Chapter 10: Welcome To Probet

Chapter 10: Welcome To Probet

Outside, the road, more a dusty track, led in only one direction. Buildings ahead of us looked all the same. Wooden shacks of one storey. Noise and smells drifted towards us as we approached. It was hard to identify either.

My names Claire, by the way, said the girl with the big nose. This is Flossie.

I turned to look at the plump red-head. Really?

Oh ah, not really, she said in the broadest Brummie accent Id ever heard. Actually, its Victoria, but everybodys always called me that since I were a babby.

Im Colin and this is Maurice.

Hello, ladies. Maurice smiled inanely.

I looked over to our fifth member, who was walking a few steps behind us with his hands behind his back and a tremendous interest in the sky. What about you? Got a name?

Dudley Fenderson III. The voice that came out of his mouth was so posh it sounded like the sort of voice you put on to mock posh people. He was quite tall, had a receding hairline even though he couldnt be more than nineteen or twenty, and no chin to speak of, so he definitely could be a member of the aristocracy. Or, perhaps he had chosen this new stage to reinvent himself.

Introductions done, we turned a corner and the main thoroughfare appeared in front of us. The whole town couldnt be more than a dozen shacks. Various stores lined either side of the main street.

The first was a blacksmiths, a large open area with a roof over it and an intense fire burning in the middle. A variety of metalware hung on all sides. Weapons, armour pieces, pots and pans. A heavy-built man pounded away on an anvil with an enormous hammer.

Go over and speak to him, I said to Maurice.

About what?

The cheapest one, I shouted over the noise. How much?

Five bits, he shouted back, still not looking at me.

I thanked him and walked away. How much was five bits? No idea. I thought the currency would be coppers and silvers, maybe gold for expensive stuff. I had no idea if five bits would be easy to earn or not.

The other had overheard our conversation and were equally unsure.

Hey, what weapons did you get? I asked the others.

Claire pulled out a stick similar to mine. Dudley had two wooden balls attached to a string. Flossie looked sheepish, then put her hand down her top and took out a dagger.

Bloody hell, said Maurice. Nice.

I couldnt really tell if he meant the dagger or the cleavage it had emerged from. Both, were quite impressive.

Put it away, I said. And dont show it to anyone. It was the sort of thing others might want for themselves. She quickly stuffed it back in its hiding place.

Clearly, we needed better weapons and this place would sell them to us. But first we had to make money. In an RPG you killed monsters and they dropped loot. Money, potions, weapons. I looked at the stick in my hand, and wondered if the local fast food joint was hiring.

AN: Brummie refers to people from Birmingham, England. They speak in a broad regional accent that makes them sound a bit stupid.

There'll be another chapter posted later today. It's written, just need to check for typos.