ã€ŠRoulette: A Random Taleã€‹


 Skin Hardening (1)

    You woke up to find blood in your mouth, the sun in your eyes, a ringing sound in your ears, a burning smell near your nose, and a pounding sense of pain all across your body.

    You sat up, spitting the blood out of your mouth and blinking the bright dots out of your eyes. The ringing was gone by this point, along with the smell, though the pain still remained. Everything hurt, like you just got tackled by fifty professional linebackers at the same time.

    No bruises though. Your skin looked smooth, unblemished, and pale. A little bit too pale when you thought about it; you looked like the type of person who didn¡¯t get much sun. Maybe you stayed in your room all day, watching TV or playing around on your laptop. Or maybe you spent most of your life in a hospital bed, hooked up to dozens of machines, with the only source of light being a flickering lightbulb. Or maybe you were a zombie.

    You found that any of these ideas seemed possible to you. The fact that you couldn¡¯t tell which one was true was the worrying part.

    Moving hurt, though thankfully the pain seemed to be fading fast. So you waited a bit, laying back on the cool morning grass until the pain was gone.

    The sun shining down on your face and the cool dew between your fingers was a relaxing contrast. You felt like you could just fall asleep here.

    But no, you couldn¡¯t waste the day away sleeping on the ground. You had better things to do, like figuring out just where the hell you were. So you stood up and gave your surroundings a good once over.

    It was a beautiful day. The sun was shining, the birds were chirping, and you were in the middle of a field of flowers. You couldn¡¯t tell what type of flowers, but they looked pretty and came in all colors of the rainbow.

    You knelt down and picked a few flowers, turning them over in your hands. Your fingers were itching to do something and when you let them have free reign, you found yourself making an elaborate flower crown fit for an elf princess. You were not an elf princess -- you checked your ears to make sure -- but you wore it anyway.

    You were tempted to see if you could make other flower clothes -- a flower dress would be especially cute -- but figured you might as well stick to the clothes you had. Which were a white T-shirt, jeans, and red tennis shoes. How boring.

    At least the T-shirt had a picture of a cute cat on it. That was something, right?

    You picked a few more flowers and held them in your hands like they were a bridal bouquet. Then you spun around until you were facing a random direction and started walking.

    And walking.

    And walking.

    And walking some more.

    All you could see for miles was flowers. Flowers, sky, sunlight, and chirping birds. No cars or roads or buildings or humans or anything you could use to get yourself back to civilization. You would have even settled for a dragon or a broken down spaceship at this point. You could probably tame a dragon if you tried. And a broken spaceship well, you¡¯ve managed to work with worse. You think.

    Eventually your feet started to get really tired and the sun firmly settled itself high in the sky. By that point you decided you needed to take a well deserved break.

    You laid back on the grass, your bouquet falling out of your fingers. You were going to have to get back to walking at some point, but for now you wanted to rest.

    Good thing these flowers are so soft¡­

    You closed your eyes.

    *BOOOOOOOOM*

    ¡°Fuck!¡± You jolted up, your eyes flying open only for you to see a smoldering pile of rags land a foot away from you. You scrambled to your feet and backed away, your fists raised in preparation for a serious beatdown.

    Nothing happened though. The pile of rags didn¡¯t attack you. Nor did it explode suddenly. You cautiously poked it with your foot, and flinched back when you heard it moan. You squinted at the rags and realized that it was a slightly crispy person, and not a bunch of sapient clothing.

    You used your foot to flip the person over on their back and came face to face with a young boy. No older than sixteen if you were being generous. Blond hair, blue eyes, freckles, what looks to be the beginning of some muscle definition underneath his mostly ruined shirt. He would have looked pretty cute if not for the painful looking burns on his face. Also half of his hair was burned away, revealing a bright red scalp. There was steam coming off it, which was probably not a good thing.

    Most of his clothes were ruined, either being burned completely or -- in the case of his pants -- ripped to shreds. Only a few scraps of cloth kept you from getting a naked eyeful, of which you were thankful. You had no idea how old you were, but you had a feeling that it was way older than this kid. You weren¡¯t planning on robbing the cradle anytime soon.

    Other than his messed up clothes, you noticed that he also had a sword strapped to his waist. Or what was left of a sword. At this point it was basically a few pieces of scrap metal attached to the hilt. You could even see what was left of it scattered all around him in half melted piles.

    It made you wonder how the hell this kid managed to survive an explosion hot enough to melt steel. He sure looked like a normal human boy, albeit one with a sword. Maybe he survived using magic?

    Was magic even a thing?

    It sounded possible when you thought about it. At the very least, you didn¡¯t feel as though you were talking about something make believe or straight out of a fairy tale. And this kid did just fall out of the sky or whatever.

    Said kid moaned, reminding you of the fact that you had a severely burned kid lying in front of you. You could question things later; right now you needed to give him what little medical care you cou--

    *Bzzzzz*

    The air visibly distorted before a portal appeared a few feet away from you. It was green, swirly, and looked all kinds of dangerous. Especially when a similarly colored three headed dog just walked right out of it.

    It would have been intimidating with just one head, considering it was the size of a small horse. With three it looked downright terrifying. Smoke was coming out of the middle dog¡¯s nostrils, while the one on the far left drooled, its spit hitting the flowers and causing them to sizzle up. The dog on the far left had glowing green eyes, ones that looked like the fires of hell were burning inside. All three of the heads had mouths full of razor sharp teeth, claws that looked like they could rip up cars, and low rumbling growls that made shivers run down your spine.

    You could see all six of its eyes scan the field for a second before locking onto the burned kid, then you. Their eyes narrowing, three headed dog snarled and launched itself at you.

    Shit.

    You felt yourself tense, before scrambling to your feet and trying to make a run for it.

    You barely took a step before you felt something slam into your back, sending you tumbling to the ground.

    ¡°Fucking fuck! Get the fuck off of me --¡± You felt jaws clamp around your arms and neck, the teeth biting into your skin and filling you with pain --

    Wait.

    You weren¡¯t feeling anything.

    Well no, you could feel the three headed dog¡¯s breath on your neck and could feel their teeth, but -- you couldn¡¯t feel them biting into you. There was this sense of pressure and sharpness -- like you were getting poked with an especially sharp pen -- but there was no pain. You couldn¡¯t feel them penetrating your skin at all.

    You heard the three headed dog let out a confused sounding noise before you felt them clamp down harder. Your skin didn¡¯t so much at budge.

    ¡°Get off of me!¡± You tried to wiggle out of their grip but alas, you weren¡¯t given super strength to go with your super durability apparently. The three headed dog growled again and started jerking at your limbs and neck, probably trying to rip you apart. No dice.

    Another growl before you felt a wave of heat engulf your head. Something wet splashed against your right arm while you felt another attempt to rip your arm off on your right.

    You didn¡¯t feel any pain though, and the three headed dog still had a killer grip on your limbs and neck.The genuine version of this novel can be found on another site. Support the author by reading it there.

    It basically left you and the dog at a stalemate. It couldn¡¯t hurt you and you couldn¡¯t get away, so the two of you pretty much just laid there in the field of flowers. The dog growling and snarling at you, and you trying to breathe through your mouth so that you wouldn¡¯t have to smell dog breath.

    You probably would have stayed like that forever -- or at least until the three headed dog got bored -- if not for one thing.

    ¡°H-hey! G-get your hands o-off her you m-mutt!¡±

    Oh shit, the kid.

    The three headed dog snarled before suddenly flinging you away like you were yesterday¡¯s trash. You skidded for a good few meters before coming to a stop, your face buried in flowers and dirt.

    You laid there for a good long moment, questioning the life choices that brought you to this point. It was only when you heard the kid¡¯s screams that you decided to leave the midlife crisis for another time. Right now, you have a brave kid to save.

    Said brave kid was doing as well as could be expected for someone who recently got blown up -- which was not good. He barely managed to avoid the three headed dog¡¯s swipes and attempted bites, sprinting and rolling and crab walking away from the dog¡¯s lazy attacks even as he tried to fight back with what was left of his sword. Maybe one in ten of his attacks managed to hit and even then, they didn¡¯t seem to do much damage.

    You sprinted over towards him and managed to make a flying leap towards the dog just as it decided to stop playing around. Two of the heads snarled, their mouths filling with acid drool and fire -- only to let out a pretty hilarious sounding choking noise when you body slammed your way onto their back.

    Their attacks missed the kid by an inch, hitting the ground and melting/burning the flowers. You took advantage of its surprise to wrap your arms around the middle head and then your legs around the acid one, closing their jaws. That left the third head to try and gnaw at your face but thankfully, you were invincible.

    The drool still got into your eyes though, and you had to resist the urge to wipe them with your hand. You tried blinking the drool out of your vision, but it just seemed to spread the drool around.

    Ugh.

    Through your blurry vision you saw the kid painfully raise what was left of his sword towards the dog. ¡°M-miss! Get out of the way, you¡¯re going to get hurt!¡±

    ¡°Don¡¯t worry about me, kid!¡± you barked. You felt a wrenching sensation near your arms and legs as the two dog heads tried to get free. You managed to hold on, but only just barely. ¡°Just hurry up and fucking stab it!¡±

    ¡°But --!¡± The kid looked at his sword helplessly. ¡°But my sword¡¯s broken!¡±

    ¡°Well then just fucking claw at it or something! Beat it with the hilt! Kick it in the balls! Just do something!¡± The dogs wrenched their heads back even as the third dog head started biting into your shoulder. ¡°Fucking hurry! I can¡¯t hold them forever!¡±

    The three headed dog bucked like a bull and you almost lost your grip when you felt a wave of flames wash over your arms. It didn¡¯t hurt you, but you couldn¡¯t help but balk at the heat of it, loosening your grip slightly. That was all the middle dog head needed to wrench itself out of your grip and you felt yourself swing downward, your legs¡¯ hold on the acid dog¡¯s head the only thing keeping you from falling to the ground.

    ¡°Um! Um! T-there! The portal!¡± Upside down, you could make out the kid pointing at the green swirling portal, which hadn¡¯t disappeared. ¡°Q-quick! We can run there and escape!¡±

    You grunted and relaxed your legs, falling to the ground head first. The three headed dog stumbled back, the sudden weight loss confusing them. You used that moment of distraction to sprint towards the portal, the kid hot on your heels.

    You heard an earth shaking roar behind you, the sound of rapid foot falls, the sensation of teeth just grazing the back of your shirt -- before the portal washed over you.

    There was a brief falling sensation in your stomach, a sense of weightlessness -- before you found your feet hitting smooth ground. You stumbled forward and collapsed, all of your energy leaving you at once.

    For a moment you just laid there, breath leaving you in harsh gasps, your heart pounding in your chest. When you felt like you weren¡¯t in danger of having a heart attack you stood up and took stock of your surroundings.

    You were standing in the middle of a dirt path. On either side you saw a dense forest, filled with trees, bushes, and the occasional animal. It looked like a normal forest aside from the trees, which were so tall that you had to tilt your head back just to see the top. No flowers though, which was a relief. You must have landed a long way away from that field.

    Beside you, looking like he needed a trip to the emergency room, was the kid. He was crouched on the ground, kneeling with his hands on the ground like he was about to worship something, his body visibly shaking. ¡°W-w-we made it! We made it! We¡¯re alive! Thank the gods!¡±

    ¡°Yeah.¡± You sighed and rubbed the back of your neck. ¡°So long as that three headed dog doesn¡¯t come back. What the hell was that thing?¡±

    ¡°C-cerberus. Rank C monster. Th-the guild th-thought it was just a pack of wolves attacking sheep. I thought I could handle it on my own, b-but --¡± He let out shaky laugh. ¡°I couldn¡¯t even p-protect them. The farmers. They just -- i-it was too strong. I could only distract it. Give them a chance to r-run. I was too -- too weak.¡±

    ¡°Oh,¡± you said awkwardly. You searched for something sympathetic to say and came up with: ¡°Well uh. That sucks. I guess.¡±

    Shit.

    The kid didn¡¯t seem to notice or care about your horrible social skills. ¡°I thought I was -- I thought I was gonna die.¡± He stared blankly at the ground. ¡°I almost died.¡±

    ¡°Uh¡­¡±

    His eyes landed on you. ¡°You. You saved me. Thank you. Thank you so much.¡±

    ¡°Uh¡­¡± You looked away, not sure how to respond to something that sincere. ¡°You¡¯re welcome, man. It was no big deal.¡±

    The boy looked unsatisfied with your attempt at downplaying. ¡°But --¡±

    ¡°Look, we should probably go. You know, before that thing comes back,¡± you said pointing behind you. ¡°I don¡¯t know about you, but I¡¯ve had enough of three headed demons dogs for one day.¡±

    ¡°R-right.¡± He took a deep breath and got to his feet. ¡°Of course. Here, I¡¯ll g-guide you to the city. It¡¯s just that way,¡± he said, pointing in the distance. ¡°We just need to keep straight on this road.¡±

    ¡°Thanks¡­¡± you trailed off.

    ¡°Kyle. Kyle Winters,¡± he supplied. ¡°And can I ask your name?¡±

    ¡°Sure. It¡¯s --¡± You stopped. ¡°It¡¯s -- uh¡­um¡­¡±

    Shit, what was your name again?

    Kyle mistook your silence for something else. ¡°You don¡¯t have to tell me if you don¡¯t want to. I-I understand if you want to keep your identity secret. Your Skill is very powerful, so¡­¡± he trailed off.

    What a nice guy. ¡°Oh well that¡¯s -- wait, what? My skill?¡±

    ¡°Um, yes. Your Skill.¡± He gestured towards your everything. ¡°You can deactivate it if you want. This forest is safe since most of the Adventurers cleared out the monsters here a while ago.They don¡¯t even bother to spawn here anymore.¡±

    You had so many questions you didn¡¯t know where to start. So instead you focused on the skill thing. ¡°What are you talking about? What skill --¡±

    Kyle kept glancing at your arm for some reason. You looked down at yourself.

    ¡°Oh.¡±

    Your skin was dark blue. Dark blue and looked like it was made up of some strange rock. When you touched it -- how could you still feel things? You were made of rock! -- it even felt like rock. Sturdy and unbreakable.

    No wonder that damn dog couldn¡¯t bite through you.

    You stared down at your hands, feeling strangely comfortable with your sudden transformation. You would have thought you would have felt horrified or freaked out, but no. If anything you felt a bit irritated.

    And really tense, though that was probably from the dog. You had no idea when that thing was gonna come back after all.

    You forced yourself to take a deep breath so you could relax. Then you flinched, tensing up slightly when your skin abruptly started fading back to its normal milky white.

    At your sudden tension your skin stopped changing back to normal -- before slowly changing back to the rocky dark blue.

    You relaxed. It started changing back.

    You tensed up. It got dark blue.

    Relax. Normal.

    Tense. Dark blue.

    ¡°Huh.¡± You relaxed again and watched carefully as your skin turned back to normal. ¡°That¡¯s convenient.¡±

    Kyle, who was watching you the entire time, had an excited look on his face. If not for the horrific burns he probably would have looked like a puppy. ¡°That¡¯s so cool! How did you get that skill?! Was it a Blessing? Or is it magic? Can you teach me? Please?¡±

    You balked a bit at the sudden barrage of questions. ¡°Uh, I don¡¯t --¡±

    ¡°Oh! Sorry, sorry, I got a bit too excited. It¡¯s just -- that¡¯s a really cool skill. I mean, A Rank C monster like that can bite through steel with a single chomp, but it didn¡¯t even hurt you! And it looks so cool! It¡¯s like you¡¯re made of stone!¡±

    He reached out a hand as though to touch you before letting it fall back to his side. ¡°S-sorry, I just really like cool skills. D-do you think you can teach me, or¡­?¡±

    Can you teach him? Also, what the hell was a Rank C monster? ¡°I don¡¯t think so. Sorry.¡±

    ¡°Oh.¡± He deflated a bit before perking up. ¡°W-well, we should still get back to the guild. Can¡¯t let a Cerberus wander around in the middle of the flower fields. A-and it might portal back any second so. F-follow me.¡±

    You and Kyle started walking down the dirt path.

    Well, more like limping in Kyle¡¯s case. That damn dog really did a number on him. There was blood on his ripped clothes, burns on his face and chest, and a bleeding bite mark on his right calf. And since his shoes were gone, he was forced to talk on the pebble covered path barefoot.

    You gave him a worried look. ¡°Hey, do you need me to --¡±

    ¡°No thanks, I¡¯m fine!¡± He smiled then winced after he did it, his burned skin probably making it painful as all hell. ¡°I might need a h-healing potion or two. Maybe three. Or Four. B-but I¡¯ll be fine! Really!¡±

    ¡°...are you sure? I can carry you if you want --¡±

    He waved his hands. ¡°No no no! I¡¯m --¡±

    Kyle tripped over a stray rock in the path, almost falling on his face. You managed to catch him in time, though not before you pressed one of your hands against one of his burns.

    He let out a noise that sounded like a mix between a gasp and a sob before crumbling in your arms.

    ¡°Kyle?!¡± You checked his pulse and relaxed slightly when you felt a steady beat.

    His face looked clammy and even unconscious his body was tensed up from the pain. Poor guy must have passed out from the stress and pain of it all.

    You shifted your grip and hoisted him into a princess carry, making sure not to hit or rub up against his burns. He was heavy but nothing you couldn¡¯t handle for a few hours.

    Besides, you could faintly make out a few buildings up ahead if you squinted. Shouldn¡¯t take you too long to get to the city. Hopefully you could get some answers there.

    Starting with your name of course, because this amnesia thing was really getting old.

 Skin Hardening (2)

    At the end of the dirt path, surrounded by a giant stone wall, was a city.

    You couldn¡¯t see much from behind the wall, but you could make out a few buildings. The tallest ones seemed to be about four or five stories high, a lot shorter than you¡¯d thought buildings in a city would be. They were also made of some really old fashioned materials -- mostly stone and brick instead of concrete and steel.

    At the front, attached to each side of the giant wooden gate, were two lookout towers. You could see a few guards -- around five on each tower -- milling about and talking with one another. They seemed a lot less guarded than you expected them to be, casually chatting and even playing card games. A few of them tried to look busy, but for the most part they seemed pretty relaxed.

    At the foot of the gate you could see two guards, both looking way more alert than their tower counterparts. They were the ones to first notice you when you and Kyle came into view.

    You guessed you must have looked pretty intimidating, because they immediately drew their weapons. They didn¡¯t point them at you, but the threat was there.

    ¡°State your business!¡±

    You shifted Kyle in your arms. ¡°I don¡¯t want any trouble or anything! I just need to get him to a doctor. He¡¯s in really bad shape.¡±

    The guard on your left, a big burly man with a curly mustache, gave you a suspicious look. ¡°Doctor?¡±

    ¡°A healer or whatever,¡± you amended. ¡°We got attacked by some three headed dog. I think he called it a Cerberus?¡± You gestured behind you. ¡°We managed to get away, but he¡¯s pretty banged up. Do you think you can let us through?¡±

    As if on cue, Kyle moaned in your arms.

    The guard on your right, a leaner man with a pair of glasses on his face, glanced at Kyle then back at you. ¡°Do either of you have any identification?¡±

    ¡°Uh¡­¡± Do you have any identification on you? Probably not, but it¡¯s not like you checked your pockets or anything.

    In retrospect you really should have done that sooner.

    ¡°I don¡¯t, but he might,¡± you said, glancing down at him. Jesus, were those burns infected? ¡°I¡¯m not sure if I should shift him around all that much though¡­¡±

    By this point the guards on the tower had noticed you. You saw them start to talk with one another, a few of them gesturing towards you, before one of them opened up a hatch on the floor and disappeared. Seconds later the door at the foot of the tower opened and a female guard strode towards you.

    She was older, probably in her late forties. You could see the bright red hair through her helmet, as well as the scar that went from her forehead, through her eye, and all the way down her left cheek. She was holding a bow and on her back you could see a quiver full of arrows, all of them looking well used and dangerously sharp.

    Unlike the other two guards, she didn¡¯t seem to consider you a threat. Her bow was held in a one handed grip at her side and her posture was relaxed.

    She flashed you a friendly smile before addressing the guards. ¡°What¡¯s goin¡¯ on?¡±

    Glasses nodded towards you. ¡°The girl and the boy want to be let in. The boy¡¯s hurt but neither of them have any identification. Do you think we should send them away?¡±

    The woman looked you and Kyle up and down before reaching into her pocket and taking out two small vials. They were filled with a red liquid. ¡°Nah. No point in lettin¡¯ the kid die in the dirt. Girl, set him down on the ground there and I¡¯ll treat him.¡±

    You eyed the vials for a second before doing what she asked. While you couldn¡¯t be sure that they were actually healing potions, it seemed unlikely that some random guard would want to poison Kyle.

    And it wasn¡¯t like you had any other choice; Kyle¡¯s wounds were starting to look a bit pus filled.

    You watched her carefully, ready to tense up and activate your blue stone skin the second things went wrong. You made sure to keep the female guard and the two others in your line of sight as she knelt down and started pouring the red liquid on Kyle¡¯s burns.

    Kyle¡¯s skin started bubble before your eyes as new flesh and skin formed from the red liquid. The various burns and cuts on his face healed themselves within seconds, revealing smooth unblemished skin. You relaxed and stood back a bit, giving the guard more room to do her work.

    She opened up another vial and started pouring the potion on his chest, legs, scalp -- basically everywhere that looked injured. Within a few minutes Kyle was as good as new -- save for his ripped up clothes and his half bald head. You guessed that burned hair didn¡¯t count as an injury for a health potion. Hopefully they had a few hair growing potions in the city.

    Kyle¡¯s face relaxed as his wounds were healed, his face no longer looking as tense as it did before. He even started snoring.

    ¡°Thanks, man. You¡¯re a lifesaver.¡± You flashed her a smile before picking Kyle up in yet another princess carry. It must have looked funny judging by the look on the gate guards¡¯ faces.

    Was it because you were a girl?

    You glanced at the female guard. No, it was probably because you were shorter than normal. You had noticed when you were walking with him that Kyle was a bit taller than you. Moreover, your hands and body looked a lot smaller as well. It must have looked funny to see someone like you carry someone much bigger.

    ¡°Ah, no problem,¡± she said, tucking the empty bottles back in her pocket. ¡°So, ya mind tellin¡¯ me what happened to him? Those looked like acid and fire burns ta me.¡±

    ¡°We got attacked by a Cerberus about thirty minutes ago. It ended up appearing in the middle of a flower field.¡± You pointed behind you. ¡°We escaped through one of its portals and ended up on this path about half a mile back that way. It didn¡¯t follow us, but I have no idea where the hell the damn thing is.¡±

    The female guard lost her relaxed demeanor. ¡°A Cerberus? In the flower fields?¡±

    ¡°Yep.¡±

    ¡°Damn. How big was it?¡± She turned around and made a hand gesture towards the tower guards. You saw them start running around their respective towers, barking orders that you couldn¡¯t hear.

    ¡°Uh, about the size of a small horse.¡±

    She grunted. ¡°At least somethin¡¯s goin¡¯ right today.¡± She called out to the two guards manning the gate. ¡°Hey, you two! Let ¡®em both in!¡±

    Glasses started to protest. ¡°But they don¡¯t have any --¡±

    ¡°I saw the boy¡¯s Adventurer¡¯s card when I was healin¡¯ him. And the girl¡¯s gettin¡¯ her card right now.¡± She turned to you and gestured towards the base of the tower. ¡°Come on, let¡¯s get ya all registered. Shouldn¡¯t take too long, so long as yer not a criminal.¡±

    You followed her. ¡°Do I have to play a fee or something like that?¡±

    ¡°Most of the time ya do. But since ya gave me some valuable information, I¡¯ll let it slide. Just make sure not ta cause any trouble, yeah?¡±

    You nodded.

    The inside of the lookout tower was small, cramped, and stuffy. Right smack in the middle of the room was a wooden spiral staircase that looked like it had seen better days. A small paper covered desk was shoved in the far off corner, the seat wedged between the desk and the wall. The guard actually had to climb over the desk in order to reach it on the other side. And since there was no chair for you, you were forced to just stand there while holding Kyle.

    He was really starting to get heavy.

    Thankfully the whole process of getting your ID didn¡¯t take that long. The guard took out some glowing red orb and motioned for you to touch it. When you did, it flashed on and off for a good three minutes before a laminated card appeared beside it. The guard took it, gave it a quick glance, then handed it to you.

    The card was bright blue and had a picture of a faded moon on its background. It read:

    WESTER CITY

    Name: [__]

    Age: [12]

    Species: [Human]

    Sex: [Female]

    Hair: [Long, Black]

    Eyes: [Black/Purple]

    Height: [149 cm]

    Weight: [40 kg]

    Occupation: [None]

    Expires: [01/01/01]

    ¡°Not sure why it took so long,¡± the guard commented, tapping the orb. ¡°Usually only takes a quick second. Captain musta given us an outdated one again. Piece of shit.¡±

    She nodded towards your card. ¡°Yer card should still work like normal. Not sure ¡®bout the name, but it should fill in at some point. Anyone asks, tell ¡®em that there was a mistake in the Computing Orb.¡±

    You barely paid attention to her, too preoccupied with the fact that you were twelve years old.

    You may not remember much of anything about yourself, but you knew for a fact that you were older than twelve. Someone must have done something to you to make you de-age. Maybe a curse or a spell or a de-aging ray or something irritating and stupid like that.

    Oh fuck this.

    You were gonna figure out how to fix this. No way in hell were you gonna stay a child. No one took children seriously, and being a literal child meant that getting a job would be twice as hard.

    Because you needed a job. It wasn¡¯t like you knew anyone in town, and something told you that Kyle was just as broke as you were. You had no name, no place to stay, no money, and no real prospects to begin with. And being a child on top of all of that made an already horrible situation even worse.

    Maybe you could spend some time in an orphanage? A church maybe?

    ¡°Do you know where the nearest orphanage is? Or church?¡±

    The guard looked confused for a second before a look of realization came over her. Then she gave you a look of pity. ¡°The orphanage and church are overcrowded. Last I heard they¡¯re not lookin¡¯ to take anyone else these days. If yer lookin¡¯ for a place to stay, then ya best head on over to Mary¡¯s Inn. The girl¡¯s got a soft spot for kids like you, though ya¡¯ll hafta work if ya wanna stay there more than a couple of days.¡±

    Perfect. ¡°Do you have directions?¡±

    ¡°Eh, sure. But ya might wanna drop yer friend off at the Guild first. Most of the Adventurers have a room there. It should be next to the¡­¡±

    The guard gave you directions to the Adventurer¡¯s Guild, along with directions to Mary¡¯s Inn and then sent you on your way. The two guards at the gate gave you suspicious looks as they were opening the gate for you, but otherwise didn¡¯t do anything to stop you.

    The first thought that came to mind when you stepped foot into the city was, ¡°Wow, this actually is fantasy land, huh?¡±

    There were people dressed up in commoner¡¯s fantasy wear, people dressed up in armor and holding swords, people whom you could only assume to be wizards and magic users dressed up in fancy cloaks and billowing robes, and people dressed up in fancy clothing that could only be the rich or nobility. You saw normal animals like horses, donkies, dogs, chickens, and pigs being led around -- and then you saw things like floating eyeballs, birds that seemed to be made of water, and a bouncing blob that may or may not have been a slime.

    There weren¡¯t any classic fantasy races running around though; just humans and their sometimes odd, magical pets.

    When you started walking into the crowd you could see little shops and buildings, each advertising their wares. Some shops sold weapons, some equipment, some armor, some potions, and others food, clothes, and basic necessities. A few of them looked like restaurants and bars, and through the windows you could see hungry and messy customers wolfing down food and booze while the waiters and waitresses rushed back and forth with their orders. Some of the buildings were inns while others seemed to be houses stuck in the middle of all the shops and businesses. This story originates from Royal Road. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.

    And as a result of so many buildings and stores, there were a lot of back alleys and dark corners in between buildings. You couldn¡¯t see anything bad happening, but then again it was the middle of the day. Nighttime was probably another story.

    Because this was a medieval fantasy land, there weren¡¯t any street signs that you could use to help guide you. All you had were the guard¡¯s directions and some vague landmarks to help you figure out where everything was. As a result, you spent a lot of time just wandering around trying to find your way.

    You got a lot of strange looks as you were going by. Probably because the sight of a twelve year old girl -- twelve! You were twelve! -- carrying someone at least two years older than her looked more than a little weird. No one stopped you thankfully, but you could tell that a few of the passerby wanted to question you.

    It was when your arms started to really hurt that you finally came across a building that was, according to the sign, the Adventurer¡¯s Guild.

    It was a lot more simple than you¡¯d thought it would be. A simple stone building, almost box-like in form, with wooden double doors and a sign that said ¡°Adventurer¡¯s Guild¡± on the front in small letters. There were no windows and no elaborate decorations or statues. The whole building had an aura of practicality to it, of function over form.

    The inside was pretty much the same. It had stone floors, wooden tables for people to sit in, and a bunch of wooden front desks. The only thing unusual about the place was the glowing yellow orbs that served as light bulbs and the Adventurers.

    They came in all shapes and sizes: big bulky guys with swords more than half your height, beautiful scantily clad women with auras of power and mystery, dark cloaked figures who seemed to disappear from your sight the moment you took your eyes off them, cheerful teenagers covered in blood and gore, and in one case some guy dressed up as a clown. No two people looked the same here, and everyone seemed to have their own original looks, weapons, and clothes.

    When you walked inside and headed straight for the front desk, you felt a lot of eyes staring at you. You, not the body you were carrying in your arms.

    Which, when you really thought about it, made sense. You already saw a few people sitting down at tables while covered in blood; it must be a common thing for banged up people to walk into the Guild. Twelve year old girls though -- and you still couldn¡¯t get over that -- were probably far less common.

    The receptionist at the front desk didn¡¯t seem to think you were a rare occurrence, judging by the professional smile she wore on her face. Either that or she was just good at hiding her emotions. ¡°Welcome to the Adventurer¡¯s Guild! How can I help you today?¡±

    ¡°Hi, I¡¯d like to return this person?¡± You held Kyle up. ¡°He helped me out a while ago, but passed out from his wounds. One of the guards at the gate healed him up, so now I¡¯m trying to drop him off.¡±

    ¡°Oh yes! I believe we just got an alert about something of that nature.¡± The receptionist took out a piece of paper. ¡°According to this you were attacked by a... baby Cerberus, correct?¡±

    ¡°Yep.¡±

    ¡°In the flower fields?¡±

    ¡°Yep.¡±

    ¡°And this is¡­¡±

    ¡°Kyle Winters.¡±

    ¡°Hmm¡­¡± You saw her riffle through a pile of papers. ¡°Ah yes, our most recent Rank F recruit! Just registered a few days ago from the looks of it. Recently took on a¡­¡± She frowned. ¡°Hmm, a Rank E quest? Well that¡¯s not good¡­¡±

    You glanced down at Kyle. ¡°Did he do something wrong?¡±

    The receptionist hesitated. ¡°Well¡­ not necessarily. Most Rank F Adventurers tend to... bite off a bit more than they can chew, so to speak. They¡¯re usually young and new, and unaware of their limits. So it¡¯s up to the receptionists to approve or disapprove any quests they choose to take. A Rank F Adventurer -- who had only been one for less than a week mind you -- should have been denied this quest outright.¡± She narrowed her eyes. ¡°Whoever approved him were either very incompetent... or held a grudge.¡±

    Well shit. ¡°Is he gonna be okay if I leave him here?¡±

    ¡°Hmm?¡± Noticing your concern, the receptionist smiled. ¡°Oh don¡¯t worry! It shouldn¡¯t take long for the culprit to be found on our end. Such examples of incompetence or grudge holding are,¡± her voice took on a more menacing tone, ¡°not tolerated here at the Guild. Ever.¡±

    ¡°Right¡­¡±

    ¡°In the meantime, why don¡¯t we take Mr. Winters off your hands for you? Guards!¡±

    There was a sudden puff of black smoke and a pair of guards wearing black armor appeared out of nowhere. They were big, bulky, and wearing helmets that made them look more than a little intimidating. Didn¡¯t help that their swords looked sharp enough to cut you in half with a single swing.

    ¡°Can you please take Mr. Winters back to his room? It should be guest room ninety-nine.¡±

    They roughly took Kyle from your arms in quick, jerky movements. Almost robotic in a way.

    They both nodded at the receptionist and, with another puff of smoke, they disappeared.

    Well, you guess that¡¯s done.

    You were gonna miss Kyle. Sure he was unconscious seventy percent of the time you knew him, but he seemed like a nice enough guy. Really enthusiastic and brave, if a bit reckless.

    At least you could focus on yourself from now on. Namely, the whole being-homeless-jobless-and-an-amnesiac-twelve-year-old thing.

    ...seriously, twelve. Twelve years old. What complete and total bullshit.

    ¡°And here¡¯s your reward!¡±

    ¡°Huh?¡± You blinked and noticed that a small bag was placed in front of you. Judging from the size, shape, and the sound of it, the bag was probably filled with coins. ¡°Shouldn¡¯t you give that to Kyle?¡±

    ¡°Were you the one to carry the Adventurer all the way back to the Wester Gate?¡± she asked.

    ¡°Well yeah, but --¡±

    ¡°And were you the one to let the guards know of the baby Cerberus on the loose in the flower fields?¡±

    ¡°...yeah, but --¡±

    ¡°Then this reward belongs to you!¡± she said cheerfully, before pushing the small bag towards you. ¡°Make sure to spend it wisely! Thank you and have a good day!¡±

    A part of you was tempted to argue. A bigger, more dominant, more practical part of you said not to look a gift horse in the mouth and take the money. So you took the money.

    It was only when you left the Guild and were halfway to Mary¡¯s Inn that it occured to you that you didn¡¯t know how much money you had, what the coins looked like, or even how much each coin was worth.

    You looked inside the bag. A large silver coin, six steel coins, four coins that looked to be made out of nickel, five copper coins, a bronze coin, and a wooden coin. Carved onto the front of each of the coins was an elaborate picture of a sun. On the back, an eye.

    If you had to guess, the silver one was probably the most expensive. Followed by¡­ the steel one maybe? Or maybe the nickel ones are the second most expensive. The wooden one is definitely the least expensive though, since it''s just normal wood. Then a step above that would be copper? Or maybe bronze? Damn, you didn¡¯t know which one was rarer¡­

    You were so lost in thought over your money that you ended up running into someone.

    ¡°Oops! I¡¯m sorry, I --¡±

    You tensed up, your skin immediately turning blue and stony. Just in time, because you felt a large meaty arm slam into your neck, hard enough to push you back a few meters and almost knock you off your feet completely.

    ¡°What the fuck,¡± you snarled, clutching your throat. You made sure to keep yourself tensed up, just in case you got attacked again. ¡°The fuck was that for?!¡±

    ¡°What are you doing here, girl?¡± A tall, blond man with muscles the size of your head stared down at you with dismissive, scornful eyes. He was wearing a worn apron, tattered pants, and nothing else. ¡°Come to take advantage of us like all the other street rats? Hmm?¡±

    You realized that at some point you had reached Mary¡¯s Inn and were about to walk through the door -- at least until you got clotheslined by a blond, muscle headed asshole.

    Said asshole was eying your bag of money. ¡°Did you steal that, girl? Hmm? A rat like you wouldn¡¯t know an honest living if it ran up and punched you in the face.¡±

    He made as if to grab it and you tensed up even more, ready to claw his fucking eyes out --

    ¡°John! Stop it!¡±

    A young blonde woman practically tackled the asshole named John, forcing him to stumble away from you. You made sure to keep the asshole in your line of sight, your skin still blue. ¡°What are you doing?! She¡¯s just a child!¡±

    ¡°A street rat¡¯s more like it!¡± He roughly pushed the woman off of his arm. ¡°I won¡¯t stand for it any more, Mary! I¡¯m not letting you waste all our hard earned gold on a buncha rats who haven¡¯t worked a day in their lives! We¡¯re already five gold in debt because of you already, and I¡¯m not wasting the rest of my life away paying for more brats!¡±

    ¡°John --¡± the woman pleaded.

    The asshole known as John ignored her and turned to you. ¡°Now you go on and get, you hear me! We don¡¯t want your kind around --¡±

    ¡°John please! There¡¯s no need for this!¡± Mary cried, looking close to tears.

    ¡°Shut the hell up Mary!¡± he bellowed. He whipped towards you and pointed a finger in your face. ¡°You see what you¡¯ve done?! You¡¯ve upset my poor wife! Rats like you are nothing more than vermin! And we kill our vermin around these parts!¡±

    ¡°John!¡±

    ¡°Now I¡¯m gonna say this one more time! You get the hell outta here before I --¡±

    ¡°Go fuck yourself you fat bastard!¡± you said, giving him the finger. ¡°I don¡¯t need your charity! I was just looking for a place to stay but hell, if you don¡¯t want my hard earned money then it¡¯s all on you! I¡¯ll just go find another inn to stay at!¡±

    You gave him the finger again and and stalked off in a random direction. You could still hear the two of them arguing long after you rounded a street corner.

    What an asshole. Who closelines a kid like that? If you had been anyone else, you would have been seriously hurt! And who the hell talks to a homeless kid like that? They can¡¯t help being homeless! Getting a job isn¡¯t exactly easy these days, especially when you¡¯re a fucking child! And who the hell talks about killing children like that? What is he gonna kick puppies too? God, what a dick!

    You spent a while just stomping around in random directions, too pissed off to think straight. It took you awhile to cool down enough to get back to your original task: finding a place to stay.

    Despite what the female guard said about the church and orphanage, you decided to go there first just to see if they had a place for you. You still didn¡¯t know how much money you had or even what each of the coins was worth; for all you knew, you might only have enough to get you a small meal. And even if you did have enough money to get a place to stay... well, you wanted to conserve as much of it as possible. At least until you could get yourself some kind of job.

    After asking a few people for directions, you managed to find your way to your first destination of the day: the orphanage. And what you saw there was...well...

    The building itself looked decent, and the matron in charge looked like a nice enough woman. The problem was that there were just too many kids -- over fifty of them from the looks of it. The building looked like it could only fit maybe two families at the most, meaning that a lot of the kids were forced to pile inside the rooms like sardines. A few of them were even forced to sleep outside since there just wasn¡¯t any more room.

    The kids themselves looked as well taken care of as they could possibly be in their situation -- which was not very. Most of them looked thin and sickly, having clearly not eaten in a while. Some of them were unable to get out of their beds -- which were pretty much blankets on a cold stone floor -- while others just kind of stared into space, their eyes looking blank and lifeless. A few of them tried to play games and have some fun, but you could tell that something else was on their minds. Namely, hunger.

    The matron didn¡¯t look any better than the kids she was caring for. You got the sense that she would collapse at any second and was just barely managing to hold it together to talk with you. She tried to put on a cheerful appearance, but you knew that she was dreading the thought of taking another child in.

    The look of relief she gave you when you said that you planned on staying somewhere else was honestly heartbreaking.

    After that whole eye opening and uncomfortable ordeal, you decided to head on down to the church to see if they¡¯ll be willing to take you in. Churches were all about helping the needy and helpless, right? And you were pretty needy and helpless right now.

    You had to ask more than a few passersby for help, since apparently the church moved to a different building a few months ago. A pudgy, old man who looked like a blacksmith even told you some information about the church after noticing how interested you were. Apparently it was called the Church of Gaia, and represented the religion that worshiped the Goddess of Life. From what the blacksmith told you it was pretty overcrowded, though not as unmanageably overcrowded as the orphanage. Moreover, the church was willing to take in any outsiders and children -- for a price. Essentially you would have to convert to their religion if you wanted to stay there for more than a day -- something that you were a bit leery about. You weren¡¯t exactly the most religious person.

    Still, beggars can¡¯t be choosers and, after getting some better directions, you found yourself standing in front of the church.

    The building itself looked gorgeous. Luscious green lawns and perfectly trimmed bushes, a marble pathway surrounded by flowers of all colors, elegant trees that gently dropped flowers onto the path as you walked, and in the center a giant, beautifully decorated church. The building had all sorts of neat and artistic designs painted on the front, far from the clean white you were expecting. The stained glass seemed to twinkle in the afternoon light, while the large wooden doors had all sorts of images carefully carved with unique artistic flair. The interior was just as stunning, giving you the impression of walking into both a palace and an art exhibit. It was full of marble statues, beautiful paintings, elaborate carvings -- the place was honestly a work of art.

    ¡°Can I help you?¡±

    You stared.

    A young man in his twenties was walking towards you, wearing a bright yellow and green priest robe that hurt your eyes. He had long hair that started out green near the scalp and ended up fading into a bright yellow at the edges. Even his eyes matched his color scheme, his left being bright yellow while the right was bright green.

    Honestly, he looked like a walking lime. Or a can of 7-Up. You couldn¡¯t help but find his appearance a bit out of place compared to all of the classy and artful decorations that made up the church.

    ¡°Excuse me? Child, can I help you?¡±

    You were so busy staring at his weird getup that you almost didn¡¯t answer. ¡°Uh¡­yeah. I was kinda looking for a place to stay. I don¡¯t have anywhere else to go, and --¡±

    The man raised a hand. You noticed that his nails were painted green and yellow too. ¡°Ah, say no more. Please, come with me and I will help you find your place.¡±

    He turned and walked away, not even bothering to wait for your response. With lack of anything better to do, you followed him.

    The man led you to a small room at the end of a long hallway. Inside you saw a small wooden desk, one that seemed to have a lot of elaborate carvings on it. Placed in the center was another one of those orbs, only this one was a rainbow of colors instead of just plain red.

    ¡°Please, place your hand on the orb.¡±

    You glanced at the priest. He gave you a smile that was probably supposed to be calming but just looked creepy. ¡°Alright.¡±

    You better not get your soul sucked out or you swear to God --

    When you placed your hand on the orb¡­ nothing happened.

    ¡°Hmm?¡± The priest furrowed his brows and tapped the orb. It flashed a seizure inducing amount of colors that made your eyes burn. ¡°That¡¯s odd. Try it again.¡±

    You did it again. Nothing.

    He frowned. ¡°That¡¯s not --  hmm.¡± He tapped it again just to make sure it was working. You made sure to look away this time. ¡°Perhaps we should use a different Computing Orb.¡±

    He reached into a desk drawer and took out another orb. It looked exactly the same, only slightly larger. ¡°Please try this one.¡±

    ¡°Alright.¡± You placed your hand on the orb and --

    *FWOOSH*

    Without warning, a squid appeared in the middle of the priest¡¯s office.

    It was gigantic, easily taking up most of the room with most of its mass settling on the priest¡¯s desk. Its ten eyes were filled with a mild curiosity, while its bright red skin reminded you of freshly picked tomatoes.

    It was also on fire.

    ¡°What the fuck?¡± said the priest.

    ¡°Blrb,¡± said the gigantic, ten-eyed, bright red, fiery squid.

 Skin Hardening (3)

    You and the squid were kicked out of the church.

    The priest said it was because they couldn¡¯t help you with your ¡°curse¡± --

    ¡°Quick, use a Geyser Spell!¡±

    ¡°Why is it spreading so fast?!¡±

    ¡°Stay away from the smoke, you¡¯ll get Smoke Damage!¡±

    ¡°Nooo! Not the paintings!¡±

    -- but it was probably because the squid set everything on fire.

    ¡°Leave.¡± The priest roughly pushed you and the squid out the door. ¡°Now. Before we decide to charge you for the damages.¡±

    You tried to apologize. ¡°I¡¯m so sorry --¡±

    But the priest wasn¡¯t in the mood. ¡°Get the hell out.¡±

    He slammed the door in your face.

    Behind the door you could still hear screaming and shouting, followed by what sounded like a firehose. The smell of smoke was thick in the air.

    ¡°Blrb?¡±

    The squid was still floating next to you, and still on fire. You had kinda hoped that it would¡¯ve disappeared at some point so that you wouldn¡¯t have to deal with it. Unfortunately, you weren¡¯t that lucky.

    You sighed. ¡°What are you, anyway? Do you have a name?¡±

    ¡°Blrb.¡± It wiggled its tentacles at you and rolled its eyes.

    ¡°Is that a yes or a no?¡± You could feel the heat coming off of it, though you noticed that it wasn¡¯t nearly as hot as before. When you relaxed your blue skin you realized that it felt less like you were standing next to a roaring fire, and more like you were a few feet away from a warm heater. You also noticed that its flame aura was a lot smaller and duller than before.

    ¡°You can lower your flames?¡±

    ¡°Blrb.¡± It nodded.

    ¡°...and you couldn¡¯t do that earlier?¡±

    It cocked its head to the side. ¡°Blrb?¡±

    You sighed. ¡°Right. Whatever.¡± You gave the giant, fire covered, ten-eyed squid a wave and started walking away. ¡°Welp, see ya. I gotta find a place to live. You just go on doing¡­ whatever it is squids like yourself do.¡±

    ¡°Blrb?¡± It started floating after you.

    ¡°No, no, no!¡± You pointed a finger at it. ¡°No way! I am not dealing with you. I already have enough problems today, alright? I¡¯m not dealing with a pyro squid on top of everything.¡±

    You turned your skin blue and gently started to push it away from you. Despite the fact that it was easily two and a half meters tall and more than capable of pushing back, it just let you do it with no resistance. ¡°Go. Get out of here. Find an ocean or a volcano to live in. Leave me out of it.¡±

    ¡°Blrb?¡± All ten of its eyes widened and turned watery. It took you a second to realize that it was trying to give you the puppy dog face.

    ...cute...

    You shook your head. No, you couldn¡¯t give in. There was no way you could take care of a living, breathing fire hazard like this one. You had to send it off.

    ¡°No. Bad fire squid.¡± You pointed in a random direction. ¡°Leave. Now.¡±

    ¡°...blrb?¡± Its eyes watered even more, looking as though tears would fall any second. Which was crazy, because you were pretty sure squids couldn¡¯t cry.

    Dammit, you could feel your resolve weakening. ¡°No. Go away!¡±

    ¡°B-blrb?¡± It wrapped its tentacles around you. You tensed up a bit when it did, but realized that its hold was gentle and loose. Like it was trying to keep you with it, but unwilling to actually hold you against your will. ¡°Blrb¡­¡±

    You looked away. ¡°N-no! I can¡¯t take care of you! I-I don¡¯t even know what squids eat in the first place, and it¡¯s not like I have the money to...to¡­¡±

    It sagged forward and you had to brace yourself to keep yourself from falling over. Its head started nuzzling into your shoulder like an affectionate cat. ¡°...blrb¡­¡±

    Shit.

    You sighed, loud and long. ¡°FINE. You can come with me, alright? Just don¡¯t set anything on fire! I don¡¯t have the money to pay for any fire damage.¡±

    Its sad demeanor immediately disappeared. It moved away from you and raised its tentacles in victory, its flames rising higher and hotter. ¡°Blrb!¡±

    You were forced to take a few steps back as the heat got more intense. That damn three headed dog had nothing on this guy. ¡°Alright, alright! Settle down! And turn your fames down, you¡¯re gonna set something on fire again.¡±

    ¡°Blrb.¡± The squid obediently turned its flames down to a more reasonable temperature.

    ¡°Cool. Now let¡¯s get the hell outta here before someone calls the guards.¡± You could already see some random people looking at the burning church. It would only be a matter of time before an even bigger crowd formed and once that happened, you''d have to deal with a bunch of questioning guards and angry citizens.

    You grabbed the squid by one of its tentacles and sprinted towards a nearby back alley. You didn¡¯t want anyone to see you two while you were running away, or else it¡¯ll only be a matter of time before someone connected the dots. And it wasn¡¯t like you could hide a giant, red, ten-eyed, squid that was also on fire.

    You tried not to make too many turns as you made your way through the alleyways, your blue skin on just in case you got jumped. There were a couple of shady looking guys who made as if to approach you, but they suddenly lost interest when they caught sight of your new squid friend.

    Said friend was... mostly quiet and obedient as you pulled them. Save for the occasional ¡°blrb¡± or gagging noise as you passed by piles of trash.

    Every now and then you saw their eyes screwed up in disgust, tentacles covering the place where its nose would be, eyeing the dirty walls and stained grounds with distaste. The squid always seemed to fly higher, tuck its tentacles closer when it saw a big enough mess, as though the very air around it was tainted.

    Then there¡¯d be times where their flame aura would go a bit out of control and they¡¯d almost light something on fire. And sometimes they¡¯d float a bit too high and you¡¯d find your feet a good meter off the ground. At one point they actually tried to eat a cat, and you had to spend a good five minutes yanking the poor kitty out of the squid¡¯s beak mouth.

    So yeah. Quiet and obedient when it suited them. Any other time and they were a pain to deal with.

    You found yourself questioning more than once whether agreeing to take care of the squid was a smart decision.

    But then the squid squid would wrap its tentacles around you in a makeshift hug, or nuzzle you with its giant head, or even give you the puppy dog eyes, and you¡¯d end up caving.

    Every. Single. Time.

    Why do you have to be so weak to cute things?

    By the time you decided to leave the filthy alleyways and head on back to the main street, the sun had started to set. People were already heading back to their homes and closing on their shops while the guards started patrolling the emptying streets. Even with your blue skin on, you could feel how cold it was starting to get.

    Fortunately, the inns were still open.

    Unfortunately, none of them would let you stay.

    ¡°But --¡±

    ¡°Lose the fire elemental over there and I¡¯ll let ya stay,¡± the innkeeper said, pointing to your squid. ¡°I ain¡¯t about to let my inn get burned down.¡±

    ¡°He¡¯s not a fire elemental!¡± You think. ¡°He¡¯s a squid! And he¡¯s not gonna burn anything!¡±

    He arched an eyebrow. ¡°Really? Then what¡¯s this I hear ¡®bout the church burning down? A friend of mine said they saw someone and something just like you and your fire elemental running away from the smoke.¡±

    ¡°Th-that has nothing to do with us!¡± you spluttered.

    ¡°Uh-huh.¡± He rolled his eyes. ¡°Get off my property before I call the guards.¡±

    The door was slammed in your face.

    You stared at the door for a good few seconds before slumping over on the ground. ¡°Dammit, that was the fifth one¡­¡±

    ¡°Blrb?¡± Your squid friend -- and you really needed to give him a name at some point -- cocked its head to the side, looking concerned. One of its tentacles poked you on the cheek.

    You sighed. ¡°Nevermind. We¡¯ll just have to find some other place. Someone will have to take us in at some point.¡±

    Even though you sounded confident, you were actually starting to lose hope. No inn or motel-like place was willing to take in an obvious fire hazard like your squid friend. You totally understood why, but that didn¡¯t mean you weren¡¯t pissed off about it. Support creative writers by reading their stories on Royal Road, not stolen versions.

    Worse, it was already night time. You were starting to feel tired from all the walking around and that wasn¡¯t even mentioning the gnawing pit in your stomach. It was getting to the point where you were seriously contemplating just sleeping in some filthy alley corner and eating from the trash that was lying around.

    ¡°Hey! Little miss!¡±

    You blinked and looked up. There was an old man, probably in his late seventies, calling out to you. He was wearing a straw hat, a raggedy old shirt that looked like it was made from a potato sack, and some dirt covered pants. He was also riding a horse, one that was attached to a small cart.

    ¡°I heard you were looking for a place to stay?¡±

    ¡°Wha -- yeah! Yeah we are!¡± you said excitedly. ¡°How much would it cost?¡±

    ¡°Aw, it won¡¯t cost you a thing,¡± he said, waving his hand. ¡°I just happen to be in need of some scary lookin¡¯ folk who can keep those damn teenagers outta my stables.¡±

    He scowled. ¡°Been spookin¡¯ the horses up for sport and it¡¯s been a damn hassle calming them down in the morning. I figure with someone as intimidating as your elemental there, they¡¯ll cut it out. You up for it?¡±

    ¡°Sure!¡± You gave him a beaming smile and hopped into the cart. Your squid friend floated beside you, a single tentacle still wrapped around your shoulders. ¡°Thanks man, you¡¯re a lifesaver.¡±

    Sure this could be a trick or a trap or an attempted kidnapping but honestly, you were willing to take that chance if it meant a place to sleep. And if worse comes to worst, you can just get your squid friend to set everything on fire!

    ¡°No problem little miss.¡± The old man flicked the reins and the horse set off with a smooth and steady pace. ¡°The name¡¯s John. What¡¯s yours?¡±

    ¡°Uh.¡± You looked away. How were you supposed to put this in a way that didn¡¯t sound like something from a bad soap opera? ¡°Well, it might sound a bit unbelievable, but I¡­ don¡¯t know exactly? I kinda woke up in a field of flowers this morning not knowing much of anything. I know it sounds crazy, but --¡±

    John hummed. ¡°Sounds like a case of amnesia. You get hit with a spell or something? I had a friend who once made a pass at a female mage and he still sometimes forgets his name.¡± He shook his head. ¡°Poor fella. I¡¯d almost feel sorry for him if it weren¡¯t for all the sexual harassment.¡±

    You were a bit surprised that John was willing to believe you so easily. Though then again, in a world full of magic and three headed demon dogs, you guess amnesia isn¡¯t that impossible.

    You shrugged. ¡°Maybe? Not like I remember. I could¡¯ve just hit my head or something.¡±

    ¡°If you hit your head, the damage woulda been worse,¡± he pointed out. ¡°I know a friend of mine who got hit in the head with a hammer and turned into a baby, mind wise I mean. We basically had to reteach him everything, including how to talk and walk.¡±

    ¡°Well shit.¡±

    ¡°Mmm-hmm. He¡¯s doing better now, but he¡¯s only ¡®bout eighteen years old mind wise. Still hafta keep him from flirting with the younger girls,¡± he said. ¡°Anyway, it doesn¡¯t sound like you forgot how to do all the important things. I¡¯m guessing it was only your personal memories that was affected?¡±

    You thought about it for a second. ¡°Yeah, pretty much. I mean, I remember some things every now and then, but it''s mostly background information. Things everyone knows. Like how to read and write, how to count, how to tame a dragon, and how to repair a spaceship.¡±

    John arched an eyebrow at you. ¡°Well those last two things seem like something only you would know, but I get the idea. Only your personal memories were removed, leaving everything else intact.¡±

    ¡°Yeah.¡±

    ¡°No brain damage?¡±

    ¡°I mean, I haven¡¯t felt any different,¡± you said, rubbing your head. ¡°I don¡¯t have any headaches either.¡±

    ¡°Then it¡¯s probably a spell. Or a curse.¡± He shrugged. ¡°Memory loss usually ain¡¯t so clean. You end up losing a lot more than just your personal memories when you get hit in the head.¡±

    A spell, huh. Then maybe if a spell made you this way, a different spell could cure you?

    Maybe if you learned some magic¡­ but then again, you had no idea if you had the talent for it. Maybe you could pay someone to remove it for you? But how much would that cost?

    Who would curse you in the first place? It had to have been someone who hated you, but you couldn¡¯t imagine why. You didn¡¯t seem all that special or notable, blue stone skin aside.

    Maybe the curse was meant for someone else? Maybe you were in the wrong place at the wrong time? Or maybe you just touched a cursed item or something. Who knew. You sure as hell didn¡¯t.

    ¡°I mean, it would explain a lot,¡± you mused. ¡°The priest at the church did say I was cursed.¡±

    You thought back to the priest and the words he said to you before tossing you out. Boy, was he mad. ¡°He also kept mentioning something about a ¡®system¡¯ and a ¡®screen¡¯ how I didn¡¯t have one or whatever, but I have no idea what he was talking about. Something about computers probably.¡±

    John looked surprised. ¡°Eh? You don¡¯t have a connection to the System?¡±

    ¡°What¡¯s a system?¡±

    He actually stopped the horse and turned around to look at you. ¡°The System! It gives you your Status Screen. You know, with all your Skills and Stats and such?¡±

    You were very confused. ¡°What are you talking about? You mean like a video game or something?¡±

    Now John was looking concerned. Concerned and a bit horrified. And was that... pity on his face? ¡°Say Status. Out loud.¡±

    ¡°Okay?¡± You gave him a weird look. ¡°Status.¡±

    Nothing happened.

    ¡°Did your Screen pop up?¡±

    You arched an eyebrow. ¡°Uh, no. Nothing popped up. Why, was something supposed to?¡±

    He just stared at you, the horror and pity on his face looking more pronounced. ¡°Is it alright if I Appraise you real quick?¡±

    ¡°...sure?¡±

    He focused his eyes on you. ¡°[Appraisal].¡±

    John¡¯s hair turned bright pink.

    You blinked. ¡°What the fu--¡±

    ¡°Did something happen? Did you feel my [Appraisal]?¡± he said excitedly.

    ¡°Uh¡­¡± You pointed at his hair.

    ¡°What? What¡¯s wrong with my --¡± A few strands of hair fell in front of his face. He blanched. ¡°Oh dear Lord.¡±

    ¡°I mean, it looks great on you? Sorta?¡± You winced. ¡°I¡¯m so sorry. I mean, I¡¯m pretty sure this is my fault somehow --¡±

    John sighed. ¡°No, no, it was mine. I shouldn¡¯t have let my damn curiosity get the best of me. You¡¯d think I¡¯d grow outta this sorta thing by now.¡± He ran a hand through his hair. ¡°Well, could be worse. It could be green. And the wife¡¯ll get a kick outta it, I¡¯m sure --¡±

    Just then, John¡¯s hair turned back to its normal dirty blond color.

    ¡°..huh.¡± He looked thoughtfully at his hair. ¡°Now that¡¯s interesting.¡±

    You had no clue what was going on. The confusion must have shown on your face, because John quickly started to explain.

    ¡°Well you see, I tried to use my Appraisal Skill to take a quick peek at your Status,¡± he said. ¡°Usually when I use my Skill it either works or it doesn¡¯t, and I get a Notice saying I need to be a higher level or the Skill¡¯s been blocked or I¡¯m not allowed access or something like that. Point is, I always get something whenever I use my Skill.¡±

    He looked at you. ¡°But with you, I didn¡¯t get nothing.¡± He paused. ¡°Well, aside from my hair turning pink of course.¡±

    You had a feeling you weren¡¯t gonna like where this was going. ¡°So, what does that mean?¡±

    John hesitated. ¡°It might mean you got some weird sorta curse. One that¡¯s blocking your connection to the System. You¡¯re gonna hafta find someone who can unblock it for you. And depending on who blocked it and why, well¡­ it might be a while.¡±

    He patted you on the hand and gave you a look full of pity. ¡°It¡­ might be hard for you, but you¡¯re gonna hafta struggle through it. Don¡¯t worry little miss, things¡¯ll¡­ they¡¯ll be alright.¡±

    ¡°...okay?¡± You leaned away from him a bit. ¡°I mean, is it that big of a deal? Not having system access or whatever?¡±

    John didn¡¯t say anything, but his face said it all. He looked at you as though you were some innocent kid who didn¡¯t know anything about how the world worked. Like you were some poor, naive kid in a wheelchair and he was the doctor explaining why you couldn¡¯t walk anymore.

    It irritated you, but you squashed the feeling down. No point in offending the guy giving you a place to stay. ¡°Well?¡±

    ¡°...let¡¯s just get you back to the stables. A little miss like you shouldn¡¯t be walking around in the middle of the night like this.¡±

    The conversation trailed off after that.

    John took the two of you to a set of two buildings: one that looked like a normal house and a bigger one that -- judging by the noises -- was the stables.

    The smell was¡­ strong, to say the least, but you were willing to put up with it if it meant having a warm place to sleep.

    Your squid friend, on the other hand, was not cool with it. At all.

    ¡°Blrb! Blrb!¡±

    ¡°No,¡± you said, tugging him back towards the ground. ¡°We are not finding a different place to sleep, okay? This is all we got, so suck it up.¡±

    The squid let out an odd bubbly whining sound and tried to give you the puppy dog eyes again. The exhaustion and hunger made you immune to its usual tricks though, and you started dragging it into the stables. ¡°Come on! We need to sleep!¡±

    ¡°Blrb!¡± Much to your alarm, the squid¡¯s flames started growing bigger and hotter.

    ¡°You little shit!¡± you hissed.

    ¡°Ah, he can try and set the stables on fire as much as he wants. It won¡¯t work.¡± John tapped the wall. ¡°Damn place is near immune to fire. My son¡¯s tried to light the place up more than once when he was younger, so me and the wife took some precautions.¡± He chuckled. ¡°Cost me a pretty penny, but it was well worth it.¡±

    The squid sagged and reduced its flames to flickering embers. ¡°Blrb¡­¡±

    You started apologizing to John. ¡°I¡¯m really sorry about the squid. It has a pretty sensitive sense of smell and it doesn¡¯t like messes.¡±

    He shrugged. ¡°No harm done. Though I hope you can keep him in line while you¡¯re here.¡±

    ¡°Oh don¡¯t worry.¡± You gave the squid your deadliest glare. It shrank into itself. ¡°I¡¯ll make sure of it.

    John directed you to a particular stable room near the entrance. Inside you found a giant pile of hay, two blankets, and a barrel full of apples. ¡°Make yourself at home. Try not to spook the horses too much, they startle easy¡±

    You nodded. ¡°Anything else we should keep in mind?¡±

    ¡°Eh, try not to make too much noise. My wife needs all the sleep she can get.¡±

    ¡°And what about the teenagers?¡±

    ¡°Eh?¡±

    ¡°You know, the teenagers you wanted us to scare away?¡± you reminded him.

    There was that pitying look again. It was starting to piss you off. ¡°Nevermind that. Just get yourself some sleep.¡±

    You tried not to sound irritated. ¡°Cool. Goodnight.¡±

    ¡°Night.¡±

    He tipped his hat towards you and shut the stable door, leaving you alone with your misbehaving squid.

    Sensing that you were a bit ticked off, your squid tried to explain. ¡°Blrb --¡±

    ¡°Nope. Don¡¯t wanna hear it.¡± You reached into the barrel and started munching on some apples. You pointed at the squid midbite. ¡°You are the entire reason why we¡¯re sleeping in a fucking stable, okay? No one wants a living, breathing fire hazard running around in their building and honestly? With your behavior today, I don¡¯t fucking blame them!¡±

    You poked the squid in the middle of its face. All ten of its eyes went cross eyed trying to track your finger. ¡°You need to get. Your. Shit. Together. You understand me? Just because things don¡¯t go your way does not mean you can set shit on fire, alright? Nothing¡¯s been going right for me today and do you see me setting shit on fire? Huh?¡±

    The squid looked down. ¡°Blrb¡­¡±

    You scoffed and plopped down on the hay pile. You then started wrapping yourself in the blankets until you were a cozy burrito of warmth. ¡°Yeah, that¡¯s right. Follow my example a little bit, and don¡¯t act like a child throwing a fucking tantrum. Alright?¡±

    The squid laid down next to you. In the darkness of the stables the squid¡¯s bright red fiery skin was like a campfire, bathing the room in a flickering light. You felt warm and cozy just by laying next to it, making you relax slightly.

    It looked at you with its big black eyes, filled with guilt and sadness. It didn¡¯t say anything, but you knew it was asking you to forgive it.

    You sighed and shuffled towards it, opening up your blankets. ¡°Come here.¡±

    Its eyes light up and it immediately snuggled into your chest, wrapping its tentacles around your limbs. Its grip was a bit tighter than normal, but not uncomfortable, and you found yourself closing your eyes.

    ¡°Goodnight squid guy.¡±

    ¡°Blrb, blrb.¡±

    You were gonna have to give it a name.

 Magnetism Immunity (1)

    A young girl sits with her father.

    In his hand there is a small silver coin. She watches as he flips the coin between his fingers, the coin dancing in and around his hand until it stops, balanced perfectly on top of his pinkie by its edge.

    ¡°Wow! How do you do that?¡±

    A chuckle. The father gives the young girl his coin. ¡°Practice. Lots and lots of practice. Do you want me to show you?¡±

    ¡°Hmm¡­¡± The girl looks uncertain. ¡°Is it a lot of work?¡±

    ¡°Of course. If you want to get good at it.¡± Another coin appears and starts jumping from finger to finger. ¡°You need to put in the work.¡±

    The young girl pouts. ¡°But it¡¯ll take forever!¡±

    The father shrugs. ¡°Than you better get started.¡±

    She pouts again before giving the coin a determined stare. She tries to flick the coin just like her father, but only ends up dropping it. ¡°Aw¡­¡±

    Another chuckle. ¡°Here, let me show you.¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s gonna take forever,¡± she repeats. She still watches closely as her father slowly shows her the trick.

    ¡°Don¡¯t worry. Once you get the hang of it, it¡¯ll be like riding a bike.¡±

    ¡°Hmm¡­¡±

    ¡°And if you get it right, I¡¯ll take you to that burger place you like.¡±

    She gasped. ¡°Really?!¡±

    He smiled back. ¡°Really.¡±

    She hugs him, burying her face into his fluffy beard. ¡°Thanks, Dad!¡±

    He laughs and hugs her close. ¡°You¡¯re welcome [__].¡±

    <hr>

    Something was poking your shoulder. ¡°Little miss? It¡¯s time to get up.¡±

    You opened your eyes.

    You were still sleeping in the stables. Sleeping beside you is your squid friend, whose name you are still not sure on, but are currently floating between Tentacled Joe and Bob. Standing over you, wearing a familiar concerned look, is John.

    ¡°Ugh.¡± You sit up, brushing the hay out of your hair and stretching the kinks out of your back. ¡°Thanks.¡±

    ¡°No problem, little miss. Say, how¡¯s the job hunt going for you?¡±

    You shrugged. ¡°It¡¯s going.¡±

    ¡°Ah.¡± He shifted on his feet, looking a bit uncomfortable. ¡°Well if you still need a place to stay, feel free to sleep here. Don¡¯t mind the misses none, she¡¯ll get used to you eventually.¡±

    You weren¡¯t convinced. ¡°Right.¡±

    You watched as John walked out, taking a few of the horses with him. You had asked him if you could work for him more than once. You knew you didn¡¯t know anything about horses, but you told him that you were ready and willing to learn. You even offered to shovel all the horse shit for him if he wanted you to. God knows there was a lot of it.

    But he turned you down each time. Came up with all sorts of excuses, saying that you were too young to work, that he already had a few people working for him, that he couldn¡¯t afford to hire someone else right now -- all reasonable, logical excuses. You probably would have accepted his reasoning if not for him refusing to look you in the eye when you tried to talk to him. Or the way he stuttered over his words when he gave you his excuses. Or those brief looks of pity he gave you when he thought you weren¡¯t looking.

    Then one day you overheard a conversation he had with his wife, and all your suspicions were proven right.

    ¡°We can¡¯t let her stay in our stables! That girl is cursed!¡±

    ¡°Mary --¡±

    ¡°No! What if she spreads it to us, John? You think we¡¯ll last long without our connection to the System? Without our Status and Skills? Huh? You need to get that girl outta here before --¡±

    ¡°Mary, I¡¯m telling you, curses don¡¯t work that way!¡±

    She scoffed. ¡°Who cares! We can¡¯t be having some girl without a System connection in our stables! She¡¯ll draw nothing but trouble!¡±

    ¡°Mary, she ain¡¯t got nowhere to go. I can¡¯t just leave her out on the streets. Not when she¡¯s¡­ like this.¡±

    A sigh. ¡°I know. Damn you, but I know. It¡¯s just¡­¡±

    ¡°Mary, it¡¯s just until she can get herself a job or another place to live. She¡¯s young, it shouldn¡¯t take that long.¡±

    A snort. ¡°A girl without a System connection gettin¡¯ a job? Who would take her? She doesn¡¯t have any Skills or Stats or anything -- and she can¡¯t learn any! She¡¯s good as useless!¡±

    ¡°Mary¡­¡±

    ¡°No. Don¡¯t give me that look. You know it¡¯s true.¡± A sigh. ¡°You¡¯ve been watching her, right? As she runs around town with that elemental of hers, trying to get a job. You damn well know none of them want her. They all know she¡¯s cursed, that she¡¯s useless.¡±

    Silence.

    ¡°We can¡¯t keep her here. We can¡¯t afford another mouth to feed. We just got rid of the kids, we don¡¯t need another one.¡±

    ¡°...then what do you suggest I do?¡±

    ¡°...I don¡¯t know. But we can¡¯t keep her.¡±

    ¡°Mary --¡±

    ¡°A week, John. That¡¯s all I¡¯m giving that girl. After that, she¡¯s gone.¡±

    You stopped listening by that point. You heard all you needed to hear.

    It had been several days since you woke up in that flower field and more than anything else, you were focused on trying to get a job. You knew you couldn¡¯t depend on John¡¯s altruism forever and you basically had nowhere else to go. Money was a priority and you only had so much.

    After John denied you, he turned you over to a small restaurant where a friend of his worked. It seemed like a good place and the owner looked like a nice lady, if a bit stern. The two of you hit it off after a quick five minute interview, with her warming up to you and your situation rather quickly. She didn¡¯t even seem to mind that you were a literal child, more focused on whether or not you were capable of cooking and waitressing.

    It wasn¡¯t until the subject of your skills came up and you told her about your lack of a System that she suddenly wanted nothing to do with you.

    ¡°I¡¯m sorry, we just can¡¯t have you working here,¡± she said, shooing you out of the restaurant.

    You were caught off guard. ¡°Wait, what? What¡¯s wrong? Did I say something bad or --¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s nothing you said. You just won¡¯t be a good fit.¡±

    ¡°Is it about my squid? Because I¡¯ll tell him to wait outside of the restaurant if you¡¯re worried --¡± you said frantically.

    ¡°Blrb!¡± he protested.

    ¡°No, it has nothing to do with your elemental. We just don¡¯t want you here. We can¡¯t accommodate something with your¡­ disadvantages,¡± she said delicately.

    You frowned. ¡°The hell is that supposed to mean --¡±

    But she had already thrown you out the door. ¡°I¡¯m sorry. Find somewhere else, because we can¡¯t afford to take someone like you.¡±

    The last thing you saw before the door was closed in your face was the pitying looks of the rest of the staff.

    What the hell, you had thought.

    So you went to a different place. A small general store that sold all sorts of items, potions and weapons especially. The owner there was a gruff, but sweet man who seemed to be sympathetic to your plight. You told him about your circumstances and he offered you a job -- but then he took out that red orb thing and started talking about your skills. You tried to divert his attention, but he seemed to get more and more suspicious the more you tried. You eventually had to come clean, at which point he told you that he couldn¡¯t hire you.

    This sorta thing happened again and again and again. Everytime you tried to get a job, every time the subject of systems and statuses came up, they would tell you:

    ¡°Sorry, but we can¡¯t support someone like you.¡±

    ¡°Sorry, but you¡¯re not someone we can hire.¡±

    ¡°Sorry, but you¡¯re not what we¡¯re looking for.¡±

    ¡°Sorry, but we don¡¯t want to attract trouble.¡±

    ¡°Sorry, but you¡¯re not qualified for something like this.¡±

    ¡°Sorry, but you¡¯re cursed.¡±

    To be honest, even before you eavesdropped between John and his wife, you knew what was going on. It just confirmed things for you, made you realize that you just couldn¡¯t keep ignoring the problem: the fact that you didn¡¯t have a system like everyone else.

    It didn¡¯t seem like a big deal at first, though you could understand why John was giving you those looks when you said you didn¡¯t have one. Apparently with a system connection came all sorts of perks: a complete list of all skills and abilities, an easy and effective way to get stronger just by leveling up and completing objectives, the ability to gain new skills and learn things just by putting the correct amount of points into a certain category or simply buying new ones -- it all sounded pretty cool.

    Much like every video game character ever, the people of this world had the potential to get really powerful, really quickly so long as they knew what they were doing and were willing to undergo the risk. The only thing really holding everyone on this world back from being stupidly powerful was the fact that they couldn¡¯t respawn. Theoretically, every person on this world could just get stronger and stronger with no upper limits, continuously training their skills and abilities to new heights and gaining more power with each level up.

    Normal people like you, on the other hand, had to constantly train and practice to maintain skills and abilities. Any power you wanted to gain had to be cultivated over time through serious effort and hard work, whereas any new skills you want to learn would need to be taught to you first. Otherwise you¡¯d just bumble around, not knowing what the hell you were doing, most likely just making things worse.

    You also didn¡¯t have an exact measurement and list of your abilities handy, meaning that you kinda had to guess where you were in comparison to everyone else and were forced to remember your abilities on your own.

    And level ups weren¡¯t a thing with you, so killing things or completing quests or whatever won¡¯t make you stronger in of itself. You might learn a bit more than you did before, but that¡¯s pretty much it. No instant power ups for you. You had to do everything the hard way.

    ...okay, now that you really thought about it, it was no wonder everyone turned you down. From the perspectives of the people here, you¡¯re basically diabled.

    Disabled and living in a semi-medieval fantasy world.

    With no family, friends, and just a small bag of money to your name.

    Shit.

    The only consolation to your shitty situation was that you had a place to live -- even though it was no longer permanent -- and you had Tentacled Joe/Bob there with you to keep all the muggers and freaks away.

    You used to think your stone skin was included on that list-of-actual-good-things-you¡¯ve-got-going-on-in-your-life, but apparently not. Because your ability just randomly disappeared one day while you were out job hunting. A case of content theft: this narrative is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation.

    Happened while you were in the middle of a fight, frustratingly enough. You were walking through the streets, looking for another job to apply, when you bumped into some guy.

    Said guy was drunk as all hell despite it being in the middle of the afternoon, and seemed to think you did it on purpose. He whipped back a hand to slap you and you tried to tense up and activate your skin. Only your skin didn¡¯t activate and you ended up getting slapped so hard that you were sent sprawling on the ground.

    Tentacled Joe/Bob had not been happy.

    The only good part about the whole fiasco was the huge bag of money the drunk guy had tossed to you as he ran away with his hair on fire. The guards hadn¡¯t even tried to arrest you or anything, instead merely telling you to stay away from drunk older men and keep an eye on where you were going.

    Your face still stung for a good day afterward though. You were lucky you didn¡¯t get a bruise.

    Anyway, your ability disappeared. You had no idea why or how, but it was gone. Which meant that you had next to nothing to protect yourself with if someone just decided to randomly kidnap you off the streets. Well, aside from Tentacled Joe/Bob, of course, but he had a tendency to wander if you didn¡¯t keep an eye on him.

    So to sum it up: you were disabled in the eyes of everyone in this world, you couldn¡¯t get a job to save your life because of it, John¡¯s wife was planning on kicking you out of the stables in a week, your ability disappeared, and you still didn¡¯t know which name to choose between Tentacled Joe and Bob.

    Also there was the whole amnesia thing but quite frankly, that was very low on your list of problems right now. If your recent memory-like dreams were any indication, then the situation would solve itself eventually. Maybe.

    The only saving grace in this entire mess was your two bags of money. Asking John about the local currency gave you a good amount of insight as to how much you had. Turns out, it was a considerable amount. Enough to buy a place to stay at a cheap inn for the next seventeen days. Eleven if you wanted meals to go along with it.

    So you had eighteen to twenty-four days to figure out how to get some more money. It gave you some breathing room, but not much.

    You sighed and poked Tentacled Joe/Bob in his side. ¡°You got any ideas, man?¡±

    The squid let out a sleepy, ¡°Blrb¡± before rolling around and falling back to sleep.

    ¡°Yeah, I figured.¡±

    You gave him a sharp poke in its side and he jerked up, tentacles flailing. You saw his flame aura rise slightly, the heat becoming a bit too unbearable, before going back to a more manageable temperature.

    ¡°Blrb¡­¡± Tentacled Joe/Bob said, rubbing all ten of his eyes. ¡°Blrb, blrb.¡±

    ¡°Come on man, we gotta get up.¡± You stretched one more time before snatching a couple of apples out of the barrel and getting to your feet. ¡°Time to look for another job.¡±

    ¡°Blrb, blrb,¡± he whined, plopping back onto the pile of hay, his flame aura flickering. You threw an apple at him in response. ¡°Blrb!¡±

    ¡°Yeah, yeah, get up. You know we only have a week before John and his wife kick us out.¡± You started putting on the dress John had given you, an old faded white one that went down to your ankles. Your usual outfit of a T-shirt and jeans had started to get a bit gross after a while.

    The second you got the chance, you¡¯d see about giving them a wash. John did say there was a public well nearby. ¡°The restaurant down near the bar is hiring a dishwasher. The pay¡¯s shit, but we get to live in the basement for free. If I get that job, it should be able to tide us over for a good while.¡±

    ¡°Blrb, blrb!¡±

    ¡°Yeah, I know. But we don¡¯t exactly have that many options,¡± you said, pulling on the flats John had given you. Apparently they belonged to his daughter when she was younger. ¡°Not unless you¡¯re willing to be sold to some mage as their familiar. Or to that potion place for ingredients.¡±

    The squid shot you an offended look, his flames rising and lowering. ¡°Blrb!¡±

    ¡°Of course I¡¯d never do it! It¡¯s just a joke, calm down!¡±

    ¡°Blrb, blrb!¡± He folded his tentacles. ¡°Blrb, blrb, blrb?¡±

    ¡°Hey!¡± You pointed a finger at him. ¡°Don¡¯t even talk about that place, alright? All those crusty old men, looking at me with their creepy, fucked up pedophile eyes. Ugh.¡± You shivered in disgust just thinking about it. ¡°And besides, they didn¡¯t want me either. Assholes,¡± you muttered.

    Tentacled Joe/Bob gave you a sympathetic pat on the shoulder. It didn¡¯t make you feel any better.

    You and Tentacled Joe/Bob ate a few more apples before hitting the town. It was early in the morning, so there wasn¡¯t as big of a crowd. You mostly saw day laborers, guards, and homeless people, maybe the occasional kid playing in the streets. A few of them gave you and your squid odd looks, but for the most part they just ignored you.

    When arrived at the restaurant, you were blocked at the door by a red headed girl who looked fourteen.

    ¡°You that girl lookin¡¯ for a job? The one with the fire elemental?¡±

    You perked up. ¡°Yeah! I was wondering if --¡±

    ¡°I heard that you don¡¯t have a System connection.¡± She looked you up and down. ¡°You cursed?¡±

    ¡°Uh¡­¡±

    ¡°¡®Cause if you are, then you might as well beat it. We need people with Skills workin¡¯ around here.¡±

    ¡°But --!¡±

    ¡°Bye.¡± Once again you had a door get shut in your face.

    You sighed. Tentacled Joe/Bob gave you a one tentacled hug and patted you on the head.

    ¡°Well that was a bust.¡± You looked through the list you brought with you and crossed out the name of the restaurant. ¡°What else is left, anyway?¡±

    It was a list you and John created together when you made it clear you wanted to get a job. On it was every shop, restaurant, and business nearby that was willing to hire someone with your level of inexperience and age.

    Some of them were decent enough, like the restaurant you first went to. Some of them were shady like that ¡°adult¡± store you briefly visited with all those old men. A few of them looked downright dangerous, like the pet store filled with all sorts of monsters and things with sharp teeth and claws and weird appendages that you really didn¡¯t want to think about.

    After several days of job hunting, every job on the list had been crossed out. Every job, except for one:

    Apply To Become An Adventurer

    Being an Adventurer, from what little you could gather, essentially meant being a monster hunter/bodyguard/mercenary for hire. You were paid to clear out monsters that were running around nearby, paid to guard carriages and merchant supplies during long journeys, and paid to basically kill anything with a bounty on its head. Whether a monster, a group of monsters, or a person who managed to piss off a lot of rich people.

    It was a dangerous job, but a popular one if the amount of people who applied were any indication. From what you could tell, the Adventurer Guilds didn¡¯t really deny anyone no matter what age or disability they might have. They made a special exception for wanted criminals of course, but everyone else was free game. Plus, they didn¡¯t have a limit to the amount of people they were willing to accept. Hundreds of people could become Adventurers and the Guild would happily accept them all.

    The pay was also decent, so long as you were willing to put the effort in. You had asked John how much being an Adventurer paid and he said it paid anywhere from a ten nickels to several gold per quest. Which was the equivalent of a hundred bucks to a few thousand dollars if you had it right.

    The Guilds were also really common in cities, rural areas, country sides -- basically anywhere with a large mass of people, there was bound to be an Adventurer''s Guild somewhere nearby. So even if you wanted to leave town and try to make your way somewhere else, you can still keep your job. You just needed to transfer your paperwork -- yeah being an Adventurer came with a lot of paperwork apparently -- to the next Guild and you were set.

    It honestly seemed as sweet of a deal as you were gonna get -- if you were willing to put your life on the line. You had asked John about the whole Adventurer thing and he said:

    ¡°It might be best if you tried something more reliable little miss. Being an Adventurer isn¡¯t the sorta job you can retire on. Its dangerous, risky, and unreliable at the best of times.¡±

    ¡°Even more dangerous than the pet shop?¡± you asked. ¡°I saw a tiger with wings spitting acid in there!¡±

    He gave you a solemn nod. ¡°When you¡¯re an Adventurer, that¡¯s the sorta beasts you¡¯re gonna hafta deal with all the time. Goblins, dungeons, wolves, elementals, dragons -- Adventurers are the ones who hafta deal with them all. Most of them rookies, who go into the Guild and come out expecting to have a life full of adventure, don¡¯t last more than a few quests. Sometimes not even one. That boy you saved is a good example. Coulda died out there in those fields if you hadn''t saved him.¡±

    ¡°Oh.¡±

    ¡°And you wanna know what¡¯s worse than dealing with all those monsters?¡±

    ¡°What?¡±

    ¡°Dealing with Adventurers.¡± He shook his head. ¡°Some of them can be even worse than the monsters they fight.¡±

    How ominous.

    John had put it on the bottom of your list and told you to only consider it if you really had no other choice. At the time you figured that you wouldn¡¯t need to worry about it. Now though, it looked like it was your only option.

    You sighed and checked over your list again, looking for something you might have missed. You were tempted to go back to some of the earlier restaurants and see if they were willing to take you in if you begged -- but figured it would be a waste of time. The owners looked pretty damn sure that they weren¡¯t gonna take you.

    Which left adventurering.

    Honestly, the thought of risking your life for the equivalent of a hundred bucks and some change did not appeal to you. You kinda loved living, and the thought of taking a job that would risk your most basic of loves was not a good one.

    But it wasn¡¯t like you had a choice. You were getting kicked out and your money wasn¡¯t gonna last you forever. Plus you had Tentacled Joe/Bob to take care of; he didn¡¯t eat much, but he had a bad habit of increasing his flame aura when he was startled. Or happy. Or angry. Or bored.

    Honestly, it was nothing short of a miracle that he didn¡¯t set anything besides that church on fire yet.

    So after tugging Tentacled Joe/Bob away from the cat he was trying to eat, you headed on down to the Adventurer¡¯s Guild.

    The place was way less crowded than it usually was, with only a few stray people sitting and chatting at the tables. A few of them were giving you curious glances as you walked up to the reception booth while others were eyeing your squid.

    ¡°Welcome to the Adventurer¡¯s Guild! How may I help you today?¡±

    It was the same receptionist you saw before, only she looked a bit messier. Her long blonde hair was in a half hearted bun, with long strands of hair sticking to her sweaty neck. Her long white shirt had red stains splattered on the sleeves while her blue vest looked slightly ripped along the edges. Her black pants looked fine, though it looked oddly faded in some areas. She had a cheerful expression on her face, but the bags underneath her tired eyes were telling another story.

    All in all, she looked like a well put together mess. The fact that she could sound so cheerful even when she looked so tired and worn out spoke volumes of her professionalism.

    You were almost tempted to ask what happened, but figured it was none of your business. ¡°Yeah, I¡¯d like to become an Adventurer.¡±

    She looked you up and down. Then glanced at your squid. ¡°...very well then! May I see some form of identification?¡±

    You handed her your card.

    ¡°Hmm¡­ looks to be in order. It says you are twelve years old, correct?¡±

    Your eye twitched. ¡°Yeah.¡±

    ¡°And are you sure you wish to become an adventurer? The local death rate for new and inexperienced Adventurers is over fifty-nine percent. This percentage increases for those with little to no experience in combat, strategy, or magical capability. And from the looks of your identification card, you do not have an established Job or Class.¡±

    You were starting to have second thoughts. Still, wasn¡¯t like you had a choice. ¡°Yeah, well. I still wanna be one.¡±

    ¡°...very well,¡± she said reluctantly. ¡°You will, of course, have to pay a two nickel application fee in order to gain your license. As well as undergo a mandatory Full Appraisal by our Computing Orb.¡±

    ¡°Alri -- wait, what?¡± You blanched.

    ¡°A Full Appraisal. All Adventurer¡¯s must have their full list of Skills, Stats, Spells, Perks, and Titles available scanned and archived by the Guild.¡± At the expression on your face, she tried to assure you: ¡°Don¡¯t worry. All of your personal and private Status information is secure and under lock and key. Not even the King is allowed to look into your information if you don¡¯t want him to. This is strictly so we can monitor your progress and give you the quests that best suit your ranking.¡±

    ¡°R-right. You see, the thing is. Um. Shit.¡± You ran your hand through your hair. ¡°I uh, I don¡¯t have one. A Status.¡±

    She blinked. ¡°Excuse me?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m cursed basically. My connection to the system has been blocked. Or whatever.¡±

    You braced yourself for her to tell you to get out. Or for her to even try and appraise you against your will. Some of the jobs actually did that, using that appraisal skill or whatever on you to see if you were hiding something.

    It never turned out well.

    One guy just had all of his clothes disappear, revealing some very unfortunate tattoos. An older woman actually started floating and had to be pulled down by a bunch of her employees. One guy in particular -- the one who owned that ¡°adult¡± shop -- turned into a giant frog.

    You had to book it out of there afterwards, though later on you found out that he turned back to normal. A shame.

    Surprisingly enough, the receptionist didn¡¯t try to kick you out or appraise you. Instead he gave you a long look before saying, ¡°I see. Do you still wish to be an Adventurer despite your¡­ handicap?¡±

    You blinked. ¡°Wait, you believe me?¡±

    ¡°Let¡¯s just say I have ways of knowing if you¡¯re lying,¡± she said. ¡°That, and I have heard of some strange stories lately. About a young girl with no Skills and a fire elemental running around the city, after the recent burning of the Gaia church. You wouldn¡¯t happen to know anything about that, would you?¡± She arched an eyebrow.

    You coughed and looked away. ¡°Uh. N-no. No idea at all. So I can still be an Adventurer?¡±

    She sighed, looking unhappy. ¡°Well¡­ I would advise you not to. Adventuring is a dangerous job as it is and factoring in someone with your¡­¡± She visibly searched for the proper word to say. ¡°Handicap would mean that even the simplest of quests would be a danger to you. As such, I would strongly suggest you walk out the door right now.¡±

    You shrugged and gave her an apologetic smile. ¡°Sorry, but I can¡¯t. I need to be an Adventurer. No one else wants to hire me and my friend¡¯s kicking me out in a week. And I only have so much money right now, so I kinda need to get some more. This is the only place I¡¯ve got.¡± You gave her a hopeful look. ¡°I mean, unless they¡¯re hiring someone to work at the Guild?¡±

    She hesitated. ¡°I¡¯m sorry, but --¡±

    ¡°Then Adventurer it is.¡± You reached into your bag of money and took out two nickel coins. Idly, you flicked the coins through and around your hand, popping in and out of the folds of your fingers before handing them to her. ¡°Here you go. So, how long does this take?¡±

    She sighed again. ¡°Well usually it would take no more than two minutes. However, your lack of System connection complicates things.¡±

    She reached under her desk and took out a huge stack of paper, easily a good fifty pages thick. ¡°You will need to fill out all of these forms. Along with,¡± she took out another stack of paper at least twice as thick, ¡°these complementary forms once the first set is turned in. Once both are approved you must sign these as well.¡± She took out a stack of paper easily the size of a dictionary.

    You stared. ¡°Really?¡±

    She nodded, looking as unhappy as you were. Probably because she was the one who was gonna have to look through all of them.

    ¡°And how long does it take for them to be approved?¡± you asked, hoping she would say a few minutes.

    ¡°It should only take four hours,¡± she said, dashing your hopes completely. ¡°It¡¯s a good thing you came in the morning, otherwise it would have taken twice as long.¡±

    You could feel a headache coming on. ¡°Ugh.¡±

    This was gonna take forever.

 Magnetism Immunity (2)

    ¡°Question number three hundred and forty-nine: ¡®Have you now, or have you ever been a member of a system of religious veneration and devotion directed toward a particular figure or object that is NOT one of the Twelve Gods?¡¯¡±

    You stared down at the paper in confusion. ¡°What does that even mean?¡±

    ¡°Blrb,¡± your squid friend explained.

    ¡°A cult? Well why didn¡¯t they just say that?¡±

    He shrugged. ¡°Blrb, blrb?¡±

    ¡°No I haven¡¯t!¡± You shot Tentacled Joe -- you finally decided on his name -- a glare. ¡°What makes you think that I would be anywhere near a cult?¡±

    ¡°Blrb!¡± he argued, flailing his tentacles for emphasis.

    ¡°Well by that logic you¡¯d be a member of a cult too.¡±

    ¡°...blrb,¡± he admitted.

    You stopped writing. ¡°Wait, seriously? Why?¡±

    ¡°Blrb, blrb!¡±

    ¡°Oh, that¡¯s no excuse!¡±

    ¡°Um, excuse me? Miss?¡±

    You looked up and found yourself looking at a familiar face. It was almost hard to recognize him without the blood, burned clothes, and half bald head. ¡°Kyle?¡±

    ¡°Um, yes. Hello!¡± He gave you an awkward, yet adorable wave. He was wearing the exact same clothes as last time, aside from something underneath his shirt. When you looked closer, you noticed that it was chainmail.

    ¡°Kyle, it¡¯s so nice you see you again! Come on, sit down,¡± you said, smiling. And it really was. You might have only known Kyle for all of a few hours, but the kid made an impression on you. Brave and nice, if a bit twitchy.

    You gestured towards a seat on your left. ¡°I¡¯m sorry about not meeting up with you after that whole Cerberus thing. I¡¯ve just been too busy trying to find a job.¡±

    ¡°Oh uh, it¡¯s fine,¡± he said as he sat next to you. You noticed that he was sneaking glances at Tentacled Joe, his eyes taking on a familiar shine that he had when he asked you about your stone skin. His hand twitched in the squid¡¯s direction, as though he wanted to touch Tentacled Joe, before shoving it back on his lap where his sword was.

    You noticed that Kyle had replaced his sword, though he didn¡¯t seem to have a sheath to go with it. It looked brand new, and more than a little cheap. ¡°Um, I¡¯ve been trying to find you for a while now.¡±

    ¡°Really? Why?¡± You frowned. ¡°Is it because I have to pay damages or something?¡±

    Jesus, a bill is the last thing you needed.

    Kyle shook his head. ¡°No! Nothing like that! I-I just wanted to thank you. For saving me.¡± He had an earnest expression on his face, one filled with gratitude.

    You immediately started to feel awkward. ¡°You already thanked me, man. And it¡¯s no problem. Really.¡±

    ¡°Still,¡± he insisted. ¡°I wanted to thank you again. And uh, I wanted to ask you something.¡± He noticed your piles of paperwork. ¡°Um, when you¡¯re not busy of course! I don¡¯t want to get in your way or anything --¡±

    ¡°Nah, it¡¯s fine. I¡¯m almost done anyway.¡±

    It actually didn¡¯t take as long as you thought it would, since the vast majority of the questions you had to answer were things that didn¡¯t apply to you. Things like elvish or dwarven ancestry (which you probably didn¡¯t have), descriptions of your job and ¡°class¡± (which you also didn¡¯t have), what particular god you worship (none currently), whether or not you¡¯ve fought in a war (you didn¡¯t think so), the kind of magic you¡¯re most familiar in using (none?), and whether or not you¡¯ve been blessed by one of the Twelve Gods (you sure as hell didn¡¯t feel blessed) were the kind of questions you¡¯ve been working through. You¡¯ve basically been marking ¡°no¡± for dozens of pages now. ¡°I just have to send these up to the receptionist and --¡±

    ¡°I¡¯ll do it!¡± he said, standing up and almost knocking his chair over. ¡°I-I mean, it¡¯s the least I can do. Since you, you know, saved my life and all.¡±

    You were uncomfortable again. ¡°You don¡¯t have to keep thanking me. You helped me out just as much as I helped you out.¡± You handed him the papers. ¡°But fine. Here.¡±

    He gave you an awkward smile. ¡°R-right. Sure. B-be right back!¡±

    ¡°Blrb?¡± Tentacled Joe asked he watched Kyle stumble his way over to the booth. ¡°Blrb, blrb?¡±

    ¡°Don¡¯t be an ass, Joe. He¡¯s a nice guy.¡± You winced slightly when you saw Kyle bump into a waitress, almost sending the papers everywhere. He gave the waitress a stuttered apology, his face red with embarrassment, even as he struggled to keep all of your papers in order. ¡°A bit clumsy though. I hope he doesn¡¯t mess up my paperwork¡­¡±

    ¡°Hey. Are you that girl Winters has been talking about? The one with the Stone Skin Skill?¡±

    A tall man suddenly stepped into your view. When you leaned back to look at him properly, you noticed that he was bald and bulky, with biceps the size of your head. Scars criss crossed all over his face and the top of his head, some of them looking pretty raw and recent. He was wearing dirty, almost rusty armor that looked splattered with blood and other liquids you really didn¡¯t want to think about. Held in his left hand was a mace half your size.

    Out of the corner of your eye, you saw Tentacled Joe¡¯s flame aura get slightly brighter. You felt a few tentacles wrap around your legs under the table.

    ¡°Yeah that¡¯s me,¡± you said casually. ¡°Why?¡±

    He narrowed his eyes at you. ¡°You look¡­ a lot younger than he said you were.¡± His eyes lingered on your dress, specifically the little lace frills on the sleeves and bottom edges. You had thought the dress was a bit childish when John first gave it to you, but it wasn¡¯t like you could complain at the time. You were kinda regretting keeping silent now. ¡°You¡¯re applying to be an Adventurer?¡±

    ¡°Yeah,¡± you said slowly. ¡°Why, is there a problem?¡±

    ¡°You plan on being an Adventurer when you¡¯re wearing that?¡± he asked. ¡°No armor or weapons or nothing?¡± He glanced at Tentacled Joe then back at you. He looked judgemental. ¡°Just your elemental familiar?¡±

    ¡°Uh, no. I planned on getting some stuff after I got all this paperwork figured out.¡± Getting a weapon and some proper clothes and armor would really dip into your limited funds. Still, it was better than dying in a ditch somewhere. Or running around fighting off monsters in a dress and flats because you were too stingy.

    On a whim, you asked, ¡°You wouldn¡¯t happen to know a good place, would you?¡±

    He stared at you for an uncomfortably long time, long enough that you considered getting up and going to a different table. Just when you were about to do so, he abruptly sat down in front of you, letting his mace drop onto the table with a loud *BANG*.

    You tensed up. ¡°What are you --¡±

    ¡°If you ask the Guild they¡¯ll tell you to go Trader¡¯s place. He sells most of the things you need to get started. Even works for the Guild, so he knows all the ins and outs.¡± He leaned forward. ¡°But if I were you, I¡¯d go to Dan¡¯s place. It¡¯s right in the center of town, near the fountain. Real cheap and with a lot more weapons and armor. You won¡¯t get a discount like you will at Trader¡¯s place, but his stuff lasts you longer. Less chance of breaking too.¡±

    You felt your eyebrows touch the top of your forehead. You weren¡¯t expecting actual advice. ¡°Oh. Uh, thanks?¡±

    He nodded. ¡°If I were you I¡¯d find some sturdy boots, and some long sleeve shirts and pants. Put your hair up too. You don¡¯t want any monsters pulling at it while you¡¯re fighting.¡±

    He reached into his pocket and took out a well worn but still functional hair band. ¡°Here, you can have this. It¡¯s one of my daughter¡¯s.¡±

    ¡°Wow. Uh, thanks man.¡± Feeling both surprised and a bit touched, you immediately used the band to put your hair up in a ball. ¡°That¡¯s... actually pretty sweet of you.¡±

    He nodded solemnly. ¡°I don¡¯t believe in letting kids like you be Adventurers. A lot of them end up dead before their first quest, too dumb and hero blind to realize what kind of danger they¡¯re getting into. Usually I try to direct them towards something safer. Less risky. But I know that isn¡¯t the case with you and your curse.¡±

    You tensed. ¡°Did the receptionist --¡±

    He nodded. ¡°Don¡¯t hold it against her. It¡¯s not too often when a child walks into the Guild and says she wants to be an Adventurer. Usually they¡¯re sixteen, or fourteen in Kyle¡¯s case. Old enough to have a little bit of experience under their belt. And while I can tell you do have a few tricks of your own, what with the Cerberus and this little fella,¡± he gestured towards Tentacled Joe, ¡°it won¡¯t be enough if you seriously plan on being an Adventurer. So she told me about you and asked me to give you a bit of advice.¡±

    ¡°Ah.¡± You kinda wanted to be mad, but it wasn¡¯t like you didn¡¯t understand. And you really did appreciate the help. After all, it wasn¡¯t like you knew much about adventuring. ¡°Well, any more advice for me mister...¡± you trailed off.

    ¡°Ben. Ben Summers.¡±

    ¡°Nice to meet you.¡± You held out a hand and he shook it. ¡°Really wish I could remember my name so I could tell you, but you know. Amnesia and all that.¡±

    He arched an eyebrow, but didn¡¯t comment.

    You and Ben spent a few minutes talking about the sorta things you¡¯d need to look out for if you wanted to be an Adventurer. Most of it was common sense stuff: don¡¯t get too cocky while on a quest, always make sure to keep your weapon handy, run if things get too dicy, things like that. He seemed particularly insistent on you getting yourself some armor, a helmet especially.

    ¡°Always have your helmet on. Especially if you¡¯re a mage.¡± He had a stormy expression on his face when he said this, his eyes looking as though they were miles away. He was clutching his mace so tightly that his knuckles turned white. ¡°I can¡¯t tell you how many young Adventurers like yourself died because of a blow to the head. That¡¯s all it takes, really. A single strike in the wrong place and your life just stops right then and there.¡±

    He closed his eyes. ¡°Lost so many friends that way.¡±

    You weren¡¯t sure what to say to that. Were you supposed to say sorry? Give him a pat on the arm? Tell him you understood even though you didn¡¯t? You had no idea what to say to make it better.

    So you kept silent and waited for Ben to collect himself on his own. Thankfully, he managed to get himself together after a few minutes. Something told you that he was used to reminiscing like this.

    ¡°Sorry about that.¡± He sniffed. ¡°Anyway, I¡¯d say get yourself a party to cover your back, but that isn¡¯t possible for you. Your curse makes you a liability in combat; I wouldn¡¯t know many adventurers willing to take the risk to join up with you.¡± He looked frustrated. ¡°I¡¯d usually be willing to help, but I have something important to do today. Something I can¡¯t put off, that¡¯ll last me about three months. Unless you¡¯re willing to wait?¡±

    You shook your head. ¡°I¡¯m getting kicked out of my place in a week. And with the money I have, I only have about a month before Tentacled Joe and I end up on the streets.¡±

    Ben tsked. ¡°Damn. Then how about --¡±

    ¡°I sent it in!¡± Kyle plopped into the seat beside you, looking pleased with himself. ¡°The receptionist told me to tell you that it¡¯ll take her an hour to get you all set up and that since you didn¡¯t put down a name, she was gonna get the Computing Orb to randomly pick one for you.¡±

    Oh yeah, your name. You left it blank so you could fill it in later and then completely forgot about it.

    You shrugged. Oh well. Hopefully your chosen name isn¡¯t something stupid.

    Ben nodded at him. ¡°Kyle. Nice to see you.¡±

    ¡°Ben!¡± Kyle¡¯s eyes lit up. ¡°H-hi! Um, how¡¯s it going?¡±

    ¡°Good. You wearing armor?¡±

    ¡°Uh-huh.¡± He lifted his shirt, revealing his chainmail. ¡°It feels a bit weird wearing it. A little heavy.¡±

    ¡°Mm. And your helmet?¡±

    Kyle¡¯s eyes darted around the room. ¡°Uhh¡­¡±

    ¡°Get a helmet.¡± Ben¡¯s tone had no room for argument.

    ¡°R-right¡­¡± He gave Ben a sheepish smile before addressing you. ¡°So! U-um, do you need a party? I¡¯m not with anyone right now, and someone with your kind of Skill would make quests a lot easier. N-not that I¡¯m trying to make you do all the work or anything! Um --¡±

    You shrugged. ¡°Sure man. Tentacled Joe and I could use some help. We¡¯ve never done any quests or anything like this before.¡± You think.

    He gave you a smile that reminded you of puppies and small kittens. ¡°Great! Do you wanna start now or later?¡±

    You stood up. ¡°We might as well start now. But Tentacled Joe and I need to get some supplies first. Wanna come with? We don¡¯t exactly know our way around town.¡±

    ¡°S-sure!¡± He stood up with you, though not before giving Ben an awkward wave. ¡°Nice to see you Ben.¡±

    Ben simply nodded. ¡°Stay safe. Both of you.¡±

    You thanked him and left the Guild with your new party member and Tentacled Joe in tow.

    Dan¡¯s place -- otherwise known as Dan¡¯s GearMart -- was a battered looking building that really stood out against the well built stores and clean walkways. The wooden walls were old and worn, the windows looked like they hadn¡¯t been cleaned in years, and there was this weird dusty/moldy smell coming from the area. It honestly looked like it would collapse at any second.

    The inside was partially cleaner, and was a lot bigger than it looked from the outside. At the very least, the smell wasn¡¯t as strong and the shelves filled with merchandise weren¡¯t covered in dirt, dust, or mold.

    Much like Ben told you, there were a lot of weapons and armor of all different types, shapes, and sizes. Swords bigger than you were tall, double sided axes that looked sharp enough to split diamonds, spears that looked like they were made out of rubber, throwing knife sets, flails that glittered, and little mini bows that seemed to be built for either children or people very, very small. There was armor that looked to be made out of steel, armor made out of bronze, armor that looked like it was made out of a weird sort of leather, and what looked like several metal bikini sets.

    There were normal clothes too, though a lot of it was more practical. Pants, shirts, socks, underwear, boots, and coats all in the same beige color. No cute pictures of cats or oddly adorable squids on them, which was disappointing but unsurprising. It was clear the shop valued practicality over fashion.

    Sitting at the counter was an elderly man, who looked to be at least eighty years old. He was wearing a pair of wire glasses and was reading a thick book. On a plate next to the book was a sandwich and some lemonade. He gave the three of you a quick glance when you walked in -- his eyes hovering over Tentacled Joe in particular -- before going back to his reading.

    You tugged on one of Tentacle Joe¡¯s tentacles. ¡°Don¡¯t set anything on fire, alright?¡±

    ¡°Blrb!¡± he hissed.

    ¡°Just making sure.¡± You turned towards Kyle, who was looking through a shelf full of potions. You had no idea what any of them did, though you did recognize the health potion that guard used on him. ¡°You planning on getting anything?¡±

    ¡°Just some health potions. You?¡±

    ¡°The same I guess.¡± You eyed some of the shelves filled with armor. ¡°Ben kept telling me to get some armor, so I guess I¡¯ll get that too. You want any Tentacled Joe?¡±

    ¡°Blrb,¡± he said, shaking his head. ¡°Blrb, blrb.¡±

    ¡°Really?¡± You squinted at him. ¡°You don¡¯t look all that durable to me.¡±

    ¡°Blrb!¡± he insisted. He flexed his tentacles for emphasis. ¡°Blrb, blrb, blrb, blrb.¡±

    You shrugged. ¡°Well if you say so.¡±

    ¡°Hey. Um. If it¡¯s not too much to ask? How did you get an elemental familiar?¡± Kyle asked. ¡°I didn¡¯t think it was possible without¡­ you know¡­¡± he trailed off, giving you a look full of sympathy and pity.

    You had told Kyle all about your lack of System access on the way to Dan¡¯s GearMart, along with the loss of your stone skin ability. You figured he might as well know what he was getting into right off the bat instead of finding out in the middle of a fight or something. And if he decided not to partner up with you¡­ well, whatever. You wouldn¡¯t blame him.

    Surprisingly enough, the knowledge that you had a massive handicap and had lost the one ability that might be useful in a combat situation made Kyle all the more determined to partner up with you. He said it was the least he could do after you saved his life -- though you got the sense that it was more because he thought you¡¯d get yourself killed if he didn¡¯t. Which was irritating, but probably true.

    ¡°I went to the church and one of those priests told me to touch that orb thing. When I did, Tentacled Joe appeared and burned the place down,¡± you said casually.

    ¡°Blrb.¡±

    ¡°Sorry, accidentally burned the place down.¡± You rolled your eyes. ¡°I wanted to leave him at first, but he weaponized his innate cuteness against me. So now I let him follow me around and eat my food.¡±

    Tentacle Joe tugged at your arm. You noticed that while eight of his eyes were focused on you, two of them were eyeing a stray cat outside the window. ¡°Blrb, blrb.¡±

    ¡°We¡¯ll eat when we get back to the stables, alright?¡± you said. ¡°And no, you can¡¯t eat any cats. Why do I have to keep telling you this?¡±

    ¡°Blrb,¡± he whined.

    ¡°So he¡¯s not your familiar?¡± Kyle asked.

    ¡°Ehhh¡­ define ¡®familiar¡¯.¡±

    ¡°Uh, an animal or a monster that you¡¯ve formed a binding contract with. I think,¡± he said, looking a bit unsure. ¡°It¡¯s a mage thing.¡±

    ¡°Well I¡¯m not a mage and I didn¡¯t form a contract with Tentacled Joe.¡± You paused. ¡°I didn¡¯t, did I?¡±

    ¡°Blrb.¡± Tentacled Joe shook his head.

    ¡°So I guess you can say¡­ he¡¯s my pet?¡±

    Tentacled Joe looked insulted. ¡°Blrb!¡±

    ¡°Alright, alright! He¡¯s my partner or whatever. We hang out a lot.¡± You shrugged. This story is posted elsewhere by the author. Help them out by reading the authentic version.

    ¡°O...kay.¡± Kyle was giving Tentacled Joe a more cautious look now. ¡°And he came... from a Computing Orb?¡±

    ¡°Yep,¡± you said, popping the ¡°p¡±. ¡°It¡¯s part of the curse. Everytime someone tries to use that appraisal thing or I use one of those orbs, something weird or random happens. I have no idea why, but it¡¯s been a total pain in the ass.¡±

    Kyle stopped looking at the swords on the shelves to give you a scandalized expression. ¡°Don¡¯t -- you can¡¯t say something like that!¡±

    You arched an eyebrow. ¡°Like what?¡±

    ¡°Like -- I mean -- nevermind.¡± He made an obvious attempt to change the subject. ¡°So, what weapon are you getting?¡±

    ¡°Probably a bat or a club or something.¡± You had asked Ben back in the Guild about weapons and he suggested that you¡¯d get something basic like that. Said that swords cost too much money and take way too much skill to properly use for a beginner. ¡°Now where is that chainmail¡­¡±

    You ended up buying a whole new set of Adventurer clothes -- long sleeve shirt, pants, underwear, warm socks, fingerless gloves, and sturdy boots just like Ben suggested -- along with some chainmail armor and a deadly looking spiked club. You also bought a couple of health potions, as well as a couple of green stamina potions just in case.

    The helmet was the tricky part, since a lot of the helmets you saw restricted your vision in a very disconcerting way. You ended up having to ask the store clerk about it and settled on a bronze, hat-like helmet with flaps on the back and sides to protect your neck and ears. It looked weird as hell on you, but beggars can¡¯t be choosers.

    You had asked Tentacled Joe if he needed any armor or weapons or anything, but he just waved his tentacles at you and went back to staring at the cats outside. You kept a hand on one of his tentacles just in case he decided to make a break for it.

    Your entire set of purchases cost you a steel coin, two nickel coins, two copper coins, and five bronze coins. John had given you a quick run down on the local currency and what each coin meant a while ago, so you had an idea of how much your Adventurer supplies cost: a good amount (around seventy or eight dollars if you had to guess) but not too much. Certainly not as much as you were expecting.

    ¡°Really wish I went here sooner,¡± Kyle muttered to himself. ¡°The shop at the Guild costs twice as much.¡±

    ¡°Why didn¡¯t you?¡±

    Kyle scratched the back of his head and looked away. ¡°A friend recommended the place to me. She works there at the Guild, so¡­¡± he trailed off.

    It was late into the afternoon when the three of you arrived back at the Guild. The place was more crowded than before, with Adventurers talking, laughing, eating, and drinking all over the place. A few of them were eyeing your little group as you reached the counter, though thankfully no one tried to do anything.

    The receptionist handed you a card. ¡°This is your Adventurer Card. It has your chosen name, age, species, Class, Job, and your Ranking. All Adventurers start out as Rank F and work their way up to Rank E, D, C, B, A, and possibly even S. As a Rank F, you can only take quests that are Rank F, or one Rank above. Every quest you take must be approved by a Guild receptionist, who will then consider whether or not you are capable of taking said quest. Repeatedly trying to take a quest that is more than one Rank above your own will incur penalties. Five penalties and your Adventurer¡¯s license will be suspended and possibly revoked.¡±

    You stared at the red card. It had a picture of your face on it.

    Huh. So that¡¯s what you look like.

    Pale skin, black hair, pink lips, button nose, a young doll-like face -- it was no wonder people sometimes treated you like a child. You clearly looked the part of a cute, adorable child no older than twelve years old. The only thing that wasn¡¯t cute about you was your eyes.

    They were black. Blacker than your hair, which was really saying something. Outlined around the pupil of your eye was a single purple ring. By itself it probably wouldn¡¯t have been too strange, but when contrasted against your doll-like features and pale skin, your eyes stood out. They looked¡­ intense.

    Next to your picture was your card information.

    WESTER CITY ADVENTURER¡¯S GUILD

    Name: Roulette Random

    Rank: F

    Age: 12

    Species: Human

    Class: None

    Job: Adventurer

    Quest Successes: N/A

    Quest Failures: N/A

    Level: N/A

    Stats: N/A

    Skills: N/A

    Blessings: N/A

    Magic: N/A

    Spells: N/A

    Contracts/Bindings: Fire Elemental -- Aquatic.

    ¡°Roulette Random?¡± you read, unable to hide the disbelief in your voice. ¡°Seriously?¡±

    Jesus, it sounded like the kinda name you¡¯d give a shitty superhero. Kyle had said that they¡¯d choose your name for you, but you didn¡¯t think it would be this bad.

    The receptionist looked apologetic. ¡°The name was chosen at random by the Computing Orb. Normally if you wished to change the information on your card, it would only take a quick scan of a Computing Orb and an Appraisal. However, due to your lack of System connection, the process will take several hours as well as cost a fee of --¡±

    You sighed. ¡°Just -- nevermind. Am I allowed to take quests now?¡±

    The receptionist gave you a professional smile. You noticed that she looked a bit more put together compared to how she was a few hours ago. ¡°Of course. Allow me to lead you to the questing rooms.¡±

    The receptionist led you, Kyle, and Tentacled Joe through a red door next to the receptionist booth, one that was labeled ¡°QUESTS¡± in big black letters. Inside that room you saw eight more doors, six of which were labeled the letters ¡°A¡± through ¡°F¡±, while a seventh was labeled ¡°S¡±. At the far end of the hallway, you saw a single black door with the letter ¡°X¡± painted in white.

    The receptionist took the three of you through the ¡°F¡± door. Inside you saw a large crowd of Adventurers, though they looked nothing compared to the Adventurers you saw in the Guild room. Those Adventurers all looked strong, competent, experienced, and personalized. These Adventurers looked a lot like you and Kyle: young, inexperienced, weak, and wearing the same brown Adventurer clothing you and he were wearing. Every now and then you¡¯d see someone who stood out against the crowd, but for the most part everyone looked the same.

    They were all crowded around a bunch of bulletin boards. Pinned to the boards were pieces of paper -- quests and jobs from the looks of it. Weirdly enough, the pieces of paper were glowing a faint red.

    The receptionist explained, ¡°Upon these boards are the quests fit for Rank F Adventurers. You pay pick up to three at a time. Once you pick a quest to your liking, simply take it up to the reception desk for approval. After being approved, you are expected to complete the quest. Complete the quest and your success will be marked down on your Adventurer¡¯s Card. If you have enough successful quests, then you will be considered for a Rank increase. Failure to complete a quest will be a mark on your Adventurer¡¯s Card. Too many failed quests at a time will cause your Adventurer''s Card to be suspended, revoked, or Ranked down. So please, only take what you can handle.¡±

    With that, she gave you a small nod and left.

    ¡°Come on. We should start you off on something small.¡± Kyle led you and Tentacled Joe over to the bulletin board with the least amount of people. He gently nudged past a couple of people before ripping a piece of paper off the board and handing it to you. There was a flash of light before the paper he ripped off was replaced with another one.

    ¡°Here you go! It should be easy enough for you to do.¡±

    GATHERING HERBS

    Quest Giver: Adventurer¡¯s Guild

    Quest Rank: F

    Duration: Indefinite

    Request: We of the Adventurer¡¯s Guild would like some yofa leaves for our potions and ingredients. The yofa leaves are usually found outside the gates of Wester City, within the Rue Forest.

    Reward: 1 Copper Coin per four yofa leaves.

    Included with the page was a picture of the yofa leaf. It looked a lot like a normal leaf only purple, with red polka dots.

    ¡°I know it¡¯s not much, but it¡¯s a start. A-and you won¡¯t have to fight or anything! The Rue Forest hasn¡¯t had a monster spawn in there in years. So don¡¯t worry.¡±

    Kyle gave you a reassuring pat on the back. ¡°And if something bad happens, me and Joe here will protect you! I¡¯m --!¡± He visibly deflated. ¡°W-w-well, I¡¯m not the strongest guy around, but I know my way around a sword! I have the Sword Skill to prove it! T-took me a while to get it actually¡­ and it¡¯s only Level One right now s-so...¡±

    He trailed off, looking lost in his own unhappy little world.

    You glanced at Tentacled Joe. The squid gave you a Look then nudged you towards Kyle.

    ¡°Uhh¡­¡± You opened your mouth to say something reassuring, then closed it. Reached out a hand to pat him on the back, then let it drop. Finally you just said, ¡°We should head out before it gets dark.¡±

    The squid sighed. ¡°Blrb.¡±

    ¡°R-right! Sorry!¡± Kyle shook his head like a dog before striding determinately towards the door. ¡°Come on! Let¡¯s complete your first quest as an Adventurer! It might not be the most important quest in the world, but it¡¯s still your first quest! It¡¯ll be exciting no matter what!¡±

    ¡°Blrb!¡± Tentacled Joe agreed, raising his tentacles in the air.

    The sudden turn in Kyle¡¯s mood kinda caught you off guard. ¡°Uh, sure! I guess.¡±

    Kyle was a lot more cheerful as he led you and Tentacled Joe through the city, and started chatting away at you and Tentacled Joe. He seemed to really have a fascination with the squid, and asked him a bunch of questions about his race. Specifically about the skills specific to Tentacled Joe¡¯s species.

    ¡°Most species -- aside from humans -- have a Species Specific Skill that only members of their species have. What kind of Skills do flame elementals have? Something like Fire Immunity, or Fire Manipulation, or Fire Eating? Do you have the Lava Manipulation Skill? Hellfire Manipulation? Soulfire Manipulation?¡±

    ¡°Blrb. Blrb, blrb, blrb.¡±

    Kyle was practically bouncing on his toes. ¡°Well?! What did he say?¡±

    ¡°He said he had the first two and a little bit of lava manipulation. He also has something called ¡®iron eater¡¯,¡± you said, making quotes with your fingers.

    Kyle let out a high pitched squeeing noise. ¡°That¡¯s so cool!¡±

    ¡°Blrb,¡± Tentacled Joe said, waving a tentacle modestly. You weren¡¯t fooled though; you could tell that the squid was basking in the attention.

    ¡°What about a Telepathy Skill? Is that how you and Roulette --¡±

    Your eye twitched. God, that sounds ridiculous.

    ¡°-- talk to each other? Or is it a Spell? Or maybe a Blessing?¡±

    ¡°Blrb,¡± he said, waving a tentacle. He gestured towards you. ¡°Blrb, blrb, blrb.¡±

    ¡°He said no, and that I just know him enough to tell. He said that you¡¯d probably figure out later if you got to know him more.¡±

    Kyle¡¯s eyes were shining. ¡°So cool!¡±

    It was really starting to get late by the time your little party reached the city gates. The gate guards were much more friendly towards you now that you had a proper ID and an Adventurer¡¯s Card. A quick warning not to go too far into the forest and once again, you found yourself outside the city walls.

    ¡°The yofa leaves should be a few meters away from the path,¡± Kyle said as he guided the two of you through the forest. You made sure to keep one hand on your spiked club and keep a firm grip on the strap of your backpack with the other. Behind you Tentacled Joe kept his flame aura at a warm and steady glow; hot enough for you to sweat a bit, but not hot enough to set the trees on fire. ¡°A lot of Rank F Adventurers pick through these woods, so we might need to go farther out -- there!¡±

    A few feet away you saw dozens upon dozens of yofa leaves clustered together in the dirt. The ground was covered in them; some of them were even attached to the trees. And in the center of them was a small, almost metallic looking flower. It looked a lot like a daisy.

    ¡°Huh. I¡¯ve never seen that kind of flower before,¡± Kyle said, stepping forward to get a closer look. ¡°Maybe a blacksmith left this in the forest?¡±

    ¡°Nah man, look.¡± You pointed at the steel daisy¡¯s stem. ¡°It¡¯s rooted in the ground. I think it grew here.¡±

    ¡°Huh,¡± he said again. ¡°I wonder what kind of flower it is? And what kind of metal is it made from?¡± He took another step forward.

    You stared at the flower. It looked like a normal flower -- albeit made of metal. And for all you knew, these sorts of flowers were common in this world.

    Still¡­ something about this didn¡¯t sit right with you. A strange metal flower, surrounded by the leaves that a lot of newbie Adventurers usually end up harvesting?

    It could just be a normal flower¡­ but why was it the only one here? A quick glance around showed no other flowers like it; just lots and lots of yofa leaves. And it was right smack in the center of them all.

    ¡°Kyle, maybe we should leave it alone. We¡¯re here for the leaves, remember?¡± You gave the flower a suspicious look. ¡°Plus, for all we know it might be poisonous. Or cursed. Or a trap. Or sentient and pissed off.¡±

    ¡°Language,¡± he said absentmindedly.

    You blinked. ¡°Excuse me?¡±

    ¡°Do you think this flower¡¯s made of mithril? It looks a lot like the swords I saw in the Guild¡¯s shop a week ago.

    ¡°Blrb? Blrb, blrb, blrb?¡± Tentacled Joe said, leaning over your shoulder.

    ¡°Not helping,¡± you hissed. ¡°Look Kyle, let¡¯s just get the leaves and go. That flower is suspicious as all hell, it¡¯s getting dark, and Tentacled Joe and I need to get home before John¡¯s wife tries to withhold dinner from us again.¡±

    Kyle glanced at the flower, then at you, then at the slowly setting sun. ¡°Well¡­ alright. Let¡¯s just --¡±

    Just then the metal daisy¡¯s petals twitched, spasmed, then folded together. A low ringing sound filled the air, making you feel as though you suddenly gained tinnitus.

    Kyle gawked at the flower. ¡°Wha --¡±

    The flower unfolded itself, the petals stretching and growing until they were the size of your head. Small spike-like teeth grew around the petals and in the center a pair of eyes grew. They glared at the three of you, filled with enough hatred and bloodlust to set your teeth on edge.

    ¡°Joe!¡± you barked, and the squid send a tentacle whipping towards Kyle, snagging him around his waist and pulling him away just before the flower lunged at him, the petals snapping around where he just was.

    The flower opened its ¡°mouth¡± letting out a high pitched screech that made you want to tear your ears off.

    You settled for bashing it with your spiked club instead.

    There was the screeching sound of metal on metal as your club¡¯s nails penetrated the flower, digging into its ¡°skin¡±. It let out another high pitched screech and your arms trembled as you resisted the urge to cover your ears. The flower took that moment of distraction to rip itself away from your bat, sending shards of flowery metal everywhere.

    The flower glared at you, the hatred in its eyes making you tense up in preparation. It let out another screech, only lower. More baritone.

    Behind you, Kyle let out a choked gasp. Then he was ripped out of Tentacled Joe¡¯s grip by an unseen force, his body flying towards the flower¡¯s open mouth. You instinctively dropped your club and wrapped your arms around his waist -- and lurched forward as the flower¡¯s telekinetic abilities almost yanked him out of your grip.

    You scrambled backward, digging your heels in to pull as hard as you could. You could feel him slipping away from you --

    ¡°Blrb!¡±

    A ball of fire was sent streaking past you, slamming into the flower at full speed. There was another high pitched shriek -- one that made your ears ring with pain -- and you felt a pair of tentacles wrap around your waist. There was a whoosh of air and suddenly Tentacled Joe was flying a good three meters in the air, you and Kyle held in a two tentacled grip.

    You heard Tentacled Joe let out a gurgling growl, like a wolf trying to howl underwater. You felt the tentacles around your waist tighten and grow hot. Out of the corner of your eye, you could see another fireball forming at the tip of his tentacle. ¡°Blrb.¡±

    ¡°No wait, stop!¡± You flailed in his grip before smacking the tentacle away. You immediately regretted it as you felt a scorch of heat against your palm. ¡°Motherfucker!¡±

    ¡°Blrb?!¡± Tentacled Joe gave you an incredulous look. You could feel some of his heat starting to subside. ¡°Blrb, blrb, blrb!¡±

    ¡°You¡¯re going to set the fucking forest on fire, you ten eyed idiot!¡± You shouted, pointing at the ground below you. The flower was flailing around, slamming its body against the ground to dampen the flames. It wasn¡¯t doing any good though, only seeming to make the flames hotter and burn faster. You could hear its angry, shrill cries, though thankfully Tentacled Joe had you and Kyle hovering out of its range. Any sense of satisfaction you felt was quickly dampened by the fact that its flailing was starting to send embers of flame around the very flammable leaves and trees. Some of the folage around the fucking flower was already smoking. ¡°Quick, set me down so I can finish it off!¡±

    ¡°Blrb? Blrb!¡± he argued. ¡°Blrb, blrb, blrb, blrb!¡±

    Below you, one of the yofa leaves was set on fire.

    ¡°Just let me down already!¡±

    ¡°Blrb --¡±

    You wiggled out of Tentacled Joe¡¯s grip and fell to the ground. A quick tuck and roll negated most of the fall damage, though you still felt a tingly sensation in your legs. You didn¡¯t pay it any mind though and full on sprinted towards your spiked bat, which was lying a foot away from the flower¡¯s writhing form.

    Your fingers closed around the hot wood, and by the time the flower did notice you were there, you had your spiked club raised and ready to give the final blow.

    It let out a low, baritone bellow and you felt something pass over you, like you just got hit with a thin wet sheet. The sensation was gone so fast that you would have thought you imagined it, if not for the hitch in the flower¡¯s ¡°voice¡± and the confusion you could see in its half melted eyes.

    Then your club smashed downward and the flower was nothing more than a half melted puddle of metal.

    You whacked it a few more times for good measure before lowering your club to your side, your body covered in sweat.

    ¡°Fucking. Christ,¡± you panted. ¡°I better not get a sunburn from all this heat.¡±

    ¡°Blrb.¡± Tentacled Joe floated down next to you, cradling Kyle in his tentacles. The poor kid must''ve passed out at some point. Thankfully, he looked fine. ¡°Blrb, blrb, blrb. Blrb, blrb,¡± he pointed out.

    You scoffed. ¡°Yeah right. You probably would¡¯ve set it on fire again. Which reminds me.¡± You turned towards the smoking leaves. Some of them were already on fire. ¡°I¡¯ll go put this stuff out. You go gather the leaves that aren¡¯t smoking or on fire and put them in my pack.¡± You threw your backpack towards him and he caught it in a free tentacle. ¡°And make sure to set Kyle down on the ground. Gently. I need to check him over once I¡¯m done.¡±

    He nodded. ¡°Blrb.¡±

    The two of you got to work.

    Thankfully the small fires didn¡¯t manage to spread to the trees or the entire clump of leaves; apparently the damn things took a while to burn, of which you were thankful. You had to stamp some of the small fires out and cover them with dirt, but all in all, it turned out alright.

    Kyle looked fine aside from some bruising around his chest and neck area, and a quick healing potion solved that issue. Poor guy was still out cold though, and his clothes looked a bit torn around the edges. His armor was a bit warped -- probably from the flower¡¯s telekinetic bullshit -- and you had to ask Tentacled Joe for help so you could yank it off him. His sword looked similarly bent out of shape.

    Tentacled Joe¡¯s long, extendable, six tentacles proved to be good at gathering leaves. The squid would have picked the area dry if not for the fact that your and Kyle¡¯s packs could only hold so much leaves. That and it seemed a bit greedy taking up all the leaves for yourself. You weren¡¯t the only one trying to make a living after all.

    After checking, double checking, and triple checking to make sure the fires were out, the three of you headed back to the Guild.

    The gate guards waved you though after giving your ID a quick check. You could tell the mustached one wanted to ask what happened to Kyle, though his glasses coworker elbowed him when he opened his mouth.

    The walk to the Guild was similar to your first time, with people giving you weird looks and the guards on the verge of questioning you as you walked through the streets with Kyle in Tentacled Joe¡¯s arms. Just like last time though, no one bothered to stop you and you were able to make your way to the Guild unmolested.

    ¡°I hope the quest went well?¡± the receptionist asked, eyeing Kyle¡¯s unconscious form and your sweat covered body.

    You made a so-so gesture. ¡°It could have gone worse.¡± You set both packs on the counter. ¡°We brought back a bunch of leaves for the quest.¡±

    ¡°Ah yes, the yofa leaves quest. A classic beginner quest for all Rank F Adventurers.¡± She opened the packs, allowing the leaves to spill onto the counter. ¡°Hmm¡­ some of these leaves look a bit damaged. A few even look burned.¡±

    Tentacled Joe shifted in the air, trying and failing to look innocent.

    ¡°Still¡­ most of these leaves look intact.¡± She studied both bags, shifting through them a bit. ¡°It should be worth around¡­ three steel coins. I hope that¡¯s acceptable for you?¡±

    ¡°Sure.¡±

    ¡°Excellent.¡± The receptionist whipped out a bag from nowhere and started shoveling the leaves in. ¡°If you would simply leave your Adventurer¡¯s Card behind so I can mark your success?¡±

    You placed it on the table.

    ¡°Wonderful. It should be marked with your success by tomorrow. Now if you would please hand Mr. Winters to the guards?¡±

    A familiar puff of black smoke and the black armored guards appeared. Tentacled Joe was a bit freaked out by their sudden appearance, though you managed to calm him down and keep him from setting something on fire by patting him on one of his tentacles. He gave the guards a wary look, but still gently gave them Kyle¡¯s unconscious body.

    You made sure to stick one of the steel coins into his pocket before the guards disappeared.

    ¡°If that¡¯s all, then --¡± the receptionist started.

    You interrupted her. ¡°Well actually, there¡¯s something that we found in the woods back there.¡±

    You told her about the flower and explained how it attacked you and Kyle, emphasizing the whole telekinetic thing. The receptionist nodded along to your explanation, though she still looked unphased.

    ¡°I see. And is the body still there in the woods?¡±

    ¡°Yep. Well, most of it.¡± You reached into your pack and pulled out a potion bottle that used to be filled with health potion. Now it was filled with metal flower goo. ¡°I grabbed a sample of the stuff while Tentacled Joe and I were picking the leaves.¡±

    The receptionist looked a bit more interested. ¡°Hmm. May I?¡± She gestured towards the vial and you handed it to her. ¡°Hmm¡­ yes this does look like the melted remains of a Magnetic Killer Flower. A young one, barely a month old judging by the texture.¡±

    Magnetic? It would explain why it had been able to pull Kyle towards it. You just assumed the damn thing was telekinetic or something.

    But what about you? You had just as much metal armor underneath your clothes as Kyle, and it didn¡¯t pull you towards it. In fact, now that you think about it, that sensation you felt before bashing its brains in probably was it trying to pull you into its mouth.

    But then why did it fail?

    Maybe it ran out of magic or something? Or maybe it has some sorta cooldown, like abilities in video games? The receptionist did say it was young; it probably didn¡¯t know its limits well enough and over exerted itself.

    Still, that was a close call.

    Maybe you should have let Tentacled Joe deal with it for you. Sure he would have burned down the whole forest, but at least you wouldn¡¯t be risking your life over a bunch of fucking leaves.

    You¡¯re gonna have to be more careful from now on. You won¡¯t always get lucky.

    ¡°I didn¡¯t think they would spawn in the middle of the Rue Forest. They usually spawn in more populated areas.¡± The receptionist set the vial behind the counter. ¡°Thank you for bringing this to the Guild¡¯s attention.¡± She set three more steel coins down on the counter. ¡°For your trouble.¡±

    ¡°Thanks, man. Could you give one of these to Kyle? Since he was part of the quest and all.¡±

    The receptionist nodded and gave you a professional smile. ¡°I¡¯ll make sure to give it to him. Have a good night.¡±

    ¡°You too.¡± You headed for the door. ¡°Come on, Tentacled Joe. We have a warm dinner and a pile of hay with our names on it.¡±

    ¡°Blrb!¡± he agreed, floating beside you.

    ¡°Oh and before I forget.¡± You handed Tentacled Joe two of the steel coins.

    He blinked all ten of his eyes. ¡°Blrb?¡±

    ¡°Your share of the money, man.¡± You smiled and gave him a little nudge in his side. ¡°You said so yourself, remember? You¡¯re not a pet, you¡¯re my partner. And partners get their fair share.¡±

    Tentacled Joe stared down at the coins. You got the sense that if he had a normal human mouth, he¡¯d be smiling right about now. ¡°Blrb. Blrb!¡±

    He wrapped his tentacles around you and gave you a big hug, lifting you off the ground. ¡°Blrb!¡±

    ¡°Yeah, yeah, yeah.¡± You patted him on the back of his head before wiggling out of his grip. ¡°Come on, let¡¯s get home before the drunks start wandering the streets.¡±

    ¡°Blrb!¡± he said cheerfully, floating up and down.

    ¡°Oh, and no buying any cats.¡±

    ¡°Blrb!¡± he whined.

 Avatar Symbiosis (1)

    A young woman drives with her mother.

    Unlike the many comfortable rides before then, the ride now is filled with tension, frustration, and simmering anger.

    ¡°It says you should turn right there.¡± The young woman pointed to the battered road sign up ahead. In her hand is her phone, where a GPS app is tracking her mother¡¯s driving. ¡°It should save us a few minutes --¡±

    The mother disagreed. ¡°I¡¯m not taking the freeway. Not this late at night.¡±

    The car took another direction. The GPS app beeped and created a new route that would take ten minutes longer.

    ¡°But Mom, shouldn¡¯t we get there quicker? He¡¯s waiting for us --¡±

    ¡°He can wait all night! I¡¯m not taking the freeway. No way in hell.¡± The mother gripped the steering wheel. Her knuckles were white. ¡°I can¡¯t believe this. Just when his probation was ending¡­¡±

    ¡°He sounded scared on the phone,¡± the young woman said. She couldn¡¯t help but think back to her brother¡¯s whispered words, the way his voice trembled as he pleaded with her to come get him. She had never heard him sound so afraid. ¡°I think they just dumped him out somewhere.¡±

    The mother snorted. ¡°Good. He deserves it.¡±

    A part of the young woman felt like she should argue. A bigger, more tired part of her wanted to agree.

    Instead she watched the GPS. Her mother watched the road. They both kept silent.

    Several minutes passed before the young woman spoke. ¡°Do you think he¡¯s okay?¡±

    ¡°He¡¯s fine.¡± The mother¡¯s tone was sure. ¡°They won¡¯t do anything bad to him. The police just dropped him off.¡±

    ¡°But he must be scared --¡±

    ¡°Good!¡± The mother glared the young woman, then at the road. ¡°We were so close! So close to ending his probation! And he goes and does something like this!¡±

    ¡°Yeah¡­¡± the young woman trailed off. She didn¡¯t know what to say to that.

    ¡°What did he say he did? Did he tell you?¡±

    The young woman shook her head. ¡°No. He just wanted us to come and get him. He sounded scared,¡± she repeated.

    The mother sighed. The bags underneath her eyes and the wrinkles on her face made her look even older. Tired. More worn out. ¡°God, I can¡¯t believe this is happening. Why did he have to get arrested again? Are we gonna have to go to court? Will this be on his record? I just...¡± she trailed off.

    The young woman wasn¡¯t sure what to say to comfort her mother. She never was good at that sorta thing. So for lack of anything better to say she just rested her hand on her mother¡¯s and gave it an awkward, too tight, sweaty squeeze. ¡°I-It¡¯s gonna be okay, Mom.¡±

    The mother sighed. ¡°I hope so [__]. I really hope so.¡±

    <hr>

    You woke up the next day feeling like you wanted to die and like you wanted to run a marathon at the same time. A confusing mix of emotions that made you want to roll over on your hay pile and fall asleep. Unfortunately, you had a job to do.

    You did a quick morning stretch before washing up and getting dressed. A quick glance outside showed that the sun was just starting to come up. You managed to wake up early this time. Hopefully you could beat out the rest of the Rank F Adventurers and get some good quests before things got crowded.

    One hearty breakfast made up of water, apples, and bread later, and you were ready for the day.

    Tentacled Joe, meanwhile, had only just gotten up and was sleepily waving his tentacles around in an attempt to ward you off. You weren¡¯t having it though. Using all the strength your twelve year old body had -- which was a lot -- you dragged Tentacled Joe off the hay pile and dumped him on the floor. ¡°Get up.¡±

    ¡°Blrb¡­¡± he whined, not moving an inch. He was sprawled across the floor, tentacles everywhere. You resisted the urge to step on them.

    ¡°Fine then. I¡¯ll just eat your breakfast --¡±

    Tentacled Joe shot up from the floor. ¡°Blrb! Blrb!¡±

    You smirked. ¡°That¡¯s more like it.¡±

    After a bit more mumbling and grumbling for Tentacled Joe, you and him were ready for the day. You gave John a quick goodbye before heading straight towards the Guild.

    You opened up the Guild doors and glanced around for a bit, looking for Kyle. No sign of him though. In fact there weren¡¯t many Adventurer¡¯s around this early in the morning. Maybe all Adventurers weren¡¯t morning people?

    The same receptionist was there though. You beelined for the front desk and gave her a hello.

    ¡°Welcome back.¡± The receptionist gave you another one of her professional smiles. ¡°I assume you¡¯re here for another quest?¡±

    You nodded. ¡°Is Kyle here?¡±

    The receptionist shook her head. ¡°I¡¯m not entirely sure. Perhaps you should check the Quest rooms?¡±

    You gave the receptionist your thanks before heading into the Rank F Questing room. There weren¡¯t as many people in there like last time, though there was still a considerable amount. You guessed a lot of people had the same idea as you.

    No sign of Kyle though. Maybe he had something else to do today? Or maybe he was still recovering. Either way, you didn¡¯t come all the way down here for nothing. Kyle or no Kyle, you planned on doing a quest today.

    You and Tentacled Joe elbowed your way to the quest board. Your eyes scanned for the herb quest, but found no sign of it. Maybe someone else took it before you? But no, the paper replaced itself when Kyle took it.

    ¡°Hey, where¡¯s the yofa leaves quest? Isn¡¯t it always here?¡± a person next to you complained.

    Another person answered. ¡°The receptionist said some monsters started migrating near there. A bunch of killer flowers or something. A team of Rank E Adventurers were sent to wipe them out, so it should be a week until the quest comes back up.¡± This book''s true home is on another platform. Check it out there for the real experience.

    The first person groaned and started complaining about needing money for some gambling thing or whatever. You tuned out by that point.

    ¡°Blrb?¡± Tentacled Joe asked. You noticed a couple of his eyes straying towards a girl dressed as a witch. She had a cat resting on top of her oversized hat.

    ¡°Yeah. Look around, see if there¡¯s something simple we can do.¡± You grabbed a tentacle and pulled him closer. ¡°And no eating cats, alright?¡± you hissed.

    ¡°Blrb¡­¡±

    You examined the board again. You planned on getting something simple, easy, and not dangerous in any way. This was only your second day after all; no need to rush head first into dangerous territory. Tentacled Joe might be able to handle himself, but you were still learning.

    There were dozens, if not hundreds of Rank F quests tacked onto it. Some of them looked dangerous -- like the quests that asked you to hunt for some monster or the one that asked you to guard someone -- but most of them looked really easy. Less monster hunting and more general labor and miscellaneous tasks. Things like gathering ingredients, delivering messages, carrying packages, stocking shelves -- there were even a few dog walking and lawn mowing quests -- were more common from what you could tell.

    Very few of these easy quests paid well though. The ones that did were quickly and ruthlessly taken down by Adventurers that were faster and taller than you. Tentacled Joe, the asshole, was too busy eyeing the witch¡¯s pet cat to help you gather the quests you needed. You had to tug him back more than once when he tried to reach for it.

    Eventually, you found yourself looking at a quest that seemed promising enough.

    RAT EXTERMINATION

    Quest Giver: Baron Hargreave

    Quest Rank: F

    Duration: Indefinite or until the rats are exterminated completely.

    Request: I, Baron Hargreave, would like to be rid of the rodent infestation that plagues our dear sewer systems. Please ask for the sanitation engineer at the Adventurer''s Guild for more information.

    Reward: 5 Copper Coins per each rat corpse. Killing all the rats at once will earn the Adventurer 1 Gold Coin.

    A gold coin? That alone would give you and Tentacled Joe a good thirteen extra days at an inn. Twenty if you managed to find another source of food. You could probably buy yourself some serious equipment as well, maybe a few more sets of clothes. And the period of financial security would allow you to direct your attention to other problems that needed solving-- namely the whole system connection, the de-aging, and amnesia.

    But then you caught yourself. The fact that the Baron was willing to offer so much money for something like this meant that it probably wasn¡¯t going to be as easy. Sure it was Rank F, but so was that herb gathering quest. Who knew what kind of horrific surprises would await you in the sewers?

    Ugh, the sewers.

    Your nose was wrinkling at the thought of it. Surrounded on all sides by shit and piss and all sorts of foul nastiness you didn¡¯t want to think about. God only knew how Tentacled Joe would handle it considering how sensitive his nose was.

    No, you should go for something simpler. That rabbit hunting quest looked easy enough --

    ¡°Blrb.¡± Tentacled Joe pointed at the sewer quest. ¡°Blrb, blrb, blrb.¡±

    You looked at him in surprise. ¡°Wha -- really? Are you sure?¡±

    ¡°Blrb,¡± he said decisively. ¡°Blrb, blrb.¡±

    You gave him an uncertain look. ¡°I dunno man. Sewers smell pretty bad. You think you can handle it?¡±

    ¡°Blrb. Blrb, blrb,¡± he pointed out.

    ¡°Well... if you say so. How much does it cost?¡±

    ¡°Blrb.¡±

    You thought about it for a minute. ¡°Well that¡¯s not too bad. I¡¯ll pay for it this time, but next time it¡¯s on you.¡±

    ¡°Blrb.¡± He nodded.

    You ripped the quest down and took it to the receptionist. ¡°We¡¯d like to take this one.¡±

    She took the paper and gave it a quick once over. ¡°Hmm¡­ yes this is a recent one. Fairly simple.¡± She pressed a button underneath her desk.

    There was a puff of black smoke and the guards appeared.

    ¡°Could you please get Bob for me? Tell him it has to do with a quest.¡±

    The guards nodded and disappeared. Moments later they reappeared with an elderly man holding a mop and bucket. His clothes were stained, and there was a disgusting smell coming off of him, like he spent days rotting in the sun. He was hunched over slightly, his eyes in a squint as he looked you. He was annoyed.

    Tentacled Joe covered the lower half of his face with all six tentacles and floated a good meter back.

    ¡°Whatdoyawant?¡± the janitor said in one breathless word. ¡°¡®m busy.¡±

    ¡°Ms. Random would like to know more about the rats in the sewers.¡±

    The old man looked you up and down. Then he grinned, showing a mouth full of old rotten teeth. ¡°Heh. Ya wanna know about the sewers little girl?¡±

    ¡°Uh.¡± You glanced at the receptionist then at him. ¡°Yeah?¡±

    The old man leaned forward. You fought the urge to lean back. ¡°Ya best stay away from them sewers little girl. Those rats¡¯ll eat ya up and shit ya out before ya even have the chance ta scream.¡±

    ¡°Uh,¡± you said again. You were starting to have second thoughts. ¡°Alright. Well. Maybe I should --¡±

    ¡°But if yer so set on going down there, then I might as well give ya a little bit o¡¯ advice.¡± He took a step forward and really leaned into your personal space. You fought the urge to cover your nose and started breathing through your mouth. ¡°Stay close to the exit. I mean real close, so ya can run when ya need to. Always keep some light on ya. Fire works best. Ya can even use it as a weapon if ya need to. Ya won¡¯t have to worry about the little ones much; they run at the sight of ya. But the big ones?¡±

    The old man cackled and thankfully leaned away from you. ¡°Well, ya best get to runnin¡¯ if ya start seein¡¯ the big ones. The size of small dogs and vicious as all hell. They won¡¯t run away from ya, not unless ya set them on fire. And the even bigger ones? They never run. They¡¯ll fight ya to the death and beyond.¡±

    ¡°...okay.¡± Stay near the entrance, carry fire, run if you see gigantic rats. Simple enough. ¡°Any more advice?¡±

    The old man just cackled. The receptionist, seeing that he wasn¡¯t planning on stopping anytime soon, made a hand gesture towards the guards. They nodded, grabbed him by the arms, and poofed him away.

    ¡°I apologize for that. Mr. Rivers is somewhat¡­ eccentric in his old age,¡± she said delicately. ¡°Would you still like to go through with this quest?¡±

    You glanced at Tentacled Joe. He nodded at you.

    ¡°Sure.¡± You figured that you¡¯d just stay near the entrance until you got enough rat corpses. If the shit hits the fan, you¡¯ll have Tentacled Joe set everything on fire and make a run for it.

    ¡°Perfect.¡± She stamped the quest paper and it disappeared in a flash of red light. ¡°Oh, and I¡¯ve neglected to tell you about our quest requirements. All Adventurers must fulfill a monthly quota of quests in order to maintain their rank and occupation as Adventurers. Rank F Adventurer¡¯s such as yourself must complete no less than twenty quests per month. Failure to do so will cause a loss in ranking, a monthly fee, or your termination. Thank you, and have a good day!¡±

    ¡°You too.¡± You left.

    You and Tentacled Joe went to Dan¡¯s GearMart to get some supplies before heading to the sewers. An hour full of asking for directions, weird looks, and getting lost later, and the both of you found yourselves underground, staring at a stained, rusted steel door with a submarine steering wheel in the center. The maintenance guy, a pot bellied middle aged woman who looked both sleep deprived and drunk, didn¡¯t even bother to stick around when she showed you where the entrance was. She gestured towards the door, mumbled something about needing a break, then left you alone to wander the sewers unattended.

    You glanced at Tentacled Joe. ¡°You ready?¡± Your voice was muffled due to the enchanted mask you had covering the lower half of your face. It cost you a pretty penny to buy, especially since the enchantments would only last a day, but you figured it was worth it to get two. Who knew what kinda horrible smelling gases you¡¯d find in a rancid sewer?

    Tentacled Joe lit himself on fire in response and gave you a muffled, ¡°Blrb.¡±

    You and Tentacled Joe twisted the wheel and, with a horrible moaning sound, the door slowly opened.

    ¡°Let¡¯s get this over with.¡±