SYLWM Bk 1 C2: Two Travelers Arrive from an Antique Land (Patreon)

Author's note: Still waiting on my Betareaders, but I've got this in the meantime.

Chapter 2: Two Travelers From an Antique Land

Fairy in his pocket and surly horse beneath him, Rian entered the outskirts of Clusterfield with something in his heart he was trying to puzzle out. 

Was it hope? No…Nor was it fear, guilt, or happiness either. But the trick of it was, he did feel something, and that was a good sign for him. Apathy had clouded his days for far too long, so any change had to be a good thing.

Right?

Pushing the horse to move a little quicker, they began walking on a more compacted and oft-used dirt road that quickly shifted to one obviously constructed by an Earth Mage. There was a smoothness to magic-crafted roads that couldn’t be duplicated by nature. Since those could get expensive, it told him quite a lot about the town’s prospects.

As the horse plodded along, his gaze swept over the area.

To the right, just before the buildings began, sat a rough circle of abandoned wagons near the entrance. Beside them was a lonely palisade gate drifting in the day itself, and on the left was an Inn still buried somewhere between useful and under-construction. 

Shaking his head at the conflicting mishmash of expenses and randomness, it was the sounds of heavy grunting and half-breathed yells that drew him further in. Turning down a wide alley beside a sturdy wooden building, Rian got his first real taste of Clusterfield.

There was a melee happening.

A little more than half a dozen figures were tangled and rolling around in the dirt. Boots slipping as armored, leathered, and robed figures scrambled against each other, Rian could only make out a few words as they fought like kids back home on Earth. 

Rian had just decided not to get involved when he spotted a lone patch of calm amid the chaos. Standing tall at no less than seven feet, a green man with big ears and an even bigger smile peacefully created an island in the pack of fighters. Every so often, a punch, kick, or other body part would strike him, but the smile never twitched nor wavered.

Rian sighed, then looked around the area. Off to the side was a well with a pump attached. He knew from his experience in the war that they were used to put out fires, and like the road he now walked upon, this one had a bit of assistance in the form of magic.

Coming up with a quick plan, he stopped his horse from getting any closer to the fight. Glancing down at the top pocket of his robe, he half-smiled at the big eyes looking back at him, “Iria, you may want to hop out.”

“Why?”

“Because this could be a sticky wicket,” Rian said with an even tone as he swung his legs over. Hopping down, he tied the reins to a nearby post, pulled his staff from its holster, and then started to walk towards the fight on the balls of his feet.

“What’s a sticky wicket?”

“A rough situation. Come on now, you’ll be fine out in the world.”

“But it’s comfortable in here, and warm.”

“It won’t be in a moment.”

She seemed to think about it for a tick, then it was her turn to sigh.

“Fine.”

Sullenly, the purple fairy pulled herself up and flew out. Making sure she was in a safe area, Rian moved a little faster with the hope of intervening before things got out of hand.

He called back as he moved, “If you can get that water pump working, I’d really appreciate it.”

“What? Oh…Fine.”

Quietest Fairy I’ve met in a long time.

Getting close to a few men who were rolling around mid-fisticuffs, he planted his thick staff down at a low angle. As they predictably rolled upon it, he heaved, forcing them to crash into two more figures nearby. They collapsed into a tangle of limbs that only started back up again, just more viciously than before.

Next, he moved in a quick circle, stabbing out any feet that might come within range. Every so often, a few would get too close to him, but a thick stick of wood in the gut sent them back in and he was soon forgotten about.

What they didn’t realize was that he was deliberately grouping them into a tight circle. While nobody had drawn weapons, that didn’t mean they wouldn’t get there eventually. Plus, there was another fact that they hadn’t yet realized.

The moment he had what he felt was a close-knit group of idiots, Rian calmly walked over to Iria at the nearby pulley system. 

She’d gotten it to leak a little, but it would take more than that to really gain its tribute. Giving it a few strong heaves at an accelerated rate, he watched as the hose began to spray out with gusto, the magical engineering keeping things running. Nodding, he lifted the end, then pointed it at the crowd.

For anyone on Earth who hasn’t seen an active fire hose strike a body before, it’s not for the faint of heart. The immense pressure that erupts from the nozzle is enough to break bones and cause serious injury, sometimes even death. However, since arriving in this world, Rian had been witness to several events that told him one thing in particular.

People’s bodies were much tougher here.

And, based on the thrashing figures being punched into each other at a low-mach level, it was less about causing injury and more of what he’d aimed for: humiliation.

“Cut that damn hose off!”

“We’ll get you, ya flipping in-interrupter!”

“Stop touching me, Frank!”

“That’s your own damn leg, Ned!”

“Both of you shutup!”

“Sorry, Kyle.”

“Sorry, Kyle.”

Rian turned the head of the nozzle closed, and a small bit of blue magic cut off the water mid-stream.

Neat bit of engineering there. This place definitely has some money.

As the hose petered out, the area was quiet for the first time since he and his fairy traveler had arrived. Rian nodded at the silent watchers, then pointed an elegant finger at the crowd.

“You all are almost responsible for unleashing a minor crisis.”

“What?”

“What’d he say? I got swimmer’s ear.”

“What are you talking about, stranger?” A big man in armor asked, stepping out from the crowd. “We were trying to do the right thing by stopping the Harrys from beating up this here hybrid.”

“What!” A thin man wearing a yellow robe called out in a rage. He moved right in front of the armored man’s face, “Kyle, first of all, he’s an orc, not a hybrid. And second of all, he asked us to!”

“Asked you to what?” Kyle asked dubiously.

“Asked us to hit him! Look at his face, he’s smiling!”

He was right: the large creature was smiling, but even as the whole group looked, the edges of its lips began to turn down into a frown.

Rian snapped his fingers to get their attention, “That is not an Orc, that is a Half-Ogre. You can tell by the way the ears curve. And more than that, have you ever seen a non-warchief Orc that was that tall? No? Then there you go.”

Shaking his head, he pointed at the frowning creature's open skin, “The more you hit him, the more power he absorbs until, eventually, he starts to put that power back out into the world. If he takes in enough damage, he’ll go berserk and wipe out most of the buildings barely standing nearby. Now, is that what you really wanted?”

Iria moved away from the pump, alighting on his shoulder as she shook a finger at the crowd. None of them could see her as she pantomimed Rian’s actions.

“Half-Ogres are notorious for getting in the middle of fights and taking on just enough damage that they can spend some of their own out. You bunch of fools almost caused a crisis.”

“Well…we didn’t know!” Kyle replied with his hands up.

“Neither did we,” One man from the Harrys said, taking two steps away from the frowning giant.

“No harm, no foul. If he hasn’t changed yet, he’s not going to. But, just because this almost caused a minor calamity, I’m going to have to take down your names and present them to whoever is in charge here.” 

“That’d be the mayor, Jepson.” The armored man replied, “I’m Phil, from the Harrys Guild. With me is Johan, Bubba…”

Rian took down everyone’s name mentally, filing it away in his mind for when he found the mayor. With a sternly worded warning about not physically attacking half-ogres, he sent them on their way then looked back at the frowning giant.

“What are you going to do with him?” Iria asked.

“I guess…I’ll have to take him with me. Everyone needs to know not to go around punching someone just because they ask you to. It’s foolishness. I know there aren’t a lot of Half-Ogres in the world, but a little education goes a long way.”

“Education, in this space? Keep dreaming, weirdo.”

“Talk like that won’t get you a warm place to sleep tonight,” Rian said as he walked up to the towering man. “You got a name?”

The frowning creature’s ears wiggled as it looked at him. Its eyes twitched to Iria on his shoulder, before meeting Rian’s own. With a slow speech, it said, “Ha-rr-uck.”

“Did it just look at me?”

“He, not it. Don’t be rude. And yes, I believe Hadduck did.”

“I think it said Harruck, not Hadduck.” The ogre’s eyes twitched to her again. “See, he can see me!”

“Harruck probably can. Glamours don’t work on Ogres, though I’ve never met a half-ogre that the Racial ability transferred to. Interesting.” Rian scratched his chin, the stubbled pebbles reminding him he hadn’t shaved since his last stop. “Harruck, will you follow me, please?”

The giant considered it with a tilt of his head, then slowly shrugged, “Oh-kay.”

“Great.”

Together, the mage, the fairy, and the half-ogre walked through the town. Though they couldn’t see Iria on his shoulder, between the dusty robe the man was wearing and the huge figure lumbering behind him, they still drew plenty of eyes. 

Passing by several shops for adventurers, they wound up in a circular area with an almost modern, two-story wooden building on one edge of it. A wooden sign in the front announced its purpose.

Clusterfield Town Hall

Bring your troubles somewhere else

“Come along,” Rian said to the man behind him, and then they ascended a short flight of stairs. The entrance was high enough that Harruk didn’t even have to bend his head before entering.

At a desk near the entrance sat a pretty blonde woman with thin glasses. She had been looking over a stack of papers before her just as they arrived. But when Harruk’s shadow took away her light for reading, she looked up and jumped back in her chair.

“Save the kingdom! What is that!”

“Rude,” Iria snorted.

“Mmm-hrmm,” Rian cleared his throat as he tried to ignore how pretty the woman in front of him was. Quickly collecting himself, he said, “Ma’am, that’s Harruk, and I’m Rian. I wanted to report a fight in Clusterfield.”

She zeroed in on his clothes before her eyes shot back at the seven-foot-tall creature behind him, “Yeah, a fight, great. Let me get the Mayor.” 

With a finger held up as he was prepared to explain the whole thing, Rian never got the chance as she sprinted away before he could say anything else. A door near the back opened and closed with a slam.

“Pretty quick legs there,” He said in appreciation.

“I’ve seen quicker.”

“Huh?” Harruk replied slowly.

In only a matter of moments, a man in a tight business suit, only a little off from what someone on Earth would wear, opened the back door and appeared in a hurry. Looking at the group, he smoothed down his jacket.

“Howdy, folks, I’m Mayor Jepson. As I haven’t seen any of you before, I’d like to say welcome to Clusterfield.” He got closer and held out a hand to Harruk first. The giant looked at it before slowly reaching out and clasping it with both of his own.

The Mayor winced before retracting his arm and offering the same to Rian, who met his hand with his own. This time, the wince was a full-blown panic as he took two quick steps backward, his face pale as a ghost.

“The Natural Disaster!”

Rian heard a gasp from behind the now-cracked door in the back, but that didn’t matter. Reaching out a hand, he closed the gap between himself and the Mayor quickly before placing it on the scared man’s shoulder.

“Harruk, stay here, please. We’ll be right back.”

He waited until the slow, “Oh-kay,” arrived before guiding the man backwards.

“Mr. Mayor, why don’t we take a look at your office? I’ve never seen a frontier Mayor’s office before. Plus, it’ll allow us to have a bit of…conversation. Privately, if you take my meaning.”

“Of-of course! That’s a splendid idea. Grade-A Idea, right there.”

The man’s body shook as he was forced to walk backwards towards his own office.