Chapter 2: Embershire

Chapter 2: Embershire

I don't travel much. It's not that I don't enjoy it or feel excited and wonder when seeing something for the first time but travelling always brings with it a feeling of Sworrow to me. I guess it's my mother's fault as my earliest memory is of my dad driving me all around town in search of her the day she walked out on us.

Now, this is what you would expect of a fantasy world. Fields of wheat flank either side of me, but I pay the crops little attention with my gaze fixed on the white walls in front of me. Two giant statues of knights holding a spear in one hand and a shield in the other stand on either side of a gate fare larger than anything you will see in real life while knights that look like they are from the fairy tale books guarding the gate will being clad from head to toe in heavy-looking armour. Hopefully, I won't have a problem with them as they look tough and the halberds they are holding look scary.

Feeling slightly intimidated, I slowly approach the gate. It's open, and people are coming and going so it shouldn't be a problem for me just to walk on through. At least I hope that's the case. I really hope that's the case. The closer I get, the more nervous I feel as I see the guards start to stare at me, and I can't help but want to turn around only stepping forward by shire will power.

"You there!" I jump the moment a giant of a man steps out in front into the road and points at me. "I haven't seen you around here before. State the reason for your visit."

What am I going to do? I hardly believe that he will by me saying "The creator of your world gave me a quest to come here," so I have to think of something. I have never been good when put on the spot like this. What do I tell him? I can't think of a thing as my mind goes blank. Come on think of something. Anything is better than not answering.

"I'm just visiting," I quickly blurt out before my silence makes the situation any worse for me.

The giant in front of me folds his arms clearly not happy with my answer. He's a tall man who easily towers over me and is covered in thick armour like the other guards only he's missing his helmet. The man is bold and stares at me with cold grey eyes that make me feel so weak and pathetic with only their gaze. This man is frightening, and my fear of him only grows when I notice the massive axe on his back.

"Just visiting are you?" The man replies with a cold, soulless voice. "Who are you visiting exactly?"

"No one," I answer knowing how bad of a lier I am I would only put my foot in my mouth if I try to make up a story to complex. "I'm just travelling and passing through Embershire."

"Of course you are," He mutters. "I Imperial spy would only be passing through."

"I'm not a spy!" I accidentally yell at him. I told you I was never good under pressure and losing control like that only proves that to be the case in this world too.

"Then you would mind proving your innocents by taking the status check," He says as I hear footsteps behind me only to see two guards blocking my exit. I sigh, seeing no other way out of this situation.

"Fine," I shake my head. "I'll do what you want."

"Excellent," He smiles. "Follow me."

Seeing no choice as the guards behind me pushes me forward, I start to follow the cruel giant to some building just inside the wall. The creator of this game better not have set me up to be some villain. Or did I decide that I wanted to be one? Agh! It's so hard to tell with my memory of the last two days gone. I better not be a spy and find myself under arrest as soon as I reach my first city in this world. I have enough dislike of travelling as it is already so I can barely afford to have anything else added to that negative list.

Why would I even want to be a spy anyway? I did like those spy books and movies I used to own, but I would never have wanted to be a spy. Also, why would the maker of this world make people afraid of spies infiltrating their cities? If I were in charge of making this world, I wouldn't have added waring nations unless this was the type of game where you lead a country to glory. Then again, I can also see some people wanting to be some great war hero. You can be whatever you want to be in this world after all so provided warmongers with a war to earn glory in makes sense when you look at it that way.

Anyway, I am brought back to my current situation by the creak of a door. The building I am taken to is attached to the city wall and guarded by another guard, but that's all I can see before I'm pushed inside by the guards behind me, and I am starting to feel like I made a mistake coming here the moment I step inside. There are no windows in this room, and the shadows are big enough to hide serval people inside, leaving me feeling anxious. The only light in the room comes from several candles along the walls, and the only object in the room is a single stone tablet on top of a small wooden table.

"This is where we learn the truth of all strangers that comes through our cities gate," The man tells me as he steps behind the stone tablet. "Place your hands on the tablet, and we will see if you are telling the truth."

My name! What is my name? I can't look at my character information screen without looking suspicious so I… thank god its there. I feel relief was over me as I see next to the picture of my character the name I have chosen to go by in this world. I guess the shock of seeing that I am a cat person now most have made me miss it the first time around and as calmly as I can I step up to the tablet and place my hand on top of the cold, smooth surface. I can't believe I gave my character the name of my neighbours cat.

"Suki," I say out loud, and moments later, the stone tablet glows blue.

In less than a second, a status screen appears showing not only my characters traits but also everything I have in my backpack. It shows everything from my characters traits o its skills which makes me sweat as I hope my Improved Stealth and Improved Sleight of Hand skills don't get me into trouble. What was I even thinking giving my character those skills? I should have just built a character that no one could ever find suspicious.

"While you do have some questionable skills, it appears you have no connection to the empire, so you are free to go," The giant tells me, but I was too nervous to feel relieved. "Just keep your hands to yourself, and we won't have any further issues."

"No way they would send a level one," I hear a guard comment, but I pay them little attention.

"I will," I promise as I was leaving the room.

As soon as the doors open while trying not to run out of there, it was such a creepy room with all those shadows that could hide anything that you couldn't blame me for running away. Not to mention that cruel giant guard who could have sliced me clean in two with his axe had he found sufficient evidence I was a spy. I really hope I can get as far away from that room and brute as soon as possible. Hopefully, I will never have to deal with anything like that again. But now that I'm free from that hell that begs the question. What am I to do now?

Looking around the city, I find myself on what appears to be the main street which is lined with stores, inns and taverns. While I might as well find a place to stay so I head off figuring I would check into the first in I find only for something to pop up as if mocking me for going through all that with the guards.

"Congratulations Quest Complete!"

"Exp: 100."

"Gold Coins: 100."

"Level Up!"

Well, he did say he would give me extra to make up for all that's happened, but the gold seems too much. I'm still not sure about the value of things in this world, but I could be wrong, but that sum of money feels like its too much. The Exp though I am not complaining about as I have levelled up and see under my characters heal and magic bar a notification that tells me I have points to spend. I'll ignore that for now and look into it when I check into an inn.

The first in I come to look beautiful. The buildings in this city are all made of stone, making the wooden structure of the inn stand out. Looking at the shape of the building, I suppose it could have been a stable at one time, but I could always ask the people that run this inn later about it if I get curious. This place really looks lovely with big windows and flowers growing outside. I hope there is a room here for me.

Stepping inside, I am greeted with the mouth-watering smell of food being cooked while a bell rings announcing my arrival. The inside of the inn is so cosy with wooden chairs and tables neatly arranged with a few customers eating large platefuls of meat, but I don't get to look around much further as an elderly man who walks with a cane appears at a counter to my left.

"Welcome to the Horse Shoe Inn," The man smiles. "Are you hear for a lunch or are you looking to rent a room."

I can't help but smile at the man. He reminds me of my own grandfather and seems so kind that I can't help but feel happy and relaxed around him.

"Both please," I reply with my own smile. "I would like to rent a room and have something to eat as well if that's all right."

"Of course," The man tells me as he hands me a form. "Meals are free for guests and rooms are five gold coin a night. Please fill out that form and take a menu from the stack behind you and my granddaughter will take care of you. Since you are renting a room from us, your lunch will free. I wish you a pleasant stay at our inn."

"Thank you," I say before turning and picking up a menu.

I drop into the nearest free seat next to the window where I can enjoy the view of the busy street outside of the inn. This really is a different world from what I am used to. The street outside is still busy, but unlike the cars from the real world, I see people and horsedrawn carriages in their place. The air even feels different here. It feels more cleaner then what I am used to in the real world. I can't believe I am feeling this way, but I am starting to want to see more of this world. I thought my mother stole the joy of travel from me the day she left, but maybe this world could heal the scar she left.

"Here's your meal sir I hope you enjoy,"

I am brought out of my thoughts by a cheerful, energetic voice and turn to see a cute blonde haired waitress who looks like she is barely twelve but wears a bright smile on her lips and is a delight to look at. She seems like the type of girl who would never fail to bring a smile to your lips even if you were having the worse day of your life. I watch her disappearing to a back room carrying a large tray that should be impossible for her to lift but somehow she can carry it without breaking a sweat. That's a game world for ya. Only in a world like this will you see something like that. I guess I should look at the menu and pick something to eat before she comes to take my order.

Let's see what they have. The lamb stew looks tasty and so does the chicking legs, but they don't sound like the kind of things someone would order for lunch, so I keep looking and settle on the salad. I haven't had one in a well, but out of the lunch like items on the menu, it sounds the most appetising to me.

I have a feeling they must have been watching me as not a second passes between when I put the menu down, and the young waitress reappears. It must have been a just coincidence as I'm sure the staff here has better things to do than spy on their customers.

"Welcome to the Horse Shoe Inn," The young girl smiles brightly. "Are you ready to order."

"Yes, I'll have the salad please," I reply and the girl looks surprised for some reason.

"Oh, I thought beastfolk only eat meat," The girl comments as she writes down my order.

"Beastfolk," I guess that's what my race is called. I was probably told that before I entered this world, but I can't remember thanks to that system spike. Memory loss really is a pain.

"I'm sure some do but can eat meals with or without," I tell the girl who just nods her head in response before running off back to the door I presume leads to the kitchen.

Several hours have passed, and I'm still learning more about my character. I really wish my memories of creating this character would return so I wouldn't have to need to learn all these things again. There's nothing I can do about it now so I take out that form the old man gave me and to my surprise it has a touch screen like interaction system in place so I wouldn't be needing to find a pen to use. The form is relatively simple with me just requiring to write my name, state the number of days I wish to stay, and how many people will be staying so I fill it out quickly putting ten days down for the length of stay before signing the bottom. I had just finished filling out the form when the young girl returns with my meal.

"Here's your meal ma'am I hope you enjoy," She says before placing a plate of salad down in front of me and noticing the form in my hand. "If you are done with that I can take I to my grandfather and bring you your room key."

"Thank you," I say, handing her the form.

I watch the girl run off towards the front desk before turning back to my meal. Compared to food in the real world, the people here don't seem to care about presentation. I'm not sure if it is just here or everywhere, but my salad looks like someone just dopped the ingredients on my plate. It's not that big of a deal but being here really makes you appreciate the effort chiefs go through to make their dishes look as good as they taste. On the plus, I don't feel guilty about destroying a work of art when I stab my fork into the food.

"This game is unbelievable!"

I can't believe they managed to include the sense of taste into this game. Sight and sound would be easy to make, smile and touch I can see happening, but the fact they have made a game where you can taste things is so unbelievable I have to have a second and third bite to confirm what my tastebuds are telling me. How did they do it? I was expecting it to taste like nothing but come to think of it the water I drank in that forest also tasted like water. I was too distracted by other things at the time but come to think of it the water did taste just like water does in the real world. This game is too good to be true.

That meal was surprisingly nice, and it was a pleasant discovery to find that this game has a taste function. I wonder what else this game can do.

Getting up from the table, I find myself unable to wait for dinner as I pick up my room key from the table. Room Five, the young waitress told me rooms are on the second floor and labelled, so it wasn't too hard to find my one. The room isn't much with just a double bed and wardrobe, but the view from the window isn't bad as I get to see the busy street below. I know most people wouldn't find this view anything special, but I guess it's the wonder of being in the new world that makes this view so appealing to me.

The room isn't as fancy as any of the hotels I've been to before, but it suits its purpose just fine. I'm not planning on spending much time in here anywhere apart from sleeping anyway… wait can you sleep in this game? Giving that there is hunger, thirst and even taste in this game so it wouldn't surprise me if there were asleep function too. But before I find that out, I want to explore more of this town and maybe try and seel those fruits and the drops from that monster before I turn in for the night but first I have those points to spend.

I'm not sure how to go about it, but my best bet is to go through my character screen, and as soon as I hit that button on the bottom of my vision I find out I was right. It looks like my hit points have automatically increased by five from ten to fifteen, but everything else has remained the same, but I now have the option to increase everything apart from my magical points. I guess they increase every two levels or maybe when I raise some skill level. Anyway, I have two points to spend on my abilities, so I put them both into Dexterity giving me a plus-five on the stat but maxing it out. I also have two skill points which I use to raise my stealth skill further deciding I will go with the character build I wanted before I entered this world. At least I think this is what I wanted. I really hope I regain my lost memories soon.

The breeze feels so nice and only makes me admire this game world more and more. Everything feels so real that if I weren't told this world was some simulation, I would have believed have thought this world was real. The wind, I can feel it's coolness brushing through my fur and the loss stones on the road I can feel shift under my boots. The people that made this world really did a great job, and I can't help but admire all the hard work and effort they put into this place.

The streets of this city is so lively filled with people wearing colourful clothes and stores with bright signs to lure in customers. I have never seen so many people in one place before in any game world, and I'm sure my computer could never handle this amount of data if I were to try and play this game on it. Whatever I'm hooked up to must have a hell of a lot of processing power to sustain such a populated world.

"Hey there kitten," A man calls out to me as I walk down the street. "If you want a good time come to the Hidden Fox Tavern where we offer both liquor and pleasure all at a reasonable price."

"No, thank you," I rarely drink, and from what he tells me about the place it sounds like it doubles as a brothel, so I have even more reason to avoid it.

"For the best deals on axes and spears visit the Drawthen Blacksmith on East Street!"

"Looking for good food and a comfy bed then come to the Blue Dragon Inn!"

Embershire is so lively that everywhere I look I see something going on from street performers performing tricks to venders selling theirs. Once again, I can't help but admire the work people down on this game to make such a populated and lively city. It's even more amazing when you think about this being just one city and one street in that city. I know I have to travel now to see what else this game has to offer. I owe it to the Gamemakers to experience everything they have made after all the hard work they put into this world.

"If you want a fair price on your goods then come to the guild!"

That's a voice that grabs my attention. I was looking for a place to sell somethings, so it seems like I am taking them to the guild. Maybe I should look into becoming an adventurer. My first fight was scary but also exciting at the same time, and taking on quests will allow me to explore more of this world.

"If you're looking for cheap booze and girls then come on down to the Blue Lion Tavern!"

"Yeah I'm definitely not going there," I think as I head for the guild. Thank god for my minimap as it seems to create waypoints for locations I am trying to find. It only makes sense for a game world such as this one.

The guild building really does stand out in more ways than one. Not only is the building a small castle with its own towers, but countless people are hanging around the place armed to the teeth with a few men flexing their muscles and showing off to each other. I didn't need the sign hanging above the door or my minimap to tell me I have reached my destination as the sight of the place is enough alone.

"Who's she?" I hear someone ask as I approach the door.

"Don't know," Their companion answers. "Haven't seen her before."

"It's not every day you see a beastfolk,"

That last comment grabs my attention. Are beastfolk rare in this world or just this region? Did I know I would stand out this much when I built this character or would this have been just as much of a surprise to me if I heard that without all this memory loss? I'll have to look into it later when I have time, but first I must see to selling my goods.

"Welcome," A short woman with a tough scared face greets me. "I haven't seen you here before so are you here to sign up or sell us something?"

"I'm here to see some goods," I tell her.

"Please wait a moment while I go fetch our appraiser," The woman tells me before she disappears.

Seeing as I have to wait, I take out the warthog meat and pelt from my backpack as well as those Bright Barries I collected. I'm not expecting to get much for this stuff but selling it is the best use I have for these items.

To pass the time, I look around the room to see people who must be adventures standing around a long billboard covered with posters. I can't make out what's on those posters, but I can guess they are advertising quests by the size of the crowd gathered around. Apart from that board, there's nothing else in this room but judging by the size of the building, I must only be seeing a small part of how the guild operates as I can see some doors leading off to different worlds. At least this room is well light, unlike the last stone building I visited.

I don't have to wait much longer as a man approaches me who is just barely taller than the woman that greeted me but looks smarter and more experienced with his wrinkled face and sharp eyes. The man must be the appraiser the women mentioned as he walks straight up to me and doesn't hesitate to grab the warthog pelt and examine it.

"This is something," The man mutters. "Not every day you see warthog pelts and meat, and although the meat appears to be in good condition, the hide has a few holes in it. I'll be able to offer you ten gold coins for the meat and eight for the pelt, but these barriers are another story. Bright Barries are very rare, so you are looking at a real money maker here."

Rare! You could have fooled me as I saw branches being to support the weight of these barriers because of how plentiful they were in that forest. How can something so abundant ever be called rare?

"It's easy to get lost in the Warthog Forest, so few people ever go to collect them," The man explains to me. "I can offer you five gold coins per berry."

Five gold coins, so that means I will make seventy-five gold coins for them all. Part of me wishes that I had collected more of them, but now that I know their value, I can always go and collect more of them at a later date.

"So the total price we can offer you is nighty three gold coins," The man tells me. "Would you like to sell at that price? I guarantee it will be the best offer you will receive."

"You have a deal," I nod. Let's see I have sixty gold coins left after renting my room at the inn, so that makes my total wealth to be one hundred and fifty-three gold coins. I don't think that makes me rich, but it sure is a good hull for my first sell.

"Excellent, please wait here will I fetch your payment," The man says before running off with my goods. Unfortunate he isn't gone long before I feel people present behind me.

I turn around to see three people stood right behind me. The one on the left is the tallest, he has blond hair, blue eyes and is wearing plate armour with a giant sword you would only find in games and anime on his back. The woman on the right has brown hair and eyes wearing chainmail while holding a short spear with a metal shield on her back. But the one that catches my attention I the man in the middles of the group. He has strong muscular arms that stick out of his sleeveless chest plate, and in his hand, he holds a heavy-looking hammer. His green eyes are scanning me intently, and his short hair is so none excitant that I can't tell its colour apart from its either black or dark brown.

Who are these people? They don't look like guards so they must be adventures but what do they want with me? Do they think I'm a spy too? I start to feel my heart race. This is bad what if they drag me off somewhere and kill me just under the suspicion of being a spy for some empire I know nothing about. I really wish that man in the middle would stop staring at me so intently it is starting to make me really uncomfortable.

"I don't get it," The middle man finally speaks up. His voice is deep but doesn't sound that threatening. "You don't look that strong, and your equipment isn't anything special, so it doesn't make sense. How could someone like you defeat a warthog and navigate deep within the Warthog Forest without getting lost?"

"Isn't it obvious," The woman scoffs. "She stole it. Beastfolk are nothing but thieving scavengers anyway. She probably took it from some hard-working, honest adventure."

"I am not a thief," I speak up hearing yet another false charge thrust against me.

"Shut it," The women replies glaring at me. "We know what your kind is like girl. Don't try to deny it."

"You should hand over your profit to us," The last remaining man quietly says. Strange, I would have thought a man like him would be much louder.

"It's only fair," The woman nods her head.

"A thief like you shouldn't be rewarded for committing a crime," The middle man smiles.

Great. I sigh, just when things were starting to look up, these jerks show up to drag me back down. I really need to speak to the Gamemakers about this. This game won't be fun if every step you take gets you in trouble. They have to have some system in place to prevent these kinds of situations from repeating themselves.

"So are you going to hand over you ill-gotten money or do we have to drag you to the guards?" The middle man asks. "I hear stories about what they do to thieves, trust me you don't want that happening to you."

"And what proof do you have that I am a thief?" I ask, getting fed up with everyone ganging up on me.

"What are you saying?" The middle man growls. "Isn't it obvious that you are a thief?"

"That's your opinion, but where's your proof?" I continue to question him.

The middle man opens his mouth to speak now words come out. I knew it. He has no evidence of a crime being committed which is why he's using threats instead of merely calling the guards. They are probably on hard times right now and saw me as an easy target. I hate people that think they can take what they want just because they are stronger or have more people then you do.

"We don't need proof," The woman spits out. "Being a beastfolk is enough proof that you are up to no good."

"Great it's a race thing," Another thing to complain about when I get out of here. Why would they make racism in this world, it may make it more like the real world, but if I were making a world of my own, I would make it, so everyone is considered an equal.

"Hey, leave her alone!" I look over my shoulder to see the appraiser has come to my rescue. "Baseless accusations have no place within the guild."

"Thieves have no place here either," The woman replies sounding irritated to see someone coming to my aid.

"I can assure you she didn't steal these items, or are you doubting my evaluation skill?" The man asks, and the trio freezes up. "Now if you have no further business here please leave the area." With that, the group run from the building. "Here's your money ma'am and if those guys give you any more trouble let me now and the guild will sort them out."

"Thank you," I smile, accepting the payment for my goods.

"Don't mention it," The man says. "But before you go the branch manager of the guild wants to talk with you." What now? "Would you please follow me."

I'm starting to get tired of people accusing me of crimes I never committed and taking me to places. I really just want to relax in this world and enjoy myself, not dealing with jerks all the time.

I am lead into a large room on the second floor with a big window that overlooks the front of the building with a large round table in the centre of the room surrounded by comfy looking chairs. Painting of men and women fighting monsters cover the walls while a red rug covers the floor and a candlelight chandelier hangs from the ceiling. At least it is not a jail so so I know I'm not in trouble, at least not right at this minute.

I am not writing long before the door opens again and an elderly woman long grey hair and a bandage wrapped around her eyes. The black robes she is wearing drag along the floor and the cane she uses to walk clicks against the ground. Her wrinkled face seems kind and friendly, but I can't let my guard down after everything that has already happened.

"I'm sorry to call you here so suddenly, but I had to talk with you after learning that you can navigate through the Warthog Forest," The lady says as she takes a seat. "Most people get lost trying to gather Bright Barries and never return, not to mention the trouble warthog packs can cause to any party entering those woods. I want to make you an offer but first, let me introduce myself. My name is Zunra, and I'm from the northern Lizardfolk tribe. I must say it is an honour to meet someone from the Catfolk village."

"It's nice to meet you," I reply, taking in the knowledge. "I'm Suki, but I'm afraid I am not from the Catfolk village. I'm just a traveller."

"That odd to hear but not on heard off," Zunra shrugs. "But back on the topic, would you be willing to take up a quest for me."

"Could I know what it is before answering?" I don't want to get involved with some under the table shady business dealing. I have enough false accusations flying my way that there is no need to add to that fire by committing real crimes.

"Certainly," The woman nods her head. "I want you to collect more of those Bright Barries for me, and I will pay you ten gold coins for each one you bring back."

"Why would you be doubling the price?" I mutter out surprised to hear the amount of the payment I will receive. "That's twice the price that I got from the ones I just sold your guild."

"Well, you see those berries can be used to make health potions which are in high demand since the empire stopped trading with our kingdom," The woman explains. "And the danger involved in collecting those berries means I have to compensate you for taking the risk."

"I see," I am starting to get the picture. The empire is a threat so they must be stocking up on potions in case a war breaks out.

"I would also like to offer you membership with the guild," Zunra continues. "Normally there is a trial period with new members, but I believe we can skip that and make you a member right away. So will you accept this quest?"

"I'll take it," I nod. I was considering joining the guild anyway so its no problem that my visit ended this way. "But before I go, is there a time limit on this quest?"

"No, just don't take too long," Zunra replies as she starts to get up. "I'll notify the front desk about what is happening so there shouldn't be any problems with your membership going through. Welcome to the guild miss Suki."

"I'm surprised you managed to survive the Warthog Forest being a level two and all," The clerk handling my guild registration says as I have to use another one of those stone tablets again to complete the sign up process. "But then looking at your stealth level, I can see how." Little does he know that I just walked through the forest like I would walk down the street outside. "And that finishes up your registration please take this card." The card is soft and flexible with only an ID number written on it. "You will need to present this when collecting rewards and accepting quests. I've already processed the quest the guild leader gave you so good luck."

That took a lot less time then I was expecting. I thought it would take about an hour, but it took less than ten minutes. I put the card in my pocket and was about to leave when something catches my eyes. A long pair of ears sticking out of some beautiful shoulder-length blonde hair. Something about the girl draws my attention, and it's the desperate look in her emerald eyes that has my attention.

"Excuse me but has any parties shown an interest?" The girl asks the clerk who just severed me.

"I'm sorry ma'am, but there are still no takers," The man sadly replies, causing the girls eyes to water.

"Please if I don't find someone today my trial period will expire," The girl begs stepping closer to the desk. "Please isn't there a party here that I can talk to."

"I'm sorry miss, but they have to go through the guild I can't let you…" The man begins to explain, but I step forward without thinking.

"Excuse me, but I could be of assistance here," I say making the girl smile.

"Really you will take me on?" The girl asks as she jumps forward and hugs me. "Thankyou I won't let you down."

"If you are willing to watch this girl on her first quest you are free to do so just let me get the form," The clerk says reaching down and quickly returning with the form. "I need both of you to sign this, and please be aware that you must complete a quest within two days or your trial period will end in failure."