The Wayfarer: Chapter 2

She was beautiful. Her bright blue eyes sparkled like sapphires, which matched her dress. Her fair skin was complimented with her curly. golden blond hair. Her figure, as could be seen from the elegant dress, was impressive, and he was determined to introduce himself to her, and things had been going smoothly since.

They had moved into a more private setting, and things had moved quick. She quickly took charge, lightly pushing him into the wall. She pressed onto him and kissed, and then those eyes pierced him.

"You've never done this before, have you?"

"Uhh... no.. no I haven't" he said, rather embarrassed.

"Would you like to continue?"

"Yes!"

"I need you to wake up love."

With that, he was thrust into reality with a great shock. He panicked, quickly looking around, trying to collect his bearings. He was alone, with no discernable sight. He went to scream, to shout for help, but his throat was bare.

He grabbed it as it failed to produce his voice, and quickly his panic of uncertainty, was replaced with fear. Who had picked him up, and why? He thought, trying to recollect his memory.

He was walking... he had reached the road, he grabbed his water skin...water skin!

He reached to his side, and found it along with his sword. He sighed, wherever he was, he had survived, and seemingly was in safety.

He sat up, and was overwhelmed with a dizzy spell, and a shock of pain. His body felt heavy, and sitting up was a great effort. He groaned and coughed, and if he could, would certainly have teared.

"Relax now" a sooth voice was heard. A hand met to the back of his head, and at the tip of his lips, he felt cold water. He would have never guessed water could taste so good, could feel so refreshing. It went down smooth, soothing his aching throat, and before he knew it, the water was gone. "You're really lucky, we thought you were no longer among us. You try to rest, there will be food in the morning".  

 

He laid down, and soon his eyes closed shut.

No further dreams transpired through the night, and it seemed to go in a moment. He was awoken, as the sun gently shown in through the cracks. A aroma of peppered rabbit, boiled stew, and grilled eggs filled the air around him, inviting him outside. Numerous muffled voices could be heard, they were apparently in an argument, or at least a strong discussion, what he could only assume was about him.

He suddenly felt a strong ache in his stomach, as if it was crying out in pain. How long had it been since he ate? What day was it. Soon though his voice of reason had disappeared completely from his mind. He had been overwhelmed with a primal desire of survival, a irrational desire to eat.

He attempted to roll onto his stomach, and to get up, but he failed. His body ached, and he felt weak. He remember hearing a tale of someone who had been the victim of a terrible spell called Drain Life, just enough to barely survive. The man lived out the remainder of his days barely being able to move, had such a fate befallen him? 

No, he clearly was just hungry. Who knows how long it had been since he ate? However he knew there was food, and people, just outside  the canvas. These people, assuming they were such, had cared for him. They could be trusted, right?

He resolved crawling through the wagon, over bags and boxes, until he reached the opening. 

The golden light of the late morning sun had blinded him, if only temporary, as he exited the wagon. However it was enough to force him off his balance, and he fell, face first, into the dirt below him. 

"Looks like he is alive, guess I owe you a drink after all Olivia". 

 

"Told you!" she laughed "Saisha is the best Samite we could afford. Sure, she was free, but the point stands".

"Yeah I guess so, speaking of which, there she goes running to heal someone else."

Two hands helped him up, and a familiar voice said "are you okay? Please, have something to eat." 

She guided him to the fire where a plate sat, with little bits of rabbit, some left over eggs, and a single potato waited for him. 

"Sorry it's not much, but we didn't plan for a stowaway when we set up provisions." 

"He's not a stowaway, but an honest victim. I told you I couldn't leave him, and I didn't. You don't mind him, he knows he needs me, you just eat."

He starts digging into the food, hands over hands. While the meal was very basic, it at that time was the very best thing he had ever eating. He ate in like a savage, not even finding time to chew, which caused him naturally to choke.

"My God, be careful" Saisha said while handing him a water skin.

"Figures Saisha meets a boy, and immediately has a crush. Reminds me of you at that age."

"Shut up! I ended up with you didn't I? Speaking off, I think introductions are in order."

She turned over to the hero "I'm Olivia, and my fiancé here is Jacob, we are Benalish Heroes."

Olivia stood there with a smile. She, despite her warrior origin, actually had a fairly good smile, with clean teeth. Her hair, was a short auburn color, with dark brown eyes. Her body was toned, with lean muscles. 

Jacob was equally as toned, but much more defined. His smile was crooked, and he possessed a dark 5 o'clock shadow. He had long black hair, that flowed freely behind him. 

Both were clad in black leather armor, a traditional attire for heroes. However, both had been customized to show certain assets. Olivia's trousers hugged her legs particularly tight, and Jacob's armor had been designed with a classical abs look, which even he knew was impractical. Further more, his arms lacked any sort of protection, instead it showed off the muscles of his arms.

The two carried long swords and buckles, but Olivia also appeared to have a composite crossbow by her feet. 

The young woman who had been giving him the water in all this said "I'm Saisha. I'm a Samite Healer on my pilgrimage."

She smiled and looked bashfully down. She wore a modest healers robe, still white and news, and a dress. 

"Yeah, she has to run around and heal people and help people. Something like that" said Jacob. "She has her uses, that's for sure. Speaking of which, if you're going to be traveling with us, you need a use. Otherwise you're just a dead weight and we can't afford that. So I noticed you had a sword on you, even if you aren't particularly good at it, an extra blade is an extra blade. At the very least you can catch one"

"Hey!" Olivia said while smacking his stomach. "Be kind."

"Yes, I can" said Gabriel as he looked up from his plate. "I'm more then capable with my sword".

"That's good... speaking of, we never got your name"

"I'm Gabriel Croger... of Benelia".

"Oh a Croger! What's a noble doing out here in the Kb'Briann Highlands? You're a bit more rugged looking then I'd expect from one of those pretty boys as well."

"My father bought some land out here, sold everything, but I am going back to Benalish City!"

"Well it would seem Anthius has joined us together. We will be heading there, after our job. It's been three days ride since we picked you up, and we were still quiet away from the border. You can try to walk it, and maybe you won't be so lucky next time. The Warrior clans here might be under Benalish jurisdiction, but I don't doubt they'll kill a lone traveler. However, you can travel with us, and when we finish the job, you'll get a cut, if you survive, you'll start your life in Benalish City with a bit of gold on your belt."

"You have a deal" said Gabriel.

"Perfect! Start by cleaning all this up with Saisha. We will be back in an hour or so." He pulled his woman towards him and they laughed. 

They started walking off when he stopped "oh, leave him alone, he will take care of his own stuff". 

He pointed at the other man, who hadn't said a word this entire. He was short, probably shorter than Gabriel. His skin was a pale cream, and his hair was jet black. It was immaculate, each hair was seemingly perfect, slicked back into what could be described as a ponytail, but without a tail. His face was smooth in a clean shave, which complimented the sharp features. His eyes were the most exotic part of his feature, they weren't like any eyes he had seen before, instead they were narrow, and appeared to be simply black, not with the bright colors he was use to seeing.

He held a small cup, and a teapot. Each drink seemed to be taken with extreme caution. His demeanor was stoic, not once in the exchange did he laugh, or to Gabriel's notice, even smile. Instead he simply knelled, drinking his tea.

He wore what could be described as a silk and fur robe. Its colors were white and red, and an insignia he didn't recognize was in black on the right breast. In front of him laid two swords, and what could be described as a long knife. They appeared to be very ornate, wrapped in painted polished wood, and elaborate silk designs. To his side laid a bow and a few arrows. Compared to the blades they were outright crude. 

The man stood up, bowed to Saisha, and started to collect his things. He wrapped them together into a sack, then proceeded to walk up the creek.

"Here before he gets back, help me get this into the wagon."

They hurried, tying up pots, and putting them in the nets that covered the inside of the wagon. They rolled up the tents, collected the various cooking tools, and other assorted objects that laid around. Finally, they filled all the water skins and washed the wooden cups as and plates in the creek.

They had just finished up the last of it when the couple returned. Around this time the man had also returned. He bowed, much more formally to Jacob, and then retired into the wagon, closing the cloth cover behind him. 

"I guess it's time to leave isn't it? We watered the OX this morning right? Right. Alright, ten four, let's move out".

They got in their appropriate places, Saisha and Gabriel sat at the tail of the wagon, facing North. 

"So what's this job anyway?"

Saisha smiled, reached behind her into the wagon, and pulled out a map.

"Let me explain it to you."