First Steps

Rue stretched as she exited the car. The ride to this location had been about half an hour long. Traffic was especially busy so a lot of the ride time was spent idling. Working the stiffness out of her muscles she lamented, "I was under the impression that the 'car' would be more convenient than a carriage. However the thought of them crowding the paths did not cross my mind."

"It's the same reason why carriages were rare inside cities. Those streets were crowded with markets and people on foot.", Akiol added as he stepped out of the car.

Thanking the driver the two began to walk. Akiol checked the time on his phone and sighed, "Seems we'll have less time to check out any stores nearby. The ride here took longer than I estimated."

"Then we simply adapt. Where to first?"

"You can choose. We're going proper shopping after we're done checking out the apartment."

Rue bit her lip and placed her hands behind her back. Picking up the pace she looked for anything resembling a store. Her gaze landed towards a café and she gravitated towards it. Before entering she asked, "This is?"

"Uhhh.", Akiol stepped back to check the sign before shaking his head, "The name isn't familiar. But it's café. They serve coffee and sometimes other baked goods."

"Coffee is it?"

"A liquid strained through a roasted bean. It hold caffeine in it which provides an energy boost to most."

Rue pondered for a bit before Akiol walked in. Holding the door open he said, "We can try it. Might give us a little boost."

While following Akiol Rue absorbed the surroundings. The smell and warmth of the building was oddly comforting despite being so alien. Although there was something in the air that made her nose twist slightly. 

"Hi! What can I get you?"

Akiol looked upwards and thought for a moment, "Two cups of coffee and. . . two slices of crumb cake."

"Of course! Take this and find a seat.", the customer service girl slid forward a card with a number on it. 

Akiol took it and found a seat with a window view. The two sat and absorbed the view. It wasn't long before their order was brought to them. The two cups of coffee also came with a plate with sugar cubes and a serving of milk. 

Picking up the cup of coffee Rue stared at its surface before asking, "Is it meant to be this dark?"

"It's a black coffee, usually bitter but some like it this way. If you find it too bitter try adding these bits of sugar. There's also milk you can add."

Tentatively taking a sip Rue immediately shook her head, "This reminds me of the Wrohn Juice. My generals had me drink a cup in the morning before my training."

"Wrohn? As in the poisonous plant? Doesn't that paralyze you?"

"The plant itself yes, but its seeds can be ground. When mixed with water it can provide a boost of energy. However its taste. . .", Rue visibly shivered recalling the juice, "Reprehensible."

"I remember gathering some of the plant for an alchemist once. They intended to make a sedative with it."

"Did it work?"

"I left that village before any tests were made. I wasn't aware that its seeds had such a feature."

"It is not something I would recommend."

"Is the energy provided not worth it?"

"I am unsure, I was often too exhausted at the end of training to care."

Akiol laughed silently. Mixing some sugar and milk into his coffee he then asked, "Considering your Blessing of Arms did you ever learn techniques?"

"No. The Blessing of Arms allowed me to perfectly swing a weapon I grabbed onto, so my training was physical. I did fight creatures to gain experience, and eventually directly fought with my generals."

"How convenient!", Akiol lamented.

Rue did not deny the convenience the blessing gave her, "It certainly allowed me to focus on other aspects."

Picking up a fork and knife Akiol sliced a bit of the crumb cake and silently chewed up on it. Rue followed his actions and her eyes lit up, "It's sweet!"

"It's surprisingly good.", Akiol complimented the café.

Quickly devouring her slice of cake Rue felt saddened by how quickly it vanished. This feeling was quick to pass for she turned her attention back to Akiol, "You mentioned searching for mentors. Who was your first?"

Revisiting this memory Akiol sadly smiled, "Ironically it was a mercenary."

Rue tried to recall any famous mercenary she would've deemed a threat but failed to recall anything. With a tilt of her head she shared her thoughts, "All mercenaries either face early death or an early retirement. Rarely do they stay in that line of work to become old. Was this mercenary one of high skill?"

"Not at all.", Akiol's smile remained on his face, "Maybe just a bit above the average mercenary. I stumbled upon he and his squad when I was still quite young. I remember they were fighting at that time. . ."

Akiol's eyes turned to the swirling cup of coffee and he immersed himself in the memory as he recalled it.

-<>-

Rubbing some dirt of his face Akiol looked towards the sun but found only a canopy of leaves. Looking about he chose a direction to follow. Within a few steps he could hear voices in the distance. Immediately he climbed into the tree and silently listened.

The voices grew louder as footsteps approached near his location. Eventually he could make out the words.

"-and I'm telling you that you're a moron! We're here to hunt one Trapear! We set up a bit of bait and the whole group comes running!"

"Oh as if you're idea of stupidly coming across one is so much better! We just have to set up a trap to keep one stuck while the others run!"

"Set up a trap?! The Trapears are more loyal than Jaron's wife!"

A guy, presumably Jaron, spoke, "Are you speaking ill of my wife."

"It's actually a testament to how loyal the Trapears are. Your wife at most only sneaks glances at the local butcher-"

"Don't joke about my wife!"

"Alright! Enough you three!", a more commanding voice spoke.

The footsteps slowed to a halt underneath the tree Akiol was hiding in. He looked down and watched their argument.

The commanding voice pointed at two, "Ryan, Wemmings, you two set up the bait and trap on the off chance we can't find one. Jaron, you're with me. We're gonna follow those tracks for a bit longer. Ryan once you're done with the trap set up-"

Crack-!

The tree branch Akiol hid on suddenly gave in with no warning. Akiol fell downwards and crumpled onto the dirt. Pushing himself up he spotted several pointed weapons at him. A spear lingered close to his neck. The commanding voice spoke in surprise, "Aw Gods save me, it's just a kid! Ryan, put down your spear damn it."

Ryan eyed Akiol cautiously before relenting to the orders. The commanding voice sounded exasperated, "Jaron, Wemmings! Are you two idiots? Lower your weapons as well!"

The commanding voice sheathed their sword and threw his hands up, "I swear you all will be the end of me."

Their gaze moved towards Akiol and they extended a hand, "Get up kid, that was quite the fall."

Akiol reached out and took the hand. Lifting up Akiol the commander dusted off the dirt while introducing himself, "I'm Yaun. Currently in charge of this idiot mercenary squad. You are?"

"Akiol.", Akiol replied simply.

"Okay Akiol, what in the Gods' names are you doing here?"

"I got lost.", Akiol replied honestly.

Yaun made a face, "Great. That's fantastic even."

Tilting his head Akiol asked, "It is?"

Unable to take it any further Yaun threw up his hands again, "The fall made this kid stupid. I'm just a magnet for morons! If I can ask the Gods for one things it's just one competent bastard on my squad so I can retire early!"

Ryan shook his head and pointed with his spear, "Ignore him. Head that way and you'll find a village."

Following the tip of the spear Akiol gained a sense of direction. Nodding he walked towards the pointed direction when a hand grabbed his shoulder. Yaun held Akiol back with little effort while looking towards Ryan, "You idiot, the sun will go down soon. The kid's gonna die before he makes it halfway."

"What do you suggest then?"

"Well obviously we keep him with us."

"And you call me the idiot?! We don't get paid to watch some kid in this forest!"

"Where's your conscious? You gonna let a kid get himself killed?"

Jaron sighed, "We obviously can't let the kid go Ryan."

Ryan then looked at Wemmings who shrugged. Yuan sighed heavily, "At least some of you can think straight. Alright Akiol, you're with us tonight."

-><-

Rue nodded to herself while finishing the coffee. She had added a nice helping of sugar and milk to make it better to taste. Noticing Akiol stop his story telling she tried to push him to continue, "Then what?"

"I watched them struggle to hunt a Trapear. They killed its mate in the process, so I got to try some Trapear meat. It was a little charred at that time but still very good."

"So this is how you met this mercenary. What led you to be taught by him?"

"That. . .", Akiol pulled out his phone and checked the time, "No time to tell that part of the story. We have ground to cover or else we'll be late."

"I'll remind you to finish it."

"Very well."