Chapter 3: My First Friend

Chapter 3: My First Friend

For some reason, I always seem to attract the attention of others and quickly become popular. It's strange considering I tend to be a shut-in, but it's the truth. I never have trouble making new friends.

"Thank you so much. I won't let you down," The blonde girl cheers as soon as the form is complete. "I was beginning to think that nobody was going to take me on. Oh, I'm sorry I haven't even introduced myself yet." The girl jumps back and bows her head. "My name is Amelara Dorvyre. Please take good care of me."

"I'm Suki," I reply. "It's nice to meet you, Amelara."

"I'm happy to see you two are getting along and all but would you two mind taking it elsewhere so I could assist other people," The clerk speaks up bringing to our attention the small queue of people forming behind us."

"Sorry," "I'm sorry."

Both Amelara and I quickly apologise before stepping off to the side. We find a quiet spot to talk in the main lobby near the bulletin boards containing quests. There are far fewer people here than when I first arrived at the guild meaning it's nice and quiet and we won't be bothering anyone if we stop and talk here.

"So what is the quest you have in mind for us?" Amelara asks as soon as we come to a halt in the large hall. "If it's a job involving manual labour, then I might not be much of a help, but I will do my best."

"Well the guild branch manager asked me to collect Bright Barries from the Warthog Forest," I tell her and I see Amelara's eyes go wide the moment I mention the forests name.

"Warthog Forest…" Amelara mumbles shaking slightly. "I don't know if I'm ready to go into that place…"

Is it really that scary? It must be dangerous, but I was able to handle that monster with ease the moment I discovered it's attack pattern. If this place is really as bad as everyone says, then I must have either had some serious luck during my time in those woods or some help from the game makers to get out of their alive. I'm starting to have second thoughts on this, but I push them away before those thoughts could cause fear to take root within me. This quest is good money, and even if the worse should happen, I will only respawn. What have I got to lose?

"It will be okay I was at the forest only this morning," I assure her. "As long as we are careful, we will be fine."

"Right," Amelara nods her head sounding determined, but in her eyes, I can still see the fear that she feels.

"It will be best if we head out tomorrow morning," I tell her. I still have to buy some supplies for the trip, so it's best to delay our start until the morning. "Is there any place you that will be good with you to meet up in the morning?"

"I'm staying at the Horse Shoe Inn, so does that work for you?" She asks, and I smile.

"That's perfect," I answer. "I'm actually staying there myself."

"Really? That's great! It's like it was fate that brought you my way," The girl cheers.

I don't know how this quest will end for us, but one thing is for sure is that this girl will make the task entertaining.

Dinner at Horse Shoe Inn was undoubtedly a more lively affair then lunch was. Not only is the building more crowded but a woman sings on a small stag that has been set up in the back while Amelara proves to be good company. The lively girl knocks back glass after glass of some kind of blue beer called Dragons Blood holding her drink better than any other person I have ever seen. She comments on how human alcohol is nowhere near as strong as the stuff dwarfs make while I just sit back and enjoy the surprisingly sweet taste of my drink.

Besides the surprises of the night, there also comes things you would expect from being in a busy place with free-flowing booze and a lively atmosphere. Men come up and insult me for being a Beastfolk while at the same time trying to flirt with Amelara. I'm not surprised they would flirt with her as Amelara is a very beautiful young lady, but every time someone tries to pick her up, Amelara quickly shoots them down. Most of the men get the message and leave her alone, but one man had to learn the hard way just what Amelara can do with her elbow when he got a little forceful and tried to pull my new friend up from her seat. The poor fool took nearly ten minutes to recover and pick himself up from the floor.

"Why can't I go to places like this and drink in peace?" Amelara sighs before downing the last of her glass then calling out. "Hey, barmaid I need a fillup!"

"It's your fault for being so beautiful," I comment sipping on my drink causing the blonde girl to look up at me like I was crazy.

"I'm not beautiful," Amelara replies, slowly dropping her head before whispering. "If I were then I wouldn't have made a fool of myself and had to leave my home."

"I'm not beautiful," Now it's my time to look at my friend like she's crazy. How could she say something like that? It makes me wonder if this world has mirrors in it as there is no way Amelara would call herself anything but beautiful if she were to see her reflection. Something must have happened. She commented on such an event, but I doubt she will tell me if I ask, so I bite my tongue. Maybe one day she will tell me what happened and I can make her see how beautiful she really is.

"Excuse me, miss Suki," I turn to find that young girl who waited on me at lunch. "Some people are waiting for you outback. They said they have guild business to talk to you about."

"I'll be right out," I nod. If I were seeing clearly and not under the influence of alcohol and confusion of what should have caused Amelara to doubt her beauty, then I would have sensed the threat. Unfortunately for me, I walked straight into an enemies arms. Getting up, I tell my new friend. "I'll be back in a minute."

"Don't leave me waiting too long," Amelara smiles as the barmaid refills her drink. I feel sorry for this place as I'm pretty sure they are regretting offering free food and beverages to guests like Amelara who drinks glass after glass with no signs of stopping. I hope she doesn't run the inn out of business.

When I step out into the back ally, everything is dark, and I can't see a soul in sight. It's only now that a fool like me starts to feel like somethings wrong. Unfortunately, it came too late as two figures step out of the shadows, and a third appears behind me blocking my escape. "I'm such an idiot!" I internally curse my foolishness as I recognize the people who lured me out here with bait so obvious that even a child could see it's a trap. I really screwed up this time as I see no way of escaping and with the noise coming from the inn my screams for help will go unheard.

A strong man drags his hammer across the ground, causing it to scrap as she advances towards me with killer intent in his cold green eyes. He's still wearing his chest plate, and the rest of the trio is so heavily armed that I doubt they want to just talk to me. The brown-haired women behind him have her spear drawn and shield ready to use also closes in, and while the giant behind me doesn't move, he still has massive sword drawn. I really am an idiot to walk right into this situation without hesitation. The man and woman stop in front of me as I hear a thump in the background but figurer out its source is the least of my concerns right now.

"What do these guys want this time?"

"You acctal came," The man with a hammer chuckles. "I can't tell whether you are very brave or very foolish but since you are here how about you hand over that gold your got today."

So these guys still want to take what is mine. They certainly are persistent I'll give them that, but I will certainly not hand over my hard-earned money so easily. My silence makes him growl as it frustrates him, and I can see his muscles tense as his grip on his hammer tightens. But in his eyes, I can see the hints of fear. Perfect, I can use that fear to my advantage. I am unknown to him, and I think that's what scares him so instead of replying to his demands with words I give him only silence watching as my quite defiance affects not just him but also the woman behind him.

"Didn't you hear me?" He asks louder but with a slight shake to his voice. "I told you to hand over all your gold right now… Do you have a death wish? Why won't you say something?"

I think he's had enough, so it's time to move on. I wasn't just staying quiet as he made his demands. I was plotting something and rehearsing the lines I was about to speak in my head. Instead of speaking, I laugh at him, confusing my opponents.

"Do you really think you scare me?" I ask him giving the man the cruellest stare I can muster. "Scare me? Someone who braved the depths of the Warthog Forest and returned. Do you think your words and weapons can strike fear into me after going through all that?"

Bingo. There's the look I was aiming for. The man's eyes go wide as he takes a step back. I already knew the locals feared that forest, and it seems these guys are no exception. Perfect. I may not even have to fight them to get this group of thieves to leave me alone.

"I'm not scared of you," The man tries to sound intimidating, but with his shaking voice, he fails badly at that task. "Just give us the gold, and you won't get hurt."

"Your unarmed," The women chimes in but it seems my act has left her shaking as well. "Do you really think you can take us all on by yourself?"

"Why don't we find out," I reply cracking my knuckles.

"You asked for this," The hammer man tells me as he advances.

Damit. My act my have scared them, but it seems, in the end, it wasn't enough. The man slowly advances towards me, raising his hammer high in the air. "Stay calm," I tell myself. "Just do what you did when you fought that monster. Study his attack patterns and exploit their weaknesses." Despite my best attempts to remain calm my, I can feel my heart start to race. You could hardly balm me consider the walking muscles with a hammer is closing in on me for the key. I doubt any of you would be calm if you were in my shoes.

A simple sidestep is all I need to do to avoid the blow from his hammer. The ground cracks unrealistically, and his hammer punches a small hole into the ground. I know he's strong but I doubt he is that strong but then again, this is a video game after all. The man growls as he glares at me almost as if he struggles to believe I just avoided his strike. He must be crazy if he genuinely thought that anyone would just stand still and let him hit them with his hammer. I watch as he picks up his hammer and tries to swipe me with his hammer, but I jump back feeling the wind of the blow that I managed to dodge. He may be strong and his attacks powerful, but he's so slow that his strikes are easy to read.

"Stay still," He finally says as I dodge yet another strike.

"Only a fool will do that," I reply seeing my opponent get madder by the second.

So far, I have been able to dodge his attacks, but if his friends get involved, then I won't be so lucky in the future. For some reason, they are only blocking my escape. I don't know if they are following orders or justs scared but what I do know is that if I want to live, then I need to end this fight before they come at me together.

Or maybe I won't have to fight.

An arrow digs into the ground making the hammer man jump and nearly losing his balance before a second one grazes her cheek drawing blood. As blood drips from his wound, he looks around for the source only to see nothing but the same darkness that once concealed him and his companions.

"She's not alone," The hammer man mutters.

"Where did that arrow come from?" The woman asks.

"I don't know," The hammer man replies frantically looking around. "Let's just get out of her for now."

A stand there stunned, staring at the arrow sticking out of the ground. Who just shot that? I wonder as I stare. Do I have some guardian angel, or is it someone dealing out some vigilante justice on those guys. I don't have to wait long before I find out. Jumping down from the inn's second floor, Amelara barely sticks the landing as she stumbles towards me. I'm impressed that she could make shoots like she did in this state.

"Damit I missed," Amelara mutters as she lowers her bow.

So those guys just got lucky. Here I thought that I just witnessed Amelara's marksmanship, but along she missed her targets. I think it's better this way as those guys got to learn a lesson in why it's a bad idea to rob someone. Maybe next time they will think twice before coming after me or anyone else in the future. Somehow I doubt those idiots will become model citizens, but I am confident they will not be coming after me anymore.

"Are you okay?" Amelara asks, looking at me.

"I'm fine thanks to you," I reply as confidently as I can hiding the little pieces of fear that still remain from the attack. "Your shooting scared them off. Thank you, Amelara."

"Don't mention it," Amelara smiles before nearly falling over, and I have to catch her.

"Are you okay?" No, it's my time to ask the question.

"I'm fine," Amelara assures me, but she still needs my aid even to stand. "I just drank a bit too much."

We step back into the inn with me having to guide Amelara as the alcohol takes more effect with each passing second. I carry her back into the man room of the inn and up to the desk where I ask the old man sitting behind it which room my friends is which he happily complies but as I start to take Amelara upstairs I feel a tug on my sleeve. Looking down, I see the cute blonde waitress looking up at me with concern and worry.

"I'm glad your okay," She weakly smiles, letting go of me. "I was so scared something bad would happen when I saw those people attack you."

"Don't worry. It will take more than a bunch of idiots to hurt me," I smile at her. "Were you the one that told Amelara what happened?"

"Yes," She nods. "Your friend was so cool she jumped out of her seat and ran straight to help you nearly knocking over several people in the room."

"Thank you for getting help," I say patting her on the head which she seems to enjoy as a big smile grows on her face. She rises to her tiptoes, giving me urging me to continue as much as I hate to disappoint her though I have to get Amelara back to her room as I notice my friend starting to nod off. "Thank you again, but I have to get my friend here back to her room."

"Okay," The girl frowns disappointedly. "Have a good night."

As I go up the stairs, something pops up in the centre of my vision.

"Congratulations Battle Won!"

"Exp: 10."

This game really needs to work on the timing of those popups.

I'm surprised by how well Amelara looks when she steps out of her room the next morning. With how much she was drinking the night before I expected to have to delay our departure because she would be hungover but instead, she looks just as cheerful and excited as yesterday. "Is it her half-elf traits that prevented that or just the simple fact that this game doesn't have a hangover feature?" I wonder for a moment but quickly push those thoughts out of my mind. We have work to do after all, and there is no point in getting distracted over something so small.

"Ready to go?" I ask, and Amelara happily nods her head.

"You bet," She nervously smiles.

And with that, we set off leaving the horseshoe in and even the city of Embershire. Despite her assurances, I can tell Amelara is still nervous about going into the Warthog forest and nothing I say to her seems to have any effect. He hands still shake, and I can feel her jump slightly at every sound we hear. I hope she gets better soon, and I want to help her, but I don't know how to. "What can I say to her?" I wish I knew the answer to that question.