Pul

    The changeling tries to keep himself calm as he makes his way toward the adventurer’s guild. The old one, that is. Slim Chance. He’s having limited success if he’s jumping to correct and clarify his own thoughts. He stops to lean against a building, closing his eyes and taking a deep breath.

    They just want to invite him on a delve, and to meet their other friend, Larrez. They know he’s not a hauler, but they like him anyway. They want to help him get stronger so he can save his parents from the guild’s machinations. They are not like the thieves guild. They want to help.

    He resumes walking, mentally repeating himself to keep his doubts at bay. He’s not sure he’d say it’s working, but he’s not running in the opposite direction, so it’s probably doing something. He’s so preoccupied with his thoughts that he enters the guild without missing a beat, only pausing a few steps inside once he realizes he was too preoccupied with his worries to wrestle with the idea of going inside.

    Progress, maybe?

    Distraction generally isn’t a good strategy, but it shows its merits again as he hears Freddie’s voice cut through the crowd and stifle his nerves before they can get going.

    “Tupul! Over here!” speaks the orc paladin, smiling from the table with Rhonda and an elf, whom Pul can only assume is Larrez. He hurries over, glad most of the adventurers are already out delving right now, and takes a seat.

    “Uh, thanks again for inviting me,” he says as he sits next to the tanned elf, who offers his hand.

    “Larrez, Tidefencer. I’m a bit of an opportunist with damage and harrying, and Freddie and Rhonda tell me we’ll probably work well together.”

    Pul flushes in embarrassment that someone would know he’s a rogue, but nobody at the table seems to notice, or they’re skilled enough in social situations to not show it. “I’m still way behind Rhonda and Freddie, but I’ll do my best.”

    “That’s all we need,” encourages Rhonda. “We’re going to be going into the Forest today, but not too deep. We’re after a living vine for Larrez.”

    Freddie smirks. “He saw how cool Lucas and Fiona are, but he must not care much for spiders,” teases the paladin, with the two arachnids giving the elf hurt looks. He’s not falling for it, though.

    “If Lord Thediem had spatial spiders, I might get one of those instead. But as far as I know, He doesn’t. Spatial affinity will help me get in and out when I need to,” he says, defending his choice as Pul looks on in confusion.

    “Taming? Is that part of your classes?” he asks, feeling like he’s missing something.

    Rhonda shakes her head. “No... well, kinda with mine. Master Staiven told me to get a familiar, and I asked Freddie to help me with it. And he didn’t guard the bucket as well as he should have, because Fiona started plucking invaders out of it like a kid with a jar of sweets. As far as I know, most classes can do a little bit of taming, but it’s often more than most people want to deal with.”

    Freddie nods. “A lot of people have trouble taking care of a dog, let alone a denizen with affinities and abilities. Lucas and Fiona are simple enough to take care of, and clever enough to only sometimes get into trouble.”

    The two spiders do their best to look innocent as the group’s eyes fall on them. Pul wonders what kind of trouble could the spiders get into, but he probably doesn’t actually want to know.

    “Which is why a living vine will be perfect for me,” says Larrez. “Plant denizens are supposed to be pretty low maintenance, so if I have to leave it alone for a while, I can make a nice pot for it to sit in and enjoy some dirt, water, and light.”

    “Though that’s partially what makes them tricky to tame,” explains Rhonda, Larrez nodding before he continues.

    “Yep, but they’re still denizens. You can pretty much always tempt them with invaders, though if that doesn’t work, we might need to delve Violet some. I’ve heard she’s started giving fertilizer as loot sometimes. It’d probably be pretty tempting for a plant.”

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    “A dungeon giving fertilizer?” blurts out Pul, wondering if they’re playing a trick on him.

    “Yep,” confirms Freddie. “Sewer dungeons apparently will sometimes give fertilizer as loot. Just another reason for cities to build their sewers to encourage dungeons spawning. I don’t think she’s ready to try to actually supply any farms, but personal gardens are going to do well this year, I think.”

    “Huh.”

    “Do you want to try taming something, too?” asks the elf, and Pul quickly shakes his head.

    “No no. I... I wouldn’t know the first thing of taking care of a denizen, and I don’t really have my own room to try to keep it, either.”

    Larrez nods at that. “Fair enough. Are we ready?”

    “Almost,” says Freddie, before turning his focus on Pul. “Thedeim wanted to talk with the four of us about something before we delve, too. It’s about your... situation.”

    Pul’s eyes widen at that as his mind races. The dungeon did promise to help him, but already? What could he possibly have in mind? Part of him says he should resist, that any ‘help’ will be a trap, a ploy to get him under a new thumb, but he pushes that voice aside. With the guild, it might be right... but he desperately wants to trust his... his new friends.

    “Then... let’s go.” He stands, and the others follow suit, with the group soon heading outside. His resolve wobbles as he realizes he doesn’t know which way they should go to meet with the dungeon, but Freddie and Rhonda easily guide the group toward the manor.

    “So, they said you might prefer some of my old gear to some of theirs,” comments Larrez, and Pul awkwardly nods.

    “Probably. I’m no fencer, but lighter weapons and armor would suit me better. Not that I didn’t appreciate the help last time!”

    Freddie chuckles. “I think you’ll have a much better time with some proper gear. If Rhonda tried to give me her old staff, I wouldn’t know what to do with it.”

    “And he’d look terrible in my old robes,” ribs the goblin with a grin.

    “I have two daggers and some oiled leather in my pack. I can even show you a few defensive moves with the daggers, if you like? I’ve tried main gauche a few times, so I know the basics, but it doesn’t quite fit my fencing style.”

    “Any tips would be good, yeah,” admits Pul, lowering his guard a little. They’re not the guild, he reminds himself. They’re just... good people.

    He and Larrez talk about dagger defense on the way, with the elf even suggesting trying a multitude of different blades. He might be specialized for rapiers, but he got there after trying a whole host of other swords. A rogue with a greatsword would be odd, but it could theoretically work. Not for him, though. He definitely prefers his weapons to be more subtle.

    Which then leads the talk down the possibility of him not using a weapon at all! It seems like madness, but Rocky’s reputation precedes him. Pul doesn’t think he can quite pull off the style, but Freddie insists that Onyx might be more his speed. The idea of learning from a shade also seems like madness, but this time it might be the sort of madness that could work.

    The talk distracts him enough he doesn’t even realize they’re in the dungeon until they get to the porch to look over the quests on offer. The little hanging planks with quests are still strange to think about, even with how popular they are. He idly looks them over as Rhonda speaks up.

    “Have you thought about a gathering or crafting skill, Tupul?”

    “Not... really?” he admits.

    “Cooking’s always useful,” suggests Freddie. “None of us have it, either. I field dress, and Larrez likes to mine. Rhonda has herbalism and alchemy.”

    “I''ve been meaning to try to learn to smith, too, but I just haven’t had time,” admits Larrez.

    Pul thinks over the options, and can’t help but think of his parents’ butcher shop. “Can... can I learn field dressing, too? And maybe leatherworking?”

    Freddie smiles. “I don’t see why not. I tend to focus more on getting the most valuable pieces, but if you can get the most delicious pieces, maybe I’ll have the motivation to take cooking.”

    Pul looks over the quests once more. “Which monster should I try to learn with, then?”

    Freddie hums as he looks over the options. “The best for a beginner, especially if you want to try to focus more and food than reagents, might be to get some of Violet’s bunnies.”

    “That’s... pretty out of the way, isn’t it? We’ve going to the forest, right?”

    Larrez shrugs. “I don’t mind coming back to delve Violet, or even delving her first. It might be a good idea to try to get some fertilizer as backup, just in case.”

    The other two nod, so Pul accepts a quest to skin four bunnies, intending to properly dress them for eating, too. His parents never formally taught him how to butcher, but he watched and helped, so he knows the very basics at least. Imagining working and actually creating something, rather than simply taking... it feels right. He smiles as he looks at the simple plank with the quest, feeling like it’s the first step to... something better.

    He doesn’t even jump when he hears the voice of the Voice from the railing of the porch.

    “If you guys have your quests, I’ll take you to the war room so we can chat. The Boss has an idea, but it’ll be up to you if you want to try it, Tupul.”

    The disguised changeling looks back at the simple wooden plank in his hand with his quest on it and nods. “I want to try.” He can’t remember the last time he actually wanted to try.