Origins (Prequel Fanfic)

Chapter 4: Human for One Night

Acantha gave that question a thought for a moment. Why was she really there? Couldn't possibly be for work or to only expand her knowledge of human lives. "Well I suppose I'm here... Uh... Personal curiosity. Aside from hearing the yelling outside the bar, I had originally come to the town to see what human life is like. If im being honest I never got to experience a proper day in a town of humans." The nymph explained to the male beside her. He awkwardly scratched his neck. "Well you're not missin' much. Just bar fights n bonfires here." Zach retorted, sorta feeling bad for making this seemingly innocent gal's first experience of the human world bad.

She seemed to dislike this answer, her cheeks puffing stubbornly. "Maybe thats all this town is for you, Mr. Drink till youre dumb." Acantha pointed out before hopping down from the stool. Zach felt an eye twitch come on as he wasnt exactly fond of this person calling him dumb. "Oh please as if im sure you've been in a similar position. Or is it all stick ups and boring rules up at that temple. You wanna know what its like bein' human? Come with me. I know a spot where parties never end." He laughed, leading Acantha along out of the bar and down a path towards the back end of town. Acantha at the time was unaware of the dangers of walking with someone who she had never met before, but there was risk everywhere, and she would never know what it is to live if she didnt take a risk here and there.

Once arriving, Zach put a hand on the much shorter girl's head. "Welcome to the Adventurer's Outpost." He stated, pushing the door open and showing off the very warmly lit building filled with humans covered in scars and dirt, some cleaned up while others were just arriving from a recent job they had taken up. One group raised their heads and beamed up at seeing Zach. "Oi! Zach! Just where were you?? We just started up a game!" A rough yet feminine voice called out. When Acantha layed her eyes on the group she noticed a very diverse group of four others. One woman, two men, and someone who she couldnt quite put a finger on whether they were male or female, but that wasn't the least bit something Acantha needed to worry about.

"Im sorry Lilijah I was at the bar." Zach apologized. The woman, Lilijah, walked over before seeing Acantha and deadpanning. "Eh? Who's this pretty thing. You aint his date or anything right??" She inquired, causing Acantha to blush before shaking her head. This woman was tall and buff, wearing a simple silver and leather armor set. She was very tan and had her silverish, gray hair tied up in a bun. "Good cause I can guarantee youd be dissapointed. Anyways im Lilijah, those two dudes at the table are the Harlow twins; Belial and Broder, and that mopey looking one is Seita. They're not always mopey but it was a rough day for them. Come on lets get you a drink." Lilijah informed Acantha, shoving Zach away and bringing her to the large table with the group. "Alright everyone, got a guest so behave. This here uh... Pipsqueak will be joining us for lunch." She informed. Acantha sighed a bit. "My name is Acantha and i never agreed-" she was cut off when a waitress slammed down multiple cups of alcohol. "You see those bars have to regulate what alcohol they sell. But here if ya know the tender well he can hook ya up with the good stuff." Lilijah pat her on the back.

The orange haired girl sighed in defeat and took one of the cups, letting herself smell the liquid to make sure it was safe. Once determined it was safe enough to consume, she casually took sips.

The entire group seemed to warm up to Acantha pretty quickly, finding her to be oddly calming and enjoyable to be around. To them, she had this certain charisma that made them all feel comfortable and warm. And to Acantha, she was warming up to them. They all had such interesting stories, advice, and ideas. And as the night went on, the outpost got livelier with even live music from some travelling bards playing their tunes and telling their stories. Lilijah had gone to go pick up some jobs, the buff and bold Harlow twins had taken Saita to dance and gamble to raise their mood. This left Zach and Acantha to sit. And as for Acantha, she had a content look on her face as she admired all the humans having fun. Zach noticed this and couldnt quite understand her fascination. To him this was everyday, and he actually found it pretty monotone compared to some jobs he's been on. "So what made you decide to become an adventurer?" Acantha asked, breaking Zach's train of thought. The brunette male thought for a moment, trying to pinpoint just the right thing to say. "I guess cause thats all there really was left for me to do to feel alive, get some money, booze, women. That kind of stuff." He rambled on and on, not really sure how he could let himself open up. Acantha was attentive, a little confused, but attentive none the less. Though one thing Zach mentioned in his drunken ranting was, "I never really cared if I died or not on these adventures. Not like anyone would truly miss me".

That set Acantha off a little. The girl crossed her arms and frowned. "Don't ever think of something like that! You have plenty of people who would worry over you." She pointed to his little adventure group having fun on the dance floor, singing along with the bards rather out of tune. "Oh yeah? How do you know that, short stack?" Zach got a bit of an attitude with his tone at her. Acantha in turn, turned her head to the wasted group, then back to him before sighing and relaxing. "Isn't it obvious, they all adore you. And despite what they've all been through, they get excited at the mention of seeing you after every job. Sure I havent known you all for long, but within these hours we've shared in each others company, you've all told me so much about yourselves even without even being direct. You're all a family, looking out for each other. And getting to meet up after a hard day of work and knowing each of you have survived another day, makes my heart ache in a pride as deadly as poison. So doesn't knowing all of that make life a little more worth living?" The nymph tilted her head, a soft smile coming to her lips.