One brick at a time.

Chris and Sarah were walking back to the Inn, dusk had set in before they entered, and the Sun was clearly set by the time they had gotten out of the sewer. People had begun occupying the taverns as a lot of laborers were getting off of work, which resulted in the various restaurant-like places being filled with those in perpetual search of a good time.

The Inn was noisy with the amorphous blob of people dancing and carrying on amidst a musical performance. The lute was surprisingly pleasant to Chris' ears and it cheered him up slightly, but it also reminded him of the "good-old days" with Chad. Learning to play the Bass to help Chad get chicks…they were surely good times.

After pulling up a chair and sitting while Sarah walked over to Shay, he cracked a smile while thinking about his favorite Bass line. It was from Ramble On by Led Zeppelin, and it encompassed Chris perfectly back then. That feeling of anxiety before high school graduation, the uncertainty about the future, and the possibilities. Man, it would have been beautiful. But.

[Why was I such a fucking idiot, why didn't I take the scholarship?] Chris was thinking about his choices that led him down his current path.

["Hacking" phones and laptops…but it was so simple. Good money, but simple. I should have known that the crew would change once Tony started running things, but I didn't do anything about it…well, there isn't much I could do, right?] Chris shook his head, [Nah, fuck that. I had a choice. And I chose to leave as soon as I knew it would get bad. I should have burned them as soon as I met them!]

Chris thought about it again, [Nah, nah…that would only paint a target on my back. I should have just gone my own path. Why does this always happen? What do I really want? That is the real question…]

Chris was remembering back to the days he would go to the local shelter and attempt to treat wounds. So many of those old guys are Veterans without a place to go, and they have serious problems.

[Fuck, I hope you are doing well Terry. I didn't get to see you reunite with your daughter, but I am sure it went great.

…

…

Damn, I really miss those old fucks. STEVE, IF YOU CAN HEAR THIS, TAKE CARE OF YOUR FOOT OR YOU WILL LOSE THOSE TOES MAN!!!]

Chris hung his head, [I told them I was going off to be a doctor, and they SUPPORTED me. They couldn't wait to hear me ramble on about endocrinology…ha..ramble on.]

He let out a little chuckle and had an idea, [Well, I could always just help out where I can. No college here, no friends other than Sarah, the Red-Haired lady, the gnome, and the kids…

It isn't the worst, but I am not ready yet. This time HAS to be different. Just be a little better, each day. Just lay a brick, one simple brick. Rebuild, a not-new start, just a different direction. One brick.]

As Chris was thinking about how to take his life in a new direction, some of the kids were playing near the small stage. One of the boys ran into a man and caused him to spill his mug of ale.

"Oi, little brat! Watch out next time!" Said the large man with a big smile.

"Sorry, Mister, I didn't mean to spill it." The kid was shy and afraid of the man, but nothing bad happened. The man simply bent over and ruffled the kid's hair, he wasn't mad in the slightest.

Chris watched the interaction and noticed how nice it turned out. He had seen Tony pour an entire bottle of beer on a young man for looking at his lady too much. He really ran with a bad crowd. Not to mention the "cleaning house" where people would DIE, but they always knew the consequences of "the life."

He felt in his pocket and rubbed the small stones, then he walked over to the bartender and asked how much a mug of ale would cost.

"5 copper coins." Said the man waiting for him to pull it out, but he just pulled out some small mana cores.

"How much is this worth?"

"About 7 copper…but I am going to have to take those both. It is very unusual to do a transaction with such low-quality cores."

Chris handed them over to the man and grabbed the mug.

He saw Sarah on the other side of the room talking to the Red-Haired lady, she had a confused look on her face, and it changed to disgust when she looked at Chris. Something was going on, but Chris had another plan.

He looked around for the small boy and noticed he was sitting down and watching the other kids play with some stones. They had a game going but it was too convoluted for Chris to recognize it.

He walked up to the kid and handed him the mug of ale. Then he pointed to the man that the kid ran into and nodded.

The kid grabbed the mug with both hands and carefully walked over to the man. It was clear that the kid was trying to implement his lesson because he waited nearly 10-seconds before walking past someone doing a wild dance move.

The kid walked up to the man and poked his leg.

"What? OH!" Shouted the man.

"LOOK HERE BOYS, THE LAD BROUGHT ME A DRINK! Thank you!" The man said as he went to shake the kid's small hand, but only his index finger was being wrapped which made him let out a hearty laugh.

The boy smiled and walked back to Chris; his smile was as wide as could be.

"Good job, buddy!" Chris was going in for a high five, but the kid didn't understand, so he shifted to a handshake and the boy went to play with his friends again.

The large man was watching the interaction and assumed it was he that bought the drink. He raised the glass as Chris looked back to him, and it was met with a smile and a nod.

[Just a single brick, and it felt good. I wonder what I will do tomorrow?]

Chris walked on over to Sarah and was going to head to sleep for the night, it was going to be a long process of change, but first, some sleep.

…

…

…

Chris awoke to a poking sensation on his dwarven booty. The kid from last night, he was gesturing for Chris to take his washed clothing.

"Is this for me, buddy?" Chris asked and the kid just nodded and ran off to play. They had just gotten done with washing the laundry and the kid was apparently trying to thank him.

He hopped out of bed and felt his chest and hand…

[The wounds, they are gone…it is like magic, well, duh!]

Chris was thinking about how fast his healing was and how insane it must be to have a healer and other people with you.

[One day, maybe.] He thought with a shrug.

After walking out of the room, he got changed in the spare closet and ran into Sarah as he was coming back out.

"There you are. Alex went to give you your clothes but then you disappeared. Are you ready for training?" Asked Sarah as she handed him a wooden sword.

"Uh…sure?" He was confused, it was morning, and nothing had happened yet, why are they so awake? But he followed her, she had a lot to teach him and he could clearly use the help.

While standing in the backyard near the stables, the stench of horse crap was almost overwhelming.

"Sarah….does everywhere smell?" Said Chris, learning to hold his nose.

She nodded, "Everywhere you will be spending a lot of time will. Only the weaklings can clear the sewers during a war!" She said while laughing.

[Rude, but true..] Chris thought as she swung her wooden sword at him. He barely ducked out of the way, but it was because Sarah was moving it at a snail's pace, not because he was swift.

"Kid, focus. Hit me." Said Sarah, but Chris was thinking about his rules…

"Sarah, my father told me to never hurt women when I was younger. I understand that it does not apply to this world, but can you bear with me a little?" Chris asked in a very calm manner, but her reaction was hysterical.

"HAHAHAHA!!!! That is a good joke, you think you could hurt me, HA!" Sarah had her guard completely open and was clearly baiting him into swinging.

He raised his blade and feinted a swing before changing the trajectory and swinging in from the right.

"Bad." Said Sarah as she lightly stepped and dodged the sword, it wasn't even close. Then she opened her eyes and smacked Chris on the top of the head.

"We are going to do this for 5-hours, then when you try tomorrow, you can go to the sewer. Your rent is going to be due soon!" She said with a giant smile.

"I thought you were going to HELP me?" Asked Chris.

She just smiled and swung, "I am helping you, DODGE FOOL!"

~End of Chapter~