Dungeon Runner (Book 1 and 2)

Stepping Up, Chapter 100

Jackal hurried to open the chest, looked in, and frowned. He reached for the content, but stopped. "If it's for Kroseph, can I touch it?"

Sto laughed. "He can think! Yes, he can touch it. I didn't expect you'd bring his man to me, so I had to make the ring like your old pouch, instead of these items. Any adventurer touching it will sense the weave in it."

"It's safe," Tibs told his friend.

Jackal took a simply golden ring out of the chest.

"I've worked out how special Kroseph is from the way you guys talk about him," Sto said. "To Jackal and the rest of you. I've also picked up that adventurers live longer than other people, if they aren't killed. And I've seen from you, Tibs, how having some you know die hurts you. I didn't make this connection as quickly as I'd like, but people growing older leads to them dying. That seems wrong to me, but Ganny tells me that's how things are. Kroseph is going to get older faster than Jackal. That's not fair to them. Now, I don't know if the ring is going to match how Jackal ages, because I still don't understand how him having essence changes that aspect, but it's going to give you time to figure it out. When you do, you can explain it to me and I'll make Kroseph a new ring."

Tibs swallowed the lump in his throat and wiped at his eyes.

"Tibs?" Jackal asked cautiously. "You're making me want to put it back."

"You keep it," Tibs said, and smiled. "And you make sure you live, okay?" He wiped at his eyes again. "Sto made the ring so Kroseph can be with you for a long time. He's not going to get old like townsfolk, but like adventurers."

Jackal stared at him. When he spoke, his voice cracked. "I can't, Tibs. I can't ask him to live so long when I'm going to die."

"You aren't dying!" Tibs ordered.

"I'm a runner!" Jackal snapped. "If I survive this, and don't you dare go easy on me because of my man," he told the ceiling, "I'm going to be indentured to the guild. I'm not one of those heroes the bards sing about. I'm the kind of adventurer the guild throws at monsters to slow them down while those heroes get ready. I'm the kind that gets eaten."

"Then you get better," Tibs said, glaring at him. "You stop playing at being an idiot so the guild knows to keep you alive."

"I'm not—" Jackal started, sounded exasperated.

"Stop! Stop thinking that. You start thinking more. You do that for Kroseph. You do that, so you come back to him every time."

"I don't know how, Tibs," Jackal replied, sounding lost. "I've fought against that for so long I don't know how to be that anymore. That's who my father wants me to be. He wanted me to learn and to do and to rule. I fought all of that because it was the only way I knew to hurt him."

"He doesn't matter anymore," Tibs said. "This is for Kroseph. I'm going to help you."

Mez placed a hand on the fighter's shoulder. "We're all going to help."

* * * * *

Convincing Jackal to leave most of the loot out of his pouch, for the guild to get, proved to be easy. The only things that went in were the ring and Mez's quiver, because all it would take was for the person behind the table to take an arrow out and they would notice something odd about it. Jackal only took his eyes off the ring once it was away, but still looked lost as he helped repack the rest of the items. Tibs changed into his new, worn looking armor, as did Carina and Khumdar, leaving the old ones behind.

It was a man behind the table this time, young looking, but tired. His ash gray eyes looked less full than many. As with just about every one of them, he barely glanced away from the items they placed on the table to look at them. Anything without essence was theirs to keep, and they didn't need anything Sto had given out as loot that had essence.