Chapter 6: Gear (about time)

A bell ringing caught the tailor's ear. From outside the shop, the princess's "saviors" walked in. "You saved her that fast? My, am I impressed," his voice thick with sarcasm. The saviors in question rolled their eyes at the statement. Mikey grabbed his shoulder as he spoke. "We need more… help." Mikey's shoulder dropped at the end of his sentence. "I'm a tailor, not a prophet; I feel as if I already made this clear." 

"Ze don't need za prophet." The tailor looked down at the goblin, noticing the map he drew covered in sticks and dirt. The tailor gave an eyeroll as he sat down at his desk once again. His pen spinning in his fingers, "Ok," The tailor took out another piece of paper, clearly annoyed. "What is it you need? This will be costing extra, by the way." A bag of coins dropping on the counter was all the response he needed. 

Mikey and nickel sat in front of him before speaking. "We need, I don't know, we just need something." The tailor took a deep breath through his nose before responding. "So you came to a tailor because you need help saving a princess?" A nod was his answer in return. "Ok, what happened first off? Then I can tell you what you need."

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"Give up."

"WHAT?" Mikey looked at the tailor, shocked. The tailor's half-lidded eyes looked back. "You need to give up; I don't know what else to tell you." His pen dropped onto the table as Nickel began to speak. "Zis, but ze princess?" Nickel's voice pitched higher at the end of his sentence.

"I'm sorry, but truthfully, based on what you told me, give up." The tailor stood up, his chair squeaking on the wooden floor. Mikey stuck his hand out. "But we paid you to help us. Not to tell us to give up." The tailor crinkled his brow. 

"Honestly, if it was someone else, I'd maybe tell the—." 

"Zen treats uz az if ze were zomeone elze." Nickel spoke before the tailor could finish. The goblin stared at the tailor, unwillingness in his eyes. With a sigh, the tailor sat back down. "Alright, your lives, not mine; let's start from the beginning." The tailor started drawing on the map. 

"For one, you need a compass, since you can't tell north from west; you definitely need some kind of wilderness guide. Some—."

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Mikey stood in front of a mirror, a reflection he could barely recognize. His torn tunic was now replaced by a long-sleeved white shirt, golden buttons lining down the middle. A bronze harness hugged his chest along with fingerless leather gloves around his palms up to his forearms. On his waist the harness continued, sporting a deep brown bag with straps to lock it into place. His once torn shorts transformed into lightly padded pants, along with thick stone-bottom boots.

Mikey looked down at himself before turning towards the tailor. "So, what do you think?" Mikey's hair whipped as he turned back towards the mirror. A smile crept on his face as he looked at his new gear. "I love it. I feel like a real adventurer now!" Mikey said excitedly, and the constant clacking and rippling of leather sounded as he admired himself. The tailor nodded before turning to his left. "And you?"

Nickel looked at his gear. The once torn and stick-covered shirt he wore was now replaced with a smaller, long-sleeved blue shirt. A brown leather harness snaking from his shoulder down the middle of his back before connecting to his waist. A smaller bag connected to his pants leg, the muddy ones also replaced with a new pair of dark green padded pants.

Along with long, knee-high boots that made his form look taller than what he really was. "Zis iz perfect!" What the tailor could only assume to be a happy snarl came from Nickel's throat afterwards.

The tailor clapped his hands, calling Mikey and Nickel's attention. "I can get you the compass and a new map, but I suggest you stop by a blacksmith for an actual weapon and armor." Mikey nodded, his new gear clicking across his chest. From behind his desk, the tailor took out a bronze compass, along with a new sheet of paper.

Dropping the compass on the table, Nickel reached for it, admiring its nearly golden hue. The tailor rolled the paper along the desk, his pencil tapping constantly against it.

A warm glow from the sun dipped into the shop, the tailor's pen still working away. From in front of him, Mikey and Nickel watched while also still looking at each other's new clothes. The clicking of a pen caught their attention; the tailor's pen rolled across his desk as he spoke. "As I said before, you guys should still give up." The mood sullied slightly at the man's words.

A chuckle catching their attention, "But you're paying me, so who cares? I still suggest stopping by a blacksmith, and DON'T ruin my map this time." The sudden outburst caught Mikey off guard before he nodded shyly.

Scratching the back of his head, Mikey tilted his head back. "Don't worry, we'll take extra care next time." The tailor responded with a small smile before they left, the ringing of a bell signaling their departure.

The tailor leaned back in his chair, his eyes gaining a pitying look. "Hopefully they do give up; they can't deal with that." The soft lighting coming from the window flooded the room with orange light. Mikey and Nickels figures turned shadowy as the light beamed from in front of them.

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Outside the shop, Nickel and Mikey stood. Nickel's height finally raised from barely reaching Mikey's waist to nearly his chest. Nickel tossed the compass to Mikey before putting the map in his side satchel.

Mikey caught the bronze compass and tucked it into his waist pocket. "I don't know about you, Nickel, but I feel like a real adventurer now." Nickel's ears flapped as he nodded. "Zes, vezy spiffy." Nickel said as he walked forward.

Before long a stone building holding a strong smell of iron appeared in front of them. 

As they approached an open window, a tall, orange-haired woman appeared, a long orange fur coat around their shoulders, worn like a cape. On her head were two large horns reminiscent of a yak, and golden-orange furred ears stuck out from the side of her head, a piece of straw sticking from the side of her mouth.

The woman looked down at them, at least they assumed so, golden orange bangs covering her eyes. "You need somethin'?" Her thick accent caught Mikey off guard, as if she was stating they needed it more than she was asking. "Y-yea, we need armor and weapons.? The tailor said, Come here for it."

The half-yak woman exhaled from her nose. "Tailor? Alright." Mikey and Nickel side-eyed each other as the woman vanished from open window and opened a side door.

As they walked in, the heat from the open forge hit them like a sledgehammer. Inside the seemingly normal stone building, it was deep orange, the raging fire in the middle drowning out all other light. The shadow of the yak woman almost just appeared in front of them. "Sit here." A finger Mikey could only just make out pointed to a bench.

Nickel and Mikey scooted onto the bench, their legs rocking back and forth as if they were children put in timeout. The yak lady sat on a bench in front of them and took out a clipboard. "Material or upfront?" A confused glance between Mikey and Nickel told her all she needed to know.

"You bring your own materials, or are you paying full price upfront?" Mikey's brow still was scrunching in confusion as Nickel finally clicked what she meant. "Zes, zis." From his back Nickel took out a stick they had previously taken.

The Yak woman looked with an unreadable expression before grabbing the stick. As she stared at the wood Nickel had the gall to hand over, she began running her hand over it. Even though she wasn't paying a hint of attention to them, it felt as if they were both being judged for being worthy.

The corner of the Yak woman's lip curled upwards as she finally looked up. The glare they couldn't even see somehow had them sweat more than the raging fire beside them. "The Tailor sent you?" Without missing a beat, the two males nodded up and down.

"What wood is this?" A drop of sweat landed on the bench in front of Mikey. "It's from the forest of death." Mikey blurted out, afraid to make her wait any longer. The woman twisted the wood around in her hands, pausing to toss it before catching it, as if measuring the weight. "What do you want to do with it?" This time Mikey spoke with genuine enthusiasm, "Could you make, like, a super cool legendary blade? Or an axe? Or even like a magic spear that shoo—.'" A green hand covered Mikey's mouth, Mikey's eyes widening at what he'd just done.

The yak woman stared at Mikey, her expression hidden by her golden orange hair. With a laugh that caught them off guard, she tilted her head back, a belly laugh echoing through the smithing area. Mikey and Nickel side-glanced at each other before looking towards the hysterically laughing orange-haired woman. After a few more seconds, the woman finally calmed down, only going into a small chuckle.

Wiping her eyes as she spoke, a small smile coating her face, "Ha, the tailor sent you, Eric? I'll send the bill to him and try to do something with this." The woman stood up, a small chuckle still coming from her throat. She towered over the two sitting males before walking over towards a smaller area and pulling out a knife.

The wood stood no chance against the brawny woman. Without much trouble the bark of the wood disappeared, stripping down to only the dark brown, semi-orange wood beneath. From beside her she took a strip of leather, dipping it into some liquid before wrapping it around one side of the stick. Flipping it to the other side, she began carving with the knife.

The raging inferno in the middle seemed to completely wash over her, as not even a bead of sweat formed on her as she worked. 

As she worked, Nickel looked around. Noticing several swords and axes hanging on the wall, a dark gray anvil sitting in the middle of the shop. A stomp got his attention as the woman tossed the piece of wood back to them. Raising his hand, Mikey caught the stick, now turned into a genuine weapon, a staff but still a weapon.

As the staff landed in his hand, Mikey looked at the handle, the insignia of the yak woman's face on it. "The bills are on Eric, don't worry."

"Oh, uh, thank you." Mikey tried to give a customary bow as he left, instead tripping over a nickel, causing them both to fall on the ground. The yak woman laughed again before speaking. "Next time you come, bring some actual materials," Nickel's ears flapped downwards as he spoke.

"Zes, ma'am." At that, Mikey and Nickel were out the door, the yak woman returning back to her work.