Ben unloads supplies from the cart, stashing them together and slinging them up into a backpack like formation. Gregory is saying something to Richard, while Zircon stares at the new town. From what Richard said, its called Poinsettia, rather young town, only being a few generations old. But it surely doesn't look it, the population is out and about, bustling on cobblestone streets. The noises of jumbled conversations and groaning wagon wheels fill the air, combined with a small mix of music.
"This place is noisy."
Zircon says in a flat tone, his bleached hair and dark scar make him stand out among the rest of the towns people, Gregory and Ben aren't much better.
"Well, best of luck friends, I hope I can see you all again."
Everyone waves, as Richard passes by, mingling into the traffic. The three of them stand together, at the edge of town, waiting as if something was going to happen.
"Well."
Zircon says, crossing his arms.
"Now what?"
A few seconds go by, Ben taps his foot.
"Maybe following a plan we made as children wasn't such a good idea."
"We can't go back, scratch that, we don't want to go back."
Gregory says, extending his arm.
"This is our future, not in that backwoods guild we once called home."
"How about for now, lets go sit down and plan this out."
Ben says, adjusting the weight in his pack.
"And grab a bite to eat."
Zircon chimes in.
Ben couldn't remember who took the first step, but after standing out in the open for a while, they eventually started off, making their way deeper into town. The street they found themselves on was full of shops and houses, crammed so close together, there isn't any room to squeeze between them. Zircon randomly grabbed a apple and bit into it, the shopkeeper yelled at him before Gregory handed over appropriate pay, apologizing to the scruffy man. Voices of all sorts rang out from the stalls, and small groups of families strutted by, some of them casting Ben's group some worried looks.
They eventually found a restaurant to sit down at, everyone sliding in, before Gregory places the map Richard gave them on the table. He unrolls the parchment, weighing down the corners with daggers from his spatial magic. The kingdom of Fiore rests between the three in drawn out detail, Gregory pokes a spot toward the eastern boarder, up north.
"We are here."
He slides his finger around, pointing out the capital and mentionable towns, each of them represented by a black dot and appropriate name scribbled down next to them. Zircon stares at the whole thing, as if he's trying to burn the image into his head.
"So, any ideas?"
"Let's go to the capital!"
Zircon says almost immediately.
"Then do what, stare at a castle for twenty years?"
Ben snaps back, finding a place to stash their stuff under the table. Zircon looks like he has a quick internal conversation, before turning to Ben.
"No, I just mean, there's probably a good guild there."
Ben rolls his eyes.
"I bet, probably the best in the nation, do you really think they would let us join?"
"Maybe."
Zircon says, frost emitting from his mouth.
"It's worth a try."
Ben shakes his head.
"No way I'm going to travel that distance, I say we don't go unless its a guarantee we can find work there."
Zircon sticks his tongue out at Ben.
"You're no fun."
The three converse for a few hours, getting no progress. Gregory sits patiently as the two bicker, the day draws on, until it's ultimately decided that they find a placed to sleep tonight, and figure it out tomorrow.
"You two are probably just tired."
Gregory says as they leave the cafe, walking out into the setting sun.
"Richard told me you guys ran at least eighty kilometers before he finally found you passed out on the road."
Ben nods his head in agreement, Zircon pouts.
"I could have ran longer."
They make way for an inn, rent a room, and get prepared for bed. Zircon left, saying he needed to go take a leak, leaving Ben and Gregory alone.
Ben plops onto his bed, staring up at the wooden ceiling.
"Hey Gregory?"
Ben says after a while. Gregory is busy studying over the map, running through the options they have.
"Yeah?"
Ben thinks about what he's going to say.
"Was this a good idea, to run away from home?"
Gregory nods.
"There was nothing for us there anyway, we needed to leave eventually."
"I know."
Ben continues.
"But we had jobs, and magic; if Zircon hadn't gone and been an idiot, maybe we-."
Gregory equips a dagger, before throwing it. The twirling blade misses Ben's face by a few centimeters, making him freeze up. Gregory has levitation magic, so the dagger would not hit Ben if he wasn't aiming for him, but he still feels his heart drop for a moment. Gregory peers up from the map, setting in his intention with his action, and his eyes.
"We stick together, nobody is to blame. Besides, we would have been kicked out eventually anyway."
"Would we really though?"
Ben presses on, despite the threat he just received a few seconds ago.
"There were members that have been in the guild for years, maybe we could have been like them."
"Unlikely, those people are still around because they were in the guild master's good graces, we were never like that."
Ben hated the guild master, but it still didn't stop the fact they were paid there, the first source of income they ever had the chance of obtaining.
"We'll find work."
Gregory says, as if he read Ben's mind. They both go silent, before Gregory makes a sidetracked comment.
"Zircon sure is taking a while."
I don't know what happened, it was rather sudden. I was walking back to the inn, making a random note that I'm the only person around. The sun was completely gone from the sky, twilight started to set in. There was a whistle, something zipped through the air. I was having a conversation with the dragon in my head, asking him how to fight, instead of him doing most of the work for me. Whatever the object was, it struck me in the leg. The buzzing of a powerful shock washed over me, making my muscles go limp and my tongue not listen to me. I collapsed, the voice in my head shouting at me about what happened. A glowing blue dart sticks out of my thigh, small amounts of electricity crackle from its tip.
A shadow loomed over me, picking me up with levitation magic. I'm carried away, brought into the darkness of the forest.
