《Grandpa's Cabin》


 Chapter 1 Move in Day

    Chapter 1


    The sun had begun to set as I pulled into the long gravel driveway that led to my grandpa¡¯s cabin just outside the small town of Conconully. When my Grandpa passed away last month he left the cabin to me in the will and I finally got a long weekend off of work to go check it out. I had many fond memories of Grandpa and his friends playing Dungeons and Dragons and letting me join in when I was there to visit, often falling asleep halfway through the session. Grandpa had a lot of fun home brew rules that made the experience unique.


    I pulled the car to a stop at the bottom of the driveway and turned off the engine. I grabbed the envelope from the lawyer containing the keys to the house and the code for the as the paperwork put it ¡°significantly large safe¡± in the basement. I walked up to the front door and used the key to unlock the door. I entered into a small tiled area for shoes divided from the living room by a half wall. Kicking off my shoes I walked into the living room. An old comfortable looking couch was against one wall with a coffee table in front of it facing a surprisingly modern flat screen t.v. The wall opposite of where I stood was taken up mostly by a classic wood fireplace built into the wall. I could see through openings on either side into a kitchen dining room space.


    To my immediate left was a door opening it up I found a master bedroom all the sheets were stripped off the bed and folded neatly on top, grandpa had left instructions for the lawyer to have the place cleaned but to stay out of the basement and it looked like the company that had done it had done a good job. I opened the other two doors in the room both on the right side one was a small walk-in closet and the other led to the master bathroom. The bathroom had another door on the farside that had a laundry room which had four doors, two on the right and the last one across from me.


    The one across from me had a small window that let me see a back deck. I opened the first one on the right and flipped on the light to see stairs leading down probably to the basement mentioned in the paperwork. I decided I would deal with that in the morning and closed the door. The last door opened to a familiar dining room and kitchen. I walked through the dining room and checked the kitchen, sure enough the cupboards were empty of food but the dishes looked like they went through the dishwasher recently. I was glad I had stopped and picked up a pizza on the way out, I started to preheat the oven to that special 425 degrees and went to finish my exploration. The last door off the living room was right next to the gap to the kitchen. Opening it I found a short hallway, a door on my left had been left slightly open revealing another bathroom. The last two opened up into two rooms the same size as the master but with two sets of bunk beds each with sheets and blankets folded as well.


    After checking the main floor of the cabin I went outside and brought in the rest of my stuff including the pizza, my laptop, and my overnight bag. The rest of the night passed quietly. I set up the master bedroom and hooked my laptop up to the t.v. The internet had been turned off when grandpa passed so I busted out one of my favorite anime¡¯s I kept on dvd and resumed watching where I left off with a guy firing a rocket launcher at a very annoying dragon. Turning everything off, I put the plate in the dishwasher and went to bed.


    * * *


    The next morning I woke up early having forgotten to close the blinds luckily for my sanity I didn¡¯t forget to bring supplies for coffee, grandpa was a big coffee drinker he had an antique looking coffee thermos that never seemed to be empty no matter how much he drank. I put my creamer back in the fridge and drank my coffee waking up to start my day. It was the middle of summer so no reason to start a fire but I did wander out back to take a look at the wood stalk pile. The cabin was nicer than my apartment and all paid off but the job prospects in the area were pretty minimal so I could really only afford to use it as a vacation place during summer trips and hunting season. The wood pile looked sufficient for about three months. There was also an outside fire pit I noticed. The property was backed up to the national forest making it easy to scavenge deadfall for personal use. Grandpa also had what looked like a small pistol range set up.


    Returning inside I decided I would go down and see what grandpa kept in the super secret basement. I went down the stairs and found what looked to be an old root cellar concrete on all but the back wall which looked to be rock. The shelves were empty but surprisingly the rock wall had an old heavy duty door with an ancient looking lock. I had brought the envelope down with and pulled out the last key which fit in the lock the lock clicked open and the door creaked open ¡° that is going to need some oil¡± I said out loud to no one and went in I found a light switch and turned it on the tunnel looked like it had once been a mine shaft but had been worked to serve as a basement I followed it for a little ways until I hit a T intersection to the left looked to be an old cold war era bomb shelter that had been converted into into a small medical ward the shelves were full of bottles with odd colored liquids. I shrugged assuming this was something left over from when grandpa bought the place in the 60¡¯s then I turned to his pride and joy. I had only ever seen a picture of this place when I visited grandpa and grandmas regular house on the west side of the mountains.


    The right side of the t-intersection led to a giant much newer steel door. The control panel was newer than anything I had seen before and I punched in the code. ¡°Please state your name and read this¡± a computer voice came from speakers in the panel. ¡° Jack Mikelson, the quick brown fox jumped over the lazy dog.¡± I stated clearly ¡°voice print added welcome James Mikelson, in the future you can simply say open and close to open or close the door, more options are available see your owner''s manual for details.¡± as the computer finished the door swung open and I got to see what grandpa kept inside and I was shocked. Inside was not just a gun room but an armory with enough ordinance to make the ATF interested. On the left wall were an assortment of long arms. what looked like five FN Fals, three AR-10s with long range optics and one very pretty Tavor 7 with a Trijicon ACOG. but the top of the group had me gaping in awe.


    An M-60 machine gun hung from the mounting pegs below it was a manila envelope. I opened it up and found the original purchase receipt, and NFA forms. I paused double checking the purchase date and forms and realized that the M60 wasn¡¯t a replica but a fully functioning machine gun, quickly I checked the will I had it listed the property and everything on it including firearms but said the firearms were listed in appendix c which I hadn''t checked before now finding it I didn¡¯t take a breath until I saw that the M-60 was specifically listed. Owning and having a machine gun are always challenging no matter what people think and nearly impossible in Washington State. But luckily it looked like everything was in order. The will even had contact information for an experienced firearms lawyer which was to be paid for out of the estate to cover the transfer expenses.


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    Now that I knew I wasn¡¯t committing a crime just by walking into the room I continued to look around. The other wall had 5 Glock 21¡¯s and 5 FNX tacticals. Higher on the wall were sets of odd looking armor. Huh, I didn''t know grandpa did conventions I thought to myself then I noticed a more regular door in the back of the work area next to a reloading bench. The door had a sign on it. I walked over to take a look. It was a classic 8-bit scene with an old man in a cave. The caption read ¡°it¡¯s dangerous to go alone take these!¡± instead of the classic sword there was a pistol, flashlight, and brown shoulder bag below it was a big red arrow pointing right. Following the arrow I saw a bank of flashlights and five brown shoulder bags. ¡°Message received grandpa.¡± I chuckled while grabbing a flashlight. The first one I tried was died, but the second one was going strong so I grabbed a few spare batteries and tossed them into the satchel. The satchel had a plastic water bottle full of red tinted water. I took the lid off and sniffed it smelled fine so I took a sip and it had a slightly fruity taste. ¡°Flavored water, nice!¡± I exclaimed then found two vials with a much darker red and a note saying ¡° use half in stream water to purify¡±. It must be some kind of flavored water purification thing like iodine. I haven''t heard of a good tasting version though. I thought to myself making sure the bag fit right to my height. Then for fun I grabbed one of the FNX¡¯s they had holsters and I grabbed the one left handed holster checking the red dot sight to make sure it was working I holstered it and grabbed the belt spare magazine holder and two spare magazines to fit in it. After a moment of thought I grabbed three loose rounds from the ammo box marked .45 and went upstairs.


    Out at the pistol range I realized I forgot to grab ear protection cursing quietly I debated just shooting anyway but sighed and went to my car I found my electronic set in the trunk luckily for me the batteries were still good. I set a pop can filled with water on a piece of firewood and out of habit yelled hot range, I waited for a second to make sure no random hiker was about to stumble out of the woods behind the shooting berm and put the ear protection on. One shot followed by two in quick sections the pop can was shredded and I knew the firearm was working properly. I ejected and topped off the magazine then reupholstered the fire arm. I decided to just put the ear protection into the bag and head back downstairs. I had the armory open the door for me and then went to the nondescript wooden door.


    I opened it up but found just a long stony hall way that faded to black I didn¡¯t see a light switch so turned on the flashlight and followed the tunnel it ran about three hundred feet before I found a set of craggy stone steps leading up to a door that was dogged shut on a ship. Releasing the locking bar on my side I spun the hatch and pushing hard I swung it open.


    I was greeted by a bright sunny day which wasn¡¯t a surprise because I had only been inside for about ten minutes. But what was surprising was the hill behind me. I didn''t remember seeing a hill like this when I arrived yesterday but maybe I missed it on the drive in. I climbed out and shut the door behind me just so no one could wander into the armory without trying. Still, I didn¡¯t plan to go far since I didn¡¯t have a way to lock it from this side. I was in some kind of crumbling structure. If I was in Europe I would think it was a bunker or castle but those aren¡¯t really a thing in Washington, maybe some forgotten factory or ww2 base? The open flat field in front of me stretched out a few hundred yards until it ran into a forest. I hopped up on one of the destroyed walls and looked around but I couldn¡¯t see any landmarks. I was about to jump down when I noticed an object catch the light under some rubble which I moved aside. I reached down and picked up a coin that looked gold and had some writing on it. I didn''t understand I was about to pull out my phone to try to look it up when I heard a yelp and animal whimpering somewhere in the ruins and what sounded like laughter.


    I was mad I was a hunter and didn¡¯t mind killing animals. I knew where meat came from and was ok with that. I also understood trophy hunting wasn¡¯t my thing but so long as the meat wasn¡¯t wasted. You could have at your water buffalo or whatever. But I hated it when people were cruel to animals just because they felt like it, it was just bullying with a target even less likely to report you then the scrawny kid on the playground. So I was pretty pissed off when I rounded the corner. ¡° Hey, this is private property and if you don¡¯t knock it off right now I¡¯m going to call the cops you assh-¡± my tirade died as I finally registered what I was looking at what I thought were a few teenage boys abusing a dog turned out to be half correct, there was a dog being abused, but the things abusing it weren¡¯t teenagers. ¡°Goblins?!¡± I half asked and half said. Sure enough four little green guys about as tall as my belly button and only wearing loin cloths were kicking a dog curled up in a corner. One was poking it with what looked like a curtain rod it was trying to use as a spear.


    We all froze for a minute not moving then one of the Goblins pointed at me and shouted one had a bow and started to point it at me and draw it that snapped me out of my stupor and I stepped around the corner as he loosed it the arrow was short and would have missed me anyway but judging by how the others were acting that was a mistake not a warning. One had a nice looking dagger and he and the one with the curtain spear were charging me. I drew the FNX and leaned out to see this happening so I drew a bead on the nearest one. Two quick squeezes and the dagger wielder went down. I missed the curtain rod holder with the first shot at him but two more and he was out. The archer had reloaded and fired again, this time hitting the wall closer to me earning my attention and three bullets for his trouble. The last one turned and fled and I let him go, not understanding the situation I found myself in and not yet ready to shoot an unarmed person running away even if the person was a goblin.


    I walked over to the whimpering puppy and kneeled down, it tried to bark at me but it turned into a sad whimper. ¡° Easy buddy I¡¯m not going to hurt you shhhh shhhh shhhh¡± I got out my water bottle and poured some into my hands. And presented to the injured pup it sniffed for a second before lapping it up, I reached down to pet the puppy and felt a zap about like licking a 9 volt battery ¡°hahaha that tingled¡± I said rubbing the little guy or girls ears. A chill ran up my spine and before I knew what was happening I was flopping on my side a longsword sized machete like blade crashing down next to me where I was just kneeling. Looking back I saw a goblin holding the handle. My pistol was trapped between my hip and the ground so I drew my leg back and gave the goblin a solid kick. staggering him back causing him to drop his sword while I rolled onto my back drawing my pistol. He pulled a stone knife and jumped at me. I started shooting and didn¡¯t stop until the body landed on me, not moving.


    ¡°gross!¡± I shouted, shoving the body off of me and standing up. I couldn¡¯t remember how many rounds I had fired but a quick check showed the slide was locked back. I ejected the magazine and threw the empty in a pocket. Taking out the spare I slotted it home and released the slide which snapped back into position. Learning my lesson, I looked around for threats this time not seeing any. I holstered my pistol again and looked down at the puppy who looked slightly better but still injured and wouldn¡¯t be safe here. As gently as I could I picked the injured puppy and slowly made my way back to the tunnel and home.

 Chapter 2 Puppies and Goblins

    The return trip went quickly, back thru the passage securing it behind me, I dropped the equipment off but kept the pistol, I walked out and started to walk up the stairs but stopped looking at the medical room door. I had definitely just been fighting goblin¡¯s those were not  normal on earth. Looking down at the puppy and back at the door I remembered the red veils, I decided to take a chance and opened up the door.


    After grabbing one of the red veils I headed back up stairs to the main floor. I grabbed a bowl from the cabinet in the kitchen and set it out for the puppy and poured out the red veil into it. Setting the puppy down it began to sniff at the bowl then quickly started drinking. I went over to the fireplace, grabbing some old newspaper and kindling. I quickly built a small teepee out of the materials. Then I grabbed the striker, pushing down the safety I pulled the trigger the lighter clicked but no flame. I tried again and it sparked but again no fire I sat back on my heels and sighed. The puppy wandered over and cocked its head at me, I could visibly see they looked much better.


    ¡° Sorry little buddy, fire won¡¯t start¡± I set down the dead fire starter, the puppy looked at me and looked back at the wood then I heard it take in a breath like it was gonna let out a big bark when suddenly it opened its mouth and a fireball about the size as a pool ball. The kindling quickly caught and the puppy barked happily. I blinked in surprise for a few seconds then shrugged. magic tunnels, goblins and no fire breathing puppies I was running out of the energy to be surprised. ¡° good puppy¡± I cood petting its head, the puppy rolled onto its side and I finally got a good look. ¡°Oh you''re a good girl¡± I scratched her belly.


    ¡° You need a name don¡¯t you?¡± I asked as the puppy rolled back over. I looked around the living room for inspiration. I had brought my Playstation 4 with me sitting next to it was a copy of the 2015 game of the year. ¡°How about Igni?¡± I asked her. She barked happily and I smiled. We hung out for a few hours before I heard her stomach growl followed quickly by mine. We split a bag of beef jerky. I checked my phone and was surprised it was only 1730, or 5: 30 pm ¡° hey Igni lets go to town and get you some stuff huh?¡±. Igni looked at me confused, grabbing my wallet and keys I waved at Igni to follow me. with a small bark she followed me out.


    I opened the door of my old beat up civic Igni jumped in and over to the passenger seat I got in and started up the vehicle. The drive to Omak took about 40 minutes. Our first stop was the local farm and feed store which had a large pets section. The traffic wasn¡¯t to high and the parking lot only had a few cars I opened the door and Igni hopped out following me inside we walked in and the nearest cashier looked over and greeted me then saw Igni ¡° I¡¯m sorry sir while pets are welcome they need to be on a leash, its store policy¡± I nodded apologetically ¡° sorry sir, she was an unexpected addition and I now need everything for her from a leash to a bed and everything in between.¡± he thought about it for a second ¡° Alright how about this the collars and leashes are right over there.¡± he said pointing ¡° if you go over and buy those first and then get him hooked up you can finish shopping after that.¡± I didn¡¯t bother to correct him and thanked him for compromising with me.


    I quickly went where indicated and picked one of the long retractable leashes when I looked down. Igni was sitting next to a red collar looking up at me. I grabbed that one and went up and checked out with the same cashier. Quickly I got them on Igni. She looked at the collar oddly then seemed to shrug as it settled onto her.


    We walked around the store together getting bowls, food, a bed, and a few toys we were about to leave when Igni let out a small yip. I looked over at her and she was sitting next to a bone as big as she was. I raised my eyebrow, she looked from me back to the bone then at me again before giving me the biggest puppy dog eyes. I sighed then nodded, grabbing the giant bone and a smaller one. ¡° you can have this one for now and the big one when we get back to the cabin.¡± Igni barked happily and we went to check out the 200 dollars hurt but I should still be able to make it to payday still, barely. I made a note to buy some top ramen when I got back home. I sighed knowing my rent would go up from the pet requirements. Hopefully no one at the apartment company would notice for two weeks until my next good paycheck.


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    We got back into my car and drove over to the Walmart. I left Igni in the car with the small bone open which she happily chewed on. Shopping went quickly. I got two days worth of food for me and some snacks, I returned the car and suddenly remembered the machine gun. I pulled out my phone and was happy to see I had a signal. I called the number I wrote down earlier and gave it a call. It rang a few times and went to voicemail. I left a message explaining who I was and what the issue was and informed him I would be out of cell phone coverage until monday and asked him to please email me or leave a message.


    The trip home was uneventful and I unloaded the car, setting Igni¡¯s bed in the living room by my chair. Feeding myself and Igni went quickly I wound up splitting the hamburger helper between us. We went outside and played fetch until the sun went down. Igni figured the game out within about 30 seconds and was a happy and tired puppy when we went back inside.I went into the master bedroom and got ready when I laid down Igni hopped up on the bed, did a few circles then lay down at my feet.


    ***


    I woke up to Igni ¡°attacking¡± my foot that had slipped out from under the Blankets. ¡°Good morning Igni.¡± I said with a yawn stretching. ¡° What should we do today?¡± Igni jumped down and stood by the bedroom door. I got up and opened it and she ran to the glass door leading out back from the dining room. I let her out and she went and did her business before running back inside.  We had bacon and eggs for breakfast. Igni also had some of her dog food. I sat finishing my coffee and I looked over at Igni ¡°so thoughts?¡± Igni looked at me then ran over to the staircase leading down stairs. ¡°Ok why not go hang with the tiny green murder machines.¡±


    We went down stairs and to the armory. This time I followed the instructions on the door, having grabbed an extra mag to replace the one used yesterday I set an alarm for the afternoon on my phone to remind me to clean the pistol when I got back. I looked at the rifles while I liked the Tavor for its full ambidextrous options. Taking a few minutes I swapped it to a right side charging handle and left side ejection. Grabbing three extra magazines I looked around. I noticed the armors on the wall seemed adapted to use modern belts and one had a dagger hanging off of it. The sheath and handle matched the armor''s camouflage which is why I missed it the first time. Remembering the last goblin from yesterday I grabbed it and attached it to my belt.With a final check I made sure everything was ready. I looked down at Igni who seemed to give me a little nod. I opened the door back up and Igni headed through a few steps ahead of me.


    We popped out of the door into the morning sun looking around. I saw the goblin corpses and wrinkled my nose. The goblins didn¡¯t smell good in life and death hadn¡¯t done them any favors. ¡°Come on Igni lets burn these corpses before they attract predators.¡± Igni woofed and we spent the next thirty minutes gathering deadfall and dragging the corpses into a pile in the ruins where the fire wouldn¡¯t spread then Igni lit the pyre up. Walking a good distance away and waited for the fire to burn down. Suddenly Igni¡¯s ears cocked to the side and she spun to face the forest. ¡° What is it girl?¡± I asked standing up. I did a quick press check on the Tavor pulling the charging handle back just far enough to confirm there was a round chambered. At first I didn¡¯t hear anything but then I heard a bang which could have been a falling log or something, a few seconds later there was a yell I couldn¡¯t make out followed by a much more familiar set of sounds, I looked at Igni ¡°gunfire¡±. I was torn. I had never been in a real gun fight before. I was medically unable to join the military and while I had my concealed carry I had never needed until yesterday. Still there could be people who needed help and as I looked at the ashes of the goblins I made my choice. ¡° lets go, Igni¡±.

 Chapter 3 meet the neighbors

    Chapter 3


    The jog through the woods took longer than I would have liked. I was not in shape but the terrain was relatively flat and surprisingly open under the canopy. The gun fire continued. There were two distinct groups, one scattered but more numerous to my left and one more disciplined ripple fire on my right. Igni veered slightly to the right where I found a small ridge maybe 30 ft. tall. I had never served in the military like my buddy Mike but I was a history enthusiast, so I crouch walked up the rise until I got close to the top then lay down to crawl the rest of the way up. Igni crawled next to me and we slowly peeked over the top.


    What I saw was a battle under way. to my front and left were goblins, at least one hundred. Some larger ones in the back had what looked to be muskets. I watched one reloading and didn¡¯t see any kind of measuring but it didn¡¯t explode when fired so must have been loaded well enough. One in the back held a staff and my jaw slacked as he danced in a circle and launched a beach ball sized fireball. I followed it and saw who the goblins were fighting, what looked to be a wagon from around the western expansion from U.S. history. It was flipped on its side with good spilling out, the angle I was at allowed me to see behind the improvised barrier.


    A group of what I first guessed were children but quickly decided were two adult dwarves and two actual children were curled up behind the cart. The man I guessed to be the father was sticking an odd three barrel gun around the cart the gun would fire into the charging goblins knocking down a few.


    The fireball descended toward the cart and hit a blue barrier just above it causing the fireball to explode and the rest of the family to flinch while the father reloaded. More fire came from a rock cluster off the side of the road. In the rocks were nine men and one woman in uniform. Eight of the men had single shot rifles firing one at a time in a continuous barrage to try to slow the charge against the cart. Embedded arrows and a blood stain showed that the uniformed troops had tried to get to the cart but had been pushed back, but I was surprised to not see any bodies. The other man seemed to be some kind of officer. He had a revolver and I watched as what I assumed was a musket ball skipped off a blue barrier wrapped around him. He staggered back a step but appeared uninjured and stepped forward again.


    A cry of pain brought my attention back to the cart. One of the children got unlucky an arrow had come down at an angle over top of the cart and hit her in the leg. The uniformed woman with a green arm band broke cover and ran towards the cart. The officer yelled an order and the rate of fire picked up including him emptying his revolver. The woman just makes it to the cart as the road behind her explodes with musket ball impacts. The woman pulled the arrow out of the girl''s leg quickly and her hand glowed green. I couldn''t see what happened but the light faded and the girl''s crying got less frantic, the woman drew her own pistol and joined the father engaging the goblins.


    A small nip on my hand from Igni drew me out of my frozen state and I snugged the rifle into my shoulder and looked through the 3x optic. The goblin I decided to call the shamen had a barrier up blocking his musket troops of what I decided to call hobgoblins and they were advancing behind the wildly charging main body. The defenders were only able to keep the infantry from closing and the hobgoblin shots were getting more accurate; it was only a matter of time before the defenders started taking major casualties.


    ¡°Not the right rifle for this but oh well it will have to do¡± I lined up on the Shamen and seeing how the barriers had been stopping rounds decided to go with the Mozambique approach. The crack from my rifle was a distinct higher pitch than any other.if there was a question about a new player on the field it evaporated when two 7.62 rounds slammed into the shield around the shaman followed by another hitting it at about head height. it didn''t go through but the shaman was clearly staggered so shot at the chest twice more the shield slowed one round but the second clearly passed clean through. I shot him twice more just to be safe. ¡° Apparently four to the chest and one to the head here.¡± I mumbled to myself before switching aim. A single shot took down the hobgoblin I had targeted, two on the next one and one again on the third.


    When the Shamen died the battle began to transition the regular goblins lost cohesion no longer charging in disorganized waves, some still charged alone, some looked for somewhere to hide most broke and ran. Six of the uniformed rifle men plus the guy with the barriers who I was going to call a mage.  They began to advance three walked forward kneeled and fired and started reloading the second rank advanced passed them kneeled and fired. As they advanced I fired on any of the Hobgoblins that looked close to reloading still some found cover and were able to get shots off.


    One of the riflemen went down and a group of three goblins charged from the bushes to try to finish him off I shot one lined up on another when the trigger clicked ¡°fuck!¡± I cursed while reloading. Luckily for that rifleman the woman ran up firing a revolver killing the last two she kneeled next to him and her hands lit up again this time it took longer and she slumped over next to the rifleman who took her revolver from her and her ammo pouch and started reloading as best he could one handed.


    Between the remaining rifleman and my shots the last few hobgoblins routed into the woods and the fire and single goblin assaults slowed then stopped. The rifleman back in the original position began to limp out while mage began giving orders and helped the healer up and handed her a vial. She drank it and after a few seconds later she was able to stand on her own again. Two of the rifle men helped the injured one back up and he handed the pistol back to the healer. Everyone regrouped around the flipped over cart and the mage turned towards my section of the woods and shouted something I couldn''t understand. He waited a few minutes then yelled again in a different language, this one seemed somewhat familiar. I sighed and decided to respond. I double checked my rifle to make sure it was loaded then stood up.


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    I decided that I should go forward and make contact. I could try to learn about where I found myself and no better time than after helping the locals fend off an attack. I remember my grandfather''s friend Terfan, a short bearded man who played dwarf fighter in the campaign my grandfather ran. In hindsight it was obvious that Terfan was in fact a dwarf and I remembered the greeting he taught me when I played with them over a summer. It supposedly meant I was a wanderer who didn¡¯t know the lands or customs but was a friend of the clan Durifran. I remembered it because he and grandpa would often speak in that language when they wanted to say something they didn¡¯t want me to hear and that was the only words they had taught me. I had always thought it was Russian or some other eastern block language. I walked out slowly with the rifle slung but hands on my vest near the pistol and said the only phrase I knew.


    The Dwarf male tilted his head then turned to the uniformed mage and spoke more in that first language. The mage nodded his head and turned to me. He tried a few more sentences then seemed to give up. He gestured to one of his men and the guy came over. He cast a spell on the guy and nothing seemed to happen then he pointed at me and seemed to ask permission. I hesitated for a second but then decided it was worth it and said yes while nodding. I felt a tingle as the man''s hand glowed then it seemed to settle on me like the world''s lightest sheet. Then the mage spoke again ¡°can you understand me now?¡±


    ¡° Yes I can¡± I answered the soldier from earlier nodded to the mage and said ¡° yes sir he can understand you.¡± the mage frowned and said ¡° definitely not a language I recognise, curious.¡± the mage seemed to cast the same spell on himself. ¡° I am Mage lieutenant Toalson, head of this detachment, this is Sergeant Neal. We thank you for your timely assistance, adventurer¡­¡±he leaves the end of the sentence hanging in a clear invitation to introduce myself.


    ¡° Jack Mikelson, we just happened to be in the area when I heard the gun fire.¡± the mage cocked his head ¡°we? Are there more people with you?¡±he inquired in a curious tone ¡°no it¡¯s just me and Igni¡± I looked around for her but didn¡¯t see her anywhere. ¡°Igni?¡± I called out and I heard barking from further back up the trail the way the goblins had come. I don¡¯t know how I knew but I could tell from the bark Igni needed help but wasn¡¯t hurt. I took off and I heard the officer order two men to come with me. I broke through the tree line and stopped. There was a cart with prisoners in place of horses tied to a tree. Near the cart was Igni harrying a pair of goblins to keep them from approaching a group of tied up prisoners. One of the prisoners had used her chains to strangle one of the escaped hobgoblins and was trying to reload his musket with her bound hands. The three of us quickly dispatched the two goblins and secured the area the cart was full of random supplies that looked looted.


    One of the soldiers looked back at the other ¡° run and get Karmichael he mentioned he was a thief before enlisting. Hopefully he can get these people free.¡± The other Soldier turned around and ran back and Igni came over and sat by my foot. I reached down and scratched her behind the ear. ¡°good find girl¡± I praised her. The guard looked on in surprise, ¡° a fire wolf? Rare to see those bonded¡± he had put extra emphasis on the word bonded but I missed it. ¡° yeah I found her being attacked by goblins the other day near my house and I took her in.¡±


    Another of the rifle men arrived and got to work with a set of lockpicks to release the prisoners. He quickly got them free, the woman who I could now see was an elf finished loading the musket while I noticed three others grab weapons and armor from the cart. ¡° I am Alandra, a bronze rank adventurer. These are Misha, Vermilion, and Kindra, a copper rank party. We were on our way to the Tifferian dungeon when a shaman got the drop on us and hit us with a sleep spell. When we woke up we found ourselves surrounded by hobgoblins with muskets.¡± I could tell who was on guard duty that night by the way Misha glared at Vermilion. The Soldier nodded ¡° yes the goblins suddenly having access to firearms even the older style ones is disturbing, the king has been stepping up patrols to find out where the supplies are coming from.¡±


    We escorted the adventurers and other ten prisoners back to Toalson whose group had managed to get the Dwarf family''s cart back up right but one of the wheels was damaged. The soldier reported what they had found. ¡° Damn it¡± Toalson cursed ¡° it''s good you found them but now we are in more of a predicament it''s almost sundown and it''s four days hard riding back to the newest outpost the king has set up. I was going to load the Orebreaker Family up on our horses and just ride hard through the night but we can¡¯t do that with this many people.¡± his eyes met mine. ¡° Oh and here before I forget is your bounty paperwork sorry I only have a little gold on me right now¡± he handed me a small bag with coins and a piece of paper ¡° 3 per hobgoblin 15 for the shaman and a silver per regular feral goblin. The bag has 10 gold which covers all your regular goblin kills and two of your hobgoblins the crown still owes you 28 gold which is what that note says so don''t lose it. Unfortunately it''s five days by horse to the nearest adventure guild where they can pay you. I''m sorry for the inconvenience.¡± I took one of the gold pieces out. I was no expert but I knew gold coins could be worth a decent amount of money if the gold was pure. ¡° We will need to find a place to bed down tonight then I can send a rider back to gather enough troops and wagons to transport these people back. But we can¡¯t travel too far with the wounded and those prisoners look half starved which healing magic can''t fix.¡± I looked at Igni then came to a decision, in for a penny in for a pound ¡° I know a place.¡±

 Chapter 4 Gold and Cash

    Chapter 4


    The trip back through the woods to the ruins took about an hour. The group was tired as we entered the clearing but perked up a little bit seeing the defensible location. The Soldiers set up a defensive perimeter. And Toalson and the healer walked up to me. ¡° Good find Jack, we should be safe here for tonight¡±. The healer frowned ¡° yes, but we are going to have problems. The Orebreakers are fine but the prisoners are showing signs of major fatigue, some low level exposure and one has a really nasty infection.¡± she lowered her voice ¡° I asked around, we only have enough potions to keep the infection at bay for maybe 3 days without the right potions or more powerful healer.¡±


    She looked over at me ¡°Sorry I¡¯m Kiara a Class 3 combat healer on detachment from the Royal Medical Corps¡±. I introduced myself then asked ¡° what kind of potions do you have? I might be able to help.¡± She pulled a  vial of red liquid like the mine but duller out of a pouch on her hip. ¡° We only have common health potions for stabilizing injuries, not any cure disease potions unfortunately.¡± I remembered the medical room and realized it was probably full of different types of potions. I pulled one of the ones I had in the shoulder bag out ¡°what about this one?¡±


    Kiara took it, looked at it confused for a moment then mumbled under her breath a green glow lit up around the vial. ¡° Interesting, this is a high quality healing potion mixed with a water purification potion, despite being mixed it still seems more effective then what we are issued.¡±


    I finally realized that all those potions in the medical room were probably made from this world using machine precision and exact measurements from our world to increase the quality. Toalson had asked Kiara a question then looked at me ¡° I can authorize seven gold for that vial if you''re willing to let us use it, Kiara thinks it will be enough to get Hendersons hand functional again.¡± I nodded thinking about the shelf full of those in the medical room and realizing just how much wealth was in there. ¡° That is alright with me.¡± Toalson nodded. ¡° Good, now I just need to find a way to keep everyone warm and dry during our trip. My men have camping supplies but I don''t have enough for the civilians, or food.¡± not like these guys can just drive to walmart I thought to myself then stopped.


    ¡° I can help with that. I think it would take me about two hours, maybe a little more and I may be able to help with the potions but there''s a small problem. The potions are close by but I have a lot of private things between here and there and I don¡¯t know which ones I have.¡± Kiara looked at Toalson who hesitated for a moment before nodding ¡° I offer a Healer''s Oath to respect your privacy¡± I looked back and forth between the two ¡° what does that mean?¡± Kiara explained it to me, the healer''s oath was something like doctor patient confidentiality backed up magically, it was an oath sworn on the healers magical power that prevented the healer from revealing the patients personal information, it had a few loopholes built in such as if the information could help save another life, violent crimes etc. basically it boiled down to a smuggler or thief was safe to go see a public healer where a street tuff running a protection racket would have no such protections and need to find private healer.


    I had no way to verify if it was true but I chose to believe them and called Igni. I led Kiara to the hatch and opened it up. Turning on the flashlight I led us to the small armory door. I opened the door and we stepped inside. ¡°Oh my this is, these weapons and this armor this is incredible no wonder you were nervous of others seeing this! The magic armor here alone is worth a fortune.¡± I looked at her while unloading the rifle and hanging it up, and taking off my plate carrier I did decide to holster my pistol on my hip. ¡°Magic armor, really what does it do?¡±  she looked at me as if it was weird I didn¡¯t know what my own armor did, which made since. ¡° I don¡¯t know you would have to ask an enchanter¡± I nodded. That made a certain amount of sense.


    We left the armory and went over to the medical room and opened it up, turning on the lights Kiara had seemed only minorly interested in, making me think they had a similar system available. Kiara seemed in awe of the stockpile of potions and medicines ¡° I will be honest I have no Idea what any of this is or what it does, so how about a deal you can take whatever you need for half its value you if you tell me what this stuff is and how much its worth on average.¡± We agreed and she quickly got to work.


    We got to work Kiara knew most of the potions off hand. My handwriting was terrible but I took down the names, a quick description of what they did and an estimated price from an established town. Kiara took two cure disease potions, one greater healing potion she explained she could use half to heal the last injured soldier and dilute the other half to distribute between the others to clear up some minor injuries. As an extra thank you I gave her two more over her protest apparently greater health potions normally required years of training to make and were worth 30 gold two months pay for her position.


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    ¡° Look, I know you will use them to help the soldiers and civilians out there if it makes you too uncomfortable to accept them as a personal gift, how about as a donation to the Royal Healing Corps?¡± For some reason this immediately resolved her hesitation. I felt like I had just dodged some odd cultural bullet. I led her back out of the complex and back to ruins. A quick word to Toalson and she ran off towards the civilians. ¡° Thank you again Jack, you''re doing so much for us without a quest or anything.¡± I shrugged ¡° hey I live here and it''s important to help your neighbors. Besides, you''re paying me back so it''s not a big deal.¡± Toalson and I chatted for a few minutes while I made sure Kiara wasn¡¯t going to need anything else before I left.


    Eventually she rejoined us ¡° thank you again Sir Mikelson the Potions should hold everyone over until we can get to the fort¡± Toalson looked at me with surprise, catching the honorific that Kiara had added. ¡° Just Jack is still fine, mage lieutenant. I will take my leave now to go gather those supplies for your people.¡± Toalson nodded and glanced back and forth between me and Kiara before seeming to decide it was none of his business.


    Igni and I returned back to the cabin. I grabbed my keys and wallet and headed out to the car. Igni hopped into the car and I turned the vehicle around and we headed down the driveway. ¡° We will need to go to Omak for this Igni¡± I checked the clock and it was about four in the afternoon. I only had about five hundred dollars in my bank account between camping supplies and food. It was going to be tight.


    I spent the next twenty minutes trying to plan out the budgeting when I saw a billboard on the side of the road for a Sal¡¯s Pawnshop. Normally I would completely Ignore something like that but there was some text on the sign that caught my attention. ¡°Cash for scrap gold in under an hour¡± I read out loud to Igni remembering the coins that Toalson had given me. I pulled over into a nearby parking lot and put the address into the mapping program.


    I pulled into the parking lot and got out. Igni gave me a puppy dog look and I looked back and forth trying to decide if she was allowed to come in. I decided for the first visit I had better not. ¡°Sorry Igni, I''m not sure if you''re allowed in here.¡± Igni sat down with what I swear was a huff, I chuckled to myself and walked into the store.


    A bell rang as I walked into the store, the older man behind the counter called out ¡° hello welcome to Sal¡¯s Pawnshop and yes my name is actually Sal how can I help you today?¡± I walked over to the counter. ¡°Hello Sal I¡¯m Jack and I got an odd one for you.¡± Sal smiled ¡° no worries son I get a lot of odd around here what do you have?¡± I grabbed the coin bag from my pocket and pulled out three of the coins and made up a believable story ¡° I just inherited my grandfather''s place up in Concuanlly he was into a lot of old timey stuff like forging and what not. He left behind a few gold coins he seems to have made in the style similar to the old British coins. I don¡¯t know if its real gold or not but I only see the need to keep one as a memento and I brought a few with me to see if they are worth anything.¡± I handed him one of the coins.


    Sal frowned ¡° if these are really only privately made even if they are real gold I can only give you the scrap value you know that right?¡± when I nodded he continued ¡° and because I¡¯ve had angry customers come back before you are aware I will have to offer less then those online brokers? The only advantage is I can pay today in cash.¡± this time I responded with more words. ¡° yeah I know I need to go make some big camping purchases today before I leave town for a few days so I can¡¯t really wait for those online guys.¡± Sal nodded. ¡° Ok then let''s test it. The quickest and most conclusive three tests are magnetic, weight and density, and acid lets start with a magnetic.¡±  Sal pulled out a magnet and ran it over the coin, nothing happened. ¡° good ok next if you''re ok with destructive tests I can try the acid test. It''s the easiest and most reliable but if it''s not full gold it could damage the product.¡± I agreed and took out two more coins so Sal could test all of the ones I planned to sell him.


    He took out some gloves and a bottle from under the counter. After putting the gloves on he took out an eye dropper and with one last nod from me applied a drop to each coin and I held my breath, a  few moments past before Sal stood back up ¡°good news that''s solid gold right their son!¡± He cleaned them off real quick then got out a scale. ¡° Hmmm, slightly heavier than a troy ounce but not by much.¡± He pulled out a calculator and did some math then checked his computer. ¡° gold is 2558.80 today by the ounce, as I said I can''t offer you as much as the online places I normally do 60% but with your coins slightly larger size I¡¯ll do 62% and round it to three ounces so for the three so that''s .¡± he paused typing some stuff in ¡° 4605. 84 I hate small changes so lets say 4606?¡± I nodded slowly, that was as much as I made in two months of work. I could kill one hobgoblin a month and still make a profit, an Idea began to take root in my mind. I shook hands with Sal and he took the coins to the back and brought me out a brown paper bag. ¡° 46 hundreds a five and a one sir, thanks for coming in.¡± I thanked him and staggered back to my car, I gave my head a quick shake to focus. I still had things to get done before I could focus on the windfall I had coming my way.

 Chapter 5 shopping

    Chapter 5


    I pulled into the Walmart parking lot and parked the car. ¡° Sorry Igni got to wait here girl.¡± Igni¡¯s ears dropped and she gave me a sad puppy dog look. ¡°I¡¯ll bring you a treat I promise.¡± She gave me a questioning look. I had let her try a dog treat at the supply store and she hadn¡¯t been interested in it. ¡°Fine, what did you want then?¡± I asked jokingly, suddenly a picture of a steak came to mind, a lot like a dream. It was ephemeral and gone quickly but unlike a dream it was easy to recall.


    I tentatively inquired in wonder ¡° you want a steak girl?¡± Igni barked excitedly and wagged her adorable little tail. ¡°Ok girl I¡¯ll get it for you.¡± I shut the door and headed into Walmart for maybe the second time in my life I grabbed one of the big flat bed carts. I first headed to the camping section. First I loaded the cart with twenty all weather sleeping bags and ground pads, I made sure to get the good ones and not just the thin piece of foam, I figured I would get enough for the soldiers as well the group could take or leave it as they needed and I could just store the rest at the cabin.


    I continued down the aisle to the tents. Most of them were annoying thin tents but on the bottom shelf I found four larger, thicker tents. The box said they sleep eight so I knew that really meant five. I grabbed all four boxes. Then I admit I went a little overboard grabbing some flint and steel, some storm matches, a few hatchets and even two machetes for some reason. Looking at the stack of supplies and MRE (meals ready to eat) style meals I decided to pick up a few backpacks as well.


    Next I went over and grabbed two pallets of water bottles. I also grabbed two basic first aid kits for minor injuries. Then I remembered how worn down the clothes of the prisoners had looked so I went over to the clothing section. I knew absolutely nothing about clothes so I quickly grabbed a few bags of large black shirts and sweatshirts, and sweatpants figuring that the people could at least put them on under or over their current clothes if they got cold.  I thought back and decided this was enough to get them home.


    I pushed the cart towards the exit as I was passing the electronics area. I saw something that caught my eye. There were a few sets of ham radio¡¯s I wouldn¡¯t be giving them out to the people at my house because they wouldn¡¯t have the range to be useful or anyone to talk to but if I ever set up my own little camp they might be useful. It wasn¡¯t until that moment it occurred to me just how much money I had made over the weekend.


    I had made six months worth of pay over the course of the weekend not to mention I was owed almost a year''s worth of wages at my dead end jobs. And then I realized that the bounties and adventuring could pay for my living expenses easily if they were anywhere near as well paying as the goblins I could really make a killing in fact my lease on my apartment was up in two months, my roommate was planning to move in with his girlfriend so I could just move to the cabin. Definitely something worth consideringI thought to myself as I stopped in the meat section for Ignis steak.


    I walked to the check out five minutes and fifteen hundred dollars later and I was loading backpacks with supplies and storing them in the trunk and back seat. Igni had hopped out with her steak and quickly looked around. I checked and this Walmart didn¡¯t have any parking lot cameras. First I was afraid she had seen something but it turned out she was just looking for witnesses. I watched in amusement and a bit of worry as Igni breathed a small steady stream of flame over the steak.  She wasn¡¯t a five star chef but she seemed happy with the results, ¡°Igni try to keep the fire breathing to a minimum when we are in town please, it''s not normal in this world¡±. Igni seemed to harumph but nodded and soon her tail was wagging as she worked on her steak.


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    As we were leaving I decided to stop by the local pizza shop thinking it would be a good idea to get the group food. I bought four pepperoni and one cheese, half an hour later and I was heading home.


    ***


    I pulled into the driveway and Igni hopped out with her new bone and ran to the front porch and waited for me. I grabbed three of the pizzas and one of the backpacks, this one had a special gift in it for Lt. Toalson. and headed inside down the stairs through the armory and finally out of the back door. I didn''t see anyone until I got to the end of the tunnel where some of the civilians were resting. I waved at them as they looked on curiously at me and my boxes. I was relieved to see the heavy door already open outside were three soldiers, two playing cards while one kept a close guard on the entrance, I saw the rest of the civilians spread out in the ruins and the other soldiers in positions to see the different approaches.


    I spotted one of the two who had helped me find the civilians, he was eating what looked like hard tack and chatting with one of the copper rank adventurers from the party. He looked up and spotted me ¡°can I help you sir Mage?¡± I chuckled ¡°I¡¯m no Mage I¡¯m just looking for the L.T.¡± It wasn''t until after I said it that I realized that it might not translate right with the magic, but it seemed to have worked. ¡°L.T. huh thats a handy shorthand but I wouldn¡¯t call him that to his face sir Mr. Taolsons pretty laid back and might not care but other officers might take offense.¡± I nodded, Leon, my buddy from highschool who went into the Marine Corps, mentioned a lieutenant he had that once gave a guy the middle watch for a week because he heard him call another officer L.T. in passing despite the officer in question not caring. While I reminisced, the soldier continued ¡° he¡¯s at the top of the hill with that bronze ranker and Lady Kiara.¡±


    I thanked him and headed up the hill to find the Toalson talking with Kiara and Alandra. ¡° ah, Sir Mikelson, glad to see you back. What do you have there?¡± ¡°food¡± I replied and then continued. ¡°And a gift for you if you can just call me Jack Lieutenant.¡± he nodded while I handed the pizza to Kiara before taking my bag off. ¡°Deal and just call me Isaac, we are fellow mage¡¯s and you''re not Military.¡± I don¡¯t know why everyone kept calling me a mage but I figured my gear and stuff might seem magical so I let it pass without too much of a fuss. ¡°I wouldn¡¯t consider myself a mage but thank you Isaac, I could help but notice you didn¡¯t seem to have a pair of binoculars?¡± Isaac gave me a funny look ¡°no even with magic those are currently hard to produce the army only issues them to captains and above outside the artillery spotters¡± I nodded I had figured it was something like that this world so far just based on the little I had seen looked to be somewhere in the mid to late 1800¡¯s relative to my world. ¡° Well then here you go.¡± I said pulling out a classic black set of Nikons with the strap and a case. I showed Isaac how to use the focus adjustor. ¡°This is amazing. The clarity is equal to our sets but the magnification and field of view are so much better!¡± That was just the best set that Walmart had. I wonder what he would think about some of the real high end stuff, though he didn¡¯t know it would be that the best ones would cost maybe five gold. ¡° Ok I got a lot more to unload. I got enough camping supplies from your party to make it to the fort. It will take me a while to get it all.¡± I saw a tension I didn¡¯t realize Isaac had been holding seem to slightly abate. ¡°That''s amazing. I can offer you more gold to offset your cost. Want me to send off my guys to help you bring it out?¡±


    I shook my head. ¡° I appreciate the offer but I have a lot of secrets that I¡¯m not ready to let get out at this time.¡± much to my relief Isaac nodded without much care. ¡° That''s normal for mages and I respect your privacy.¡± I was about to leave when Alandra spoke up ¡° why not hire us adventures then?¡±

 Chapter 6 Enchantments and Decisions

    Chapter 6


    ¡° What do you mean?¡± I asked, turning back to Alandra. When she answered I realized I couldn''t understand her anymore. I looked around in confusion and Isaac must have realized what happened because he said something to Alandra before casting his spell on me again. ¡° There you go Jack, sorry about that, the comprend language skill only lasts around two hours without recasting.¡± I thanked him and repeated my question.


    It was Kiara who answered me ¡° the Adventures guild prides itself on its discretion, any mercenary can fight a monster but not all can be trusted to remain quiet about the incident. With exception to criminal activity the adventures guild has a very strict confidentiality clause, it has only been broken by two individuals in the past 100 years the adventures guild paid triple the projected losses to the injured parties, one of the violators tried to run and hide and died under¡­ unusual circumstances and the other accepted the consequences. He was a top tier adventurer who made around 100 platinum a year. He currently washes dishes at a guild restaurant and only three stores will sell him anything and only because the guild asked them to." The power the Guild held was terrifying as we discussed it more. It became clear to me it was a lack of desire and not ability that kept the Guild from toppling a nation.


    ¡° Alright, how much should I pay you folks for this?¡± Alandra answered me after thinking for a moment ¡° our daily rates are higher than a general laborer. We normally work a flat rate plus bonuses such as number of enemies killed, extra herbs gathered et cetera. for this to be an official guild quest it would be one gold for me and one silver for the others. Isaac has the authority to authorize payments so if you don¡¯t have the coin on you he can issue us a cut from what is owed to you.¡±


    Knowing it would be a while before I got back and not wanting to part with my already in hand gold I agreed. With a quick signed note we had an official quest. Alandra gathered up the rest of her party and followed me into the tunnel. The trip through the tunnel was quick when we arrived at the door to the armory. I opened it up and led the four inside and we started crossing the armory when the girl I identified as the likely mage for the party stopped and stared at the group of armors. ¡°I saw your enchanted knife but these armors are amazing.¡±


    Alandra looked back at her with a stern look. ¡° Kindra you know better than to comment on a client''s possessions¡± I shook my head to Alandra ¡°no it¡¯s fine I inherited all of these from my grandfather and don¡¯t actually know what any of these enchanted items are or what they do.¡± Kindra looked excitedly at Alandra who thought for a moment before answering. ¡°Yes you can if you explain it to him. But you can''t charge him the full price.¡±


    Kindra turned back to me ¡° I am an enchanter in training I can identify most enchantments but I haven¡¯t passed my official Licensing yet so I can not give you an accredited identification but I can give you a likely answer for a cheaper price but it won¡¯t be valid if you were to want to sell these later.¡± I shrugged ¡° that''s fine I don¡¯t need to sell them but I would like to know what they do how much?¡±


    Kindra looked at the armor sets. ¡° For these more complicated ones on the armor normally would be ten gold per suit and the knives would be three or four gold coins. I can tell that each armor set is individual but the knives are all the same so lets say 18 gold?¡± it was a steep price but knowing my armors that I had would be worth it. ¡°I don¡¯t currently have the gold as you can accept me asking Isaac to have it come out of my gold due?¡± Alandra spoke up ¡° I can stand as witness to this agreement.¡±


    With that decided we broke up. Kindra stayed to examine the equipment and the others followed me back outside up the stairs and outside to my car ¡° a mage carriage of some type made out of metal interesting.¡± Misha commented she said it more as a quiet comment then a question and Alandra chose not to comment on it.


    The group began to gather the supplies and carry them back down stairs and out the hall. It took us around half an hour to off load the supplies. On our way back for the final load Kindra stopped me. ¡° I finished my assessment sir.¡±  she said as I walked up. ¡°Oh what did you find?¡± she looked over at the wall by the door. ¡°First that necklace has a permanent version of the comprend language skill that the lieutenant cast on you.¡± I finally understood why the necklace was in the picture and quickly threw it on.


    Next she pointed at the knife on my hip ¡°all four knives have the same two enchantments which are very common one is a sharpness enchantment the other is a durability enchantment the two together will keep you from needing to sharpen the knife and makes it unlikely to break even when exposed to heavy stresses.¡± I nodded to show my understanding, happy to have my new dagger.


    ¡°The armor sets are where it gets interesting. Two sets are similar. The owners must have had a fear of falling, both of them have an odd combination of enchantments: one measures the distance to the ground the other one is something called feather fall.¡± she looked at me and I asked ¡° I have heard of something similar but what exactly does it do?¡± Kindra cleared her throat ¡° this one will over a distance dependent on speed slow you down to be moving the speed you would be falling if you just jumped on a level surface.¡±


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    This made me think grandpa never struck me as the kind to be afraid of heights, in fact he Jumped with the 173rd in Vietnam during Operation Junction City. I paused  looking at the wall where the M60 hung and I thought about something. ¡°Kindra what if I were to say run off a really really tall cliff wearing that?¡±


    Kindra thought for a moment ¡° well if you were a mage you could use the built in feather fall spell to slow your descent all the way down if not you would need a mana stone.¡± She trailed off following something only she could see to the back of the armor and opened a flap showing a glowing blue crystal that had been hidden by the armor''s design. ¡°Exactly like this one you wouldn¡¯t be able to control the fall, although with the way the two enchantments are tied into each other you would free fall to about 300 yards also looks like it increases the slow down speed for drops below that height.¡±


    I did some quick math with the help of google meters and yards were pretty much interchangeable for rough calculations. A quick google search found terminal velocity for a human to be about 53 meters per second. Assuming a one gravity slow down at 9.8 meters per second that would allow a gentle touch down with a minimal amount of time just hanging in the sky I remember a term I had heard before.


    ¡°HALO¡± I mumbled to myself Kindra raised her eyebrow. ¡°Never mind what about the other two?¡± Kindra shrugged and moved on ¡°this one has a strength enchantment making it easier to lift heavy objects and to hit harder when swinging weapons. It also appears to have mage armor not used much anymore because bullets will shatter it but it might stop one and will still work well against blades.¡±


    She turned to the final one touching it gently ¡°this one is very special it is the only one with a more traditional style of enchantment it still has the option for using mana crystals but it has a built in invisibility spell able to work up to fifteen minutes an hour. Its other enchantment keeps the mana from leaking out and being visible to mages while in use.¡±


    I thanked Kindra for the information before heading through the hallway emerging back into the twilight on the other side Isaac was waiting going over the gear. ¡° James, good to see you, these supplies are amazing and we could really use them¡± I looked over and tried not to laugh as I watched the Sergeant and two troopers very carefully studying the diagrams on how to set up the tents. Isaac looked a bit nervous so I asked him ¡° what''s the matter¡± he sighed ¡°we could use it all but I¡¯m only authorized to offer fifty gold for supplies acquired in the field even that will have to be reviewed by my captain I won¡¯t be a problem with the amount of supplies and refugees we are bring back but¡± he sighed ¡°this stuff is worth closer to 200 all together.¡±


    I thought for a moment this was already worth only about two gold to me so I wasn¡¯t worried about the money too much but I figured I could at least make the most of it. I pointed to Kinda. ¡°The Lady mage did me a favor for ten gold out of my bounty payout is there a way that I could sign some of the gear over to you personally enough to cover the money I owe her as it will be at least a forte night before I can come and collect and that way I can still receive the full bounty payment and fifty?¡±


    Isaac gave me a funny look for calling Kindra a Lady but let it go.  He spoke slowly as he let the idea filter through his mind. ¡°Yes, none of that should violate regulations as this is your personal property, you are just selling some of it to me as an individual and the rest to the army that would work for me. Mage Kindra? Would you trust me to take on Mage James¡¯s debt?¡±. Kindra nodded her assent ¡°I have no doubt you will be good for the debt Lieutenant.¡± Isaac smiled ¡°then it is agreed.¡±


    I spent the rest of the evening showing them how all the supplies I bought were used and how to cook the meals. When the refugees were bedded down and the soldiers were on watch I bid good night to Isaac, Alandra, and Kira then Igni and I returned to the cabin.


    The next morning Igni and I got up early and I made a pot of coffee then we headed down to check on the folks in the other world. We found the people eating breakfast and tearing down their camp. Isaac saw me and walked over to me and shook my hand. ¡°Thank you again for everything James I don¡¯t know what we would have done without you here is the final receipt with a full accounting of what your owed Kira was allowed to authorize medical expenditures separate from my limit but this receipt has both of our signatures your total owed is 80 gold 20 silver and 78 copper.¡± he handed me the receipt worth over 130,000 dollars. ¡° Thank you Isaac, you all have a safe trip.¡±


    Igni and I watched as the group got ready and left with the soldiers walking spread out around the refugees as they reached the treeline and the adventures gave us one last wave before disappearing into the woods. I looked down at Igni ¡°come on girl we have got to head home.¡± We walked back into the tunnel and I closed the hatch closing the wheel locks as I stepped back thought I caught an odd flicker of light.


    but nothing else happened and I quickly returned to the safe area where I finally took the time to clean the two firearms I had used this weekend. After everything was put away I headed up stairs making sure everything was put away properly and I repacked my stuff and bagged up all the trash then I let Igni use the restroom one more time then we got in the car. We made it down to the main road as I pulled into the local gas station to fill up for the trip back over the mountains. I looked at the receipt one more time then made a decision. And called my boss''s office number. ¡° Hey Brian it¡¯s me I¡¯m on my way back but a lot happened while I was gone this weekend and I¡¯ve decided that I¡¯m going to be quitting. I know this is sudden but please consider this my two weeks notice.¡±

 Chapter 7 friends

    Chapter 7


    Two weeks later


    Igni hopped out of my car as the audio from the latest Puggy Electron Man video ended. I shut the door and looked at the cabin; it was still in good repair. Behind me, I heard Mike''s door close, too. I turned and looked at his truck, an old Chevy C30. Mike was a large, muscular man, and his time in the Marines ensured that most of that was muscle, not fat. His truck was loaded with a few large items from my apartment.


    I was still going to have to pay my lease for another three months, but I decided I was going to move out to the cabin now and just collect my small stuff as I got the chance; it was mostly clothes and small items left, ¡°so this is the place huh?, Looks nice!¡± mike said walking up to stand next to me. ¡°Yeah, you don¡¯t know the half of it,¡± I said as we walked up to the house. I opened the door, and Ingi ran inside, sitting on her bed, and I realized I would need to get her a new one.


    She had grown from about half the size of a beagle to the size of a labrador retriever in the two weeks since she came home with me and was still growing. Mike hadn¡¯t met her until yesterday, so he wasn¡¯t on to her yet, but she was going to get huge if she kept up this way. Make fire? The words came to my mind despite me knowing they weren¡¯t mine. Igni had started doing this last weekend and was now able to send me actual words. She was still an excited puppy on the inside, though. ¡°Not yet, girl; once we get done unloading.¡±


    Mike gave me an odd look for a moment but then shook it off. ¡° come on, I¡¯ll show you the room you can use tonight.¡± I showed him to one of the rooms with the bunk bed and left him to set down his stuff. I started bringing in some of the lighter stuff, and soon Mike joined me and started bringing in the shelving and other units. Igni ran around us, but unlike other dogs who often get between your legs, she would stay out of the way.


    As we brought in the biggest box, Mike accidentally kicked the wood block, holding the door open against the wind. Before it could swing closed on our load, Igni dashed forward, pushing it back open and holding it open with her body. ¡°Thanks, Igni,¡± I grunted as I passed her, heading inside. Her tail thumped happily. You''re welcome. We set the box with my computer stuff down in the living room.


    ¡°That''s one smart dog,¡± Mike said, looking at Igni. I¡¯m not a dog! She thought back at me. I had already decided to tell Mike everything. He lived in Chellan, only about an hour and a half away, doing electrical work. He had moved there to be closer to his fiancee. I would need his help for the upcoming trip, so I decided to just start showing him the interesting things going on in my life.


    ¡° yeah, Igni, I know, but what are you then?¡± she cocked her head. I don¡¯t know, but not a dog. I laughed while Mike looked at me as if I had a few screws loose. ¡°Yeah, buddy, so there are some weird things going on here. First, I can talk to Igni. She wants to make it well known she''s not a dog. We don¡¯t know what she is, but she knows it''s not a dog. Since there is no way for me to prove that, let''s try this: go ahead and make a fire. Igni, make it flashy, but don¡¯t set the house on fire.¡±


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    Mike was about to say something, probably going to tell me I lost it, when Igni barked happily and, to his surprise, began gathering wood from the stockpile in the laundry room and setting it in the fireplace; she skipped the tender and just brought the large pieces of wood then moved back to the middle of the room, inhaled and spat a fireball the size of one of those small squishy dodgeballs. The fireball crossed the room and hit perfectly in the middle of the fireplace, catching the wood on fire. Igni ran over and closed the fireplace door, curling up contentedly on her bed in front of the fireplace.


    Mike looked back and forth between Igni and me a few times and just stared. I knew this would happen, so I grabbed my secret weapon from the fridge. Pulling a beer with the logo of a man in a row boat with a few beer barrels and a coke for myself, I walked back over to Mike. ¡°beer or Coke, man?¡± he blinked at me, then saw the beer I was holding out. ¡°Oh, my favorite,¡± he mumbled, then with one last blink, he was back. ¡°the beer, please, thanks man. Did your dog just breathe fire?¡±


    I nodded. ¡°Yep, the basement has an armory with a legal machine gun and a portal to another world.¡± I looked outside and was happy to see my timing was spot on. The sun was just starting to go down here, so based on my guess, the first moon should be up there, and the second should be at least visible. ¡°Want to go see it?¡± Mike sat up.. ¡°The machine gun or the portal? What type of machine gun?¡±


    of course, Mike would be more interested in the machine gun. ¡° come on, you can bring your beer down, and we will look at the M60, but either grab extra ammo for your pistol or use one of the ones downstairs the other side of the portal can be dangerous¡± Mike looked at his beer, ¡°how dangerous?¡± Mike hadn¡¯t been nearly as into gaming and DnD as I was in high school, but he still played enough to know the basics. ¡°Well, I helped a local patrol fight off a goblin attack last time I was there. They pay in gold, which is why I had you bring the bikes. I was hoping you would go with me to get the rest they owe me from their outpost. I¡¯d be willing to split some with you.¡± I answered and asked hopefully all at once.¡± Mike snapped his fingers. ¡°that''s why you said they needed to be able to do 400 miles on what we brought with us. No were to fill up in goblin country!¡±


    I nodded. ¡°Yeah, the road is about 200 yards from the ruins. The tunnel opens up to a dirt road, but it looks well-built, according to the patrol. The place we are going is the farthest out-established outpost, so we are in real wild country. I am hoping to find some way to claim the land on the other side of the portal while we are there. The lieutenant in charge of the patrol made it sound like it''s still free for now, but it was first come, first served.¡±


    We walked downstairs, discussing the trip and what would be needed. We opened the armory, and Mike immediately went over to the M60. ¡°oh, look at this Pig, that''s amazing. I can¡¯t believe this is here. It works, right?¡± I shrugged, ¡°I have only dry-fired the thing. You know how Washington is lately; it is fully legal, but I¡¯m sure it''s been forgotten in the records and if they hear me let off a few rounds from a belt, they will find a way to confiscate it, maybe firing at a range would be a reckless discharge.¡±


    Mike couldn¡¯t help but nod. He loved the nation as much as anyone who volunteered for the military with other opitions, but that love did not extend to our state. ¡°OK, let''s at least go through the looking glass so I know what''s going on.¡± with a nod, I grabbed one of the pistols and a vest, not feeling the need for a full suit for just a step out. I did a quick press check and holstered my pistol; Mike had also decided to throw on a vest and holster. I showed him to the side door, and we followed the tunnel. I opened the hatch, and we quickly checked the ruins to make sure nothing was going to jump on us. Then Mike looked up and saw the two moons, ¡°looks like we aren¡¯t in Kansas anymore.¡±

 Chapter 8 Road Trip

    Chapter 8


    The rest of the night passed quickly, and the two went to bed early. The following day, we sat at the table with a cup of coffee. ¡°Okay, so the plan for the day is to get the bikes and trailer downstairs,¡± we said. We chatted about the plan until the coffee was finished, then headed back to the back door. A window suspiciously lined up with the door. Looking more closely, we found an eye hook bolted into the cabin''s frame.


    ¡°I bet this is how they got supplies up and down,¡± Mike said as he went out to his truck and found a poly, which he hooked onto the eye bolt. The next few hours saw us working to get the bikes down the stairs, using plywood ramps, and slowly letting out the winch on the truck while walking the bikes down. The last thing down the stairs was a small, two-wheel platform trailer that was attached to the back of one of the motorcycles for carrying extra gas and camping gear, which we might need depending on road conditions.


    Finally, we got the equipment down, closed up the window, and took the poly down. I let Mike into the armory and walked over to the infirmary. I grabbed eight of the reds and two of the blues just to be thorough. I walked in to find Mike putting on his plate carrier and checking his rifle. Mike owned a Colt AR-15, which he had across the back of his bike, and had strapped a pistol to his chest that looked like a Glock 17. I wasn¡¯t a Glock fan personally, but I respected that it was a solid, reliable platform.


    I looked at the magic armor, wondering how it worked. Clearly, the jump armors would be useless on this trip. Walking along the line, I stopped at the set that was supposed to offer easier lifting and greater protection¡ªit looked like it might fit me. I grabbed the pants and slid them on; they were surprisingly more flexible than they looked. I slid the top on and was about to look for straps when suddenly, the armor lit up with an azure light and secured itself in place.


    I felt a tickle in the back of my mind¡ªin the same spot where I would hear Igni. The best way I could describe it was that it felt like a mental light switch; with a shrug, I mentally flipped it. The armor lit up again as Mike stared at me. Out of curiosity, I walked over to the M60 and lifted it up; I nearly tossed it across the room because of how light it seemed to be. Next, I held it one-handed, and Mike whistled, ¡°Oh yeah, I have got to get me one of those.¡±


    I laughed and put the M60 down, then walked over to one of the twins. Placing my hand below one side, I gently tried to lift it. It didn¡¯t budge at first, but after applying more force, I was able to lift the front. Using both hands and squatting into the proper position, I lifted it up. The armor flared a brighter blue, but the bike came up feeling like one hundred pounds¡ªa bit heavy but doable. Holding it for a few seconds to make sure it wouldn¡¯t suddenly get heavier, I set the bike back down and mentally flipped the switch off. ¡°That was impressive. How long can you do that for?¡±


    I didn¡¯t know, so I explained that the armor pieces used a magic stone to power them for non-mages, pointing at the flap on the armor that hid it. Mike walked over and opened the flap, then looked at me in confusion. ¡°Jack, there''s nothing in here, buddy.¡± I took the top off and looked under the flap myself. Sure enough, it was empty. ¡°That''s weird. I could have sworn that''s what Kiara said would power it¡ªunless you''re a mage.¡±


    Mike gave me a look as if I were being stupid. ¡°You said they all kept calling you a mage, right?¡± I nodded. ¡°Yeah, I¡¯m guessing because of my advanced tech.¡± Mike shook his head. ¡°You said they had breach loaders and revolvers? Then, while your gear would be advanced, I don¡¯t think it would qualify as ¡®akin to magic¡¯ for folks who had both. And you can talk to your magic wolf?¡±


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    Igni barked happily, ¡°Yep, more steak!¡±


    I looked down at her. ¡°Not until we get to the outpost, Igni¡ªand I¡¯m not even sure they will have any there.¡±


    Mike sighed. ¡°Have you ever considered you are, in fact, a mage?¡±


    I snorted, ¡°Doubtful. I think I would notice if I could just point my hand at the wall and say, ¡®Firebolt!¡¯¡± A small ball of flame cut me off¡ªabout the size of a golf ball¡ªthat shot out of my hand, splashed over the wall, and flashed away. I stared down at my hand and flexed it, then looked at Mike, who was also staring at my hand. ¡°Oh, that was just like my small fire starter¡ªwoo, you can do fire too!¡±


    ¡°Okay, I am going to have to ask about that, and I¡¯m not going to say the F-word while we are in a room full of explosives.¡± Mike nodded, and we quickly finished getting ready. I grabbed a FAL and a Tac-45, strapping the former to the bike and the pistol to my rig. Not knowing just how good the armor was, I slid my plate carrier over the armor''s top.


    I slid the necklace on, and we wheeled the bikes down the corridor and out into the ruins. I ran back inside and activated the armor again. I picked up the trailer and ran it down the hallway, setting it out past the ruins. Then, I carried the two bikes through the ruins before turning the armor off again. Mike unhooked the trailer, and slowly, I led the way toward the road.


    The drive through the woods was slow going, but eventually, we pulled out onto the dry pack dirt road. ¡°This road has to be hell when it rains,¡± I agreed, and we took off down the road, heading the same way the refugees had gone. We traveled with nothing of note happening for about five hours when Mike gestured to the side of the road. The road rounded a bend, and a ridge line pattered out at the road, but before reaching it, there was a fork creating a protected pull-off, a fire pit, and worn-down grass. A pile of rocks about seven feet high half-blocked the entry, showing that this was a regular overnight campsite.


    Pulling in, we shut off the bikes. Igni hopped off the back of mine, then ran off into the nearest shrub. Mike pulled a small propane grill off the back and opened a cooler, pulling out a few burgers. He got it all set up on nearby rocks while I watched the area. ¡°So, where are we headed?¡±


    I shrugged. ¡°No idea. All I know is that it took four days riding this way on the road¡ªassuming 30 to 40 miles a day for the mounted patrol, I would say 120 to 160 miles.¡± Mike nodded, flipping the burgers. ¡°We¡¯ve been doing around twenty-five miles an hour, so we¡¯re an hour or two out from the location on our bikes.¡±


    Igni sat right below the grill, looking up with puppy-dog eyes. Mike looked down at her. ¡°You know, for not being a dog, you sure got the puppy-dog eyes down.¡± Igni''s only response was to tilt her head.


    I laughed, ¡°I see food wins out over pride, huh? Shut up¡ªhe has burgers!¡± Mike got the cheese out and added it to the top. A few moments later, the burgers were ready; both of us added the toppings we wanted, and Igni ate hers without a bun. Two burgers for us and three cheesy patties for Igni, and we were cleaning up.


    We came out of the woodline an hour and a half later and saw the settlement.


    I hadn''t known what to expect, but I was pleasantly surprised. The village had a paved road leading into it from the opposite side from which they had come in. There was a solid wooden palisade built around four intersecting streets; each street seemed to have thirty buildings¡ªten on each stretch. This number varied depending on building size, but it was a decent-sized population. Halfway out in the clearing, they could visibly see a stone wall about a quarter of the way toward being finished and actively worked on. Mike took in the view, then turned to look at me. ¡°Well, let''s go meet the neighbors, shall we?¡±

 Chapter 9

    Chapter 9


    ¡°We¡¯ll keep them north of the Zambesi, tell that rivers runnin¡¯ dry...¡± Mike turned the stereo down as we began to slow our approach to the gate. Every time Mike played this song, I had to make the obligatory quote, ¡°we say Zimbabwe now don¡¯t we?¡± He just shook his head, ¡°My grandfather was RAR all the way until the ceasefire and his move to South Africa, it''s Rhodesia and you know it!¡± I laughed. Mike was proud of his family''s military tradition, and the history always got him riled up.


    We slowly approached the gate. I was surprised by the lack of reaction; we for sure got odd looks from the guards, who were armed with trapdoor rifles like the patrol I had met. They were clearly watching our approach, but none of them were panicking¡ªit was more like a super car pulling up to a McDonald''s, surprising but not earth-shattering. One of the guards held up his hand in what must be the universal stop signal: ¡°Greetings, Sir Magi, may I please ask the purpose of your visit today?¡±


    Mike looked at me to take the lead, since he couldn¡¯t understand the man. ¡°Greetings, I assisted Mage Toalson and his patrol a few weeks ago and was told I could come here to collect the reward?¡± One of the other guards came over and whispered to the one who stopped us, pointing at Igni, who was sitting on the trailer attached to Mike¡¯s bike. The first guard nodded and looked back at me.


    ¡°Yes, sir, we were told to be on the lookout for you; the Adventures Guild is in the middle of town. Just follow this road and take the second left; you can''t miss it.¡± He stepped out of the way, and we thanked him and passed into the town.


    The streets were paved with cobblestones and were surprisingly clean. As we got to the second intersection, we saw why the guards were only mildly surprised: a wagon passed us with no horses and a man on the front bench seat, apparently steering with two levers that connected to the wagon''s internals. We stopped to let the wagon pass, and the man politely tipped his hat to us as he passed.


    We turned left and saw a large building halfway down the street on our left, with a large sign that, while I could tell wasn¡¯t in English, I could also read as ¡°Adventures Guild.¡± Mike and I parked our bikes on the side of the road. ¡°This place looks peaceful, but I don¡¯t want to leave the stuff on the bike unattended,¡± Mike said, and I nodded. ¡°Cool, I¡¯ll head inside and pick up the money and see if we can find you one of these translator devices,¡± I said while tapping my necklace.


    Mike nodded and slung his rifle over his chest. I left mine with him, but did check my pistol before heading in.


    I opened the door for Igni and followed her in. The room was divided into two; to my left, and down a short two steps, was a tavern right out of any fantasy book. To my right was a wall filled with papers that all seemed to be in the same format. Directly in front of me was a counter where I saw what I assumed was my first beast kin. A lady wearing some kind of green uniform with a logo the same as the one outside the building, with orange fox ears, was standing at the counter, looking at me and Igni with professional curiosity.


    ¡°Good day, Sir Mage, how may I help you today?¡± I smiled. ¡°A few things. First, I was told I should come here to redeem this.¡± I pulled the slip from one of the grenade pouches I used to store my wallet and other items I normally kept in my pockets. The receptionist took it and looked it over.


    ¡°Oh, the emergency quest from the Military patrol¡ªwe were told to expect you. The local commander has authorized an increase to cover some of the other costs of gear you donated. It''s not as much as it was worth, but the note says it''s the maximum he''s allowed to authorize. We were asked to pass along his thanks for your assistance and an apology that that is the best he can do. But your total would have been 75 gold, with the standard one gold guild fee for any payment over 20 gold, your total is 74 gold. I will just need your guild card in order to finish the payment?¡±


    I rubbed the back of my head. ¡°About that, Ms. I¡¯m not a registered adventurer yet.¡± She smiled. ¡°Sorry, I forgot to introduce myself. My name is Aurelia, and that''s okay¡ªthe registration fee is one silver. If you''re unable to afford it, it can be taken from your first few quests.¡± She paused, clearly abandoning her regularly used speech, and blushed slightly, realizing that the reason I was here was to collect enough money to register an entire town as adventurers.


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    She blushed slightly, then went on, ¡°I will just need you to put your hand on the orb here.¡± She pointed at what looked like a fortune teller''s ball between the two reception desks.


    I walked over and set my hand on it. The ball lit up teal, with the bottom half shot through with red. Aurelia made a surprised squeak, ¡°A green mage with one of two bonds.¡± She looked down at Igni. ¡°Would that be this lovely lady? Oh, she thinks I¡¯m lovely! Thank her for me!¡± Her tail started wagging happily.


    ¡°Igni says thank you!¡± Aurelia¡¯s eyes opened wide. ¡°You two can communicate telepathically? She''s not an ordinary dire wolf, is she?¡± Igni and I looked at each other, then looked back. ¡°We have no clue. Do direwolves breathe?¡± An image of what happened in the armory flashed into my memory, but from a low angle I knew instinctively was Ignis'' perspective. ¡°Really hot stuff that consumes wood and you can use to cook with?¡±


    She gave me a funny look, then looked back at the orb I hadn¡¯t yet taken my hand off.


    ¡°Oh, oh, you''re a green mage; she''s an elemental wolf! You have no experience with magic before meeting her?¡± I agreed. ¡°Okay, just nod if this happened: you said something about a fire and suddenly fire randomly shot out¡ªno one was hurt, but it surprised you?¡± I nodded. ¡°Alright, wait here a moment,¡± she said while going through a back door.


    A few moments later, she came back out carrying a copper bracelet. ¡°This is a spell Codifer; a copper one is the most basic, but they are free to guild members and cheap to replace if something goes wrong. Put it on and follow me.¡± I slipped it on, and she kept talking as she came out from behind the desk.


    ¡°Most Magi use a spell Codifer besides sorcerers and druids. They work by activating them with a code word, then registering a code word along with a very specific mental image that you decide. It''s recommended to use an image similar to what the magic does, but not the same; the Codifer locks up the mana signature of the magic and that mental image, making it into a spell. This means you will be able to say the spell name or think about the image, but without both together, you won''t have any accidental magic slippage.


    This Codifer can only store one spell pattern at a time. If you choose to upgrade, you can store more, but my first recommendation is getting a model with a mana pool indicator¡ªit shows a little blue bar on top of the wrist that tells you how much mana you have left when you have, like, 10% mana left by the killer headache, but it helps to know how close you are to that.¡±


    We entered a room that reminded me of an indoor pistol range, but about a hundred yards long, with odd patterns on the wall.


    ¡°This is one of the guild spell ranges; they are enchanted to keep from taking damage from spell testing. This is one of the private rooms that can be rented, but we use them for first-timers to walk them through the process.¡±


    I stood behind a line on the floor, and Aurelia walked me through the process. She pulled out a small copper rod, the size of a ruler.


    ¡°Okay, when you''re ready, I will tap this against the Codifer. The next two words you say will be the registration phrase going forward. It''s recommended to use something other than ''Codifer'' and some kind of action word. When you''re ready, let me know.¡±


    The entire process reminded me of the system from 5e, so I nodded, and Aurelia tapped the Codifer.


    I took the time to make sure my pronunciation was accurate: ¡°Spellbook Activate.¡±


    The Codifer glowed a dull white for a moment. ¡°Good, okay, next make the mental image of the effect you want the spell to have. Remember, it''s something similar, not the exact result; then, when you have it, say the activation phrase and what you want to name the spell.¡±


    I thought for a few moments about what happened in the armory; that made me think of the military hardware. Glancing down, I noticed one of my grenade pouches.


    My mind flashed to some videos Mike had shown me of some of his marine buddies playing with frag grenades, and with that, I had my answer.


    ¡°Spellbook Activate!¡± The image of the marine throwing the frag and the explosion filled my mind, but in a panic, a corner of my mind remembered that frags did their damage with shrapnel, not the explosion. My mind flailed even as I started speaking.


    I latched onto some footage from a Vietnam movie I had watched with Mike last night, specifically a napalm strike. ¡°Fireball!¡±


    A ball of flames, the size of a softball, shot from my hand. It wasn''t all that impressive as it arced down the range, but I was new at this.


    Then the ball impacted the ground around fifty yards down the range, and it was clear it had been very condensed. The ball exploded in a circle about twenty yards in diameter. The flames lingered for over a minute before some of the wall patterns glowed, and some kind of suppression system kicked on.

 Chapter 10 Can you hear me now?

    <b>Chapter 10</b>


    ¡°That was quite large; the little lady must be powerful,¡± Aurelia said, looking down at Igni, who looked back and wagged her tail forcefully. I smiled and thanked Aurelia for the help, and we returned to the desk where she finished the paperwork and handed me a bag of gold and a plate made of bronze.


    ¡°That''s your adventure card. This is how you will sign up for quests and it serves as ID in larger towns deeper in the Kingdom. I also included a familiar tag for Igni. You''ll want to attach it to her collar¡ªagain, not a big deal while she''s that size and not in a frontier zone like this, where adventures and familiars are relatively common, but the city folk are a bit more jumpy.¡±


    She handed a little medallion across, and I bent down and attached it to Igni¡¯s collar before giving her head a quick tussle. She playfully pretended to nip me before shaking her hair back flat again.


    I looked back to Aurelia. ¡°I have a friend outside who doesn¡¯t speak the local language. I have one of these, and I was wondering how common they are and where I might find one?¡± I said as I took the pendant off and showed it to her. She picked up a small metal rod, waved it over the item, and checked a chunk of crystal I could barely see on her side of the counter, then handed it back to me, and I put it back on.


    ¡°That is a very high-quality translator necklace. One like that would be hard to find, as it will work with most languages and on written language when fed mana. If you''re looking for one just for the common spoken language, though, it should be easier¡ªthey are used as training projects for apprentices. The guild does sell them for a silver, but we recommend buying from us. The guild''s reserves are designed to be used during an emergency, to provide the basics at remote outposts, or as a check on monopolies¡ªour prices tend to be twenty percent higher than a shop would charge. If you can''t find them for 60 coppers in town, I would be shocked.¡±


    After receiving directions to one of the two shops in town that likely sold them, I thanked Aurila and turned to leave.


    As I passed a wall with sheets nailed to it, I pushed that unfamiliar power into the amulet like I had with the Codifer. The words swam around for a moment before they appeared to be in English; I read three of them.


    <b>Horned Rabbit Infestation</b><b>


    </b> Horned rabbits have infested my farm, two hours¡¯ walk from town. I would like someone to clear them out.


    Requirements: Two copper or better


    Pay: 50 copper + salvage


    <b>Goblin Camp</b><b>


    </b> The army has received an accurate report of a small goblin camp of 10¨C15 individuals. It has been reported to the military, but the exact location is unknown. The Army plans to deploy two patrols to search the area. Local guild members with experience in the area are requested to assist with scouting.


    Requirements: 2 bronze or better


    Pay: 3 gold + bonus based on participation


    <b>Baskalisk Slaying</b><b>


    </b> A set of Baskalisk tracks was spotted near the southern road by a Merchant Convoy; the Mayor has authorized a hunt.


    Requirements: 2 silver or better


    Pay: 20 gold + salvage


    I nodded and decided I would need to ask how these were organized later. Even one gold was enough to live on for a month on my side of the portal, and something like the scouting mission would be well worth it. Combine that with selling some convenience items like Zippos, tents, or rifle optics. I was sure there were magical versions of most of those items, but I was also sure they would cost much more than two gold¡ªthe price of a high-end optic in the U.S.


    As I stepped outside, I saw two guardsmen trying to pantomime something to Mike. They looked frustrated but not aggressive, and Mike appeared to be trying his best to understand.


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    ¡°Excuse me, officers. I¡¯m sorry, my friend doesn¡¯t speak Common. How can I help you?¡± one of the guards said with relief, then noticed the new Codifer on my arm and straightened up slightly more.


    ¡°Our apologies, Sir Mage, but you cannot park your, umm¡­¡± He looked over at our bikes. ¡°Mana wagons in front of the guild building like this¡ªwhile I will admit yours are smaller than normal and unlikely to block traffic, the rules still say parking must be off the main street, especially since the guild has an area in the back.¡±


    I nodded. ¡°My apologies.¡± I checked his uniform but then realized I wouldn¡¯t recognize ranks. Hopefully, the translation spell would interpret the respectful title. ¡°Officer, this is our first time in town, and we were unaware. We will move them right away.¡±


    The officer gave me a considering look, then nodded. ¡°Alright, we will let it go with that this time since they are so small, but just so you know, it¡¯s a two-silver fine in the future.¡± I nodded and thanked the officers as they left. Mike looked over at me. ¡°What was that about?¡±


    I shrugged. ¡°No street parking in town.¡±


    He looked around, also noticing a lack of parked wagons on the road. ¡°Fair enough, what now?¡± Mike asked. ¡°The guard said the guild has parking out back; let¡¯s go take a look.¡± We pushed our bikes around back to save on fuel and found a gated area watched by two teenagers in the guild levery.


    ¡°Good evening, gentlemen. Can I see your guild cards, please?¡± I said as I showed mine. ¡°My friend does not have one yet,¡± the teen replied with a nod. ¡°That¡¯s fine, sir. We have 5 priority spots open if you want to pay one silver per¡ª¡± He paused for a moment. ¡°Wagon? Or, for guild members, we currently have 3 of the first-come, first-served free slots available. Unfortunately, for nonmembers, it¡¯s one silver for the general parking and 3 silver for the priority shed.¡±


    I thought for a moment. ¡°Can I see one of these sheds?¡±


    The teen nodded. ¡°Yes, Sir Mage, follow me, sir.¡± He opened a small main gate and led me into the wagon yard. There was a section on the right where two wagons were parked in what seemed to be parking spots with painted signs numbering them. To the left were sheds about twice the size of one of the parking spots, with what looked like locking double doors.


    I nodded. ¡°If we pay the nonmember rate for one of the sheds, would it be okay to park both our vehicles inside?¡±


    The teenager thought about it, then shrugged. ¡°You''re renting the shed, so I guess if you want to put three wagons¡ªor even a single loaf of bread in there¡ªit¡¯s really up to you.¡± I nodded and, reaching into my pocket, pulled out three silver and the few coppers I happened to have. ¡°Here you go.¡± The teen nodded, then frowned. ¡°Sir, you gave me extra.¡± He tried to hand it back, and I shook my head.


    ¡°Keep it; it''s a tip.¡± His face screwed up in confusion. ¡°A tip, sir?¡±


    ¡°Yes, it''s a bonus people sometimes give to someone for doing a good job.¡± The teen started looking upset. ¡°A bribe?¡± I shook my head quickly. ¡°No¡ªa bribe is to get you to do things against your job, generally given before you do something; a tip is a bonus for giving excellent service after you did a job.¡± The teen thought about it, then nodded and pocketed the money.


    We took five minutes getting the motorcycles locked in the shed and collecting the keys for the bikes and the shed. With a wave, we left the kids and headed out of the wagon area. I followed the directions Aurelia had given us. We found the shop and walked in; the shop was full of many random items¡ªsome of them recognizable, other stuff completely indefinable.


    ¡°Hey, no pets in the shop¡ª¡± the middle-aged man at the counter cut himself off upon seeing Igni¡¯s collar.


    ¡°My apologies, familiar,¡± he said, then looking at me, ¡°Mage, how may I help you today?¡± I hooked a thumb over my shoulder to Mike. ¡°My friend is a long way from home and doesn¡¯t speak the local language; the receptionist at the guild said you might be able to help with that?¡±


    The shopkeeper nodded. ¡°Yes, sir. For a basic enchanted translator, it''s 60 copper. It does direct translation, so it does not handle idioms well. The price jumps quite a bit¡ªthe next level would be six silver. It can handle the common language, including idioms and written language. It has an 18?hour mana charge, so you would need a mana stone or a mage like yourself to charge it once a day. For 2 gold, you can get the same but self?sustaining. There are other better ones out there, but I don¡¯t carry them¡ªwe would need to special order them from a major city.¡±


    I decided to get Mike the two?gold one so we didn¡¯t have to worry about it dying at the worst time. I handed over the gold, and the man handed me the necklace, which I passed to Mike. ¡°Test test test,¡± Mike said once he put the necklace on. The shopkeeper smiled. ¡°I believe it''s working, sir.¡±


    Mike smiled. ¡°Thank you, sir. It''s nice to be able to understand people around me.¡± We looked around for a few more minutes but didn¡¯t find anything we desperately needed at the moment. With one more goodbye and a ¡°come again¡± from the shopkeeper, we left, heading back towards the Inn.