“I knew it was to the right,” Kaylin said, tapping her finger on her cheek thoughtfully.
“I don’t recall you mentioning it,” Vexx said with a grimace. “Damn. Any chance of a reward for killing those goblins?”
The barkeeper snorted. “Henderson had a quest listed, as it happens, but I would never have given it to you two. So no rewards, besides the loot you left behind.”
“What loot?” Vexx and Kaylin asked together.
The barkeep grinned as he checked off the bounty. “Word to the wise, my new dungeoneers,” he said, moving across the bar counter to refill a mug. “Go over the bodies later. A bit of loot like that can make you more than a bit of profit.”
Vexx groaned. “So all that was for nothing?”
“Gave you a bit of experience, didn’t it?” the barkeeper asked, moving back over to them. “Anyway, the job’s still on. Just one goblin, and the blood trail is still fresh. You have 36 hours, dungeoneers, and I suggest you hurry.”
Vexx and Kaylin exchanged pained glances. “Fine,” Vexx muttered, and the two of them made their way back to the door. “Damn it all,” Vexx muttered to himself as they stepped back out into the shining daylight. “All that for…” He trailed off as he saw Kaylin stripping off her leather armor. “Uh…Kaylin?”
“What?” she asked, pulling her bandage free, the stained white cloth fluttering in the breeze. Across from them, a startled merchant swore as he smacked into a lantern pole, his attention fully encompassed by the half-dressed elf, who was now shrugging her armor back on. “My wound is healed, so I don’t need it anymore.” Her huge green eyes looked over at him. “Could you strap me up, partner?”
“Ah…right,” he said, stepping closer and cinching her armor tight. Her hair smells like pine trees, he thought to himself. “Speaking of which, we’re out of bandages now, and I don’t have a whole lot else. A few mixed healing herbs just in case, a rusty dagger I found along the road, and a bit of iron ore I’ve been meaning to sell. What I’m saying is…we need to get some supplies. What do you have with you?”
“Besides my bow and knife?” Kaylin asked, turning around to face him and adjusting her armor. “Well, fourteen arrows and seven arrenroot flowers.”
“Arrenroot?” Vexx frowned. “I’m not very familiar with herbs. What properties does it have?”
“Properties?” Kaylin grinned. “I mean, they’re pretty! I’ve just been picking them as I go along. So where’s the market?”
Vexx sighed internally and led her down the street.
“Well, maybe they’ll come in handy. You think you could learn how to make healing poultices?”
“Nah,” Kaylin said casually as she strode by, kicking a stone out of the way, bits of mud spattering in the air. “I just want to get better at archery. Traps too. I did some thinking after that last fight, and ever since I woke up, I’ve had this idea for a trap that I really want to try out. We could use it on our goblin friend!”
“Well…what if we get wounded? How will we heal up?”
“You’re the mage,” she said with a laugh. “Anyway, if you don’t want to heal, we’ll just pick up some potions.”
“I’m out of money…” Vexx grumbled. “The barkeep has everything I had. What do you have?”
“Money…money…” Kaylin said to herself, sounding out the word. “That’s a human thing, right?”
Vexx buried his face in his hands as they entered the market district. Shouting voices echoed over the clanging of Cloudbury’s forge. The traffic was thicker here, a wagon passing by laden with lumber, a couple of mounted caravan guards beside it. That’s a good job, Vexx thought as he slowly lowered his hands. It isn’t raiding dungeons, but it’s steady pay and a bit of excitement if they come across any goblins or bandits.
“Yes, money!” Vexx finally replied as they passed a food stand. “You need it for, well, for everything!”
“Oh…that explains why those villagers were chasing me the other day…” Kaylin mused. “I guess they thought the carrots growing in their field were just for them.”
Vexx raised his head. “Did they put a bounty on you?” He smirked. “Maybe I could collect.”
“Sure, if you want,” she said with a cheery smile. “What’s a bounty, anyway?”
Before Vexx could respond, they rounded the corner into the town’s bazaar. In prime position was a tall man with a forked beard, pointing proudly at a large snuffling lizard with an attached saddle. Beside him stood a black woman in a flowing green dress who nodded in satisfaction as she sized up the beast.
“Highly resistant to disease, ma’am, and none too picky about what it eats.”
“Good, good,” she replied. Vexx wondered if she was a more experienced dungeoneer. She didn’t seem to be around here, or to be an academy graduate for that matter. His vision was blocked by an armored knight striding past, warhammer resting on a shoulder, and then he winced as Kaylin squealed beside him.
“Ooh, pets!”
Kaylin weaved through the crowd and smiled as she put her hand in front of a horse, who warily sniffed at it. Vexx grabbed her other hand and pulled her away.
“They’re mounts, and there’s no way we could afford even one of them. Not like either of us know the first thing about riding one.”
“I could learn,” Kaylin huffed indignantly.
“For now, let’s stick to potions, alright?”
9
Doctor Fansee’s Pick-Me-Ups
The potion stall was unoccupied, an oasis of calm in the busy Cloudbury market. Vexx frowned as he stood there. Vials sat on the wooden booth, one a swirling mix of black and purple, the others of simpler reds, greens, and blues. The sign read Doctor Fansee’s Pick-Me-Ups, but the doctor did not appear to be in.
“Hello?” Vexx asked.
A mop of springy white hair emerged from behind the counter, and then the creased and wrinkled face of a gnome appeared, blinking at them from behind thick-rimmed glasses. “Oh, a customer! I didn’t see you up there. I was just—” A pop sounded from below, swirling green smoke clouded the air, and the gnome coughed for a few seconds as he waved the acrid smoke away. “That’s a bad batch of Fenriconian mushrooms, make no mistake. Anyway, what can I do for you?”
“We’ll need a health potion. We’re hunting a goblin!” Kaylin announced proudly.
The gnome stared at her for a second and let out an incredulous laugh. “A goblin? Just one?”
“Oh yes, but I’ve heard he’s strong. He’s killed several sheep! So Vexx thinks we’ll need some potions.”
“I’m…well…” Vexx stammered, flustered from the poorly disguised chortles from the nearby crowd. “It’s just…safety first.”
“Yes, yes,” the gnome said, unsuccessfully hiding his amusement. “Goblins are certainly fearsome, especially when they’re on their own. Do you think you’ll need two?”