Inch by Inch

Jay had three names and a slowly reddening sky.

Three names weren’t a lot. Even if they all accepted, he would only have a small sized team and one without a guild behind it. And if none of them did, well, there was always the option of being a solo adventurer.

He let out a pained laugh.

Not that that was an option. Jay wasn’t stupid. His dream was to become a famous old adventurer, not a famously dead one.

Of the names, one was awkward, one was a long shot and one was questionable. Jay started with the questionable name. It was the closest and easiest of the three to handle.

From Kate’s house, it was a short jog towards the center of the town. Ana Marier lived above the clothing shop her mother Sofia ran, and it was his best chance to find her. He didn’t know Ana well enough to guess anywhere else. She hung out with a different crowd, and he couldn’t even remember the last time they’d talked, but he did know her. Kavakar wasn’t a huge town and there were only so many people their age.

Ana’s Word, Cut, wasn’t a huge deviation from her mother’s Trim, but there was a significant difference between the two. One had helped Sofia Marier start a successful business and earn a place on the shopkeeper’s council alongside his own mother. The other had potential.

The clothing shop was dark when he arrived. Loud knocking, as loud as he dared while still being polite, didn’t change the situation. Jay peered anxiously in the windows as he tried to weigh up his options. Should he wait? Or was it better to come back later after visiting one of the other-

“What do you want?”

Jay turned at the scathing tone and took in exactly what made Ana questionable as an adventurer.

She glared up at him suspiciously, blue eyes stabbing out in the dark and brown hair matted to her forehead and neck with sweat. Even with her suitable Word, there was no escaping the fact that Ana was tiny. She didn’t even make it up to his shoulders. Cut was a physical word, perfect for some aspects of adventuring. But you couldn’t cut anything if you couldn’t reach it. And Cut wouldn’t help with every aspect of adventuring. If you had to describe Ana, delicate would come to mind, not adventurous.

As he considered her, another unhelpful certainty popped into his mind. She was a teeny bit under 4 foot 9 inches. He also realized that he had seen her recently and not just from a passing glance in the church earlier. She still wore her formal clothes from the ceremony, but like her hair, they were matted to her with sweat. He’d seen her several times even — once on each lap around the training grounds as he overtook her again and again and again. That Ana had tried out was a good sign, no a great sign, but it also meant that the recruiters-

“What do you want?” Ana repeated between gritted teeth, anger overtaking her tiredness.

“Were you recruited?” Jay asked before he could think his approach through.

Her eyes narrowed and her nose twitched. “Why does it matter to you?”

He took a breath. She hadn’t then. “Well I-”

“And why don’t you just go ask your ‘friends’? You didn’t stick around till the end, but I’m sure they’d be willing to fill you in.”

Jay frowned. What did she mean? The talks between recruiters and hopefuls were private. Besides, his friends would have been busy talking to their own recruiters. What had happened while he was gone? Was there some kind of argument or shouting match?

“Why wou-”

Ana threw trembling hands up. “Why do you even care? You seem to have it all sorted out. All laughs and smiles as you shopped around the guilds. Started a little bidding war, did you?”

And with that, she pushed past him to the door, failing to move him but continuing all the same. She pulled out a key and tried to steady her trembling arm enough to unlock the door. Ana swore as all she accomplished was scratching the keyhole with her unsteady tapping.

“I... I didn’t get recruited.”

Ana’s futile attempts stopped. She let the key fall to her side as she turned back to him. “You didn’t?”

Jay shook his head.

Her eyes relaxed a little and she started chewing her upper lip. Then she paused. “Not even the guard?”

Jay winced. “I didn’t ask.” He was going to pay for that no matter what happened. Not even considering them would be seen as a slight after all the inroads he’d worked to build.

“Huh,” she said. She let out a tired snicker. The snicker grew until it was Jay’s turn to scowl.

Ana stopped eventually with a big sniff and brushed at her nose. She stared at Jay again suspiciously. “Why are you here?”

Jay let his scowl fall. Patience. He needed to be patient. She’d clearly had as bad a day as he had.

“I want to be an adventurer anyway. I’m making a team.”

This time she snorted. “You’re serious?”

He nodded, setting his face to show his conviction.

She shook her head. “Shit, you must be dumber than me.”

Jay frowned and opened his mouth to explain-

“Who’s on this team?”

He winced. “No one yet, but if you let me explain my-”

“How many people you got left to ask?”

“We start with the easier jobs once we make it to one of the cities,” Jay launched into the spiel. “Register with the adventurer office and-”

“Not many left then, and I doubt I was your first pick,” Ana mused, crossing her arms and tapping the key against her arm.

“If you let me explain the plan.” He was panicking now.

She paused her tapping and Jay relaxed a little. Great. He could start with the overall plan and move into the training-

“You have that sister don’t you? In a guild?”

“What does that have to do with anything?” Jay snapped.

Ana nodded to herself. “I’ll join your ‘team’. But I want 50%.”

“What?” Jay snapped again, his merchant side offended now rather than angry.

“And when this goes bottom up,” Ana continued. “You have to recommend me to your sister. An honest introduction.”

“No,” Jay said angrily. “That’s way too high. No one gets paid that much.”

Ana raised an eyebrow and gestured around them at the empty street with trembling arms. “No one else is getting paid anything.”

“Right now but-” Jay paused and rallied. He’d already thought of how to handle payment. “We do it by shares. One for the team costs, one and a half for me, one each for everyone else.”

Ana scoffed. “Why do you get paid more?”

“Are you organizing and managing this team? Do you know how to register as an adventurer? Or how to train?” Jay flicked a careful eye at the sweat patches still staining her well-made clothes. “Do you even know where to begin?”

Ana’s face scrunched, and she let her arms fall. She slipped the key through her hand until she was holding it like you’d hold a fork.

For a second Jay thought she was about to start yelling, and he’d have lost one team member before they even joined.

Then the key slipped from her trembling hands and Ana cursed. She crouched down to pick it up, cursing all the while. When Ana pushed herself back up she was red-faced. “Whatever. Just remember, when it ends, you have to recommend me to your sister.”

Ana turned and with both hands on the key, opened the door and disappeared inside.

Jay took a breath. “Shit.”

He placed both hands on his head and leaned against the side of the shop. “I guess I’m forming an adventuring team.”

He took a minute to revel in that. Fear, excitement and worry running through him in ever-changing amounts.

Then he pushed away from the wall and set off again. The sun was setting, and he had two names left.

The guards didn’t stop or question him as he ran through the gates, but he got meaningful looks at the sky. The sun was setting and with it his chances to strike before the ink was dry.

The Laurel’s farmhouse wasn’t too far from the town walls, but it was fifteen minutes of running that he didn’t need after a long day. When he made it to the heavy wooden palisade, he relaxed. The lights were on inside. They weren’t off celebrating somewhere else.

Jay rang the bell hanging two meters or so away from the palisade — to prevent Oddities from using it to climb the palisade and took a moment to gather his breath. A door opening and the following sound of footsteps told him he didn’t have long.

A slot slid open on the gate and Sarah Laurel stared out at him.

“Is that you Jiro? What are you doing out here at this hour? Did your mom send you?”

And that was one of the reasons why this name was awkward. Sarah supplied his mother’s shop and fed his father’s caravans.

“Hi Sarah,” Jay panted out between breaths. “No, I’m here to talk to David.”

“David,” Sarah repeated, surprised and a little worried.

Which Jay had expected. Despite the best efforts of Sarah and Mika, and multiple play dates throughout the years, Jay and David had never really clicked.

“Well... Do you want to come in? We ate earlier, but there should be some cake left?”

Jay shook his head. “Thank you for the offer, but I’m just here to talk to David.”

“Oh... Alright then.”

One by one, latches clicked and keys turned before the gate opened. He hurried inside and helped Sarah shut the heavy gate behind him. She led him towards the house, but he held back with the excuse of needing to cool down. This was a conversation best had in private. Sarah eyed him strangely but promised to send David out.

The wait gave Jay time to prepare his pitch. Ana’s... odd responses had thrown him off, but it’d been refined after each of the earlier attempted and failed recruitment.

“Jay? What brings you here?” David called, closing the door behind him and stopping his mother and their family’s pet chewilla, who had been making to follow him. Like his mother, David was eyeing Jay dubiously, but not suspiciously. They may not have become fast friends, but they were friendly enough.

“Hi David,” Jay said with a wave and straightened up. “Have you ever considered a life of adventure?”

He immediately winced. Maybe he was the awkward part of this name.

To David’s credit he listened, even with that awful start, as Jay gave his pitch. Still, his answer was certain. “Thanks for thinking of me, but I think I’m going to stay here and try to give this a go.”

“Crap,” Jay said with an exhalation. Down to one name.

David nodded at the bench beside the gate and moved to sit down himself.

Jay joined him and leaned his head back against the palisade. The rough wood caught some of his hair, but he was too frustrated to care at this point.

“I do get what you’re doing, Jay,” David began. “If you’d caught me after the ceremony I might have been tempted but... I like farming. I like growing things.”

Which was all true. David did not attend the guard’s morning training. He never wanted to discuss the latest news of guilds. He never came to gawk at an adventuring team passing through.

“I guess it would be hypocritical for me to say something about your Word?” Jay joked.

David let out a pained laugh. It seemed it was a little too soon to joke about it. David stood very carefully and walked away from the bench. Stooping, he picked a twig off the ground.

“Break,” the burly farmer intoned sadly.

The twig cracked in multiple places and fell to the floor. David dropped any remaining fragments and brushed dust off his hands.

“I’m not sure if you saw, but I was pretty upset in the church. I... I broke something on my way out too, which didn’t help with the looks. Believe me when I say I get it Jay. I wanted Cultivate or Develop. I’d have been happy with another Plow.” David stopped as his breath caught. His eyes shone in the darkening sky. “I don’t know what the cost is yet, but I don’t think I care.”

“Yeah. I get that,” Jay said with a sigh. Break was a strong Word but not necessarily a good one. What were you supposed to think of someone whose purpose was to break things? What payment would the gods take from its use? “You going to be okay with all the... you know?”

Break wasn’t a good word, but did that make someone who denied it better or worse still?

David laughed without any humor. “Are you?”

“Eh.” Jay gave a small shrug. “Haven’t had time to think of it yet.”

David smiled but shook his head at Jay. “My family helped. And Break will be helpful out here, so far from the town, too.”

Jay’s family’s faces from earlier flickered through his mind. For some reason, Jay didn’t think he’d be so lucky. He stood and stretched. “Speaking of time, I have some more people to ask. Well. One more person.”

David walked with him to the gate.

“If this farming thing doesn’t work out, you’re welcome to come join my successful adventuring team.”

Now David laughed properly.

“I’ll do that,” David said. “And if you ever want to turn your hand to growing the best food in the city states...”

“I know who to talk to.” Jay finished.

He waved goodbye to Sarah, who was watching them anxiously through the window, and left.

| i i i ¦ i i i | i i i ¦ i i i |

Dusk had arrived, and the guards were preparing the shift handover when Jay raced back through the gates. He had one name left and it was a long shot. His legs ached. His breaths came heavy. Still, he continued his sprint until he arrived at a house alongside the outside wall. He didn’t bother gathering his breath before he knocked. There wasn’t time.

After a few seconds, Kirana Hawea opened the door.

“Hello,” Jay said, with a wave from where he was bent over trying to catch his breath.

He didn’t know Kirana well. It was her husband Koa, the guard captain that he knew better, and he trained with their son Kane on occasion.

Kirana arched an eyebrow at him.

“Is Kane here?”

She shook her head.

Jay straightened with a groan. “Do you know where I can find him?”

“Why do you want to find him?”

Jay looked at her. Kirana was one of the town’s hunters and was just as imposing and athletically built as her husband and son. But Kane was the last name he had and a team of two wasn’t much of a team at all.

Fuck it.

“I want to recruit him for an adventuring team.”

Kirana laughed. Side holding, gut splitting laughter.

Jay sagged. He’d always known it was a long shot. And this wasn’t a no from Kane himself but... What were the chances of a guard captain’s son, likely the hopeful with the highest potential in the town even with an ill-fitting word, not joining the guard?

Like David, Kane had never shown any interest in the guilds or passing adventurers. Jay hadn’t seen him at the recruitment today. He likely hadn’t even bothered to come. Kane always trained with a single-minded focus, never taking any breaks to chat or relax. He was the best of them, and he never let them forget it.

Kirana finished her laughter and wiped her eyes. After composing herself, she spoke. “He’s outside the walls.”

Jay blinked. That wasn’t what he was expecting after the laughter. Or at all. No pity or letting him down easily. No warnings to stay away or not to lead her son into a deadly career?

“Any idea where?” He ventured, still off balance.

Kirana just smirked. “Good luck.”

She closed the door.

Hunters. His conversation with Elsie should have made it clear that they were all a bit off in the head.

Jay looked up at the rapidly darkening sky and began to run.

| i i i ¦ i i i | i i i ¦ i i i |

This time the guards did protest as he sprinted past them. Thankfully, none of them had a Word suitable to stop him or didn’t want to use it on someone they weren’t sure was old enough to have received a word. Jay usually scoffed at the belief, but today it was to his benefit.

Once far enough away from the walls that the guards weren’t going to give chase, he stopped to think. Kane couldn’t have gone to any of the farms. The man was a loner. His family was small too, and he didn’t have any cousins or friends that lived out here. Besides, all the farms were spread apart and far from the walls. Surely Kirana wouldn’t send Jay out where Oddities could form.

Right?

Jay shook his head. No, Kane had to be closer. So where?

The aqueduct? It was a very cold day and night for a swim.

Along the road? No one would be traveling this late.

... Out of the domain? Was Kane hunting an Oddity? Did Kirana send him out to help? No. It made no sense. She would have given him some warning or a weapon if so...

He hoped. Bloody hunters.

So where was Kane?

There really wasn’t much outside the walls of town. Not at night anyway. People only stayed out to meet people or... or they were late coming back from the Big Bush.

With a pained first few steps on sore legs, Jay started to run again.

When he reached the Big Bush, it was dark enough that the branches of the Wonder merged together into a dark silhouette. Visibility was low in the shadow cast by the enormous plant. Even so it didn’t take long to spot the figure lying down and staring up at the Wonder and sky.

“Who is it?” Kane asked as Jay approached, not bothering to turn to look.

“It’s Jay,” He said, collapsing to the ground and immediately regretting it as a muscle spasmed. Muscles. His legs were on fire. Trying to mask cries of pain, he shifted until he could stretch.

“Oh.”

Once the pain had passed, Jay shifted to look at Kane, who was still staring up. The man hadn’t moved a muscle. Was he really so confident that a figure approaching at night didn’t make him shift?

It was hard to make out Kane’s features in the dark, but he didn’t seem to have been changed. It happens sometimes. Someone would step up into the triskelion and walk away with a different face, body or personality. But Kane looked the same, his face broad and all smooth angles like his father, but with an added sharpness that was all Kirana. Only his kinky hair, tied together loosely softened his look.

“Have you joined the guards, Kane?”

“No,” Kane responded absently, still staring.

Jay took a breath. He had a chance.

“Have you ever thought about being an adventurer? I know, Threads might not seem like the word for it, but the life fits you. I’ve seen you at training, you could be incredible at it. I’m making a team and-”

“Sure,” Kane said, just as absently as before and still staring up.

Jay followed his gaze up to the shadowed branches of the big bush. He didn’t see anything. “Sure? As in you want to know more?”

“No,” Kane said simply. “Sure as in I’ll join.”

“You don’t want to hear about the plan? Or your other teammates?” Jay asked dumbfounded.

“No.”

“Oh.” What was Kane looking at? Jay couldn’t see anything. Was it his angle? Jay lay back down so he was beside Kane. His pained muscles thanked him. The angle changed nothing.

“You’re going to the city states, yes? Applying directly at one of the offices?”

“Yes,” Jay said slowly. So Kane knew a bit more about the guilds and adventuring than he’d realized.

“So sure. I’ll join your team.”

Jay lifted his head to see Kane better. The man hadn’t moved an inch. Not one question about the plan or splitting the rewards. No questions about how Jay had found him.

Jay considered it then realized he didn’t care. He just had one more question. He’d been holding his questions back all day, and he couldn’t hold back anymore.

“What are you looking at?”

Kane tilted his head, the first movement that Jay had seen since he arrived. “I don’t know.”

Jay waited for Kane to continue. For some further explanation or description. It never came. He was also too tired to ask again. His head fell back against the ground, and he forgot about it.

He’d done it. He had the basis for a team. Three members found in one day.

What an auspicious number.

When Kane eventually looked away from the Big Bush, Jay had gotten feeling back in his legs. They headed back to the town together. The guards didn’t give them any trouble, even though he’d run past some of them earlier. It seemed traveling with the son of one of the guard captains had its perks.