Welcome to Gaia! :: View User's Journal | Gaia Journals

((Finally caught up to my daily word count as of today. As long as I write at least 1,667 words a day from Nov 18 until Nov 30th I will finish on time XD I usually write 2000 words a day or more so I'm hoping to finish maybe a day or two early so I can go back and add a little more where I think edits are needed.))

Dream World Mirau by Josephina Mari
Day Seventeen of NaNoWriMo

Meanwhile Baer decided to begin his search at the town’s tavern since that was always a great place to get information. The barkeep saw many faces and heard countless stories. For the right price he would tell you just about anything. Baer rode Nodin through the rather small town compared to his birthplace until he located the tavern. Baer tied Nodin’s reins to a log post outside the tavern were a few other horses were also tied up. “Be a good boy and wait here. I won’t be long.” Baer said as he stroked Nodin’s nose a few times before he went into the tavern. He took a quick look around to see if there was anyone he recognized, but he wasn’t able to place any of the faces to people he knew from back home. Baer decided to have a seat at the bar counter in front of the bartenders who asked him in English rather then the world’s native language which surprised Baer for a moment. “Hey there pal. What can I get ya?” The barkeep had an informal way of speaking and he a thick outlandish accent suggesting that he wasn’t originally from Coasta Bleu. He probably traveled here over seas to escape hardship in his homeland or maybe he just wanted to get away from there. “Blue ale please.” Baer said pausing as he waited for his drink. Once he received it he took a sip of it before he continued. “I have been though a lot these past few days. I’m sure you heard, but Aloen was destroyed overnight by the Akuen. I know some people made it out okay, while others weren’t so lucky. I would of died back there if my new friends had not of found me in the rubble. I’m looking for a master alchemist named Alec. He’s got short cut blond hair, blue eyes with a scar over his left eye. He would probably be wearing black priest robes. Have you seen anyone like that pass through here?” Baer’s gaze lifted from the light blue colored liquid in his glass to the barkeeper’s face as he waited to hear his response.

“Man with a scar on his left eye you say...Let me think a moment. Ah I remember a guy like that was here yesterday. He was askin’ how to get over to Mesa. A man, who runs a fishing import service, offered to take him over on his next shipment out there. That would have been this morning if I’m not mistaken. Looks like ya just missed him pal. That guy must be crazy heading over to Mesa now after the Akuen have been attacking towns and gathering powerful tools. Between you and me I think they are planning a war with the people on this side of the sea. Rumor has it that the Akuen have used up all the life energy from Mesa with their dark magic causing it to become a wasteland and so now they are seeking to do the same here. Traveling over there now is foolish. He’ll get himself killed over there.” The barkeep said in a low voice to Baer so the other customers did not hear was said between them. He didn’t want to cause worry or panic to rise up. Baer finished the rest of his ale in one gulp then he placed a few coins on the table next to his empty glass. “Thank you for the information and the drink sir. I can’t stay long since my friends are expecting me. Please excuse me.” Baer said and then he exited the tavern rather hastily. He faintly heard the barkeep say “Hey wait a second, you ain’t going over to Mesa are you. Don’t be a fool boy!” and then Baer closed the tavern door behind him. He walked over to Nodin and retrieved an apple from one of his saddlebags then he gave it to Nodin in apology for making him wait so long. “Let’s go look for Karou and Mari shall we?” Baer said as he untied Nodin’s reins then he climbed into the saddle. Baer lightly tapped Nodin’s sides with his feet causing Nodin to begin to gallop at a normal walking pace. Baer didn’t want to risk running into anyone or anything on the way.

In the mean time Karou and I had arrived at the west gate to find two guards standing at the entryway to monitor people going in and out through their check point. “Excuse me sirs. May I ask you a few questions about the imp monkeys that have been causing trouble recently? We have been assigned to take care of them by Mayor Dellan.” Karou said as he showed the two guards the job request with Dellan’s red stamp of approval. “Our shift here begins at eight in the morning and this post is not guarded after five in the afternoon. After five o’clock the west gates are closed and locked from the inside so no one is allowed to enter or leave past night fall for security reasons. There have been reports of dangerous wild animals appearing outside town at night so Dellan has ordered that the city be put on lockdown after the sun sets. The imp monkeys have still found a way to get in and out of the city walls despite the gates being shut and locked, so our commander issued the job request to find out how they are getting in and deal with them. You are permitted to use whatever means necessary to ensure the successful completion of this task. It’s not just about stopping the imp monkeys though. It’s about providing peace of mind for the people of the city so that they can feel safe again.” The guard on the right of the gate said while the guard on the left remained silent. I wasn’t sure if the reason he didn’t talk was out of respect for his comrade, or if he was just the silent type. “Understood. Mari and I will get to the bottom of this. If you don’t mind we would like to take over the watch after the gates are closed so we can try to find out how the imp monkeys are getting in.” Karou said sounding like he was trying to negotiate with the guards.

“I don’t see a problem with that. Come back here about 4:30 this afternoon and we will gladly switch places with you. We wish you the best of lucky with your mission.” The guard on the left said confirming my theory that he could indeed talk. “Thank you for the information. See you later.” Karou said waving to the two guards before he turned and began to walk away from them. I started to follow him feeling a little confused on what we were going to do until then. “Looks like we will be staying here another night. You don’t mind do you Mari? Usually job requests are completed within the same day they are taken, but the imp monkeys come out after dark so we will have to finish the request tonight. We will report our progress to Dellan tomorrow morning.” Karou said trying to clear some things up for me since he could see on my face I didn’t quite know what was going on. “Sure I don’t mind Karou. This city is alright. I hope we can help them out with the monkey problem. What do the imp monkeys look like anyways Karou?” I said curiously as I walked with him towards the inn again. “Imp monkeys are rather small, they walk on all fours, have a long tail, and are hairy all over. It’s rumored that people might be related to them, but I don’t believe it at all. I’m sure you’ll recognize it when you see one since I’m sure my descriptions won’t really paint a clear picture for you.” Karou said looking like this wasn’t his first time dealing with them. We were almost at the inn when I heard a familiar voice call out to me and Karou. “Hey Mari and Karou. I think I know where my master has gone. The bartender said he got on a fishing boat and traveled over to Mesa. I’m going to head over there in the morning and try to find him. I won’t lie to you. It will be dangerous, so I can understand if you don’t want to go with me.” Baer said after he dismounted Nodin and stood nest to us. “Tomorrow morning is fine Baer. We should have the imp monkey problem resolved before then. We can’t let you go there alone, especially if it is dangerous.” Karou said. I got the feeling that part of the reason Karou wanted to go was because of the danger involved, but he was covering that up with the fact he didn’t want Baer to go alone since he could get killed there.

“Imp monkeys huh? Well let me help you two out to make up for missing Mari’s training lesson this morning okay?” Baer said as we stopped outside of the inn. “You didn’t miss my lesson Baer. The imp monkeys apparently are my lesson and I would be glad if you helped us out.” I said feeling a bit more relieved to have two experienced fighters helping me out instead of just one. I didn’t doubt Karou for a second and I could tell he was pretty strong, but I had to admit I was a bit curious to see what kind of magic Baer knew. “It’s settled then. We will all report to the west gate at 4:30 PM to deal with the imp monkeys. In the meantime I think I’ll take a little nap. I didn’t get anywhere near enough sleep last night. I think I’m a little homesick...” Karou said before he walked into the inn. Karou walked over to the innkeeper and paid for an extra day for the two rooms we shared. “Karou do you want to switch rooms with me? I don’t mind at all and I’ll probably go take a look around town for a little while to kill time.” I said as I dug in my pocket for my room key then I held it out to him. I remembered what Baer told me about the nightmares he had that kept him awake along with Karou so I thought it would be better if I stayed up with Baer this time if the nightmares came back. That’s what friends were for right? “Thanks Mari. I don’t really care either way as long as there is a bed to sleep in.” Karou said as he swapped room keys with me then he went straight over to the single room and fell asleep on the bed. “You are going to take a look around town right Mari? Would you like some company?” Baer said smiling at me. How could I say no and I was glad he offered so that way if I got lost I wouldn’t be alone at least. “Sure that would be great Baer. The more the merrier.” I said smiling back at him as we walked out of the inn. I noticed the stable keeper was leading Nodin into his temporary stall as we walked by.

Baer gave me the grand tour of the city as we walked along the main roads that eventually would circle back to where we came from. We decided to take a small break once we arrived at what looked like a park on the north side of town. There was a wide open grassy area with a few trees scattered here and there for kids to play in. There were also some wooden benches throughout for people to sit down and take a rest. It was such a beautiful day today since the sun was shining and I could hear birds chirping in the trees near by. I sat down on one of the benches with Baer right next to me and I felt instantly relaxed and calm. It was easy to block out the hustle and bustle of the town when you were sitting here. This park reminded me a lot of Karou’s hometown in the middle of the desert. It was always calm and peaceful there even though the people were preparing for war. “Thank you Mari, for coming to save me and everything. I was pretty close to giving up when you and Karou came. I know why I was saved, and I know what I must do now to repay you both. I’m going to help you fight the Akuen, to the death if I must. It’s the least I can do. I hope we can find my Master soon. I know he would join our fight.” Baer said as he stared off into the grassy area of the park while he spoke. His eyes had a look of distance in them as if Baer was far away somewhere. “I’m grateful for your help Baer, but in all honesty I’m not sure I will be of any help to you guys. I’m just a novice at everything so I may just get in the way. A fight to the death is never a victory. The people who love you will miss you when you are gone, so you should fight your hardest to stay alive so you can see them again. Karou and I would miss you and I’m sure your Master would as well.” I said feeling as if Baer was slipping away from me although he was sitting right there next to me. “You are a valuable member of this team Mari. You are probably the wisest of the three of us. From now on I will fight to live as you said. You make sure and do the same.” Baer said smiling at me before he stood up and said “Shall we continue the tour? We still have half the city to see and only two more hours until we have to report to the west gate.” I nodded to Baer then I stood up and followed him into the city again to see what I could hoping that familiarizing myself with the city might help with my training mission later on.