Thieves & Allies

While on the ship, Migel approached Lyle. The young warrior had been looking out over the sea, watching the waves go by. He was thinking about how he would be able to deal with Raider.

"Lyle, what happened in Sheran?" he asked, "It doesn't sound like something that an ordinary monster can do. How did they get into the city in the first place?"

"You wouldn't believe me if I told you," Lyle replied.

Migel said, "I'll believe whatever you say. You're not the type to lie. So tell me what happened. I think I can take it. Who was it, and why did they attack the city?"

Lyle took a deep breath. "The Sinistrael Raider has returned. He attacked the city, and set fire to the homes. But he didn't kill anyone, only wounded them. Why would that be?"

"I don't know it myself," Migel admitted, "But one thing's for sure, you can't do it on your own. Even one Sinistrael would be too strong for us. I'll ask for help from the army when we get to Lorbenia. It's their duty to protect the people, so they're sure to come along."

* * *

When they arrived in town, Migel headed to the army barracks. In the meantime, Lyle and Rasha began to go to the local mall. Actually, Rasha went to the mall, Lyle was just being dragged behind her like a piece of baggage. But he didn't resist, he knew that she wouldn't take no for an answer if he tried to complain. So he began to walk, and she stopped dragging him.

On the top floor, Rasha found a sale on dresses. She immediately began to try all of them on. Lyle waited on the side, along with a few other guys who had been dragged into the mall by their sisters, girlfriends, wives, or best friends. All of them looked mildly bored.

"How do I look in this one Lyle? Do you think it's me?" inquired Rasha. She had come out of the dressing room in a beautiful red dress, with sequins all over it.

Lyle told her, "It's nice, but how much does it cost?" He took one look at the price tag, and looked quite shocked. "25,000 Gold, no way. You can buy Plated Mail for that much. That's a little too much out of our price range at the moment, we are on a mission here. And I don't think an evening gown is going to do any good if we run into Raider again. You need armor, not fashion."

"I know it's expensive," Rasha said, "But that's why it is so much fun to try them on. It's not like I'll buy any of this stuff, I just want to see what I look like in them.

* * *

After about an hour more of waiting, Lyle finally saw Rasha coming out of the room in her own clothes. Suddenly, a young boy ran right past them, and knocked the girl down. She fell backwards into Lyle's arms. He helped his childhood friend to her feet, and then she began to freak.

"Lyle, the money I had in my purse is gone! That was supposed to be for cooking supplies for our camp. It must have been that kid who knocked me down," she exclaimed.

Lyle stated, "I'll follow him and get back the money for you Rasha." With that, he ran out of the store, and onto the street. There, he saw the kid in question counting gold.

The boy had sandy blond hair, and black eyes. He was wearing a gray tunic, blue breeches, and leather boots. A tan belt was around his waist, and he had on a red band around his head. On the band and belt was what appeared to be fake dog ears and a fake dog's tail.

He laughed to himself. "Hah, that sure was easy. That woman was sure careless with her pocketbook. I wonder if she has any more where that came from."

"Stop right there," ordered Lyle, "You give that money back to Rasha this instant. Why are you taking her money in the first place? Where are your parents?"

The boy looked at him, as if he'd said something to upset him. Suddenly, he threw the money at the man, and ran off. Lyle then got to work to pick up all of the gold, and went back inside the shop. He then gave it back to Rasha, who thanked him greatly.

* * *

They went to the inn that night to stay, while they waited for Migel to bring them news of the army. Both were exasperated about what happened that afternoon, and ready to go to sleep right away. But for some reason, neither wanted to leave the chairs they were sitting on.

"Heard you had some trouble with Gil at the shop," the owner stated.

Lyle asked him, "Who is Gil anyway? What is his story?"

The owner looked at him. "He's the son of the merchant/scientist Galuff Shaia. You see, Galuff goes to some dangerous places, so he leaves his son at home."

"Why does he steal?" inquired Rasha, "Doesn't his father send him money?"

"Well, you see, Galuff's research doesn't pay much money. So he can't send much back to Gil either. They boy then resorts to stealing from people at the mall," he told them.

* * *

The next day, Migel came over to the inn. He said, "I talked to the army, but they're too afraid to fight against the Sinistraels. So I left. I'm with you guys to the end. Where are we headed?"

Lyle looked at his friend. "Grenoble. There's someone there who knows about the whereabouts of Artea. If we can talk to Artea, we might be able to find some information to help us in the battle."

The three left the town, heading for Grenoble. Lyle wondered if he should tell Migel who he really was. But he forgot all about it, when they had to fight a group of monsters in order to get by. It would be some time before he would get another chance.

- - - -

Told you I needed to make Gil a human. That's the problem with having so little characters in Ruin Explorers.