(You know what's the worst? When book sales are going on. They suck my wallet dry to the point of starvation. Sooo… Now I'm broke again. Being a nerd is such an expensive lifestyle.)
Anyway, things get going a little more in this chapter. Enjoy and don't forget to tell me what you think. Shout-out to iRanNoodle for your reviews, thanks so much for reading my little story!
Chapter 5: Playing Along
Alea woke up with a start, realizing after a moment that she wasn't in her hotel room. Hearing chatter behind her she turned to see Sand speaking with some random patron. They handed him a few gold coins and he gave them some sort of potion.
Color rose unbidden to her cheeks as she realized that she had just fallen asleep in Sand's shop. It only deepened when it occurred to her that he hadn't woken her up to kick her out like she figured the character in the game likely would have done. He'd let her sleep.
She sat up and something moved, jumping off her chest with a surprised hiss. It startled her to the point of falling off the chair and landing on the wood floor, hard.
The two men at the counter heard the ruckus and turned to look at her. She rubbed her now aching head, having bumped it a little too hard, "Owww…" she groaned, "What in the name of Wil Wheaton was that?" Standing up, she managed to focus enough to see that it was Jaral that had been laying on top of her before being suddenly vaulted into the air when she sat up.
"Ah, you're awake," a smooth and somewhat sarcastic voice greeted her, "I was wondering how long you planned to occupy my favorite seat. I had begun to worry you'd had a bad reaction to breakfast and were slipping into a coma."
She reacted wryly, slightly grumpy, "Perhaps I was. It seemed like there was something amiss in my meal, and I had begun to suspect you'd poisoned it." None of this was true, of course. Sand's cooking was actually incredible compared to anything else she'd had in this world, and she loved every bite of it. But, she figured if he was going to dish it out, he'd have to be able to take it as well.
Sand grinned, happy to have someone to match wits with properly. Most people just glared at him. "I can assure you there was nothing wrong with the food. It may simply have been that you were so overwhelmed by my generosity that you swooned and were unable to recover until now. I wouldn't judge you my dear, it's perfectly understandable, considering how glorious I am." He turned to the man who had bought the potion, who was eyeing Alea hungrily. He clearly liked what he saw, and Alea couldn't help but feel creeped out at his gaze. "Now, if everything is to your satisfaction, I have some business to conduct with the young lady here. If you require anything else, please feel free to keep it to yourself until later." It was a clear dismissal, and the man frowned, then turned and walked out the door without another word.
Alea stared at where he had been, "Was it just me, or was he looking at me like I was a piece of meat?"
Sand nodded, following her gaze, "Yes, he had a hard time keeping his eyes off of you from the moment he walked in the door. I believe he may come back purely to catch another glimpse at you." He looked at her, a hint of mischief in his eyes, "You may be good for business. Perhaps you should nap here more often, those good looks of yours could come in handy."
Alea didn't know how to reply to this. Instead she looked at Jaral, who was curled up on the chair she had just vacated. She decided to go with the safe response and change the subject, "How long was I asleep?"
"Well, that depends. How long based on the clock, or how long based on how it felt, because not being able to sit down in my good chair made it feel like months. However, if you insist on a unit of measurement, you were asleep for about half an hour."
She breathed a sigh of relief, "Oh good, so I've not been gone long. Khelgar and the others will have gotten worried if I stay out much longer without checking in. They seem to think I'm some fragile thing in need of protecting," she smiled a bit at this. She adored her companions, both in and out of the game. Travelling with them in reality only let her get to know them even more and she loved them all the better for it.
Sand raised his eyebrow, "Are you not? Or are you no longer a foreign entity in an unfamiliar world with the threat of imminent death hanging over your head at every moment? If that is the case, I suppose you no longer require my help in returning you home. I dare say that saves me a great deal of trouble."
"Oh, shut it," she laughed, suddenly feeling much better, "you want to know how I got here just as much as I do, don't even try to hide it."
He shrugged, "I suppose. Though I doubt we'll learn much standing about my shop, now will we?"
"Okay, so where do we start, then?" she folded her arms defiantly.
He considered for a moment, "I suppose the best place to begin would be to speak with Aldanon. He's quite knowledgeable, despite being difficult to understand. Though that may pose a problem as he lives-"
"-in Blacklake," Alea finished for him with a heavy sigh, "Yeah, I know. And Blacklake is closed. I thought I wouldn't even need to get to him so soon considering I already know what the shards are."
"I beg your pardon?" Sand looked genuinely confused, "Are we both to be included in this conversation or should I leave you to ramble with yourself?"
Taking a breath, she explained, "Okay, so it's like this…"
Alea explained about the quest to get into Blacklake, and everything she would supposedly learn from it. She practically had the entire thing memorized. Sand listened intently, needing to stop for very few questions. When she was done, he nodded, contemplating something, "I have a theory, though there is no way at present to prove or disprove it." He paused for a moment, lost in thought.
Alea got impatient, "Okay, so what's the theory?"
Sand blinked, almost as if he had forgotten she was there. "Well, you say this game of yours had a very specific story line, yes? My theory is that whatever brought you here wants you to continue following that plot. Perhaps something happens later on that it wants to make sure you do or cause. This is of course mere speculation. It could be a simple coincidence that you need to see Aldanon in spite of already knowing about the shards and this Jerro-haven-place. He is, after all, an incredibly knowledgeable sage and is often the person people go to when they have baffling questions that need answering."
Alea considered this for a moment. Either she was being guided by some unknown force trying to keep the game on track, or it was just a coincidence. She seriously doubted it was the latter. That made her uneasy. It meant she was not only being watched, but her path was still being controlled by something that may or may not mean her harm. Taking a deep breath, Alea straightened her back and turned toward the door, "In any case, it looks like my next stop is the city watch," and without another word she walked out, leaving Sand to mull over everything she'd told him.
Alea swore under her breath as another group from Moire's gang jumped them. She really did not have the patience to deal with this when she wasn't staring at a computer screen. Wishing for the thousandth time that she had a pause button, so she could assess the best way to take these guys down, Alea summoned a meteor shower to dispose of them quickly. She figured it wasn't immoral to kill someone who had tried to kill you first, especially if those people made a habit of terrorizing innocent people.
Khelgar was loving the frequent fights, but she could tell he was getting annoyed that she took everyone out so quickly. He preferred fights to last and she hadn't given him much of a chance to crack many skulls the past few days. She was just counting her blessings that the opponents she was fighting so far were relatively low-level. As the plot went on, she knew things would get more and more intense, even with all the cheats she had.
She was so blissfully bored that she actually yawned, even as the meteorites crashed to the ground, crushing the poor souls beneath them into a fiery pulp. She didn't notice Sand walk around the corner and stop in his tracks when she had first summoned the onslaught.
Sand's mouth hung open in uncharacteristic awe. He had difficulty believing that the dainty little woman who'd fallen asleep on his chair like an infant could wield such show-stopping magic. And yet, there she was, yawning as she controlled the very heavens to her whim. Sand almost felt bad for whatever poor souls got on her bad side. Almost.
The casual display of raw power stirred something inside of Sand. Looking at the fair face of Alea, with her odd quirks and even odder situation, he found himself captivated by her. She was more than just an incredibly beautiful face – although she certainly was that – she was also power and curiosity and kindness and wit all wrapped into one exquisite creature, the likes of which he knew on an instinctual level he would never meet again. He felt himself drawn to her like no one he had met in his hundreds of years. His heart stopped, and he came to a terrifying realization…
He was falling in love with Alea.
This was all horribly inconvenient for Sand, as attachments only ever lead to trouble, and his promise to help get her home not only ensured she would not be here forever, but it also meant that for the time being he would be spending a lot of time with her, whether he liked it or not. If his hundreds of years of life experience had taught him anything, it was that he had to avoid allowing his feelings to develop any further. He vowed to stifle them, then and there. He would not get caught up in such foolish endeavors. At least, that's what he told himself.
Alea, of course, was not aware of any of this as she finished off the last gang member who had somehow managed to survive. She stabbed him with her overly-enchanted katana and moved on, hoping to get to the last guard post before dark. Her cloak billowed behind her as she strode onward, her odd companions following close at her heels. Sand watched her as she moved around a corner and out of sight.
Alea found the final guard post and spoke to them, noting that this was definitely one of the groups that took bribes. She knew what was coming, even before they attacked her. Once she revealed that she was there to arrest them for accepting bribery, they lunged forward. She caught Kelghar's eye and he spoke, "Mind if I handle this lot, Lass? I've been hopin' to get a good punch in all day, but you keep sendin' those fireballs at them. It's hard to have a good fight when your opponents are dead by the time you can even blink."
She shrugged at stepped back to lean on a lamp post, folding her arms casually, "Be my guest."
"Right the," Khelgar grinned, gripping his axe, "Time for a little fun!"
He charged forward while Neeshka slipped around behind the group. Elanee transformed into a badger, and savagely bit at one of the corrupt watchman's legs. Khelgar swung his axe in a wide arc, catching one of the men in the chest. He was wounded, but his armor had taken most of the blow, so he was still able to counter, swiping at the dwarf with his sword. Khelgar blocked it with his axe and the two men grappled with one another, trying to push the other off balance. Eventually, Khelgar managed to get the man close enough to headbutt his opponent, knocking him to the ground. The dwarf swung his axe, embedding it into the man's skull, ending his days of accepting bribes in one fell swoop.
Neeshka, meanwhile, had crept up behind one of the guards. And, right after pinching his purse while his attention was elsewhere, she slammed her Morningstar right on top of the man's head in a lethal surprise attack. The guard had blood trickling down his temples now, but he somehow remained on his feet. He spun around, furious at his attacker. The tiefling was much faster, however, and managed to get out of the way before his blade could find her throat. She swung her weapon up and landed a blow right between the man's legs, crushing his manhood viciously. She was not above fighting dirty. The guard crumpled to the ground clutching his nethers in agony, and Khelgar swooped in, smashing the man's face in with his boot.
Elanee had a very different approach. She cast spells, weakening her prey, as she savagely tore at them with claws and teeth that pierced their flesh right down to the bone. Her victims' screams of pain were only contested with the volume of Khelgar's war cry as he passionately fought alongside her.
They were a brutal trio, tearing flesh and breaking bone while their leader leaned nonchalantly against a street lamp, watching with a small smile on her face. She loved these insane creatures that followed her so loyally. She'd let them have their fun, even if it did take longer to be rid of their enemies as she stood idly by.
Neeshka searched the bodies for anything valuable while Khelgar laughed haughtily, "Now that was a fight. I'm almost sorry there weren't more of 'em."
"That's all these guys have?" Neeshka held up a small handful of coins, looking more than a little annoyed, "They could've at least haggled for a bigger bribe than this, they were hardly worth killing for the few coppers they've got on them."
"These men made an extremely dishonorable choice," Elanee chimed in, "in putting themselves over the people they were charged to protect, their fate was sealed, no matter the amount of coin they took to do so."
Alea just shook her head, amused, "Okay, you guys, that was the last post. Let's go report back to Captain Brelaina."
As they walked, Alea thought of the remaining tasks she had before she could get into the Blacklake district and smiled. The assignment at Old Owl Well was coming up. That meant a certain paladin would be showing up very soon. She briefly wondered what he would be like in person. Would she be able to feel his paladin's aura? Was his voice actually that deep? Did he have nice hair? She amused herself, remembering the many conversations she'd had with him virtually, and was giddy to have them in person. Casavir, as the only romanceable character in the game, was automatically her favorite. She was a hopeless romantic and had had a massive crush on the paladin ever since she played the game the first time.
Her mind wandered to Sand, and she wondered what his input on the matter would be. She didn't know why she cared, as he likely wouldn't have. If it wasn't for her odd situation that he obviously found fascinating, she doubted he would even bother to give her a second glance before the Ember trial. She shrugged the thought off and went back to fantasizing about Casavir. Imagining all the adventures and romantic encounters she would get to have with him. Not all of her thoughts were entirely chaste.
She was pulled from her daydreams when they arrived to speak with Captain Brelainia.