It took SJ the rest of the morning and into mid-afternoon, before she could see the town in the near distance. Luckily, she had no further incidents or more rivers to cross while travelling there. The town had only looked small from afar, but as she approached, walking between two fields of corn, she realised it was much larger. It reminded her of a typical scene from many games she had played. Thatched roofs, smoking chimneys, and as she neared, she could hear the hammering of a blacksmith and the hustle and bustle of market traders. She smiled at the thought. The town was situated towards the lake’s edge, and a couple of small boats cast nets into the lake’s water. It looked picturesque and serene, everyone getting on with their daily lives.
There was no wall around the town, and she followed the dirt track through the fields to the edge of town. A main cobbled road lay ahead of her now, and she caught her first sight of several of the other races of Amathera. She stared agog at all the goings on. A small child ran out into the road chasing a small ball.
“Excuse me,” SJ said.
The child turned and looked at her. It had pointed ears and a sharp-featured face. “What?”
“Is there an inn in town?”
“Yeah. Just keep going down the main street,” the child said, turning and picking up the ball before running back to where it had been playing.
SJ carried on down the street; no one paid her any attention. Everyone seemed to be busy. Signs were hanging in front of many of the buildings, and she recognised the symbols from games. A needle and bobbin indicated tailors. A sign displaying a sprig of herbs indicated a herbalist, while a potion bottle indicated alchemists. All the professions you could think of seemed to have a building dedicated to them.
The main street twisted and opened up into the main town square. In the centre, a small fountain with a statue was situated. She walked over and looked at it. The statue was of a small-statured being, which SJ believed to be a dwarf, and a plaque on the fountain read ‘Killic the Slayer of Dragons.’
“I am guessing the town is named after him?”
“Her.”
“What?”
“Killic was a mighty female dwarven warrior.”
“I assumed it was a male, looking at the statue.”
“And now you understand my reference to that group formed with three female dwarven members.”
Several market stalls were set up around the centre, and traders called out, trying to draw attention to their wares. The town appeared much larger than she had first thought. SJ caught the smell of freshly baked bread, and her mouth watered. One of the market stalls had trays full of loaves of bread and pastries. She walked straight over.
A being SJ recognised as a dryad ran the stall and spoke as she approached. “Can I interest you in some freshly baked goods? Loaves are two coppers. Cakes start from three coppers each.”
SJ stood staring at the array of food and picked a large-looking bun covered in a sticky covering that looked like honey.
“Honeybun. Good choice. That will be four coppers, please.” The woman picked the bun up and placed it in a napkin.
SJ called four coppers to her palm and was about to pay when she remembered that Dave had said five coppers would get her a meal and a room. “Four coppers is pretty expensive for a bun,” she told the stall owner.
“These buns are magical. They imbue you with luck for hours afterwards.”
SJ looked at the woman; she did not have a Luck attribute, so she didn’t think the woman was telling the truth.
“Dave?”
“Who is Dave?” the woman asked.
“Sorry. I am just…” SJ stopped herself. She had not noticed anyone else talking to themselves randomly within the town since she arrived, as she would look like while talking to Dave.
“I will give you two coppers for a bun,” SJ replied.
“Two coppers, you think two coppers is enough for this succulent morsel of magical making.”
“If it were magical, you would be selling them for more than four coppers,” SJ replied, frowning at the woman.
“Three coppers and that is low as I will go,” the woman said.
SJ had more than enough with her silver, so she handed three copper coins over to the woman. She noticed her smile wickedly and knew that she had just been conned. She took the bun from the woman and turned away, taking a large bite from it. The pastry was soft and warm, and the sweetness of the honey glazing made her sigh as she wolfed it down.
There was the sound of breaking glass. SJ turned to see an orc being defenestrated as its body flew through an inn window. A large-looking, angry troll appeared in the doorway with a small-framed woman.
“AND DON’T COME BACK!” the woman bellowed.
The orc was sprawled on the road outside the inn. Picking itself up, it turned and, with universally known sign language, directed its response to the troll. The troll roared and began to move towards the orc.
“Bert!” the woman called from the inn doorway. SJ thought she must be a gnome because she had bright red hair and wore a small, pointed hat.
The troll turned to look at her.
“Leave him be. He is not worth your effort.”
The troll obeyed and turned, ducking back through the inn door.
The door opening had allowed the sounds from inside to filter out onto the street, and SJ could hear laughing and joking and even the sound of music from inside. The inn sounded busy, and she went to investigate. A large sign hung on a wooden beam, ‘The Hogling Arms.’
“Dave?” she whispered.
“Yes.”
“Why did you not answer me before?”
“Because talking to yourself is frowned upon.”
“Don’t all Legionnaires have AIs, though?”
“Yes. I told you, though, most do not talk to them, and I do not know of another AI who has ever been given a name.”
“So how do we talk in public then?”
“Quietly. It would draw too much attention if you stood talking to yourself constantly.”
“If you are in my subconscious, I keep meaning to ask you, how do you see everything going on?”
“Only my voice is directed to your subconscious. I still reside in the main system interface and can see what you see and what is around you in a specific area.”
SJ had no idea how it worked, and trying to understand confused her.
“That woman tried to rip me off with the food.”
“Tried? She succeeded. I told you they will deliberately over-price things here. Nothing she sold was worth more than a copper.”
“You could have said.”
“I could, but then you would have asked another question or spoken to me again, which would have confused the woman even more.”
“I am guessing she was half-elf?”
“Yes. She was.”
“Okay. Let’s go and see if I can get a room.”
SJ walked up to the inn door and pushed it open.
The delights inside amazed her. Multiple races were sitting around large wooden tables drinking mugs of ale and other drinks, food plates clattering from a kitchen area, and a large fireplace, the fire not lit as the weather was so warm. A human male stood by the fire, playing the lute and singing ballads. It reminded her of so many books and game scenes.
A long wooden bar ran the back length of the room, with an opening leading into what she assumed was a kitchen area and off to the side was a broad set of stairs leading to the first floor. The gnome she had seen at the entrance was behind the bar, and the enormous troll was climbing out of a cellar trapdoor carrying a massive barrel on its shoulder, placing it down with a loud thud.
SJ walked to the bar and waited for the gnome to see her.
“Floretta.” The gnome screamed towards the kitchen.
“Yes.” Came a response.
“Three hogling stews, please, with fresh bread,” she said.
“Be there in five.”
The gnome turned back to the what; SJ was not quite sure; she thought it was human but with excessive facial hair.
“Three coppers for the food and another three for the ale,” the gnome said, placing three large mugs on the bar.
The hairy man dropped some coppers on the bar, picked up the mugs, and returned to a table where two similar-looking men sat.
SJ was still staring at them when the gnome addressed her.
“Yes, dear, how can I help you?”
SJ jerked back around, blushing slightly. “Sorry. I am looking for a room. If you have one available.”
“I do, but the only room I have left is the suite. Unfortunately, it is the most expensive in the inn.”
“How much is it?”
“The suite is eight coppers a night.”
“Eight coppers, that is a lot?”
“It is pricey, but it is the only room in the inn with a bath and lounge area. All other rooms share the ablutions and bathrooms.”
SJ had the funds but did not want to get conned again so soon.
“Take it,” Dave’s whispered voice said. SJ frowned, wondering why he would need to whisper inside her head. “Seeing who else may be staying here, you do not want to share ablutions with Lycanthropes. They get hair everywhere. They are very unhygienic creatures.”
SJ suddenly realised that the three large men sitting at the table were Lycanthropes, not ordinary men. She called eight coppers to her palm and placed the small stack on the bar top. “I will take it.”
“Very good. I am Kerys Thruttle, the owner of the Hogling Arms. What may I call you by?” the gnome asked as she pulled a small book from beneath the bar and started scribbling details into a ledger. Upon seeing it, SJ’s eyes flashed over the ledger immediately, her draw to numbers pulling her straight to it.
“Erm. I am SJ.”
“SJ? That is unusual. I am guessing you are a newborn?”
“Yes. I just arrived yesterday and am trying to get myself sorted out.”
“Welcome then to Amathera. We don’t have many of your type through here.”
“You mean fae or Legionnaires?”
“Both. Our town is a little remote, being up in the mountains as we are.”
“I only realised today that you were in the mountains. I had no idea until I walked here and saw down into one of the valleys.”
“Yes. We are quite high up here. Probably why that blue has decided to stay.”
“You mean the dragon?”
“Yeah, it is causing some concern. We haven’t had a dragon in these parts since before the town was founded.”
“How long has the town been here?”
“This is our 764th year.”
“That is a long time.”
“Not for many towns.”
“I have so much to learn about Amathera.”
“It has a rich history. Killic was one of our founding members, and the town was renamed in her honour. She fought off the invasion of the black dragons almost single-handily, or at least that is how the story goes.”
“Kerys. Food.” A voice shouted from the back kitchen, and SJ saw three large steaming bowls of stew with fresh bread placed on a serving hatch.
“Sorry, duty calls. Here is your room key. First floor, second door on the left. Let me know if you need anything.” Kerys said, turning and walking to the tray containing the food.
SJ watched her skilfully pick it up and, carrying it in one hand, navigate her way through the patrons to the table with the Lycanthropes. She stood talking to them for several moments before turning and collecting empty tankards from some of the tables.
SJ picked up the room key and turned to head up the stairs. The stairs were well-worn, and the wood looked highly polished and cared for. They had seen a lot of travellers over the years. As she walked up the stairs, the noise from the rowdy bar lessened, and she followed the directions to her door. Placing the key in the lock, she turned it and walked in.
The room was large, with a large steel bath in one corner, a table and chairs, and a sofa near a fireplace. A large metal bucket hung above the fire, and SJ noticed steam coming from it. Walking over, she saw the bubbling water and a cloth hung by the fireside. She grabbed the cloth and lifted the bucket from the flames before carrying it over to the bath and tipping it in.
There was a small handle above the bath, and SJ instinctively pumped it until water began to flow. She refilled the bucket and placed it back on the fire. Looking at the bath, she realised she would need at least two more buckets full.
There was another door leading from the room. She looked into a bedroom with a large bed, a wardrobe, and a small dressing table. The bed was huge and must have been designed to accommodate trolls or similar creatures if needed. She walked over and pushed down on the mattress. The blanket covering the bed was soft to the touch, and the mattress felt firm.
“This looks okay.”
“Very nice. In starter towns, most are lucky to get a straw mattress,” Dave replied.
SJ suddenly thought. “I have done this wrong.”
“Why?”
“I should have looked for new clothes first before getting cleaned up.”
“The water will take time to heat up, so you can always go now?”
“I think I should.”
SJ left the room, locking it behind her before returning to the bar.
“Everything all right?” Kerys called over, seeing her.
“Going for new clothes while the water heats,” she called back.
Kerys smiled back as she walked to the exit. Walking back out of the inn, SJ started to go back to where she had seen the sign for what she thought was the tailors. SJ was amazed at everything going on in the town. Everywhere she looked, something was happening, or transactions were being made. She could not tell the population, but it had to be a few hundred at least, if not nearer to a thousand.
“Do you know how large the town is?” SJ asked.
“Not sure. The details of this town are quite vague. I have looked at the Wiki, but as I said before, it is not a normal starter town. The information is limited or restricted. I am not quite sure what is going on here. All the usual profession trades and basic needs for any starting adventurer should be available.”
SJ continued down the street and walked to the building with the thread and bobbin on the sign. Opening the door, she walked inside, a small bell jingling as she did.
