Gacha Gacha Hero

“Gather around children we have a special demonstration for you today.”

The Schoolmarm gestured at the young children trying to get them to sit in a neat semicircle. A number of wooden benches had been set up at the edge of the market square to keep the kids out of the way of other pedestrians.

The Teacher turned to a man with a white beard standing beside her. “This is craftsman Letterman. He’ll be showing us his process for making a clock today. I want you all to pay careful attention. If you study hard then one day you too will be able to use magic to create incredible things. Whenever you’re ready Master Letterman.” The schoolmarm stepped to the side.

The older man nodded slightly and then moved to a table set up in the center of the group of children.

“The art of summoning is the single greatest power we have as mortals. With it you can reach into the ether beyond our world, into the raw chaos of magic, and then use that power to manifest a physical object… out of nothing.” The craftsman looked around meaningfully at the gathered group of children. “There can be no higher expression of creativity!” He suddenly raised his arms above his head and pointed his chin into the air. “To make something from nothing is a supreme art and many of you will spend your entire lives trying to master it.”

He looked back down at the grade schoolers in front of him. Their blank stares and fidgeting hands lacked the overwhelming awe that he had been expecting.

“Anyway.” *Cough* “To summon an item you must first concentrate. Visualize the object you desire and create an image of it in your mind.” The old man closed his eyes. One of the children used this as an opportunity to pick his nose.

“Once you have selected the object’s form you need to spend your mana to create it. Feel the mana flowing inside of you and focus it on the object that you have envisioned.” The craftsman spread his hands shoulder width apart in front of himself.

As if by magic, wait… As by magic a glowing circle appeared on the table in front of him. For the first time the children paid attention. They leaned forward on their little benches. And not just them. Several people walking through the marketplace turned to watch what was happening as well.

“Once you have the object visualized and have gathered your mana the final step is the ‘Pull’. The act of actually drawing the object into our world and giving it physical form.”

Some people say that the feeling of summoning a physical object, of creating something from nothing, is indescribable. Others say it’s like sneezing the color purple. Whatever the sensation might be, it happened anyway. One moment there was nothing on the table. The next moment there was a shimmering light that slowly took the shape of a mechanical clock. With a final flourish of the craftsman‘s hands the magical lights disappeared and the timepiece clattered softly onto the table. The old man stepped back with a satisfied look on his face. There was a soft applause from the assembled crowd and some of the more polite children.

“That was very impressive wasn’t it children?” The Schoolmarm nodded enthusiastically to her class. “Now then does anyone have any questions for Master Letterman after that wonderful demonstration?”

Some of the children raised their hands.

“Can you do it again?” asked a kid.

“No. It takes time for the mana within a person’s body to recharge.” The craftsman folded his hands in front of him as he replied.

“How long?” asked a child.

“The average time is twenty eight days. But there are some that say…”

“Why can’t we make stuff?” The children were now shouting out their questions without waiting to be called on.

The older man tried to keep up with their shouts. “Children need to wait until their bodies become used to mana. When you all become teenagers then you can start…”

“Can I make a sword?”

*Cough* “Yes. If you want too…”

“I’m going to make a magic sword! And it will go,” *Swoosh* *Swoosh* “Kapow!”

“Good for you.” Master Letterman shrugged.

“Why did you make a clock?”

Master Letterman straightened up. “Well you see, a clock is a precise instrument. It takes many years of study and practice to be able to summon such a complicated object. There are a number of moving parts that need to be properly visualized…”

“My daddy made a wagon once!”

“That’s not really a question… but good for him.” said the older man.

“My mommy made a goose!”

“That’s nice…”

“That wasn’t a goose!” The children were yelling at each other now.

“Yes it was.” Cried the child.

“No. It was a duck and it had two heads!” Shouted the other child.

The craftsman tried to get the children back on topic. “Actually summoning live animals is almost impossible through common pulls. Now inanimate objects on the other hand…”

“It was a real goose! It just died when its head exploded!”

The two children began to wrestle. They tumbled off of their wooden stools onto the ground. The gathered townsfolk decided that they had other business that they should get back to and started to disperse. The Teacher was leaning against a nearby wall eating apple slices.

The old man tried to maintain order. *Ahem* “Are there any other questions? Actual questions.”

“Daddy says pulls are random.”

“Well your father is wrong. It takes years of careful preparation and training to be able to pull properly. If you follow the correct summoning steps then you can always get what you envision. There’s no randomness to it.” said the craftsman.

“Then why does your clock have a funny face?”

“What?” The old man leaned over the table to examine the clock.

While not visible from behind the face of the clock had an exaggerated yellow lid that jutted out over the top and bottom of the clock face at an angle. The effect made it look like the face of the clock was being held inside the open beak of a bird. Now that he looked closely he could see that the feet of the clock’s case were also painted yellow. There were little zigzags running down the side like wings. And two large screws secured to the front gave the impression of eyes. In truth if he had to pick a bird that the clock looked like he would have said it was a…

*Cough* “That was a little bit of artistic license. I used my mana to add some extra features to it.” Craftsman Letterman waved his hand dismissively.

“What if we don’t have any mana?” A child asked.

“Well then you can’t get anything. Nothing in this world is free. You have to pay for it.”

“If we have to pay for it can we just summon money?”

“No, that's illegal.” The old man grumbled.

“Why.”

“Because it creates an inflationary feedback loop.”

“What’s a loop?”

“What’s a loop!? That’s what you don’t understand about all this?” Craftsman Letterman turned pointedly to the children’s school teacher. “Is this lesson over yet? I have other business that I need to take care of.”

“Huh? Oh yes. That’s enough for today.” The Schoolmarm had been leaning against a wall eating apple slices. She carefully folded her switchblade and put it and the rest of her apple in her apron pocket.

“Come along children. It’s time for us to head back to the classroom. Make sure to thank Master Letterman for his helpful demonstration.”

“Thanks magger leddman.” came the garbled reply from the kids as they were led away.

#

Two of the townsfolk were examining the clock as the children left. They stood arm in arm in front of the display table.

“What an unusual design.” The man leaned in closer to examine the clock.

“But it does seem to work fine. I wonder what they’ll do with it now.” The woman he was with held his hand.

“Probably burn it.”, came the reply from a stranger.

The two townsfolk turned to see a young man examining the clock with them.

The young man continued without looking at them. “Master Letterman’s workshop is built on top of a mana point so he can recharge at a faster rate than most people. Also he’s got plenty of apprentices working for him that can do dailies and increase mana gain. Plus recycling complicated objects like this requires a lot of time and effort. For a craftsman of his stature there’s no reason to keep a low tier item that might reduce his reputation.” The young man turned to the other townsfolk with a wry smile. “So yeah. Probably burn it.”

Ash was lean for his age. More sinew and bone than muscle and fat. His mother always nagged him that he should eat more. It annoyed him that she was probably right.

Ash’s clothes were slightly too short for his frame. They left his skinny wrists and ankles exposed. The color of his clothes was unusual. Starting at his shoulders they were white, but then continuing down his body they formed one slowly shifting gradient all the way to the legs of his pants where they turned black. There were also patches of soot covering his hands and feet. His hair was dark but also covered with a fine layer of dust and ash. The overall look of him was that of a tea bag left too long in the kettle and then slightly burned at the edges.

The townsfolk politely tried to make small talk. “Are you familiar with Master Letterman? Do you perhaps … work in his shop?”

“Nope.” The lanky boy replied.

“So you’re not a craftsman?”

“Not unless you count wood chips as high art.” Ash nudged a basket full of charcoal that was sitting at his feet.

Ash turned and looked at the couple. He stared closely at the man. “You sure are sweating a lot.”

“Huh?” The man looked surprised. “Yes well, it is rather hot today.” He tugged at his collar.

“No, it's more than that. You’re not used to wearing tailored shirts and jackets. You work with your sleeves rolled up. Looking at the faded scars on your hands I’m going to guess you have a job in meat packing?” said Ash.

The woman turned to her companion. “Wait a minute you told me you were a vegetarian.”

The man blushed in response. “I am. A butcher can be a vegetarian.”

“You said that you love animals.” she said.

“I do. I work with them all the time. I just forgot to mention that they’re not alive when I handle them.”

The woman looked upset.

The man tried to recover. “But I don’t eat them… at least not the ones that I butcher personally.”

“This is outrageous! Do you even own a boat?”

The man chuckled. “Darling… we live in a temperate forest region three hundred miles from the coast.”

Ash took some time to examine the couple again.

“Seeing how you two stopped to watch the demonstration I’m guessing that you didn’t come down to the marketplace today to find some lost jewelry.”

“What?” The woman looked up.

Ash pointed to the lady’s hand. “I just noticed you’ve got a tan on your finger. Right where a wedding band would be.”

The woman quickly folded her hands. “That is… I was having it resized is all.”

The color drained from the man’s cheeks. “Wait a moment. Do you have a wedding ring? You didn’t tell me you were married.”

“Well you didn’t tell me you worked for a living!”

The couple started shouting at each other and hurriedly walked away from the marketplace

Ash watched them leave. “Will this town ever run out of fools?”

“Hey there Ash!”, came a voice from behind.

“I guess not.” Ash groaned.

Ash closed his eyes for three seconds then turned to face the young man walking towards him. “Hello Jack.”

Jack was broad of shoulder and square of jaw. He had the kind of glowing smile that comes naturally to those that know they’ve been born handsome. His vest was tailored to show off his strong arms and his breeches were cut tight and high to display his taught calves. Like his father and grandfather Jack had a streak of silver gray hair that started at his temple and rolled back across his head to the nape of his neck.

Jack watched the former couple loudly bicker their way across the marketplace.

“Really Ash? Are you so miserable that you can’t help but spoil other people’s happiness? Maybe if you could actually make something good you wouldn’t be so quick to complain about other people. Isn’t that right guys?”, he said to a group standing behind him.

Three other teenagers followed closely behind Jack.

Ted was the largest. A well fed young man he was as wide as he was tall. He wore his curly hair short. Ted’s clothes were always made of thick wool. Perfect for the chilly winter except that he also wore them in the summer. For some reason he was never bothered by the temperature.

Lilly came next. Unlike the others she rarely paid any attention to any of Jack’s exclamations. Her straight hair was so long it hung past her knees. Patches of it were burned and discolored. She dressed in a plain pair of trousers and a beige jacket. She also wore a series of belts over her shoulders. Each one was filled with an assortment of beakers, bottles, and flasks. There were so many she often had to hold the belts still when she walked to prevent them from clacking against each other.

Finally there was Charity. Charity had a hawk’s nose and wore her wavy hair just above her shoulders. She had slender fingers and moved with a dancer’s grace. Which was appropriate considering she had been trained in dance since she was a child.

Charity had dark eyes. Not because of the color. Her irises were a shade of sunset over the mountains. But when Charity smiled the smile never went past her cheeks. When you looked at Charity she was always looking back.

Charity was the one that spoke as they fanned out around Ash. “You shouldn’t pick on him Jack. You know he doesn’t have it easy like you do.”

Jack puffed out his chest. “I know Charity. I was just giving him a hard time.” He turned back to Ash. “Just a little friendly conversation. I know that he doesn’t get much living out at the edge of the woods.” Jack pulled at the hem of his jacket.

Ash looked closer. The jacket was new. Tailored to Jack’s athletic physique. He was out for a walk around the town. He needed to make sure everyone remembered he was the Mayor’s son.

“It’s funny, outside of town the roosters only crow in the morning. But inside of town they crow every time they get a new jacket.” Ash remarked.

Charity politely stifled a laugh but made no attempt to hide the sneer on her face.

Jack looked angry but confused. “What did you say?”

“Just making friendly conversation.” Ash pretended to be civil.

“Is that right?” Jack stepped toe to toe with Ash. “Let me give you some advice, friend. We’re not kids anymore. Being such a smart mouth loner is only going to get you in trouble. Especially when you’re conversing with the future Mayor of Star Town.” Jack put his hands on his hips. The muscles under his shirt flexed. Jack already had the body of a young adult. Standing next to him Ash looked more like a scarecrow than a young man.

Ash noticed that one of the buttons on Jack’s new jacket was missing.

“I see that you’re missing a button there Jack.” Ash held his hand palm up between them. A small magic circle appeared for an instant over his palm. There was a ‘snap’ of magical power. A collection of little wooden circles appeared in Ash’s outstretched hand.

“Here you go friend.” Ash gave his most sarcastic smile. He flipped up the front pocket of Jack’s coat and dumped the handful of wooden buttons inside. “Plenty of spares so that you don’t have to worry about that happening again.”

Ash patted the pocket a few times.

Jack looked annoyed.

When Ash pulled back there was sooty hand print perfectly outlined on the front of Jack’s pocket.

Ash winced. He forgot that he had been carrying charcoal into town. “That was… here maybe I can… “ He leaned over and tried to wipe the dust off. Ash smeared the front of the jacket. A cloud of dust puffed off of the cuff of his shirt and rained down even more soot onto Jack’s clothes. “No. That just made it worse.”

Jack looked down then back up. “Did you just…!?”, he stammered in anger.

He looked behind him for encouragement. Charity gave a polite laugh. Lilly played with the laces on her belts. Ted picked a loose thread off of his wool coat.

Jack turned back with a menacing grin. “Come on Ash just because you’re named after burnt wood doesn’t mean you have to live in a fireplace. If you can’t keep yourself clean then, here, let me help you out.”

Jack snapped his fingers. There was a crackle of energy. By magic a bucket of water appeared over Ash’s head. It hung there motionless as it came into being. Then gravity took over and it fell down. The wooden bottom of the bucket collided with Ash’s head. As the bucket bounced off of his skull water splashed over the sides and soaked Ash’s head and shoulders.

“Oww! Dammit!” Ash clutched his head.

Lilly winced at the sound. “Uh? What was that? I think you really hurt him Jack.”

Jack looked at least a little embarrassed that Ash was injured. “That was… It was supposed to fall upside down. He needed a bath anyway.”

“Be careful Jack.” Charity chidded. “His head isn’t as hard as yours.”

Jack frowned at her remark and tried to look away. Ash used the opportunity to lunge forward and plant his shoulder against the other boy’s midsection. Despite the difference in their sizes Jack was caught off guard and tumbled backwards. Ash landed on top of the other boy as they both fell. He pushed up off the ground so that he was straddling Jack’s hips.

“You think I need a bath? Here! Why don’t you have a shower!” Ash yelled down at him.

Ash leaned over Jack’s prone body and angled his neck so that the top of his head was pointed directly at Jack’s face. Then he quickly swept his hands over his hair repeatedly. Wet droplets of water mixed with dirt and soot rained down on the figure beneath him.

“Ahh! Ahh! It’s so gross!” Jack tried to shield his face as best he could.

Ash stood back up straight. He felt a little lightheaded but the look on Jack’s face was worth it.

Jack tried to brush the filth off of his face and shoulders. “You filthy forest weed! You like being so dirty? Fine. We’ll toss you in the stable yards.” Jack pointed at the larger teen behind him. “Ted! Get him!”

Ted took a step forward and reached towards him. Ash took off running across the market square before Ted could reach him.

#

“I really did it today.” Ash was talking to himself as he ran through the streets. “Normally I know when to shut up and let Jack have his laughs.” He vaulted over a low stone wall and then turned a corner into a side street. “I know how to keep my mouth shut and my head down.” As he ran down the alley a cat hissed at him from a nearby windowsill. “Shut up! I’m not lying! You’re lying.” The cat gave him the scornful look that all cats reserve for humans that try to engage them in conversation. “I don’t have time for this.”

Ash could hear Jack’s heavy footfalls on one street over. Jack wanted to show off today. Ash had ruined his chance.

A mischievous smile appeared on Ash’s face. “If I’m already in trouble. No point in not making a complete nuisance of myself.”

#

Ash pushed open the gate of a shoulder height wooden fence between two houses. He slammed the door behind him. Then he turned and held out a hand. Summoning an object with magic doesn’t take much time if you don’t care about quality. Ash had long ago given up on caring. As his magic took effect a bundle of sticks a meter long appeared behind him. He took only a second more to jam the sticks underneath one of the gate’s wooden crossbeams before he turned and ran to the other side of the yard.

*Slam* Ash heard someone bounce off of the gate behind him. The sticks were small and weak by themselves but if you packed enough of them together they worked as an effective doorstop.

“What the? He’s locked the gate! Ted! Break it down.”, came a voice from the other side of the fence.

*Crunch*Snap* The sound of a heavy boot hitting the gate was followed by the sound of the sticks breaking. Ted and Jack were both heavier than Ash by a lot. Their combined weight turned the sticks into splinters.

Ash continued his escape. “I can’t get away by slowing them down… So maybe I should try to speed them up instead.” He pondered to himself as he ran past a large green bush in the yard.

#

Ash turned another corner. He saw a group of alley dogs picking through some trash behind one of the bakeries.

“Here puppers. Over here.” Ash waved to get their attention.

He held out his hand and concentrated this time looking for a more specific result. There was a flash of light and a fist sized pile of bacon bits appeared in his palm. Without looking he could tell the bacon itself was tough and leathery. It probably contained too much salt and would taste like a pig’s ear. But it looked like bacon. And more importantly it smelled like bacon.

“Who’s hungry?” Ash tossed the bacon bits into the street behind him. The dogs leapt up to chase after their new treat.

#

As Jack rounded the corner he was utterly unprepared to see a herd of dogs flying down the lane towards him. The first one knocked him off of his feet. The followers took the easy path in front of them and bounced on top of Jack using his body as a springboard to get past. The first used his shoulders, the next his stomach, and the final dog planted its paws firmly on his groin before jumping away to join the others.

Jack clutched at his meat and two veg and tried to curl into a ball.

“What’s the matter Jack?” Ash called down at him from a set of stairs at the end of the street. “Is it nap time already?”

“You… little… piss stain.” Jack panted as he slowly got to his feet. “When I catch you I’m going to throw you in the river.”

“You’ll have to catch me first.” Ash sprinted up the stairs.

#

Jack reached the top of the stairs. He was panting heavily. The stairs led to the end of a small residential street that was set between a number of split level homes. The street stretched off in one direction over a hill back towards the marketplace. Ash was facing away from Jack trying to open a locked door into one of the houses at the top of the incline.

“Now you’re going to get it.” Jack took a step forward. There was a clatter of wood beneath his shoe. He suddenly struggled to maintain his balance. Ash stopped pretending to open the door and turned around with a grin on his face.

“Watch that last step Jack.” He said.

What Jack had failed to notice was a line of rolling pins that had been placed on the ground right in front of the curve of the hill. They were set all in a row with their rollers all facing the same direction like the wheels of an empty cart. Jack tried to keep his balance and accidentally stepped up so that both of his feet were on top of the pins.

The young man wobbled precariously on top of the line of rolling pins for three delicate seconds. Then Ted reached the top of the stairs right behind him. With no more space on the stairs Ted stepped onto the top of the hill and ever so gently bumped Jack with his belly.

Jack fell forward. The rolling pin sled underneath him started to spin forward. Ash and Ted watched as Jack’s momentum carried him over the lip of the sloped street. The next second he plunged down the street towards the marketplace.

“Aaaahhhhhhh!” Jack shouted as he slid down the angled street on a line of rolling pins.

Ash and Ted stared from the top of the hill.

*Sigh* Ted sighed. “He really should have watched his step.”

Just before Jack reached the end of the street the rolling pins spun out from underneath him. He tumbled the last five feet into the gutter at the bottom of the hill.

Ash winced. “That looked painful. One of us should really go down there and help him.” He and Ted looked at each other. Ash put out a sympathetic hand. “No, no. I’ll do it. Out of the goodness of my heart.” Ash trotted off down the hill.

#

At the bottom of the slope Jack was trying to get to his feet. He was covered from shoulders to shins with mud and garbage from the gutter.

“Here use this.” Ash held out a green sheet to Jack.

“Oh! Thank you.” Jack grabbed the offered material from Ash’s hand. Jack quickly wiped the mud from his face. As he finished he looked down at what he thought was a green cloth. He shook it once. As the mud on it was shaken loose he could see that it was a large green leaf.

“This isn’t a handkerchief.” He said.

“Nope.” Ash replied.

“What the moons is this?”

“That’s a leaf of poison oak.”

Jack stared at the three wide green leaflets of the plant in his hand. He looked back up at Ash but Ash had already retreated out of retaliation range.

“Aaarrrgh!” Jack’s face had already started to turn red. His cheeks puffed out as he started scratching his irritated skin. “It itches. It itches so bad!”

“Calm down Jack. And stop scratching yourself. That’s only going to make it worse.” Charity was walking towards them. She slapped Jack’s hands to prevent him from touching his face any more.

“Look at his face. He looks like a balloon.” Lilly leaned over to examine the young man.

“Lilly stop staring.” Charity gathered them up and steered them out of the gutter. “Take Jack back to the house and get him some lotion.”

“I think I have some calamine some where.” Lilly sorted through the bottles on her person.

“Take him home first. Make sure that he washes his hands as well.” Charity directed the others.

Ted and Lilly took Jack by the arms and started leading him back down the street. Jack let out a few *Groans* as the other two steered him down the street.

Charity turned to face Ash. “I suppose you’re proud of yourself?”

Ash tried to act innocent. “Not at all. I just thought that Jack might enjoy a bath too. Now he can take a nice relaxing soak at home.”

“Is that right? And the poison oak?” she asked.

Ash jammed a sprig of leaves back into his pants pocket. “That was an honest mistake. I live in the woods after all.”

“If you’re going to act like a wild animal then maybe it's better that you stay in the woods.” Charity purposefully stared past Ash. “By the way Ash, it looks like someone tossed your basket of charcoal into the garbage.”

“And you didn’t happen to see who did it, did you Charity?” Ash did his best to keep any emotion from showing on his face.

“Sorry. You boys were making so much noise I wasn’t paying attention. It wasn’t important was it?” Charity examined her nails.

“No. Like you said Charity. It was just garbage.”

“Try not to lose track of your things again Ash. You have so little of value after all.” Charity gave him a pitiable smile. It was the kind of smile that could curdle milk.

“Yes Charity. Thanks for your help.” *Cough* “As always.”

#

Ash packed the fire shaft of his charcoal pile with more leaves and twigs. He had stacked the charcoal pile yesterday but hadn’t started burning it yet. The charcoal burning field was located in a clearing near the forest outside of town. Ash was the only one that used the field.

The construction of the pile was methodical and took him almost the entire day to complete. First Ash had to stack the logs into a rough pile of concentric circles. Each of the logs needed to be arranged at a slight angle so that the pile would collapse inward as it burned. At the center of the pile he carved out a small hollowed section for a chimney that he then filled with kindling. After the wood placement was finished came the process of sealing the pile. A layer of leaves, then dirt, then sod needed to be shoveled onto the exterior of the pile. Each layer was patted into place and lightly watered so that it would create an airtight barrier between the burning wood and the outside.

Ash looked at the finished charcoal pile. Then he held out his hand. Several baskets of charcoal materialized beside him.

“No one will know the difference anyway.”

#

Ash walked back towards his house at the edge of the woods outside of town. He saw the family goat sitting patiently beside the door.

“Hey there Goateus.” He stopped to scratch the beast between its horns. “Keeping a good watch over the house?”

“Maaahhh” Came the goat’s reply.

“Good boy. What are you hungry for today?”

*Stomp*Stomp* One stomp for oats. Two stomps for corn. Three stomps for barley.

“Corn it is.” Ash held out his hand and concentrated.

Ten withered ears of corn fell to the ground in front of him. The goat wasn’t put off by the lackluster quality of its food and started attacking the kernels and cob alike.

Ash petted the goat one more time and then walked inside his home.

#

“There you are Ash. Where have you been? You got a letter.” Ash’s mother was cleaning the kitchen of their two room cottage.

“I was out at the charcoal pit. Like always.” He passively responded.

“Did you eat? You look so skinny lately.” she said.

“I’m fine. I ate lunch at the pit.” Ash lied.

“Your shirt is getting so dirty. It’s about time for me to make you a new one isn’t it.”

“It’s fine. Don’t bother. I would just get soot stains on the new one anyway.”

“Don’t go to sleep all covered in soot like that.”

“I know mom. I’ll clean up before dinner.” Ash opened the door to the pantry, then closed it and turned right back around. “What do you mean by a letter?”

“A letter. It’s addressed to you. Someone left it on the door while you were out.” His mother gestured towards the table with her chin.

That made Ash pause. Jack wouldn’t have bothered writing his name on a revenge note. Jack hardly bothered writing at all.

Ash walked to the table in their kitchen. There was a fresh paper envelope sitting on the table. Ash furrowed his brow and picked the letter up. He turned it over in his hands. There was a wax seal and everything. He opened the envelope and read the message inside.

#

“Hey there Ash my boy. Come to visit my shop again?”

“Hey there Mr Smithe.” Ash gave a halfhearted wave at the blacksmith. “I’ve got another load of charcoal for you here.”

Ash avoided eye contact as he set his basket down on the counter of the blacksmith’s workshop. The older man put down his tools and wiped his hands on the back of his apron. Mr Smithe was very concerned with the cleanliness of his shop.

Mr Smithe was one of the town blacksmiths. His shop was right next to the Eastern Gate sandwiched between the stables and the East Inn. Mr Smithe had broad shoulders and thick arms. His hands were strong and calloused from hard labor and his voice had a rough gravelly flavor that came from spending most of his life standing next to a smoking furnace. In his youth he had possessed the angular features and sharp musculature of a bronze statue. Now that he was in his fifties age had softened some of his edges. Ash could see his round cheeks behind his beard and his growing gut starting to push out the front of his apron.

Mr Smithe always liked to shout out his hellos to Ash when he saw him coming in through the East gate. Sometimes Ash went the long way around to the North or South gates just to avoid the attention. But Mr Smithe was also his best customer and always paid a fair price for his charcoal so there was no point delaying the inevitable today.

“I was expecting you earlier. Did you decide to take the morning off?” The blacksmith squinted up at the noonday sun.

“Oh? No. I meant to come by I just had to…” Ash stalled for time as he remembered his encounter with Jack and the others. “I just had to clean up a little.”

“That’s a good idea. Wash your face and I’m sure that the girls in town would be falling all over a handsome young lad like yourself.”

“Ha, ha. I’m sure you’re right Mr Smithe. Anyway about today’s delivery.”

“Of course. Let me just balance the books real quick.” The muscular man pulled a leather bound ledger off of his shelf. He examined the basket of charcoal that Ash had brought and made a few quick notes. “There we are. I’ll turn this in to the Commerce Guild later.” He shut the book and turned to Ash. “What about you? Maybe you would like to stick around today? Hmmm? Test out the forge? You’re always welcome to stay and learn the trade.”

“Thanks Mr Smithe. Maybe some other time.” Ash said only paying half attention.

“So you’re heading back home then?” The blacksmith gave him a curious glance.

“No, I'll probably stick around the town for a bit.” Ash fidgeted with the letter in his pocket. “I have some errands that I need to take care of.” He turned back to the smith. “It might take me a while.”

“I see.” The older man put his ledger away. He folded his apron and set it down next to his anvil. “Well then, maybe I’ll close up shop early. I could head over to the Commerce Guild right now.”

Ash looked distractedly into the crowd of people that were coming through the East Gate. “That sounds good Mr Smithe. I’ll see you later.”

“Of course Ash. Drop by at any time my boy.”

#

"Meet me by the fountain in the marketplace." Ash read the letter out loud one more time.

Ash scanned the marketplace. There was someone sitting at the edge of the fountain wearing a long hooded cloak. Someone trying to conceal their identity? They were too small for Jack or Ted. The cloak was too clean for Lilly. Charity wouldn’t have bothered hiding her face.

“Who else would have bothered to send me a letter?” Ash mused to himself. “It’s not like I have any friends in town.” That sounded really sad when he said it out loud. “There’s no reason I should bother myself with this. Whoever wrote this letter is probably just trying to get me into some trouble.” Ash stuffed the letter into his pocket. “I should just leave.”

#

Ash tried to look as innocent as he could while he snaked his way through the crowd towards the fountain. He made sure to approach from the opposite side of the strange person in the cloak who was sitting on the rim of the basin.

He whispered to himself.

Ash walked to the other side of the fountain and tapped the stranger on the shoulder.

“Alright then. Who are you? Did you send me this letter?” Ash tried to put some confidence into his voice.

The stranger seized Ash by the waist and hugged him tightly. “Ash! Oh Ash it’s really you!”

Ash tried to pry the stranger off of him. Then the hood fell back revealing the stranger’s face. He felt dizzy as he tried to piece together what he saw in front of him.

Luke was Ash’s childhood friend. They hadn’t seen each other for years but he found he could still recognize him. Luke had all the natural charm of youth. His large eyes were the color of a mountain river. He had small handsome ears and a straight nose. His short hair was straight but stuck out at odd angles from the top of his head. After removing his hood his hair sprung playfully back into place.

Luke and Ash were almost the same age and the same height. They had been born a month apart and attended school together as children. Several years ago Luke had gone to live in the Capital.

“Luke? Luke! Is that really you? Ahhh!” Ash tried again to loosen the other boy’s grip. “What are you doing here? And what have you been eating? You’re so strong.”

Luke was crying. Ugly crying. Twin rivers made from tears, mucus, and human sadness poured from every hole in his face.

“Take it easy. Get a hold of yourself. You’re making a mess.” Ash tried to console this stranger turned long lost companion.

Luke pulled back. The soot from Ash’s shirt peeled back with him creating a truly disgusting mixture of mucus and grime on his face.

“I’m sorry. I didn’t think you would come. We haven’t seen each other in so long and when I saw you I just couldn’t hold back.” said Luke.

“So you’re the one who wrote me that letter?” aske Ash.

“That’s right.” Luke nodded.

Ash sat down on the edge of the fountain. Luke took out a silk handkerchief and tried to blow his nose.

*Sad honking*

“Sorry.” Luke tried to clean himself up. *Honk* “Sorry.” *Honk* “Oh no.” *Honk* “I’m making such a mess…”

*Sigh* Ash took the handkerchief from Luke’s hand and dipped it in the fountain. He wrang it out and handed it back to Luke.

“Look I’m happy to see you and all but what is this about? What’s going on? Why are you back in town? Why did you write me that letter? And why are you here crying like an onion seller?”

“Sorry.” *Honk* ”Sorry. I kept it together on the way out here from the Capital. But it’s all been just too much. I thought if I came home everything would make sense. But everything has changed, and I don’t recognize anybody, and I didn’t know where to go or who to talk to, and then I remembered you.”

“So you came to me for help?” Ash was confused yet flattered. “What’s wrong? You were living in the Kingdom’s Capital. You were friends with the Royal family. Why not just ask the Princess for help? Or the King?”

Luke looked bashful. “Oh I couldn’t do that. If they found out what I did...” He grasped Ash’s sleeve again. “I’m in so much trouble Ash. You have no idea. I’ve done something… terrible.”

*Rolls eyes* “Luke, friend, I’m sure that whatever it is can be easily fixed. Just tell me what the problem is and I promise you that we can figure it out.”

Luke’s eyes went wide. “No. I can’t. I don’t even know where to start.”

“Come on…”

“I can’t.”

“Spit it out.”

“I really shouldn’t.”

“I can’t be that bad.”

“It’s unspeakable.”

“Just tell me already you crybaby!”

“I summoned the Demon Lord!”