thanks for answering for all of us, yeah?" Ashei frowned.
"Well, what good would it do to have all of us place the same order?" Shad argued, rubbing his side.
"Maybe we wanted to get something else," Ashei retorted.
"Now, now, Shad has a point," Rusl said in what he hoped was a disarming fashion. "He may have not shown proper manners, but the low-budget meal is all we can afford," Ashei crossed her arms and looked away from her companions. "I plan to send 50 of our rupees to Anju, so that leaves 250 for this meal and other expenses,"
"Mayhap we could look into some groceries?" Shad suggested. "I am certain that they could keep on the countertop long enough for use,"
"We'll see," Rusl replied as Telma set down three plates of seared cucco and boiled corn with three wooden cups of water. "Thank you," the swordsman added to her.
"My thanks as well," Shad added.
"Ditto," Ashei grunted.
"You're welcome, you three," the bartender replied. "Just call if you need anything, okay?" She hurried back to the counter to greet more customers that had just entered.
"This is better than Anju's chicken, that's for sure," Ashei commented as she tore off a chunk of meat with her teeth in a very unladylike fashion.
"I suppose," Shad agreed, hesitant to say ill of anyone.
"Hers was burnt on the outside and raw on the inside," Ashei continued. "If that's not horrible cooking, then I'm an old fisherman with a bad itch," Rusl chuckled at the joke.
"That'll be 75 rupees," Telma informed them as the approached the counter after the meal. Rusl forked over the orange rupee that he had received earlier and she returned a red one and a blue one. "Come again!"
"We shall, assuming the budget allows," Shad replied smoothly with his English tones.
I'll still listen to any funny/interesting job suggestions you have (within parameters), so feel free to speak up.
