Wep - Part IV (Conclusion) (Patreon)

As they ran, Wep pulled a health potion from his inventory and popped the cork. As carefully as he could while balancing atop a half-ton swine, he pulled out the tiny bat and held her protectively in his hand. Now that she was starting to dry, her fur was a beautiful copper color, though she had large tufts of silver fur that stood up in front of her ears. He pressed the rim of the open glass bottle to her tiny, slightly squashed-looking snout, and tipped a single drop of the cotton-candy pink fluid into her partially open mouth.

This potion was a strong one. He kept a few weaker ones strapped to his body and HB, because he’d met a few monsters who cast a curse that blocked a player’s access to their inventory. Never one to require two painful lessons when one would do, he’d taken to wearing weapons and a few essentials at all times. That said, this potion cost well over a thousand gold, and that single drop should be enough to bring the little critter back to full health. She was tiny enough he was afraid he’d break her if he just grabbed her too tightly, so he didn’t want to take any chances. Though if she was really the one who’d been fighting that hyena all by herself, she was probably tougher than she looked.

Silus stirred, and Wep squinted at her again.

Greater Onslaughter Bat (Flying/Disease) - Level 31 . Passive (unless you make her mad). 206/206 health points. Weakness: Disapproval.

Booyah! That was what he was talking about!

One big, golden eye blinked open, and the bat wiggled. She blinked, the other eye opened, and then she started to thrash. He tightened his grip, but caught a glimpse of minute needle-teeth, and froze. If she was the disease vector, what would happen if she bit him again? He already had the debuff. Would the effects stack? If so, would it use arithmetic progression, or geometric progression? Just exactly how much trouble would he be in in about fifteen seconds?

“Whoa there, ah, Silus,” he murmured, trying to move his thick fingers out of range of those teeth, while still maintaining his grip. “I’m not going to hurt you. I gave you that potion!” The bat stilled, though the pretty gold eyes still watched him warily. He offered a careful smile. No teeth. Hopefully, being a familiar gave a little extra oomph to her intelligence, or he was about to have to choose between letting her go and potentially failing a quest he couldn’t afford to fail, or hurting her in order to hang onto her, in which case she wouldn’t exactly be ‘intact and unharmed’, and he’d probably fail anyway.

“Look,” he said, watching her for signs of comprehension, “I just need to take you back to your master. If you fly off, I can’t do that. Now, I want to open my hand, but you have to promise not to run away. I swear by,” he thought hard, remembering what he’d heard about Refuge since the end of the war. Didn’t it have a patron goddess? “Oh! Gina! I swear by Gina, I mean you no harm.”

You have gained one level of [Diplomacy]. It is now level 27.

WARNING: You have made a vow in the name of a God or Goddess in an area under the control of that Deity. Breaking your vow will have potentially dire consequences.

He blinked at that second warning. He’d never seen anything like that, before, either. Usually, the only time the ‘gods’ of Veritas really mattered was if you were a priest class, or if you entered a temple or shrine. Apparently, this was a day full of firsts, and he couldn’t help grinning. New was always exciting, and generally Wep could also turn it into ‘good’, at least for him.

Slowly, the bat tilted her head to the side, for all the world looking like she was pondering the situation. Wep thought fast, and then carefully removed one hand, though he still had the bat’s wings pinned with the other one. A gesture of good faith, and… With a few finger twitches and eye rolls, he pulled up his inventory, and a moment later a large, red, juicy mango appeared in his palm. In the real world, he was mildly allergic to the things, but here he could eat all he wanted, so he always had a few around. Now, hopefully the little animal liked fruit, because he’d figured out a long time ago that the way to an animal’s heart was through its stomach.

It was like a lightbulb went off in the bat’s tiny, fluffy head. Her eyes locked onto the fruit, and Wep grinned internally. Cautiously, he loosened his grasp. When the bat didn’t budge, he said, “How about we split this mango on the way to your master? Even at HB’s top speed, we still have a few hours before we reach the city. Plenty of time for a mango. Or two.”

Silus looked back and forth between him and the delectable-smelling fruit. Once. Twice. Three times. “Three mangos?” Nothing ventured, nothing gained.

She nodded, and he opened his hand, though he kept his fingers gently cupped around her, protecting her from the chill wind produced by HB’s rapid pace. Then he stalled. How was he supposed to cut up the mango? One hand holding fruit, plus one hand holding bat. That was two hands, and he was out.

Silus looked up at him, and if he hadn’t known it was impossible, he would have sworn she smirked. Using the delicate little thumbs at the peaks of her paper-thin wings, she climbed down his hand and back into his beard. Once she had created a satisfactorily warm little burrow, she nodded to him regally. He now had permission to slice the mango.

Laughing, he did so.

❦ ❦ ❦

It took four mangos and six hours to reach Refuge. Twice, he had to dismount, once to climb up a steep bluff, and once to climb down into a deep ravine that wound around until it joined back up with the main road. The first time, he had to pull out his pig-sling to haul HB up, but the second time his porcine mount bounced down the rock walls as nimbly as a mountain goat. Both times, Silus flew above them, circling until they were done, and then returning to Wep’s beard. Each time, she burrowed her way in deeper, and by the time Refuge came into sight, Wep was fairly certain she was sleeping in there. Somewhere.

Once they rejoined the main road, they also had to slow down because of added traffic. Though it wasn’t heavy, it was a steady flow of wagons and mounted players, and though some players plowed right past the NPCs, most at least tried to avoid them, and it made for a bit of a traffic jam, here and there.

Then Silus woke up. The bat poked her head out of Wep’s beard, blinking in the late afternoon sun, and wriggled the rest of the way out of her warm, shaggy nest. Perching on his arm, she tilted her head, eyes going distant,  looking for all the world like a player using chat to talk to her party.

Startled cries came from the road ahead of them, though Wep’s position rather closer to the ground than most people prevented him from seeing what was going on. Then the crowd parted like the proverbial Red Sea, and a slim girl on a tall, black and white ostrich rode through.

Rouge the Rogue - Level 120 Fowl Trickster. Saintess of Gina. Exorcist. Wood elf/Dark elf

Wep whistled silently, though he grinned and waved to the girl. She’d shown up on the leaderboards right after the battle for Refuge, though no one was exactly sure what she’d done to earn so many levels so quickly. Some players had seen her and a few other players fighting for Refuge during the battle, but many others had been there as well, and though it was good experience, it wasn’t that good. In fact, he’d been planning to see if she was still here and try to find out if whatever she’d been doing was something he could get in on, and here she was!

Silus dropped from his arm, swooping up to land on the rogue’s shoulder. Rouge turned her head, relief flooding her face, and leaned in, beginning what looked like a fierce whispered conversation between herself and the little bat. After a few exchanges, Rouge shook her head, rolling her eyes, and gently stroked the silver tufts in front of Silus’ ears.

Looking down at Wep from atop her ostrich, she grinned, ignoring the players nearby, who were blatantly framing shots of the girl and the stranger mounted on a pig. “Hi, Wep! Um, hang on a sec, and I’ll make us a path. I kinda forgot how crazy it is here lately.”

Rouge the Rogue has sent you a Friend request. Accept: Yes/No?

Quickly, he accepted, following close behind as Rouge made her way back down the road toward the growing city. Instantly, he saw a message from Rouge pop up on his interface.

@RougetheRogue: Sorry about that. I usually use a disguise when I go out, these days, but we were so worried about Silus, I forgot. We all geared up when we got the notification that she’d been injured, but then she was healed a few minutes later, so we’ve been waiting for her to get home.

@WeaponsShortage: Not a problem, Miss Rouge. Glad I was there to help the little critter. She was in a bit of trouble.

Atop her feathered mount, Rouge gave Silus a disapproving look.

@RougetheRogue: She’s been going out leveling on her own lately, even though everybody told her not to. Hopefully she’ll listen from now on and wait for someone to go with her.

Wep let out a little snort of laughter. If the bat hadn’t been a mob - or did she count as an NPC? - he would have thought the girl was getting after a friend who had gone out to level in an area that was too difficult for her. But how could the bat go anywhere without instructions from her master? Unless it was all set up by the game in order to bring him back into contact with a player he’d met before, but that seemed like a bit of a stretch, even for a game that claimed to be as much of a social game as an RPG.

@WeaponsShortage: Do you know her master? I got a quest to return her to him within the next few hours. It has some pretty harsh penalties for failure.

@RougetheRogue: HA! The system called Aspen her master? I’m never going to let him live that down. I mean, he is totally bossy, but Silus just does what she wants, most of the time. But yeah, I know him. Hang on, he’s headed this way. He was in the middle of some meeting, so he had to change. I was on Silus-watch, since he couldn’t get out of work stuff.

Wep shook his head, urging HB to trot along behind the young dynamo. He was thoroughly confused by now. From the way the quest was worded, he’d been sure the bat’s master was an NPC, but Rouge talked like he was a player.

Ahead, the guards flanking the city gates raised their fists to press respectfully over their hearts, bowing as Rouge entered. Wep blinked. The girl was just full of surprises. He’d never seen NPCs act like a player was truly someone special before, and he’d met a few who’d managed to buy or earn their way into a spot in the minor nobility. Even more surprising was the fact that the guards had members of almost every race he knew, including goblins. There was even one player, and he’d bowed just like the others!

More goblins stood inside the gates, expressions hard and wary. They, too, bowed slightly to Rouge, but they kept their eyes on the crowd, and their free hand on the hilt of a weapon. In the center of a clear area surrounded by these goblins, who identified as high-level justat, whatever that meant, stood a tall man, a ragged hat pulled low over his face.

Aspen - NPC

That was it, that was all his very high level [Identify] gave him about the man. His [Merchant’s Intuition] was actually more helpful. His map pinged, and when he glanced at it, he saw that the marker indicating the person best-suited to buying the egg he’d gotten from JoJo was sitting firmly atop the new NPC.

Cautiously, he bowed, trying to match the fist-on-heart movement of everyone else around him, though he aimed it at the NPC, rather than the girl.

“Ah, Mr. Aspen,” he hesitated, for once unsure exactly how to address a customer. Still, more respect was always better than less. “I’ve come from Bloodhaven with an item I hope you’ll take a moment to-”

Rouge flipped through the air, twisting and somersaulting twice before her soft boots tapped lightly on the bluestone street. As she did, Silus flew from the girl’s shoulder, landing on Aspen’s.

Quest: “Silus of the Bats” complete.

You have returned Silus to Aspen in a timely manner. Good job.

Success: +25 Relationship with Aspen. +30 Relationship with Silus. Disease cure. Variable treasure. Bonus for finishing early: Audience with the Queen’s Consort.

You are no longer Diseased.

Aspen tilted his hat back, and the sun touched lean, tanned cheeks and a crooked smile. Something metallic glinted beneath the hat’s brim, but Wep was distracted as he met cold topaz eyes. They weighed him in a moment, and Wep’s mustache quivered. Whoever this NPC was, he certainly wasn’t the simple peasant his clothes suggested. Not that Wep had really believed that, since he was surrounded by bodyguards, and had a familiar, which were only available to very high level mages.

Slowly, one of those eyes, eerily similar to those of the bat, though they were touched with a hint of brown, winked. The crooked grin widened, and Aspen tugged the brim of his hat back down.

“Let’s head over to the inn, shall we?” He asked, deep voice genial. “I hear Millie’s making strudel tonight.”

Rouge whooped in glee. “I haven’t had her strudel in ages! Let’s go!” Darting off, she deftly wound her way through the streets, deeper into the city. Her ostrich bugled in dismay and leaped to a nearby roof in a single bound, racing after the girl.

Aspen shook his head, glancing at the nearest justat, the first female goblin Wep had ever seen. “Karali, I think I’m safe enough, don’t you? Do you really need to stay?”

The goblin tipped her head, considering Wep with yellow eyes almost as cold as Aspen’s had been when they first met Wep’s. Then she glanced at the other nine goblin warriors and gestured sharply to them. Bowing their heads, they sank into the shadows at the edge of the road and vanished instantly. Wep swallowed hard. Usually, [Stealth] required that no one was looking before it could be triggered. For this lot to be able to use it in a crowded area, while being watched, well, he was just glad they didn’t seem to have a problem with him.

Respectfully, Karali bowed to Aspen. “As you wish, Aspen-hu’we. I will remain by your side, however.”

Aspen snorted. “Like they actually left. You know I can tell when they’re lurking, Karali.”

The smallest of smiles touched Karali’s thin lips. “But no one else can, hu-we. This is what you wished, no?”

“No,” Aspen muttered, “but it’s obviously what I’m getting.” He turned back to Wep, shaking his head. The fierce power was gone from his face now, leaving behind a bemused middle-aged man. He rubbed the back of his neck. “Well, ah, I didn’t catch your name, but Millie’s strudel is excellent. If you’d like to introduce yourself, and tell me why you’re here, I’ll show you where the inn is. Rouge is probably already there.” His eyes twinkled with amusement, and he paused, looking down toward Silus, who was pressed against his throat in the closest thing Wep could imagine to a bat hug.

“Yes,” he said after a moment, “you’re forgiven. I expect nearly dying was enough to remind you to bring backup next time. And yes, you can join Rouge.”

The bat leaned back, looking assessingly up at her ‘master’. Again, it looked like she was speaking, and Aspen laughed out loud. “No,” he said fondly, “I won’t grow a beard for you. Sarave doesn’t like them. Now get going, or Rouge will start without you.”

With a chirp, the bat dropped from his shoulder and flew away, rising high over the buildings as she vanished in the direction Rouge and the ostrich had gone. Aspen turned back to Wep, though he, too, started walking toward the inn. Karali pacing a perfect five feet behind him.

“Now, you said something about an item? Are you a merchant?”

Wep narrowed his eyes. He was almost certain that was a rhetorical question, and Aspen already knew exactly who Wep was. How that information had been communicated to the NPC, Wep didn’t know, and the only thing Wep liked about not knowing things was the fact that eventually he would figure them out.

Still, he was right. Wep was a merchant, and once he was in that role, he knew exactly what to do. With a sweeping gesture that made Karali tense briefly, Wep produced the egg. “Ah, yes,” he said. “My name is Weapons Shortage, and today I have for you… An egg.”