Time to Earn!

"A job?" Zero asked.

"Yes." The shop owner walked from behind the table toward the two of them as they met in the middle of the small shop. "If you want something to trade for this helm, then we can help each other out."

Mr. Zanzabar reached behind him and pulled out a scroll that had been stored on him....somewhere? He held it out so that Zero could take it from him. After unfurling the tightly bound scroll, Zero's eyes widened. 

"It's a map." He stated. There was an area near the left bottom that had been circled by someone.

Kai squeezed in over his shoulder to see as well. "A map to what though?"

Mr. Zanzabar scoffed. "Something valuable obviously. And maybe something even more. I was traded this map by a player long ago who thought it was useless and not worth the trek. However, not many people who are not of this world know..." He pointed his finger over the circled area. "What this area truly holds."

Zero and Kai hung on his every word in suspense as they started at his stoic face. 

"That area is rich with potential loot! This map was given to the player from a boss character, but they didn't even think what it might mean. Many game cycles ago, there use to be a powerful creature there that slayed many players. It was so tough in fact that eventually the King did away with it as no one could beat it. But...the loot from the deceased players was never recovered. And based on there being nothing remotely in that area, no one ever thinks to investigate."

Zero looked back at the map and saw that the intimidating shop owner was right - as long as this map was up to date, there was nothing for miles in that region. There would be no reason to waste the time going there unless you knew what could be there.

"This is a helluva walk though." Kai said as he tried to calculate the distance.

"That it is." Mr. Zanzabar replied. "If you can acquire a horse, whether by hiring or...otherwise, it should only take you 3 or so hours. By foot, well, how bad do you want the resources?"

Zero and Kai looked at each other as they considered that very question.

I need that helm, Zero thought.

He needs that helm, Kai thought. And...having some extra wouldn't help either.

"We'll take the job!" They both said in unison.

*********************

Both of them figured that horse thievery HAD to be against some city rule, so they would rather not chance what this mark on their hands would do to them. Several hours into their journey East of the city had them regretting it pretty quick.

Zero could feel his legs about to fall out from underneath him.

"Are we even sure this map is legitimate??" He asked as exhaustion was setting in. They hadn't taken a single break as they wanted to get there before nightfall. 

"I'm sure it is." Kai retorted, more hope in his voice than there should be. "Mr. Zanzabar wouldn't send us on a quest if it didn't actually have some backing to it."

Zero paused for a second. "What's his deal anyways?" He asked, remembering how they almost got kicked out the moment they stepped into his shop.

"He...is a bit quirky. I had to beg and plead my way in my first time. He doesn't appreciate players who are just out to get something because it's good - which is why he keeps all of his VERY rare inventory in a chest that has no inventory max. The reason no one goes to him is because he is so selective about who he'll sell to."

"I'll count myself lucky then." Zero mumbled.

The sun slowly began to set as they ventured on. The elevation of the area had begun to increase as trees gave way to rock and they found themselves in what looked like a desolate, mountainous region.

There were stone spirals throughout and small cliff faces. There wasn't an odd creature or plant in sight. With the lack of structures or just objects in general, there was also very little shade until the sun would finally go down.

But there was an eerie silence that made them both uncomfortable.

Kai activated his Energy Vision. "Yeah...there's absolutely nothing nearby. Not a single energy trail is showing up."

Zero swallowed a little.

"We've got to be close, right?" He asked. There was no GPS in this world so they had to trust that they stayed on the trail marked out for them on the map by the shop owner. "He said once all the trees were gone then just keep going until-"

"We see the long wall of stone with a cut out in the center." Kai said as he halted his steps.

Stretched out before them was exactly that - a long natural wall of stone that stretched out quite a bit on both sides, and in the dead center was a jutted opening as if it had cracked once but not all the way.

"Well. Let's get this over with." Zero said. Despite his fear, he really wanted that helm.

The height of the wall became much more apparent as they got upon it. It towered over them at least 8 or 9 stories high. The crack that seemed much smaller from way back was actually wide enough to fit several people standing next to each other at its base.

They stepped inside the opening and a cool breeze slapped them both in the face.

"That's...strange." Zero whispered.

"Protect my dreams." Kai replied. His energy sword manifested in his hand and provided a nice source of light as it became darker the further they walked in. 

They walked for a few more minutes as nothing stood out from them aside from the smooth stone walls on either side of them. There was complete silence that was only interrupted by the soft pat of their feet against the hard floor.

They rounded a corner and out of nowhere a pair of torches on either side of them lit up.

"Whoa." Kai said, still not putting his blade away. 

Like a domino effect, several more pair of torches lining down the pathway also ignited and showing that the path ends into a much larger area further down.

"Guess this was left over from the boss battle that used to be here." Zero deduced. 

"Zero!" Kai said in a hushed yell. He had activated his energy vision once more, and there was a thin trail of energy that was mostly clear showing before him. It led right to the end of the path that they were about to head to.

Zero sighed as he quickly guessed at what had Kai rattled suddenly.

"Knew this wasn't going to be that easy."