Beyond The Frontline

Fragment Bravo

Colt's journey was about to begin, eager to prove himself and lend a helping hand, he prepared to embark on his very first quest. A simple task of herb gathering, what could possibly go wrong?

Colt exited the guild and before he sets out on his journey, he needed some provisions. He need rations and other essential supplies if he wanted to survive this new world he was in. With a sense of determination and optimism in his heart, Colt made his way to a small and humble stall located just a stone's throw away from the town center.

The air was filled with the lively chatter of the townsfolk as Colt approached the modest vendor's stall, its weathered wooden frame adorned with an assortment of goods. The stall was manned by a weather-beaten old merchant.

"Good day, lad," the old merchant greeted Colt with a nod. "Need anything for your travels?"

Colt stared at the old merchant while trying to piece together a coherent sentence without sounding too foreign. "Yeah...I need some rations and other supplies...I got a quest," Colt replied with a hint of awkwardness in it. It wasn't the worst nor the best but he was trying.

The old merchant let out a chuckle. "You're gonna have to be more specific with me son," he said while eyeing Colt from the bottom up. He instantly knew this person was a newbie.

"Uhh, herb gathering, village up north," Colt specified.

The old merchant nodded knowingly, he quickly grabbed a bunch of items both from the front and back of his stall. At the front, he reached for a bundle of dried rations and carefully packed it in paper. Colt saw what the rations consisted, it had hardtack biscuits, strips of salted meat, and a small assortment of dried fruits and nuts. At the back, he reached out and got an old cloth sling bag and a tanned leather waterskin. 

He put all the supplies in the bag and handed it over to Colt. "Here you go lad, enough supplies to last you a few days, the village up north only takes about half a days walk to get there so this should do it," he said.

Colt reached for his pocket before asking. "How much?"

"That'll be six bronzes," he replied with a hearty smile.

Colt nodded, he made the transaction and got the necessary goods he needed. He thanked the old merchant and bid him goodbye before heading out of Rine. The town had only two ways in and out, the north and the south gate which he came from yesterday. He made his way to the north gate  and after giving the guards stationed there a gentle nod, he exited the gate and the sound of the bustling town slowly began to fade away, he was finally on his way to the northern village for his first quest.

As he was walking down the dirt path, he passed a small group of what he assumed to be other adventurers returning to town, he didn't show any signs of interest in them whatsoever and minded his own business but for a split second, as they passed by, Colt caught a glimpse of something peculiar, all of them had a patch on their shoulder and on said patch was inarguably the same dog head symbol from the piece of parchment he saw on the guild bulletin board. 

Colt stopped in his tracks and looked over his shoulder, they didn't seem to pay him any mind and headed through the town gate without issue. He shook his head and focused his attention back on the road, as he walked, Colt with a look of disdain on his face, muttered under his breath, "Mercenaries."

The reason for his disdained look was because throughout his years being in the military, Colt heard tales from fellow soldiers about mercenaries. He had no experience nor encountered them when he was deployed but he heard a bunch of stories from other soldiers and most of them weren't painting the mercenaries in a good light, sure there were some exceptions but most if not all of the time, they weren't the most favorable. To say the least.