The Outskirt Stable was a modest hub of activity. A few horses were still resting in the confines of the stalls where they were cared for. Lanterns, visible even in the dawn light, proved that humans were in operation, though Chesty would have to be nearer to see anyone. He had walked briskly, not in much of a hurry to received aid now that he knew it was likely forthcoming. Chesty approached the front of the stable, and his eyes beheld the entirety of the building.

The horse like top of the stable was uncanny. Large wooden planks made up the prominent teeth and the fan-like mane at the back of the structure's head. The shape of the muzzle and the addition of patterned cloth gave the building an inviting, almost innocent nature. It was certainly a marvel of engineering that cloth covered wooden beams could possess so much structural integrity.

Approaching the counter, he saw a medium sized man leaning tiredly up against a wall in what looked like a booth. He was dark skinned and with black hair, much like Regan, whom Chesty had saved just minutes before. Conversely, he appeared older, with grey stubble on his square chin and small wrinkles on the corners of his mouth.

Another distinction between the apparent operator of the stable and Regan before him was that his attire was significantly different. He had a crimson Bork hat with a horse face sewn into the frontmost lapel above his forehead. Some of the hair that made up his bangs were made into loose, segmented braids with brass rings. Dark, heavy duty gloves for handling horses and equipment covered the man's hands; he was also wearing a vest with earthy colors and emerald eyed horse patterns overtop a tan, long sleeved shirt. A dark green scarf helped to provide some amount of extra warmth, though Chesty questioned the usefulness of the cloth once the Sun rose into the sky.

Noticing Chesty's approach, the man covered his mouth to stifle a yawn. He then presented a small grin, his green eyes looking stern, but mild-mannered.

"Welcome to the Outskirt Stable, sir. Do you need a bed at this time?"

Chesty quirked an eyebrow, examining the stable once more as he slowed his approach to the front counter. "I assumed this was a stable..."

"Well," the man clarified, "we act as a stable and inn for the average weary traveler. Trust me, it's better than sleeping in a bed roll on the cold, hard ground. So, what can I help you with?"

"I'm afraid I don't know my way." Chesty said. "I have never been to Hyrule before, and my supplies are quite low."

The man's grin turned to a concerned grimace. "Low, huh? We have a merchant who is still resting inside. I can also sell you a map for ten rupees."

Chesty had vaguely heard of a currency from India that was called a rupee. There were discrepancies between the rupee he vaguely understood and the rupee that was being requested to purchase a single map, let alone food or other essentials. The lack of an accent from the people Chesty talked to thus far indicated that Hyrule was most certainly not in the Indian subcontinent.

'Probably a coincidence of naming.' Chesty thought. It also occurred to him that no currency or object he was willing to barter was in his possession. Without money, he had nothing with which to purchase any supplies.

"I'm afraid I can not buy anything. I have no rupees to speak of."

The man hummed in understanding. "That's quite a shame, son."

"I don't suppose you are in need of anyone willing to work?" Chesty requested somberly. "I know I'm just a stranger, but if I could work for a bed and a map, and other supplies, I'd be awfully grateful sir."

The man cocked an eyebrow, and then began to rub his chin with a hand as he appeared to consider the question. "What can you do, stranger?"

"Well, I can use a bow, as you can see." Chesty remarked as he pointed his thumb at the compound bow looped over his shoulder. "If you need someone to hunt or act as a guard, I could do just that."

"A guard?" The man asked, mildly struck by the suggestion. His eyes looked over the stranger warily, now that his exhaustion was giving way to mild suspicion.

Chesty nodded, hoping that he had not offended the man in any way. "I have fought before sir. If you and this establishment were threatened, and I was hired by you, I could use my skills to fend off an attacker. Are thieves not common in these parts?"

The man blinked at the question. He seemed mildly uncomfortable with the query. "I should hope not. Is there anything else you could do?"

"I know how to use an axe and possess all kinds of survival skills. If you need me to gather supplies from the land, I could do just that."

The man hummed a few moments longer. Then he relaxed. "Okay, how about I test you?" The man asked.

"A test?"

"Yes. We could use some more wood for cooking and for heating up the inn. If you can chop down one tree and bring back several logs for the stable to use before lunch, I'll hire you on."

"I assume you have an axe I can wield for the task." Chesty stated.

"There should be a woodchopper's axe in a small shed at the back of the building." The man informed him.

"Thanks, sir. Where do you usually get firewood?"

"The small woodland right across the road." The man answered, pointing a gloved finger at several dozen trees and a few stumps that were directly facing the stable.

"Okay, I'll get to work sir."

"The name's Embry, son. And no problem. You can find the axe leaning on the right side of the stable, opposite the horse stalls." The operator leaned out the counter and pointed towards Chesty's left to demonstrate the proper direction to the wood axe.

"Then my name's Vernon, though most people call me Chesty."

"Very well, Chesty." Embry said. "Complete the task, and I will hire you."

"Before I go, how do you usually bring up wood? Do you chop it all up at the place you cut it down, or do you roll logs up to the stable to cut it into suitable firewood?"

Embry gave the questions some thought. "I'd recommend you just cut up the wood at the place you fell the tree. No need to spend energy moving the logs across the road."

Chesty gave a nod and headed on his way to find the wood axe and a proper tree to cut down.

Finding a suitable tree was hardly a challenging task. The forest that Embry pointed to was not particularly dense, and the tan colored trees which dominated most of the large flora were not terribly large. A lone man with sufficient strength and endurance could topple one such tree with little difficulty.

Chesty focused on a sickly looking tree with only a few healthy branches. He could cut it down with little concern about the environmental impact and he had fewer leaves to deal with. The main issue was cutting the log into sections that could be carried or rolled up to the stable roughly one hundred feet away.

First, Chesty determined where he wanted the tree to fall. He decided on a smallish clearing where the tree would avoid colliding with any other trees near it. Next, he began to hack away at the base, roughly eight inches above the ground. It took roughly half an hour of swinging at the tree to get a proper technique in rhythm. The Sun was still only rising into the sky, and the air was cool, yet Chesty was already breaking a great sweat akin to a marathon runner. Chopping wood took a greater amount of precision and finesse than one would think, especially when the tool one could use lacked any mechanical capabilities whatsoever.

By the time he had felled the one tree in his sights, his arms burned, and he needed to rest his hands from gripping the handle of the axe so firmly. The classic crunch of wood succumbing to gravity and momentum soon filled the area, and Chesty stumbled back as he witnessed the tree fall over with a deep, resonating boom.

"Phew..." Chesty huffed. "It took forever to get to this point."

After taking a break, Chesty proceeded to chop off what few branches did not break off during the felling of the tree's trunk. Then, from the bottom, he roughly measured the length from the tip of his fingers to the wrist of his right hand. Knocking the fallen tree with the axe to make a crude line, he marked the size of the lumber he would chop off of the log.

"Hi honey." A somewhat plump, freckled woman joined Embry at the front of the stable. Her beady eyes regarded her husband with warmth.

"Hi Myti." Embry was still focused on his task manning the front desk.

Myti soon heard the sound of an axe hitting wood. "Who's chopping this time? I know it's not Trott or Papa."

"New fella. Apparently never been to Hyrule, much less this stable before." Embry answered. "He asked for a job, and I offered a test to see if he can keep up."

Myti hummed in thought. It was not particularly common for any stranger to simply request a job. Most were born into the Epona Company business, and most who went to new stables were simply transferred by Talon, the head of the company.

"What's the man's name?"

"Chesty."

"Odd name." Myti commented. She came from a rather simple background, but even she never heard of any name like that.

"He is a rather unique lad." Embry added. "In fact, I could have sworn his ears looked a bit funny."

"A defect?" Myti asked. She then blushed when she realized how mean her question sounded to both her and her spouse. "Oh dear. Must be too early in the morning for me. That sounded a bit insensitive."

Embry reached and gave his wife a pat on the shoulder. "Maybe some breakfast will help wake you up. Along with some coffee. We still have some Faronese Cocoa if I can recall."

"I think I'll do just that." Myti said. "I'll even spare a breakfast roll and bacon for that Chesty fellow."

"I'm sure he'll appreciate it."

Forty five minutes into chopping into the felled tree before him, Chesty finally developed a technique that could cleave through the wood with a few swings. He had managed to get one wheel of the timber separated from the trunk, and now began to roll it off to the side. After rolling the cut log to a place beneath the shade of a nearby tree, Chesty pushed it over so it was flat against the ground. With a loud sigh of relief, he took a much needed breather.

"Jeez. I think drills in the marines were only somewhat harder to deal with." He huffed. "Either that, or I've gotten softer than I realized."

Shaking his hands to rid them of sweat, he grabbed the axe again and, after returning to the felled tree and reestablishing his aim, steadily drove the head into a section of the trunk once again. He was relieved to see that he could begin the separation process much more quickly. Despite the fact that he was only a woodsman as a hobby, Chesty was able to divide the tree into four large sections.

It took a great deal of leverage, but Chesty found himself able to stand each log vertically. It was a fortune brought about by the light nature of the timber's weight, and the fact that the core of the tree was hollow from years of decay. Splitting each log into four or so separate pieces was an easy effort. The branches that belonged to the former tree's crown could wait. Now it was a matter of gathering the newly cut lumber back to the stable itself. Picking up three pieces at a time, and leaving the axe behind, Chesty made his way back to the Outskirt Stable.

Upon approaching the stable, Chesty saw Embry looking mildly impressed with his efforts.

"Not bad, sonny. You even have the pieces close to the size we use for the fireplace and the cooking pot."

"Thanks." Chesty huffed. "Where do you want the wood?"

Embry leaned out of the booth and stretched his right arm towards the left side of the stable. "We usually store firewood on that side of the stable. There should be two sections of fencing that are parallel to each other. That is where we stack the logs. Can't miss it."

Indeed, the conspicuous fence posts were easily spotted. The lumber was deposited, and Chesty immediately set to bringing back as much lumber as possible. By the time he had finished, there were twenty pieces of chopped wood where there had been none before. Several cut branches filled out the newly made pile, and a tired Chesty returned to Embry to tell him the good news.

"I got your firewood restocked, Mr. Embry." Chesty replied. "Is there anything else you needed?"

The stable keeper smiled. "Just Embry will do." He extended a hand. "Glad to have you aboard."

Chesty shook his new employer's hand with a grateful smile. "Bless you, sir. I won't let you down."

"How's about you head over to the stable proper?" Embry recommended. "I got another helper named Canni. She'll help you run through your duties as a first timer, and I can get you a proper uniform."

Though his heart still weighed much from the events of the past twelve hours, Chesty finally felt secure. He intended to keep that security, financial and otherwise, with every ounce of energy.