Forums » Fantasy Roleplay » Promises of gold, bad luck and more gold (1x1)

Well, this Halfling was one you didn't want to get angry, it seemed. But Harold couldn't care much about that, though."What, did I make the lil' boy mad? Why don't ya come over here 'n tell it to me in me face instead o' hidin' behind the big scary pirate?"

Bender looked at Stevie and raised a brow. But he couldn't help but grin."Well, if ya insist." He took a quick look at Harold, lowered his gun a bit and shot using his mechanical arm, which highly reduced the recoil.

A short but loud "splotch" sound was made as the bullet pierced through the Dwarf's boot, the bullet hole already reddening and the short man roaring out in pain. Tears rolled over his eyes are he fell to the floor, clutching his foot and cursing the pair."Ya sons o' bitches! I'll kill ya both for this!"

Bender suddenly realized what he just did. He should not have been persuaded by Steve at all! Now surely a bunch of drunk or aggressive miners would surely come check out what was going on. Bender had to act fast!

And act fast he did. Putting his gun away he menacingly walked over to the wailing Dwarf, grabbing him by his collar and smashing him against the wall."We tried askin' nicely, bud!" He spat in his face."Stop cryin' over a lil' bullet wound. Ya've been through worse! Remember the shark bitin' off part o' yer arse, Buttsey? I can make ya relive that moment, only this time it won't be much o' a funny story ta tell."

Finally the Dwarf submitted."Locker 513!" He shouted."Yer precious f***in' fragment's in locker 513 right at the entrance! Just let me go 'n lead me life! Please, I just want ta be done with this!"

Bender let go of him."Sure, Buttsey, sure." The look on Bender's face when he let go of the wounded Dwarf seemed almost remorseful."Ya did this to yerself, lad. I gave ya the chance ta come clean 'n ya didn't take it." With that, the pirate turned around and opened the door. A whole bunch of Dwarves were heading for the cabin now. The gunshot got them worried, and they clutched their pickaxes and balded their fists."I think we overstayed our welcome, lad." He said as he looked down at Steve."Best we go find that locker 'n get the hell out o' here."

A sudden growl rose up from Steve's chest as he suddenly burst, "I'm not a lil' boy, you--!" He would have continued had Bender not agreed to shoot his dumb foot and actually gone through with it. He yelped and jumped up, but soon realized that the Dwarf was going to be alright and there was very little to fear. He got very concerned Bender shot him in a more vital area, at his command.

As the dwarf threatened them, he actually didn't feel too afraid of that. He was bleeding through a hole in his foot! What could he do? The next part came so fast to the halfling that he hardly recognized what was going on until they were already running for the locker. It was then he noticed that they were likely to run into trouble if they didn't act as fast as possible.

"I didn't think ya'd actually shoot 'im," Steve said between breaths. He fought a soft chuckle to the point where it sounded like a little cough, and he continued heading along with Bender. Where was this locker again? He should listen better.

"Ya think I'm carrin' this because it looks pretty, lad? O' course I was goin' ta fire it at some point. Might as well be on 'im." He laughed.

As soon as the pair ran for the locker, Buttsey came limping out."Stop them!" He yelled as a trail of blood got marked on the floor where ever he crawled."Thieves! They want me locker's contents!" That pushed the miners to gang up on them. Instead of approaching them slowly, they started running."Buttsey, ya bastard!" Bender couldn't help but yell."Double time, lad!"

Bender soon realized these short men would soon swarm upon him."Go on ahead, Stevie! Locker five thirteen! Try 'n smash it open with a pickaxe 'r somethin!" Before the Halfling would be able to reply, Bender already started running slower and looked around for cabinets, ores and carts to throw at the miners. Hopefully that was enough to slow the mob down.

Back at the entrance, there would be an entire wall dedicated to small lockers. Each one had their number written with chalk upon it.

Steve couldn't help but to laugh along with him, even if it was brief. Perhaps it was just how hectic the situation was that made the halfling so... half out of it? He yelped momentarily as he heard Buttsey behind them, yelling. Oh boy. To Bender's directions, Steve nodded and began to run as fast as his little legs could carry him. "Just kick them! You're huge, treat 'em like balls or somethin'!" Of course he doubted the old man could kick with that much force, but he felt he might as well make light of the situation. ...While it was still happening.

He had to throw a pickaxe nearby at one of the dwarfs that came from the entrance toward him, though he discovered that those things were heavier than they looked. He grabbed another one when he grew near the lockers and, once there, began to beat open 513. He hoped he was fast enough. Steve was much too weak to fight off a dwarf or two or ten. Tackling one was no problem, but this sack of bones wasn't much stronger than his literal counterpart: an actual sack of bones.

Bender was not that good at kicking, but he did like to punch, which he did a lot. He also threw large objects at the mobs, but more kept coming from all sides. He had to break more than a few jaws in order to catch up with Steve. His mechanical arm was starting to malfunction, as it always did when overused.

Inside the locker were a couple of drawings of what seemed to be naked women, and a clay tablet as well as a couple of silver coins scattered about, as well as a single gold coin. Bender came running not soon after Steve managed to break the locker."Haul it to the cart, lad! Get the horses movin'!" Hopefully Steve would figure out how to get them going. He doubted the Halfling had ever ridden a cart before. Bur perhaps what seemed to be the entire mine closing in on Bender would get him motivated enough to make him succeed.

The locker burst open and revealed what lay inside it, and Steve's eyes quickly caught the shiny flat objects! He grabbed them up, rolled his eyes at the drawings, and snatched the tablet. His tiny ears twitched some when he heard Bender yell again, and so Steve began to run again, approaching the cart mentioned at a steady pace Once there, he'd deposit the tablet and stare at the thing. What was he supposed to do now? He'd never worked one of these before.

"Bender, hurry! I dunno what t' do!" he yelled.

But like hell was he going to just sit there like an idiot! He tried to wave the reigns around, but all he got out of the horses were huffs and grunts and some shaking of their heads. Jeeze.

"Wave harder!" Bender yelled, trying to find his second breath in order to run faster. The dwarves were gaining on him, and the whole town was looking on with a strange look. This was something you didn't see every day!

But Bender manages to jump into his cart. Once he crawled up, kicking a few tenacious Dwarves off of his legs, he roughly grabbed the reins and yanked on them, yelling "Go ya stinkin' land mammals, go!"

Barely holding on to the stairs that were supposed to lead to the space next to the driver, Bender attempted to crawl back on while the horses sped up. Not an easy task, but his mechanical arm didn't fail him so far. it clutched on to whatever it could and refused to let go. Eventually Bender managed to crawl back up, panting heavily and wiping his brow as they left the village behind them."I'm gettin' too old for this."

Steve tried hard to wave his small arms harder, but it was difficult to achieve the desired effect. Eventually, Bender got there and was able to aid him in doing so. Without a moment's notice, they were moving once again.

When Bender was where he should be, sitting and safe, Steve relaxed and let out a loud sigh. "How many o' these things didjya say were missin' again?" he finally asked, sounding exhausted. The halfling closed his eyes for a moment before opening them again, looking behind the cart and watching as everything began to get smaller and more distant. "Where are we goin' now?"

Finally, it dawned on Steve that Bender might have gotten hurt during the event. "You ok?"

Bender had finally caught his breath, steering the cart with his mortal arm."Two more, lad. But they're pretty distant. We'll have to fly in order to reach the last two." He explained before looking at his mechanical arm, which looked like it didn't work anymore."I overused me bloody arm." He grumbled."N a couple o' them Dwarves managed ta hit me with a couple o' rocks. But I'm alright."

After a few moments of riding, he realized the Halfling also asked where they were going next. From his pockets, Bender took a couple of papers, which looked similar to those Steve witnessed at the tavern they first met."If we take the airship to Gal'Garth we might just get our other fragment in time to catch the next one to Fossler's Mountain." The old man was visibly pondering."It's probably a three day ride to the nearest airship tower, though. 'N we'll need ta make a stop at the nearest town fer some resupplyin'. I doubt ye've got enough food in yer pockets fer three days, do ya?"

Steve glanced to the man's arm and frowned. Poor guy. When he mentioned an airship,though, the halfling immediately forgot about the arm and grew both frightened and excited. Daydreaming of that was cut short when he was asked if he had enough food in his pockets for three days, and he just shook his head. "No, I didn't pack any food. I did find some money in his locker, though!"

His hand reached into his coat pocket to pluck out the coins to show him, but soon returned the coins and let his hands nestle there. He was cold, so he kept them deep in his pockets, squeezing the coat tighter around him while he did so. "I hope it gets warmer the more we travel from this town," he complained, sniffling once.

Bender grinned at the sight of the coins."Couldn't hold yerself, could ya? Heh. Sure, we can get us some food with that. Or at least ye can. I won't tell ya how to spend yer money."

The Halfling's wish would come true soon enough. A few hours after they left the miner's community, it'd be a bit more warm again. The snow had vanished and only the midday sun remained, at least what little of it could make its way through the dense woods.

"I've got ta clarify somethin' with ya, lad." Bender suddenly spoke as he reached for a loaf of bread and a skin of wine from the back of his cart, all while keeping the reins in between his feet."Our next stop's Orcish territory." He turned back around once he got his food and drink."Grab what ya like, by the way. Our lil' problem won't lie with an Orc, though. Have ye heard o' an Ettercap before? Perhaps o' Spidermen? Somethin' like that?" Perhaps the Halfling might have heard stories of Ettercap. They were portrayed as big, pot bellied abominations that could communicate with spiders.

Not soon after the question was asked, the pair passed by Alifern, though Bender avoided that place. They were still looking for the graverobber after all.

Steve heard the offer to grab what he wanted, so he did! He climbed up and grabbed some bread and that...was...just about it. He didn't want to take any of Bender's wine or anything because that would cost to replace. He'd just buy his own wine when they got to the next town and drink water on the way. "Orcs...?" Steve was terrified of Orcs. He felt like he could be eaten by them!

And then, of course, he spoke of spidermen. The halfling had only heard of them, and not in much detail, but the idea was plenty terrifying. Spiders were not things Steve enjoyed, or Orcs. He wasn't going to have too much fun in this next town, he feared. (Although it could go completely opposite, he could never be too sure.)

Steve took off his coat after it got too warm. Sitting in the sun like that would do that to a person! What was funny was how casually he placed the coat beneath him before flopping back down again. Well, that part wasn't funny, but the halfling wasn't wearing clothes similar to the ones he wore when the two first met. He was wearing a... dress? Okay....

It took a while for Bender to realize what his Halfling companion was wearing. He was too busy explaining the Ettercap who'd be their next target.

"Bugface, we used ta call her. 'Er real name was Dreadvile 'r somethin', but unlike Buttsey, she actually liked 'er nickname. I'm pretty sure it's a she. I swear I've seen 'er lay an egg once! Twas quite a clever gal at that, too. Most Ettercap 're pretty dumb, but she was quite smart, for a hulkin' abomination. Speaks common tongue, 'n didn' care for gold. She was smart enough ta realize on sea people 're much less likely ta hunt a spidermonster down. I still don' know what got 'er spooked, but it must've been pretty scary for 'er to even consider sailin' the seas."

This talk went on for a little while of how proud he was to be able to claim he was the only captain with such an elusive creature on board and how she terrified the other pirates, even the one she was sided with. But then he realized Stevie's sudden choice of clothing, and he couldn't help but raise his brow and ask."The hell ya wearin' that for, lad? Ya look like a proper lass in that." It seemed he still didn't realize Stevie was not a 'he'.

Steve listened to him go on and on about Bugface, and his interest grew. His relief was evident in the way his body went limp and he relaxed, eyes shutting. Bugface seemed different the way Bender described her. Less terrifying and more tragic. Maybe calling her a 'she' helped soften the imagined appearance Steve had in mind, which made her less scary.

Finally, the old man took notice of the dress, and really the halfling had nearly forgotten about it. Steve gave him a weird look and canted his head.

"That's the point? Thought yer thoughts of girls are the same as men?" Steve grinned. "I'm not a lad, Bender. It's just easier for people to take me seriously if I look like one, y'see? But! I dun' hafta worry about it with you, so I got a dress for once."

Bender looked honestly surprised and gaped at his companion like an idiot for a moment. He just couldn't believe it! Stevie has completely deceived him! He had always prized himself on his ability to filter the lies from the truths. Another bit of proof how cunning the Halfling race was.

His disbelief quickly turned into laughter, even more obnoxious and loud than ever before."By the Gods, lass! Yer a clever one, ain't ya? All this time I took ya for a scruffy lil' boy, but yer just a scruffy lil' girl." He chuckled, catching a bit of his breath."Yer pretty flat, I must say." He couldn't help but notice."So if ya don' mind me askin', what's yer real name? 'N where're ya from in the first place? I bet there's one hell o' a story behind ya dressin' up like a lad."

Nothing was said as he cackled and spoke, not quite understanding the degree in which Bender thought this was hilarious. It was just clothing, right? She likely wouldn't get offended by the scraggly bit, although being called flat just made her face go fifteen shades of red for a multitude of reasons. Embarrassment, anger - no wait, that was pretty much it.

"Yer not supposed'ta look!" she fussed, pulling her legs up and hugging them. Don't fret, though, it was still a rather unladylike way of doing it. Arms were crossed atop her knees, face shoved against them with her nose resting atop the arm above the other, and her legs were spread a little bit (luckily she was wearing some type of tight trouser beneath the dress). Her feet curled around the edge of the seat a little, too.

"Nuh uh, not much to tell," she finally spoke up. "I didn't like home when I was lil' and ran off. I think people thought I was too weak or girly or somethin' and wouldn't let me work for 'em so I could buy stuff like food, so I started lettin' 'em think I was a lad. Made it a lil' bit easier. Takin' stuff has helped, too, but it can get tricky, haha!"

Bender was still chuckling. He just found it so hilarious he had been deceived like that. Only when Stevie started to do her explaining did he stay quiet."Well, that's pretty smart, lass. I just dun' get why women in the mainland are seen as inferior by so many communities. They're supposed ta be th' most 'advanced' people, 'n they don' respect their women. 'n us islanders 'r lil' more than savages? HAH!"

The ride went on for a little while longer before they'd reach a small outpost."Y'know. Ya still didn't tell me yer name, lass. I gave ye both, so it's the least ya can do to thank me for not shootin' ya 'n leavin' ya behind in a ditch." The pirate grinned. Oh how he loved making people uncomfortable.

"I dun understand it, either. They want ya to get married n' have all them babies, but I'm too young for that! Only twenty. N' I don't want no human man anyway (S'all they had in most of the towns I ran off to, haha!). Too tall," she laughed.

Steve crossed her arms and faked a glare at the man. "You would't've shot me! I'm too quick," she sang. Regardless, she shrugged and decided to give him her name. Again. "I didn't lie when I gave you my name. It is Steve. Well, Stevie Ruggles. Not much of a difference, 'uh?"

The halfling remained seated, even leaning back a little as she watched the outpost. Maybe she was being lazy? Probably.

Bender couldn't help but frown."Lass, I could'a shot you back in Alifern 'n stuff you in Erama's coffin if I wanted to. Also what kind o' a name is Steve fer a lass 'nyway?" He decided to drop the subject of the Halfling's name. He had some shopping to do.

Bender stopped when they got to the outpost; a place filled with tents, as if it were a league of campers who were out strolling. Some of those tents were open, though, ready to sell food, drink, blankets and whatever a traveler could possibly need on his or her trip. Bender walked into a large yellow tent, which had a makeshift counter with wooden boxes lazily stacked into little mounds. It was owned by a short and rather fat Elf.

Bender Of Iron Will wouldn't be in there for long. He just bought some salted fish and dried meats as well as a pair of caskets of ale. If Steve didn't get out of the cart, he'd just go on and keep on riding until they'd reach the Airship Tower. On the way there he'd be mainly talking about stories from the days he was younger and all the adventures on the sea.

The Airship Tower had a small community built around it. The tower was huge, spanning extremely high and looked like an old fashioned castle tower. There were little houses around it, mainly inns for the passengers who had to wait a couple of hours or days before their airship would arrive. The name of this tower was Highspanner.

Steve looked down and grew a little nervous. She wanted to think he was joking, but she guessed he wasn't. So far, Bender was very pleasant, but that thought alone really bothered her. It might've been because she'd never really been subject to death like that before. Even in the mines, she might not have been killed if she was caught (as far as she knew). But what he said disturbed her on a deep level. Why? Well, because he was right! He could've easily gotten rid of his witness and buried her, leaving her to be forgotten forever. She took a slow, deep inhale and finally replied about her name, "It's Stevie. Stevie is a girl's name, too, y'know!"

She tried to force a smile when she replied, though it was hard. Her thoughts dwelled on what Bender said while hewent and did his shopping. After a few minutes, she'd get off the cart and look around as well. Still, she returned shortly before her comrade did and off they went to the Airship Tower. By then, she had forgotten all about her little disturbing thoughts and was now fascinated with the town itself. She'd never been on an airship, let alone seen one! She'd only heard stories from travellers at taverns or on the streets.