Ludere online

“Here the bones are. If you take that small sack of outs out to Millie the goat you can come back in back here. I may have a mug of warm cider for you when you get back to thank you for taking that burden from me.” She said with a wry smile.

“Sure. Hey can we buy some of whatever that is that baking too?” Pag said taking the bag of oats.

Amanda shook her head. “ We’re getting the pastries and bread ready for tomorrow's breakfast. If you want though I can take an order for the morning and have it ready for you. Pastries go fast in the morning unless you pre order. Most folk can’t afford it so we just make a bun in advance and when they’re gone they're gone until the next day.

“what kind of pastries you make?” he asked

“jam filled sweet breads, cookies, pie of the in season fruits.”

“Like the berries that I had with my dinner?”

“Yeah those are fetters berries. We make a pie using them, apples and blueberries with cinnamon and various other spices. We can make a large pie the size of a serving platter or a small one that could fit in a mug.”

“Alright and what else do you usually serve in the mornings.”

“Beef steak, eggs, potatoes bread and your choice of drink.”

He swallowed. “I'll cover breakfast Aviva. Amanda, we want two of each pastry you make, on the pies do the small ones plus a normal order of your regular breakfast.” He said then turned to Aviva. “What would you like to drink?”

“Some of the tea you had tonight I suppose. Seemed like you liked it so why not give it a try.” she said with a shrug

“Two cups of tea then” Pag said with a smile as he turned back to Amanda. “Can you bring it up to us in the morning? We’re on a quest and need to prepare, we’d prefer not to be distracted.” He asked.

“Aye, that can be arranged. We can settle your food bill in the morning.”

“C'mon Pag, it’s not going to get any warmer out there the longer we dawdle here.” Aviva said tugging on his sleeve. “I’ve already got the bones.”

He followed her out the door cursing as the cold wind hit him hard. He glanced out into the night and cursed again. The snow was now at least 2 inches thick and growing. He looked around and grunted.

“Screw it, if you need to go, go ahead and use the outhouse if you need to.” He said trudging over to the corner where a large shrub clawed at the tavern wall and pulled the front of his pants down far enough to get the job done.

Once he was done he bundled back up and turned to face the outhouse and waited until Aviva stepped out. He nodded to the stables and turned to trudge to them. He kept his pace slow until she reached his side then matched her pace. The thick powdery snow groaned beneath their feet and clung to their clothes where it managed to land or happened to brush.

“We aren't going to have to go back and forth on this until we have the right bones are we?”

“No. Once they take the initial bone you’re good. If they stop taking bones then you have a serious problem. They are either preparing to gore you or they are pregnant. Both are equally bad possibilities. Trust me.”

“Good to know.” he said, pulling the door open for her and following her inside.

Aviva handed him a few of the bones she held and padded over to her Leprin, dropping the bones in front of it before scrubbing at the fur around the nubs of horns.

Pag jogged over to Morena and offered the bones to her. She stared at him warily for a moment before taking them with a small chirping noise. Pag blinked at her and scrubbed the fur around her horn nubs, mimicking Aviva. Morena chittered at him and bit into one of the bones. Pag grimaced at the cracking, grinding noises. He swallowed and chuckled taking his hand back

“C’mon Pag, from the way the wind sounds out there the storms about to hit at full force. I’d rather not be stuck in here all night.” Aviva said tapping them on his shoulder. “Also, as cool as these guys are their eating is unsettling.”

Pag glanced at her and nodded, grimacing again as Morena ground at the bone again. “Wait the oats?” He asked pulling the sack from his robes.

“The back stall.” She said pointing. “I'll wait by the door. Just pour it into the trough.” she said shuffling over to the door.

Pag shuffled to the rear stall were a goat stood munching on some hay, poured the oats into the trough then rejoined Aviva.

The door was heavy as they fought to push it open. With a great heave they pushed it open far enough to slip out, the wind buffeting them. The snow that fell now bit at them, no longer just big fluffy flakes.

Aviva cursed loudly, her voice torn away by the howling wind. Pag squinted into the wind, tears forming and sliding part way down his face where they froze. The wind tore at his robe, pulling it tight against him, the excess flapping in the wind behind him. They turned the corner, coming up on the backside of the tavern, gaining a small reprieve from the wind that they used to jog up to the porch and enter the kitchen. Snow fell off his robe in clumps. And the warmth that emanated from the ovens stung his skin. His breath hissed from him and he cringed away from the heat. Amanda clicked her tongue and dropped her spoon, bustling over to them and grabbing by the elbows.

“Come, sit over here. You need to get warmed up or you’ll be in real trouble. I'll get your ciders.”

Pag fell into the seat by the oven, Aviva falling into the seat across from him on the other side of the oven. He looked at her with a frown, noting her now pallid complexion and reached over placing a hand on her forehead.

Aviva blinked at him and scowled pulling back. “What are you doing?”

“You look like you may be getting sick.”He said slowly as he leaned back pulling his now damp robes over his head and setting them on the floor in front of the oven.

Aviva blinked at him. “So do you.”

Pag’s frown deepened and he pulled up his stat sheet with a wave, watching Aviva do the same out of the corner of his eye.

Pag took a deep breath in. “Looks like if we had been out in that weather any longer we would have died.” He said looking over to her. “What is Tombs Rattle?”

Aviva sighed and put her head in her hands, leaning in towards the over marginally. “ Its an illness that is similar to pneumonia and tuberculosis. It affects your lungs and respiratory system. Fluid builds up making it hard to breath and you end up coughing so much you damage your aioli and bronchial tubes causing them to bleed.”

“Let me guess, that makes it harder to breath so you cough more until you die a horrible coughing death.” He said with a sigh that became a coughing fit.

Aviva nodded. “Normally but some of us healers can reverse it, though the common folk usually can't afford it. There’s also a plant that can be turned into a tea to cure it but it can be hard to find. Or you can spend the rest of your days in a dry warm place.”

“Are you one of the healers that can reverse it?” He asked swallowing back another cough.

“No, at most I could push back the effects and delay the worst of the side effects. Before you ask, the plant we need only grows in the lunar empire.”

Pag bit back a curse as Amanda approached them and handed them each a steaming mug with a weak smile before going to work on some dough.

“Do we need to go back to the core to get this fixed?” He asked quietly

“No, Everyone there will be gone by the time we get back. They were to be given orders to move out not long after we were.” She said shaking her head and coughing into her shoulder. “Our best be it so go to the Lunar empire, we can get the plant and complete our quests.”

“If you are a game AI why can't you just-” he wiggled his fingers. “go into the code and fix it?” he asked.

She rolled her eyes and shook her head again. “No, I can't adjust our stat sheets. I can do mine because it is literally me now, it’d be like doing open heart surgery on myself to go in and mess with my own coding. I cant touch yours because it’d send a red flag to the devs and we would end up in a lot of trouble. “

Pag scratched his chin and took a swig from the mug, a strong apple and cinnamon flavor exploding in his mouth while the warmth of it tracked deep into his chest. He hummed into the mug and took another drink, the warmth burning a path through his body faster than the fire from the oven next to him had managed the whole time he had been sitting there.

Aviva arched a brow at him and sipped on hers where she sat but remained silent until they both finished their mugs. Sitting forward she stood slowly and placed her mug with a mountain of others next to a pot full of soapy water. “Thank you Amanda, we’re going to go ahead and call it a night.” She said slowly.

Pag stood and nearly fell back into his seat. He glanced at his stat sheet again preparing to see his exhaustion level had risen to a new level but felt his mouth drop open at the new status effect making him glance at his system messages.

Player Name: Pagacco Level: 12

Class: Mage Subclass: Pyroclasm

Profession: None Specialization: None

Currently Active Title: Enemy of Soohan Most used Skill: Flames

Alignment: Inflammatory

Health: 120/120 [R:10] Mana: 260/260 [R:10] Stamina: 55/55 [R:11]

Points Earned: 27

Reputation:

Soohan: Blood Feud (-9999) Draggor (155)

Lunar Empire (0) Red Fox Caravan (0)

Arcane Core (12) Backstreet Boys (-500)

Unionized Draggor Thieves Clans (-500)

Attributes:

Strength: 10 Constitution: 11 Dexterity: 12 Intelligence: 15

Wisdom: 16 Charisma: 11 Piety: 2 Luck: 10

Karma: -2

Combat:

Attack: 10 Accuracy: 5 Agility: 10 Speed: 5

Critical: 0.21 Endurance: 5 Focus: 12 Defense: 10

Magic Def: 10 Armor: 0 Hygieian Meter: 55

Active Status Effects:

Cold II – Stinky I - Exhaustion I - Tombs Rattle I - Drunk I

Flames - Beginner 2

Titles

Enemy of Soohan – Beginner Pyroclasm - Cartographer I

He looked up to see a grinning Aviva, her eyes sparkling with laughter, and he scowled placing the cup alongside hers then grabbed his now dry and very warm robes from the floor. He crossed his arms, shoving the wadded robes under one arm, and nodded for her to lead the way. She snorted and shook her head as she turned and slipped into the main room of the tavern. The hearths were still lit but the candles had long since been put out. Tables were pushed against the wall and the chairs stack atop them. People lie in bedrolls in groups, most under the tables to avoid being stepped on while others were in corners. Aviva grabbed his arm and shepherded him to the small set of steep stairs at the far end of the room and pushed him up them. He stopped at the head of the stairs, squinting into the darkness and she sighed pushing him down the hall as she called a small spark to her hand and cupped it. Pag blinked and cocked his head as he followed her.

She stopped at the last door on the left, slipped a key in and held the door open for him. He slipped into the room and looked around with a frown. The room was small and one wall was clearly part of the chimney for the hearth, heat radiating out from the worn stone. It was barely wide enough for the rickety old bed that may have been slightly larger than a twin that had been shoved into a corner, a wash basin and a small table. Aviva stepped into the room and locked the door behind her as she pulled off her robes and tossed them on the table. She kicked off the boots and padded over to the bed where she slipped under the covers.

He stood there in the silent darkness for a moment then with a sigh flicked a finger to call a small flicker of flame to the tip of his index finger. Pag frowned and rolled his eyes, she must have fallen asleep the moment she stopped moving. Somehow, between everything that had happened since he had logged back in and all the alcohol she had drunk he didn’t find it particularly surprising. He slipped his robe on and found a handful of candles and a tarnished silver plate on the table, lit one as he stuck it to the plate, then sat against the warm wall of the chimney pulling one of the books from the sack in Aviva’s robes where she had tossed it down. He wasn’t sure if she had forgotten about their shift sleeping agreement or not but he couldn’t fault her for needing sleep. He would just read a bit of the book then wake her for her shift.

He started, jumping at the sound of a soft knock at the door, and stood stiffly with a groan. Cold pale light streamed in through a small sunroof in a corner that had gone unnoticed the night before giving off enough light to navigate the room. He padded over to the door and unlocked it, pulling it open a crack. The smell of sizzling steak, fresh pastries and cooked eggs hit him full force and his stomach growled audible. He smiled weakly at a grinning Amanda as he pulled the door open further taking the platter of food from her and hurriedly taking it to the table as she followed him in with a tray holding two empty mugs and a steaming kettle.

Pag blinked and again wondered what would happen if he declined to pay but tapped the accept option and watched at the coins left his inventory.

“If you need anything else let me know.” Amanda said quietly as she glanced at the bed.

Pag nodded and watched her leave the room, shutting the door behind her. He waited a moment then padded over and locked the door. Turning he looked to the wall he had apparently slept against, the candle he had used to read by burnt to a small nub, the wax now filling the plate like frozen water. He glanced over to Aviva who slept silently, curled into a ball with the blanket wrapped around her. Only her nose and a few tufts of hair stuck out from the blanket. Pag snorted and rubbed his temple padding over to poke her nose.

Aviva groaned and sat up slowly squinting at him. “What” she said, voice husky from sleep.

Pag gestured to the table. “Morning, breakfast just arrived.”

She blinked at him and sat up straighter, her eyes wide. “Did I sleep the whole night?”

Pag nodded as he walked over to the table and filled mug with tea for the both of them. He offered her one and took a sip from his. “Yeah, I was studying the map books a bit but guess I ended up passing out before I woke you for your shift.”

She cringed looking over to where the books and candles sat next to the stone wall. She cursed quietly and took the mug from him, wrapping both hands around its warmth and taking a sip. “I’m sorry.”

Pag shrugged. “It’s not a big deal.” he said as he walked back over to the table grabbing the plate from the platter that held the pastries and plopping on the bed next to her as he sat the plate between them. He grabbed a cookie off the top and bit it in half, the cinnamon sugar and cardamom creating a fresh and warm flavor in his mouth that mixed well with the tea.

Aviva grabbed a miniature pie bit into it, a blood red filling seeping out around her mouth as she bit down on it. “How much did you manage to read last night?” She asked around the pie.

Pag blinked and furrowed his brows as he popped the remains of the snicker doodle cookie into his mouth and pulled up his notifications and clicked on the option to condense all related information.

Pag smiled and sent a copy of the information over to Aviva and grabbed the other mini pie from the plate as he stood and stuck it in his mouth. He padded over to the table and drug it over to the bed, wincing at the squalling noise of the legs against the floor. Once it was close enough he plopped onto the bed and bit into the pie he’d held in his mouth, tart berries and buttery flaky crust filling his mouth. Aviva snorted and leaned forwards grabbing a plate filled with scrambled eggs, fried potatoes, steak, bread and a small bowl of butter. Pag blinked and put the rest of the pie on his plate as he slid it closer.

He grabbed a fork and shoveled a bite of fluffy eggs into his mouth, the rich flavor reminding him of the time he had stopped at a small mom and pop diner on the way to visit his parents for the holiday and they had used farm fresh eggs that were gathered that day before they opened up. He chewed them a bit and shrugged, not particularly impressed though he was sure some players would be. If they could even place the difference in flavor. He finished the eggs then moved to the steak.

The steak was juicy but lacked flavor and cooked well done. It was ok but he’d have preferred it rare and with more seasoning. He popped a few of the cuts of potatoes in with the bite of steak he was chewing wishing he had some ketchup. He finished them off and grabbed the chunk of bread, smearing the butter all over it and shoving it all in his mouth.

Beside him Aviva choked on a mouthful of eggs, laughter wheezing out and she fought back a coughing fit. Pag turned and slapped her on the back, swallowing the half chewed bread with a wince.

“You ok?”

“Yeah, is there a particular reason you’re eating so fast? She coughed out.

Pag shrugged. “I just wanted to get an idea of how bad the storm was last night and check on the Leprin.” He said sheepishly.

Aviva nodded and took a drink of her tea and cocked her head to the side. “We definitely shouldn’t spend anymore time that what is necessary. But if we leave too early we could end up caught in another arm of the storm.”

Pag frowned and picked up what was left of the pie, taking a small bite from it as he rubbed the back of his neck. “I wonder if that weather mage we heard about is here. Maybe they can give us an idea of the window were looking at to get farther south.” He said musingly taking another bite.

Aviva leaned back and grabbed a cookie, pushing her empty plate on the table away and bringing the plate with the leftover pastries to the table. “Mn. That’s not a bad Idea. You go ahead and check into that. I’ll feed the leprin and make sure we have what we need if there’s enough time for us to get back on the road and make it to the next tavern before another storm.” she said biting into the cookie and chewing slowly.

Pag nodded grabbing what looked like a jelly filled doughnut from the plate leaving the last pastry for Aviva as he stood stretching. “Right. Looks like its not long after sunrise according to the system clock so hopefully there’s time.” He said straightening his clothes and brushing off the remains of his breakfast. He bit into the doughnut and arched his brows at the blackberries, strawberries and cream filling that filled his mouth. He hoped he could convince Amanda to make them some pastries for the road though there probably wouldn’t be enough time.