Rok Chapter: Invitation (Patreon)

It was with greatly mixed feelings that Rok found himself waking up well before the sun was even fully above the line of mangroves that surrounded his home. He was certainly annoyed, and in no small measure, to see that the sun wasn’t glaring in at him, giving him a much needed boost in energy to get out of bed. There was also a bit of confusion, mostly as to why he heard activity in his kitchen at such an ungodly hour. 

For the most part though, he needed to go see whether it was Jim or Lorraine cooking and see if he couldn’t get them to live with him, if this was the quality of food they’d be making. Just the smell alone was enough to get Rok to force himself out of bed, shaking the fatigue away from his mind before starting the small journey from his room to the kitchen, through the single room between them.

However, when he pushed open the thin thatch door only to see Jim and Lorraine both stumble out of the guest room next to his, his semi-relaxed posture changed slightly. Somebody had broken into his house, and granted, it was no fortress in terms of security, and had begun cooking. Giving himself and his guests a quick once over to make sure they were still all in one piece, he paced over to the kitchen. Jim and Lorraine weren’t much slower on the uptake, after realizing that it wasn’t Rok they both fell in line behind him and got ready to do whatever they might need to.

It was a deceptively short nine paces between their rooms and the kitchen, and the closed door only added to the mounting suspense as they all tried not to crunch the sand beneath their feet too loudly. Thankfully, whoever it was that had appropriated Rok’s equipment seemed not to notice, apparently too busy chopping up some unknown foodstuffs, or what they all hoped was food at least, all this while something simmered loudly in the background, probably whatever it was that woke them up in the first place.

Rok wasted no time when he reached the door, forgoing a stealthy approach in favor of a sudden, overwhelming strike that his kind were known for. After practically kicking down the door, he took just a moment to assess the situation, before tensing up to leap at the intruder when he found him. However, the interloper spoke up first.

“Ah, good morning, good morning! So glad to see you’ve finally arisen, I was just beginning to think I’d have to dine alone and leave you with leftovers. That’s terribly rude, I know, but I find that disturbing another’s rest is far more disrespectful.” 

This caught all three off guard, and the tension in both Rok and Jim dissipated, while Lorraine fumbled over the spell she was mouthing and the sand beneath her shifted slightly. All three pairs of eyes snapped to the source of the pleasantries, and they all thought it was a child for a moment before closer inspection proved them wrong.

Still, seeing as the person, the man was hardly more than a meter tall, it was certainly an easy conclusion to jump to. Then they caught sight of his tail, long and flesh colored, while the whiskers on his face were upturned in response to the sincere smile plastered across his face. This very smile proved to be the answer to the question of what this strange man was, as the jutting pair of front teeth that were fully on display meant he was a mouse of some sort.

Another moment passed in silence, with all three sizing up the diminutive man before them all while he stood stock still, the grin never leaving his face. Rok was the one to break the silence, rather than attacking like he’d first intended he voiced the question that had wormed its way into his mind thanks to the peculiar situation.

“Who are you, and why are you here?” The man didn’t seem overly upset by Rok’s lack of social skills, and simply shook his head with a slight chuckle.

“Oh, Rok, you wound me so. I realize my sudden intrusion might have left you on edge, but you surely can’t be so startled as to forget about a guest you’ve invited just days prior?” Rok’s eyes widened slightly in realization, a hint of an idea who this man might be, and the man seemed to pick up on it immediately.

“Aha, I knew someone placed in charge of such a prosperous town couldn’t possibly be that lacking in etiquette, it must have been the stresses of the job, then?” With each word he spoke, Rok grew more certain in his guess, and any thoughts of fighting were being rapidly pushed from his mind. He was about to confirm his guess when the man continued, and Rok was certain the man hadn’t even paused for breath since he started talking.

“Don’t worry my friend, we all have moments like those. Just earlier this week I found myself so overwhelmed with a request that I almost missed out on learning about your remarkable find. It was only thanks to some gossip I’d happened to hear that I found out this month at all. Imagine, missing out on something like this, what a tragedy that would be!

“But I digress, I’m sure you and your guests must be famished after listening to my tales, especially the lovely couple behind you. I know you must have had your reasons for taking so many concoctions in such a short amount of time, but surely it couldn’t have prevented the two of you from eating something after the effects wore off?”

Rok had finally lowered his guard, it wasn’t so much because he felt safe around the man as much as it was he realized how disrespectful, and indeed, futile it was to try and fight this impromptu house guest. Jim and Lorraine weren’t quite as aware of just who was speaking to them as Rok was, but seeing him relax, combined with the torrent of words that had just been sent at them, meant they were no longer ready to burst into a fight at any moment. 

Rok gave the two a quick glance, and they actually looked slightly guilty after the lecture, nodding along sullenly. Rok saw his chance to get a word in now, while the man was watching the couple with a deeply concerned look, hoping that they truly understood.

He cleared his throat and spoke up when the mousy man turned to look at him, already slipping back into his cheery grin. “Sir Mapper, I apologize for my confusion a moment ago. As you said, work has been rather trying ever since I’ve started my new job. I hope you aren’t too upset at my mistake.” He forced himself to speak ‘politely’, though the sincere tone of voice he used to address the man was anything but fake.

The Mapper nodded enthusiastically, then tossed Rok a piece of fabric that he quickly realized was a white apron, perfectly sized for his hulking frame. “Of course, my friend, think nothing of it! Though, as much as it pains me to do so, I must impose on you some. Would you mind helping me with this dish? I hadn’t realized the state your guests were in until a moment ago, I’m not one to spy on a sleeping couple you see.

“Anyways, the two of them seem to be in desperate need of something a bit hardier than what I had planned, and I’ll have to get right on that.” Rok took a moment before placing the apron over the baggy clothing he called sleepwear, and The Mapper turned to his ‘guests’.

“Now you two, go wait in the living room, this shouldn’t take too long. It’s no dining hall but we’ll make do.” Jim and Lorraine had long since come to the same realization that Rok had, and they simply nodded and turned to depart, leaving the crocodilian alone with the mouse. Rok was soon forced to keep up with the man’s stream of consciousness he called a conversation, all the while listening to make sure he caught when one of his stories became directions on what to do to help out with the meal being prepared.

Frantic as the cooking process was, The Mapper hadn’t lied when he said it wouldn’t take too long. It was hardly five minutes later when Rok turned to see four bowls, each filled with a sauce of some description that had been ladled over what remained of Rok’s potatoes, and topped with an egg with a vividly red yolk. 

He had no idea when his guest had assembled this, as he had just been relegated to chopping the many assorted herbs sent his way, and mincing a cut of meat that he had to desperately hold back to avoid eating then and there. He asked The Mapper where it came from and got a cryptic answer that provided no information, but he knew better than to ask for more.

What followed was a spectacularly uneventful five minutes of eating, and apparently even The Mapper couldn’t talk when he was eating. It was only after all four had placed their empty dishes onto the table, that anyone spoke up again. Rok had stood up to take The Mapper’s dishes to be washed, but the man waved his hand and said it was fine, before the bowls disappeared altogether. 

“You needn’t trouble yourself with my dishes, Rok. I’ll have the time to clean them up later. After all, there is something much more important than mere cutlery and bowls we have to discuss, no?”

Rok nodded, standing up after the man himself did. The couple followed after the two as they left Rok’s home, shutting the door behind themselves respectfully. Neither spoke up during their discussion, as not even Lorraine’s father was aware that Rok had managed to invite The Mapper, and they truly had nothing to offer the discussion because of it.

“Anyways Rok, I know this must be wearing on your patience by now, but I simply must thank you once more for agreeing to let me have access to the Dungeon. I know the wording I used in my missive was rather vague, but I think we can firm that up when we return to your office. Until then, why don’t you share what you know of this little troublemaker with me, ever since I caught wind of an aquatic dungeon I haven’t been able to think of anything else. It shakes up everything we know about them!”

Rok almost shouted when he heard the dungeon that had caused him so much trouble recently called a little troublemaker. And even after swallowing the harsh words back, he couldn’t help but rub his left ear, the lack of hearing a permanent reminder of his ordeal. The Mapper gave a little chuckle at the action, apparently aware of much more than he was letting on, but said nothing.

Rok didn’t push the subject, instead organizing his thoughts about what little he had personally experienced, as well as the information from the endless reports and rumors that crossed his desk on a daily basis. 

“I haven’t been through it recently, as you’re aware, and any specific information I can give you from my dive is probably outdated, but I think you should know just how quickly the dungeon seems to be growing. Just this past week the floor layout has changed at least once, and we’re aware of at least twelve floors, some of them combined with each other, and others having branching paths downwards. 

I have no guesses as for why it is developing so explosively, nor where it is getting the fuel for it. In just a few months a juvenile lesser wyvern has become an unusual variant, and a wyrm appeared with the same growth. Rumor has it there’s a drake, too, but no one has given an official report. There’s more, so much more, but I doubt we can cover a fraction of it. No offense, but I honestly think you need to experience it for yourself.”

He looked down at the man beside him, The Mapper had been keeping stride with Rok despite not even coming up to the man’s waist, yet he didn’t seem to be making any effort. He seemed deep in thought, a serious expression that he hadn’t seen on the man in his admittedly short interactions with him, and said nothing for a long while. It was only when they made it back to the Guilds’ building that he nodded and broke out in another smile. 

“Of course, I suppose I really must. As you’ve said, calling this Dungeon’s growth unusual is putting it mildly. But I suppose that’s why I’m so eager to look into it, isn’t it?” The Mapper went quiet once more after that, as Rok guided him through the halls and to his office. Sometime earlier, Jim and Lorraine had split off from those two, no doubt not feeling welcome in the conversation.

The two sat at Rok’s desk just moments later, and a pointed look from Rok told Kelly to shut the door and accept no visitors, and then the two got down to business. The Mapper planned to stay true to his name and provide the Guilds’ a full map of the dungeon, down to its core room, for virtually nothing, and if anybody else was sitting across from him offering the same, Rok would think them mad. But when he sat across from one of the few beings who have been truly acknowledged and rewarded by Vol’s ever-present System, those blessed few ranked S, for at least thousands of kilometers, he knew not to ask questions, and to hope for the best deal he could get.