Small Steps in the Right Direction

We enter the Small Steps Orphanage together. Once inside, the young boy instantly decides to run along and heads down a path to my right, neglecting to give me any sense of direction or help. This leaves me standing alone, awkwardly, in the entry room that looks like a reception for a hotel or office. Directly in front of me, there are multiple seats with small tables and candles on them. There is also a long desk that says "Welcome," making me think that someone should be behind it, but it's empty.

I walk around the room a minute, looking out some windows, at the furniture, and a painting. The furnishings are nothing special, mostly just made out of dark wood, and the sofas are made out of some light red fabric that I don't recognize. The painting depicts a large group of individuals, chiefly children of varying ages, sitting around with happy faces; three adults, one male and two females, are standing in the back behind a couple of the larger children. It makes me reminiscent of the class pictures I used to have taken back in school while I was on Earth.

After I decide that I'm done looking around, I take a seat on one of the sofas, closest to the large standing desk, as I wait. I lean back and rest my eyes. Today has been a long day, and I'm pooped. Ultimately, I'm not sure how much sleep I had gotten before I woke up, and after everything that happened in the Tutorial and the Exalted Kitchen, I think I deserve some shut-eye.

A couple minutes pass while I'm left to daydream before I hear the sound of footsteps approaching. I bring myself back to awareness as I wait for whoever it is to arrive. It's a woman who enters the room, coming from the hallway to the right, the same direction the kid had gone previously.

She looks familiar, but I can't remember where I saw her before... Oh, wait, never mind. This lady was one of the two women in the picture. That's where I saw her.

"Welcome to the Small Steps Orphanage. How may I help you?" The woman who entered addressed me.

I'm honestly at a loss for words just looking at her. She looks young, has healthy tan skin, a smooth face, a perky nose, vibrant green eyes. Her body is short, probably in the lower fives, and she is wearing a dark-green dress with a tanned apron and a dark belt. Her chest only perks out a little bit, and a pouch and a wooden face mask that draws my attention are attached to her belt.

The mask looks like something a druidic cultist would wear in a fantasy game. It has cat ears and black swirls painted above the eye slits. I'm not sure why I feel this way, but I think that the mask may very well be one of the items meant for the ability slot. If that happens to be the case... No fair, I want one.

Overall, I think she's pretty, but that's not what has me hung up and unable to articulate my thoughts. It's her hair... her long... cyan... hair.

Beautiful people with wacky hair colors were not all that uncommon where I lived, I'm pretty used to it, but something about her hair didn't feel... fake? I don't know why I'm surprised though, I have seen people with green and purple skin while I have been here, and if I ignore the fact that I saw a literal penguin android while I was walking with Emani; all this shouldn't be weird, but it is.

The woman moves to sit on the sofa opposite of me and pats down her dress. Once done, she turns her head in my direction and raises one of her eyebrows. She has a curious expression as she inspects me up and down in silence. Her silence makes me feel awkward, so I try to think of what to say to answer the question, but I only have one thing on my mind.

I clear my throat and say, "Uhh... Your hair, um, I'm sorry, this might be rude, but is your hair... uh, real?"

She looks puzzled before looking down and grabbing a strand of hair lying over her right breast. She pulls on it and starts to rub. She answers, "No, I'm not wearing a wig. This is my hair."

"No, no, no, I'm sorry, I mean the color, is your hair that color naturally." I don't know why I'm so strung up on this question.

She raises her similarly colored eyebrows in question before answering with, "Yes? I was born like this. Why? Is there something wrong?"

"Yes, No! No, sorry, no, there is nothing wrong with it. It's nothing." I respond in subtle panic.

She gives me a wry smile and says, "You're silly."

She called me silly...

We go silent after that. The awkwardness I feel permeates the room as the woman continues to study me. I don't know what to say anymore. I should probably introduce myself; it's a good conversation starter.

I gather my thoughts to start speaking, but right before I do so, she resumes the dialogue with, "My name is Veleda, you are?"

"Marcu... Zero, my name is Zero." I almost give my 'Earth Realm' name.

"Zero... You have a unique name. What can I help you with? You look too young to be a potential parent. Are you perhaps lost?" She questions with a hint of concern.

"Uhh... I was brought here. Emani told me that someone could help me here."

"Emani...? I don't recognize that, na... Oh, the commander. Did he bring you here?" Veleda seemed to not recognize his name at first but quickly concluded who I was talking about.

"Yes, Emani, the commander, the one in gold armor," I respond.

"Strange...? How old are you?" A pause in her voice before she asks.

"Uh... I'm eighteen." I don't know if it is relevant, so I give my actual age.

"Hmm... You're a little too old to be a child for the orphanage. Do you know why you are here other than 'for help?'" She used air quotes while speaking. God, I hope she's not that type of person.

Her question makes me stop and think for a little bit. I don't remember Emani telling me why I was brought to the orphanage and not somewhere else. The only reason he gave was 'for help.'

"No. I had just completed the Tutorial and the Kitchen and was dropped into the Nexus from the glowing white portal. That's when I was discovered by Emani, and he walked me here." I don't think I need to go into too much detail.

"You're a Hero!" Veleda stands up from the sofa with a shocked look while looking at me with excitement in her voice.

"Yeah... sure." I'm not one of those who dislike being called a hero like in some movies and shows, but I'm still unsure about my situation. Emani explains things well, but I would like to call myself a bit of an airhead, aren't I humble...

"A Hero!" I hear the sound of another young boy's voice, different than the first I met outside the orphanage. He sounds more mature.

"He's a Hero!" I hear another voice, this time coming from a young girl.

"See, I told you he's not here to adopt." This voice sounds familiar. Probably the first boy who brought me in here.

"Yes, I can help you, anything you need." Veleda seems weirdly enthusiastic, given her calm demeanor beforehand.

"Uhh, Yes, Help... I, uh... I don't know what I need help with." Mostly, I need food, water, and shelter, but I don't feel like that's what I was brought here for... Well, maybe, but I could have just been dropped off at any other random building, and I probably would have been given the same treatment given how they are acting.

"Anything. Just ask." Veleda sounds adamant.

I can't think of anything, so I will just say the redundant, "I need help knowing what I need help with."

Veleda gives me a questioning look while squinting her eyes. She falls into contemplation for a couple seconds before asking me, "Why are you here?"

"Because I need help," I answer simply.

"No, why are you here in the Nexus?" She is clearly looking for a different answer.

"I don't know ... ... Because I need to help defeat Oryx. That's what I was told."

"Exactly, you were brought here to kill our greatest threat. Our job is to make sure that you can do your job." She placed extra emphasis on 'you' while pointing at me.

"That means that we are obligated to give you shelter until you can stand on your own two feet. That means food, bed, advice, and family if we have to. So, let's start with the knowns and the unknowns. What's your name."

"Zero." She obviously already knew that, but whatever.

"What's your class?" Veleda asks.

My class?

"My class?" I ask, out loud this time

"Yes. Your class." She voices out more clearly.

"Umm... I'm a hero." I'm not actually sure what she's trying to get at. I will just go with the safe option.

"No, what's your class?" The wrong answer, I guess.

"I don't know." What does she want from me?

"How don't you know?" She honestly sounds confused this time.

"What... What do you want me to say?"

"Urgh... What's your ability?" She asks another question.

"My ability? I don't have one." I look towards my equipment bar to see that the ability slot is still empty.

Veleda lifts her head up high in clear annoyance and sighs. She looks back towards me and says, "What do you mean you don't have one? Did you drop it!"

"No... Maybe... I don't know. I don't have anything." My mind enters hyperfocus as I think of solutions to this problem, or rather, escape the issue altogether.

Veleda closes her eyes and takes a deep breath. I see her shoulders relax a tiny bit as she eases back up. She opens her eyes and tells me callously, "Zero, you are not a child, do not play these games with me. You have an ability; tell me what it was or what it looked like if you are honest about losing it. Only once I know what it is can I help you."

I just shrug my shoulders and shake my head.

She once again closes her eyes. I can tell she is nearing her breaking point. Let's just hope I don't push her over the edge; that would be bad.

"Okay... okay, fine, your ability is unknown. Can you at least tell me what it did?"

"Nope..." I'm so screwed.

"I've had it! Given your robes and the wand you have been gripping ever so tightly since you entered the building, I assume you are either a priest, a sorcerer, or a summoner! I don't know how the class selection goes for heroes, but I know that you know what you are!" Veleda is obviously getting upset, but so am I, so I respond with...

"I don't know a damn thing about my class! I didn't get the privilege of choice! I don't know anything about these priests and sorcerers and summoners you talk about! All I know is that I was kidnapped from my home, and I woke up alone in a room of nothing! Nothing!" I take a break to breathe and organize my thoughts.

"Bullshit, and you know it! You know damn well what you are. Why are you making this so difficult! Just tell me about your class! What's there to hide!" Veleda took the opportunity to deny everything I said.

I resume with my earlier train of thought. "I don't know, woman! I got a screen telling me to choose my name lest I want to explode, but when I did, I got an error message telling me, 'Character not dead!' What's that even mean! The next thing I know, I wake up in the Tutorial as it was called without a single possession to my name!" I stand up from the sofa to continue my tirade.

"Naked and afraid, I'm forced into a death game where I need to dodge magical balls as strong as hammers and kill evil chickens who threaten my life! Do you know how fucking insane that is!" I take another breather before proceeding.

"I'm then thrown into a new place called the Kitchen! I was forced to fight my way through hordes of men just to survive! Do you know how many times I almost died! Do you know how many people I had to kill!" Tears start to run down my face, and my throat is becoming grainy from all the yelling I'm doing.

"I'm then dropped into the Nexus and apprehended by guards pointing weapons at me! The Nexus, the one place I was told I would be safe! Then, I'm informed that everyone from my planet was abducted to fight some unknown cocksucker named Oryx! Like I'm expected to give a shit!

Now I'm sitting here, in an orphanage filled with children, being called a liar by a woman who wrongfully assumes I have any clue what's going on!

I'm sorry, I don't know what class I am! I'm sorry that I don't know anything! I'm sorry that I need help!" I'm outright crying at this point, and my throat hurts.

Veleda stands in silence while I sob to myself. I wipe the tears from my eyes as I attempt to stop myself from crying; men don't cry, only babies cry. Unfortunately, the more I try, the harder it is. I move my hands up to my face to try and still the flow or at least hide it. I guess I'm a baby...

This continues on for a while before I barely hear Veleda meekly say, "I'm sorry..."

"What?" I ask, somewhat quavering.

"I'm sorry... My mother... She... We've all lost someone to Oryx. All of us." Veleda voices out softly in a broken voice.

I move my hands away to look at her. She has her head down, hair blocking the view, but I can hear the sound of raspy breathing and sobs coming from her direction. I think that she's crying too. Damnit...

"I'm sorry that you were brought here... Against no will of your own... Oryx, he's... Mad... He brutalizes everything he touches... My mother... She was killed when I was nine... My sister, father, and I, we..." She takes one big sniffle.

"We... Need you... We all need you... Our realm is being held... hostage... Please..." Veleda is very clearly struggling to find and get her words out to me.

We both fall back into our perspective silences. Veleda, softly weeping, while I have stifled my tears by now. I can tell it's not one of those fake, pity moments, so I sit and wait for her to finish while I gather my thoughts.

I don't like crying, let alone making others cry. I find no pleasure in this; in any of this. How did any of this even happen? I guess I'm just emotional right now or something. I need sleep...

Counter to my words, I actually believe that this Oryx guy is as dangerous as they say he is, but if they can't do anything about him, how do they expect me or the rest of us earthlings to? It's a little nonsensical if you ask me, but then again, everything I have experienced today is a little bit absurd.

Veleda finally stops her crying and looks back up at me.

"We good now?" I ask, trying my hardest to sound concerned.

"Yeah, we're good." She responds with a nod, and she moves to clear the tears from her eyes with her middle fingers. I notice she has a big gold ring with a large, topaz-looking gem adorning it on her right middle finger.

She breaks out in a giggle while explaining, "This," while holding out her ring, "It was my mothers." Veleda smiles while looking at the ring.

"Now, where were we? Right, your clas..." She was about to continue, but we were interrupted.

A loud, boisterous man yells out, "What in Oryx's name is going on here!"

Followed by the more mature boy I had heard a while back saying, "They were just yelling at each other."

Veleda turns to me and says, "Zero, meet my dad and owner of the orphanage."

I turn to look at him while remarking to myself, "Well, looks like things are still going in the right direction, hopefully..."