You opened your eyes and looked around. It appeared you were in some sort of room, and you were lying in a bed.
Y/N: "W-What happe-"
??: "About time you got up."
You looked over and saw Erik sitting in a chair between you and Eleven, who was still asleep on a bed. Suddenly everything hit you
Y/N: "O-Oh yeah! We jumped off the cliff to escape the guards! But... where are we now?
Erik: "We're in a church near where we landed. Had to carry both of you here so you could recover."
Y/N: "Oh.. Thanks for that."
Erik gave a quick nod then turned to Eleven and tried to wake him up.
Erik: "Wake up, lazybones! Come on! Up you get!"
Eleven opened his eyes and sat up to look at Erik
Eleven: "H-Hey, Erik, Y/N...
Y/N: "Good morning, sunshine."
Erik: "Finally! I was worried we'd lost you for a minute there. You've been out cold ever since we jumped. Had to drag you and Y/N all the way here on my own."
He closed his eyes and reminisced on what happened.
Erik: "But what a jump it was! I closed my eyes, put my faith in the Luminary, and somehow didn't get smashed into a thousand pieces! In fact, I woke up on the forest floor at the bottom of the cliff without a scratch on me. Amazing what a little faith can do."
Erik stood up from the chair and grabbed his things.
Erik: "Anyway, I guess we all must be at the top of the King of Heliodor's Most Wanted list by now. Which means we can't hang around here too long. Let's go say thanks to the nun who looked after us and be on our way."
You and Eleven got up and grabbed your things before leaving the room. In the main hall of the church, a nun was standing in front of the altar.
Nun: "Ah, there you are, my children. I trust that your friends here have fully recovered?"
Erik: "Oh, don't worry about them, they're just fine! Thanks for looking out for us—we owe you one!"
Y/N: "Is there any way we could repay you for your assistance!"
Nun: "Not at all, dear. I am just happy to see you three well again. But if you are leaving, you must be careful on the road. It seems some dangerous criminals have escaped from the capital, and are at large somewhere in the area. Oh, I shudder to think what wicked deeds they might be capable of..."
The three of you looked at each other, surprised that the news of your escape has already spread this quickly.
Erik: "Criminals, you say? Dear me! That doesn't sound good! And you heard this when you were in Heliodor?"
Nun: "I did indeed, my child. There were guards everywhere! They are searching high and low for the villains. And I heard that the mighty knight Sir Hendrik himself has headed to the mountains in the south with his troops. They say he means to block the road to Cobblestone, the village the fugitives came from... Oh, but you must forgive me, poor lambs. I did not mean to alarm you. They will soon be caught, I am sure. Justice will be done. And until then, you are free to remain with us for as long as you please."
Eleven: "We thank you for your hospitality, madam."
Erik: "Thanks, we appreciate that."
He turned around and walked away slightly before stopping
Erik: "Um, we're going to get a little fresh air. We have...a few things to discuss. Right?"
Y/N: "Yeah..."
You and Eleven followed Erik outside to discuss what the nun talked about
Erik: "Cobblestone, eh? Never heard of the place. I never even knew anyone actually lived in those mountains down south. Is that really where you two're from?"
Y/N & Eleven: "Mhm."
Erik: "I'm guessing you want to go see what's happening down there, but you need to be smart—you won't get past Hendrik unnoticed."
Y/N: "Who knows what they could be doing to everyone! We've gotta get there now or-"
Erik: "Listen to me! If you're going to make it there without getting caught, you'll need to avoid the main road. And if you want to do that, you'll need my help. I know every backroad there is to know in these parts. But I've got things to take care of in Heliodor first. I left a little something in one of my old haunts downtown, and I need to get it back. So are you two coming along for the ride? I did help you guys break out of that dungeon, remember."
Y/N: *looks at Eleven* "Should we?"
Eleven: "Seems like the only way we can repay him."
Y/N & Eleven: *nod* "We're in"
Erik: "That's the spirit! But we can't have you bringing us any unwanted attention... Ah, I've got just the thing!"
He pulled out some leather hoods from his sash and gave them to both of you.
Erik: "Here, put these on and keep your faces hidden, otherwise you're going to get nabbed as soon as you set foot in Heliodor."
The two of you took the hoods and put them on and looked how each other's looked
Eleven: "That suits you pretty well, Y/N."
Y/N: "You think so? I guess it does fit my archer style."
Erik: "Heh! That's more like it! If you're going to be wanted men, you might as well look the part! Right, let's head north and hit town!"
He started heading down the path before looking back at Eleven.
Erik: "Glad you're coming along. The Seer told me to stick with the Luminary when I found him, and that's just what I'm going to do!"
~ERIK JOINED FORCES WITH ELEVEN & Y/N~
Y/N: *mumbles* "Okay, just who is this 'Seer'?"
Eleven: "Did you say something, Y/N?"
Y/N: "Huh? Oh, it's nothing..."
The three of you made your way back up to Heliodor. On the way up, however, you got into combat with a group of Fright Bulbs
Y/N: "These guys don't let up, huh..."
Eleven: "For as weak as they look, they sure put up a fight."
Suddenly you felt a surge of something throughout your whole body as you began to glow a light blue
Y/N: "Wh-What's happening!?"
You looked over at Eleven, who had also started glowing
Eleven: "The same thing is happening to me!"
The two of you tried to ignore it as you continued fighting the bulbs. After the next arrow you shot, you noticed that it left more of an impact than your previous attacks.
Y/N: "Is that... Because of this glow?"
Erik looked over as he was fighting another bulb
Erik: "Y/N! Eleven! Finish this last one off!"
You and Eleven both looked at each other, and you felt like you both had the same idea. You drew your bow back and prepared to shoot whilst Eleven was charging up a Frizz spell. Once fully charged, he casted it onto the tip of your arrow and ended up getting stuck on it. After aiming at the bulb, you took the shot. On impact, the arrow pierced through the bulb as the Frizz quickly burned it up.
Once the bulb had died, the two of you stopped glowing
Y/N: "Holy crap, what was that!?"
Erik: "Nice Pep Power, you two!"
Eleven: "That's what they're called..?"
Erik: "Yup. Randomly you'll start glowing which means you're pepped up. Being pepped up makes you stronger and let's you synergize with others who're pepped up to perform powerful attacks. That's the short of it, at least."
Y/N: "You seem to know a lot about this."
Erik: "You get to know these things once you've been in my business as long as I have."
After that encounter you continued your way up the path, eventually climbing up a tall wooden scaffolding that led to an entrance carved into the cliff. On the other side of the small cave was your destination:
--DOWNTOWN HELIODOR--
Erik: "Welcome to downtown Heliodor, home to rogues, ruffians, and all my other favorite kinds of people!"
And that fact was very apparent. Most of the homes and shops were either tents or made of nothing but wood planks. Clearly this is where you ended up if you weren't rich enough to afford living in the actual city.
Erik: "About a year ago, me and Derk, my partner in crime, managed to, ahh... acquire one of the royal family's most prized possessions: the Red Orb. They got wise and pulled me in eventually, but not before we'd stash it somewhere safe so we could pick it up later."
Y/N: "So where is this 'Red Orb' now?"
He then pointed down the path towards the other end of Downtown
Erik: "Right down there is the biggest, stinkingest garbage pile in all of Heliodor. Me and Derk buried the Orb slap-bang in the middle of it. After all, no one would ever think of looking for it there. We're criminal geniuses, I tell you!"
Eleven: "Hiding it in plain sight. Not a terrible idea, Erik."
Erik: "Let's go liberate that loot! To the garbage pile!"
He then rushed ahead to the pile as you and Eleven followed. This orb must be important if he's in such a rush to get it. Once you made it to the pile, it really did seem like the perfect place to hide something of that kind of value.
Erik: "This is the spot. You two keep a lookout, okay? I'm going to grab the loot."
You two nodded and stood outside of the fence surrounding the pile to make sure nobody got suspicious.
Erik: "Now... It was around here somewhere... It's definitely here... I'm 1000% sure..."
Y/N: "Imagine the amount of gold we could make from pawning this off!"
Eleven: "It'll definitely be enough to buy us some new gear."
As the two of you were fantasizing about what you would buy with the money, Erik broke the ice
Erik: "Uhh... It's not here."
Y/N & Eleven: "What!?"
Erik: "You've got to be kidding me! Me and Derk were the only ones who knew where it was!"
Eleven: "Maybe somebody dug through here and-"
Erik: "Wait a minute—that rat! He must have done the dirty on me and taken it for himself!"
Erik was pretty ticked by the thought of his partner backstabbing him while he couldn't do anything about it
Erik: "Dammit! I should have known! The thieving little—! Wait till I get my hands on him!"
He took a look at two of you and clenched his fists
Erik: "I'm gonna find him. And you two are gonna help me!"
Y/N "I guess we found a real way of repaying you. What should we do?"
Erik pointed down the path towards the tallest 'building' on the ground
Erik: "Okay. The inn we used to crash at is just over there. Come on—It's the only one with an upstairs, you can't miss it!"
The three of you rushed over to the inn. For what it's made of, it felt kind of homey on the inside, besides the empty reception desk. Erik looked around and took it all in
Erik: "Heh! This old place hasn't changed a bit! Back in our thieving days, Derk and me used to lay low here whenever things got hairy."
Y/N: "Bet that happened quite a bit."
Erik: "Indeed it did. Ruby! Ruby! You there? It's me, Erik! There's something I need to ask you!"
No response.
Erik: "Ruby runs the place. Looks like she's not around, but if anyone knows where Derk is, it's her. Which means we'll have to go find her."
Eleven: "Since there's three of us, it'd be best to split up."
Erik: "I like the way you think! So here's the plan—there's a tower they use to look out for fires. Y/N, you're going to climb up there and keep an eye out for Ruby. Me and Eleven will check a couple of other spots. Don't worry, you can't miss her— she's the only redhead in town."
Y/N: "Redheaded lady. Got it."
With a plan set, the three of you split up in search of Ruby. Eleven and Erik went one way while you went to the tower. While keeping watch, you took notice of the guard blocking the entrance to the city. An old woman came up to him to try and get in, but he shooed her away. Next, a man with a black cape walked up holding a bag of gold. He gave it to the guard, shared a laugh, as the man walked into the city. The guard suddenly got surprised as he saw a dancer walk past him seductively. She gave him a wink and a giggle, which immediately charmed him. He followed the dancer before hearing a dog bark at him. He tried to calm the dog down while keeping his distance, but it was futile. The dog ran after him as the guard ran away. Looking back at the entrance, you noticed a woman walking out. She had round glasses, and more importantly, red hair in a ponytail.
Y/N: "That must be Ruby!"
You climbed down the tower and met up with Erik and Eleven at the garbage pile.
Erik: "We couldn't find her anywhere. How about you? Any luck?
Y/N: "Yes, actually. Saw her coming in from the city and headed back to the inn."
Erik: "Great! Let's head over there and find out what she knows!"
The three of you rushed to the inn to meet up with Ruby. Once you arrived, she had her back to the reception desk
Erik: "Well, if it isn't my favorite landlady."
She turned around and looked at you and Eleven.
Ruby: "Welcome to our 'umbl-"
She then turned to Erik and gasped
Ruby: "Strike a light! If it ain't me favorite little tea leaf! Last I 'eard, they'd locked you up an' thrown away the key! 'Ang abaht—you've gone an' escaped, ain'tcha? You an' your friends 'ere are the fugitives everyone's talkin' abaht! Well, I know not to stick me big nose in where it ain't wanted. You always did like to sail close to the wind..."
Erik: "Don't worry. I won't be here for long. I just need to know where Derk is. Have you seen him?"
She looked down in thought.
Ruby: "Derk, eh? Now there's a name I ain't 'eard in a while. Didn't 'e open some fancy shop up by the castle? Yeah, that was it. Rakin' in the cash, 'e is, or so they say."
Erik looked confused
Erik: "That can't be right. The rent up there is crazy. Where would he find the money... Wait a second! He sold it, didn't he? The rat sold the damned Orb!"
Y/N: "Why? Wasn't he your partner in crime?"
Ruby: "Look, in this part o' town, you don't go askin' too many questions, you know that. If you want more, you'll 'ave to get from the 'orse's mouth."
Erik: *sigh* "You're right. Thanks Ruby. I appreciate it. We'll get out of your hair."
He sounded pretty disappointed as he left the inn. You waved Ruby goodbye as you followed him outside. If he wasn't pissed when he couldn't find the orb in the garbage, he was definitely pissed now.
Erik: "That no-good traitor! I'll bet he sold me out and sold the Orb, and all so he could move up in the world! Well, I'll get what I'm owed, you'll see!"
He crossed his arms and looked over at the guard at the city entrance
Erik: "But we'll need to get past that sentry if we're going to head uptown and find him..."
Y/N: "I did notice a couple things about him while looking for Ruby. He seems to have a very bad fear of dogs, and he has an eye for a certain dancer."
Erik: "Interesting... The dog would be easier, but the dancer bit seems rather interesting..."
You had seen the guard's clear love for this girl, so you knew the best way to get past him. You asked around about this dancer, but didn't get much. Then you came across a boy named Cammo, who claimed to be the "king of 'ide-an'-seek". You made a deal with him to not reveal his hiding spot in exchange for information. He told you that Ruby looked exactly like the dancer, who you now learned was named Roxy. Even stranger, they even have the same handwriting! The puzzle pieces started falling into place as you came up with your plan.
You arrived at the inn and thankfully, Ruby was at the desk.
Erik: "Hello again, Ruby. We've got something to ask."
Ruby: "Yeah, Word is you three are goin' round askin' all kinds o' questions. Wot's goin' on, eh?"
You explained the situation to Ruby
Ruby: "You wot? You want me to 'elp you forge a love letter from Roxy to that guard? Cor, you don't ask much, do ya!? But I reckon it might be a laugh, you know. I've seen 'ow 'e looks at 'er. Smitten, 'e is! ...Go on, then. You know I don't like messin' wiv people's 'eads usually. But it ain't like 'e don't deserve it. An' besides, anyfink for my darlin' Erik! Let's see if I've still got the old magic, shall we?"
She took out some paper and started writing the letter
Eleven: "You think this'll work?"
Y/N: "I've seen how he looks at her with my own two eyes. He would never deny a date from her."
After a few minutes, Ruby had finished the letter
Ruby: "There we go! I've put 'earts over the 'I's and little kiss marks, just like wot Roxy does. Give this to that moon-eyed guard and watch it work its magic!"
Eleven took the letter and put it in his sack.
Erik: "Thanks, Ruby! We owe you one!"
Ruby: "Anytime, my tea leaf!"
You exited the inn and decided on what to do next. You thought the best time to get in would be night, so you hung around until the sun fell.
--TIMESKIP TO NIGHT--
With letter in tow, you were ready to get past the sentry.
Sentry: "Halt! This gate leads to the nice part of town. My job is to protect respectable people from being bothered by rabble and riff-raff. In other words, you!"
Erik: "Hey, there's no need to get all worked up! We're just here to make a delivery, that's all."
He looked at Eleven and smirked
Erik: "Well? don't leave the poor guy hanging—hand it over!"
Eleven took out a letter you had forged earlier.
Forgive me for being so forward, but I simply cannot hide my feelings any longer. When I think of you, my heart goes pitter-patter and I swoon with delight. I need to see you. I need to tell you how I feel. I am waiting for you, in the town square.
Eternally yours, your Dancing Darling
Y/N: "A lovely lady asked us to give it to you. Her name's on the tip of my tongue... that's right, Roxy! She's a keeper, ain't she? If the letter wasn't obvious enough, she's waiting for you in the square."
Sentry: "Roxy!? A-A-A-As in, THE Roxy!? What? I-In love with... with me!? Oh! Ohhh, be still, my beating heart!"
The guard violently shook his head to knock him out of his small trance
Guard: "I can't be standing here on sentry duty! No, my duty is to be beside my darling forever more! When love calls, one must answer! I'm coming, darling!"
He turned and bolted towards downtown square.
Y/N: "I told you it'd work!"
Erik: "Well, that went even better than I hoped. Right, let's head uptown and find Derk's shop."
You put your hoods on and entered the city. Since you were now wanted criminals, you couldn't just walk uptown the normal way. You noticed a series of tightropes coming from some buildings. That was your way in. You climbed on top of a house and cautiously walked the rope to the top of the church, which had a tightrope leading straight to uptown. Once you arrived, you found and entered Derk's shop. Inside, you saw Derk at the back organizing his things. Erik walked up to him to give him a piece of his mind.
Erik: "Wow. Nice place you got here..."
Derk: "Welcome, welcome! Feel free to browse! You'll find we only stock the very finest wares!"
He turned around and gasped when he saw Erik.
Erik: "That's good, because I'm looking for something very special indeed. Happen to have any orbs in stock?"
Derk: "E-Erik!"
Erik: "Long time no see, old pal!"
Erik drew his fist back and went in for a punch, but it missed as Derk tackled him into a weird hug from his waist while Erik tried to push him back.
Derk: "E-E-Erik! My b-brother...my compadre...my partner in crime! It's really—Urgh!—you, large as life and—Ouch!—fightin' fit! I'm so—Ngh!—'appy to see you!"
Y/N: "Definitely was not what I was expecting to see today..."
Erik: "You have no shame, huh? Get your back-stabbing hands off of me!"
He was finally able to push Derk away, leaving him shocked
Erik: "I always knew you were full of it, but this really takes the cake. Admit it—you sold me out and sold the Orb so you could buy this place, didn't you?"
Derk: "I never! I promise you, I never sold you out! I was worried sick about you! I only opened this place to try an' 'elp you!
Erik: "Oh yeah, and how does that work, exactly? How does opening this place and lining your pockets while I rot in jail help me?"
Derk started to rub the back of his head
Derk: "Look, I was never much of a thief—you know that. But it turns out I know 'ow to sell stuff. I got the gift, even if I do say so meself. When you got nabbed, I spent months rackin' me brains for ways of bustin' you out. I couldn't stand the thought of you bein' in there. In the end, I realized I'd 'ave to give up the Orb. I took it to the King, told 'im I found it somewhere and pocketed the reward. Then I used the cash to open up the shop 'ere, and poured all me profits into bribin' the guards up at the castle so they'd let you escape."
Erik: "Now that you mention it, I did think it was weird they never tossed my cell the whole time I was digging that hole..."
Derk: "Exactly! I was payin' 'em to turn a blind eye, weren't I!"
Derk was looking at Erik with the biggest smile on his face, proud that his bribes worked.
Erik: *sigh* "...Okay, okay, I'm sorry. I'm sorry I doubted you...partner."
Derk: "That's the spirit! Erik, old pal! It's so good to 'ave you back!"
Erik crossed his arms in thought
Erik: "But I need that Orb. And now we don't even know where it is..."
Derk then started laughing at his thought
Derk: "Oh yes we do! Right this way, gentlemen!"
Derk hummed a tune as he exited the shop, while the three of you followed.
Erik: "So? Where is it?"
Derk: "After I 'anded over the Orb, I made sure to keep me ear to the ground about where it ended up—I knew it was important to you, see. Well, a little bird tells me that 'Endrik and 'is men took it to the Kings arrow, and it's been under lock and key there ever since."
Erik: "The Kingsbarrow, huh?"
Derk then turned and pointed in the general direction of the Kingsbarrow.
Erik: "That's south-east of town. Same direction as Cobblestone..."
Y/N & Eleven: "Really!?"
Erik: "Which means we can kill two birds with one stone. You coming, Derk? A little adventure for old times' sake?"
Derk lowered and shook his head
Derk: "Sorry, no can do. I got a shop to run and I'm a married man these days."
You were surprised at this. It felt crazy believing that a former thief would end up living such an honest life
Erik: "Married? Wow, you really have changed. Well, you always said you wanted to settle down and maybe go into business some day. I'm happy for you. We'd better get going. Take care, Derk. And thanks for everything."
Derk: "You too, old pal. Be lucky, eh? And don't you three go doin' anything I wouldn't do!"
He looked at you and Eleven as you nodded in response. Everyone started looking at the main gate to the city, and saw that it was heavily guarded
Erik: "The south gate is crawling with guards—we won't be walking out that way. And Hendrik's men are too uptight to take bribes... Guess we'll have to take the long way around. If we skirt round the hills to the south, we should be able to approach the Kingsbarrow from the other side. We can drop into Cobblestone on the way. Okay, let's head back downtown."
Y/N: "Sounds like a plan."
Eleven: "Let's do it."
Before the three of you could leave, Derk stopped you.
Derk: "Watch yourselves out there, eh? They don't call that forest round there the Manglegrove for nothing. There's plenty go in there and never come out..."
Erik: "Heh. It'll take more than a few kid's stories to scare us off. Besides, it's the only way to get there."
Y/N: "If we can escape the royal guard unscathed, we can definitely handle a measly forest."
Derk: "If you say so. Jus' don't come runnin' back sayin' I didn't warn yea'."
After saying your goodbyes to Derk, you went back into downtown and exited the city. On the way out, you looked back at the cliff and saw torches from one of the cave entrances. It was a few soldiers from the royal guard
Captain: "Any sign of them?"
Soldier #1: "No, nothing. Let's search the town again."
The other soldiers nodded as they went back into the city.
Erik: "Look at all those lights. They're pretty keen to find us, huh? We'd better steer clear of Heliodor until the heat dies down."
Y/N: "If I'm gonna be honest here, this is kinda scary..."
Eleven noticed your worry and put a hand on your shoulder.
Eleven: "Don't worry, Y/N. We'll be fine."
You looked straight at Eleven, and felt something in you. It felt like as long as you were with him, nothing could go wrong.
Y/N: "Yeah... you're right!"
Erik: "Alright—through the Manglegrove and on to Cobblestone. Let's do this!"
You and Eleven nodded and continued down the path to the Manglegrove.
--END OF CHAPTER 4--