“Untie him, but watch him carefully. I’ll need him to sign the contract before we can proceed.”

  The man unclasps his hands and straightens his back. He reaches his right hand forward, and snaps his fingers. Hovering in front of him appears a sky blue scroll, which he gently grabs, then proceeds to unfurl and hand over to me, once I’m fully unbound.

  I read through the contract carefully, which elicits a smile from the man. The contract boils down to this:

  I cannot run away from the Society of Scoundrels.

  I can’t enact a mutiny or otherwise act against the Society.

  I am not allowed to disclose any sensitive information that is, in any way, related to the Society of Scoundrels.

  If I do any of these things, the contract holder will immediately know, and will summarily call for my execution.

  I am expected to complete a minimum of three tasks daily.

  In return:

  I am allowed to choose one day free of tasks per week, with which I can do whatever I want, aside from breaking the contract.

  I can freely roam the city in my offtime, provided I do not go against any of the stipulations in the course of doing so.

  I will receive one copper ring per every second day of tasks successfully completed.

  My food, lodging, and clothing will be provided for me, up to and not exceeding a maximum cost of five copper rings per week.

  This contract is valid for three years, at which point it can be revised and renewed.

  Honestly not the worst contract I’ve ever heard of… Thank Mother for balancing things!

  I pretend to mull it over for a while in my head as a last act of defiance, knowing damn well that I have absolutely no choice in the matter. As soon as I look up at the man, he produces a quill from nowhere, the feather a matching sky blue as the contract, which I also note matches his shirt and the trim of his black pants. Surprisingly, even his belt is a matching color.

  As I refocus my wandering thoughts, I see that his eyes are narrowed and his smile has a distinct tinge of malice.

  I sign the contract, following which it disappears in a display of blue sparks. The man claps his hands once, eliciting a startled flinch from me. His grin widens, still malicious in nature, and he stands.

  “I knew you were a smart boy! Now, show me your skill.”

  I summon my box, idly noticing the man’s impatient gaze as we wait the minute required to bring it out.

  The man circles the cubic container, reaching down once to attempt to touch the thing. Upon finding his hand phasing through it, he turns to me.

  “Can you allow others to touch it?”

  “No.”

  The lie sounds hollow, even to me, as the question dregs up memories of Brick’s curiosity the day before.

  “That is both a shame and a boon, for my purposes.” He shakes his head with disappointment, though he quickly regains his professional demeanor. “Come now, follow me. I’ll show you to the task board.” His tone is bright, though he once again lets the intervening silence stretch before continuing.

  “From now on, you will refer to me as ‘Boss.’ Is that clear?”

  “Yes, Boss!” I have no intention to argue with the man so soon after being indentured to him.

  Honestly, the man scares me. I have a long way to go before I can take revenge on this despicable crew of criminals. Hopefully the utility branch has some useful selections. If it doesn’t, I may never see my revenge realized and I’ll never know the sweet taste of freedom again. Freedom… Brick…

  I think back to the conversation I had with Brick the day before, which is immediately followed by the image of his lifeless stare and his sunken eyes.

  I follow my new boss like an obedient dog, not wanting to displease the distinctly terrifying man. When we reach the task board, I’m surprised to note the methodical rows and columns tacked to the wooden wall, though the satisfaction I would normally find from the level of organization is completely beyond my ability at this point. I idly note that ‘wall’ is a more fitting term for the task board, as it’s quite large.

  The columns denote the type of task, the difficulty level going from easiest at the bottom to the riskiest ones at the top, with the columns being extremely wide. At the lowest point, where the easiest tasks lie, the small scrolls are stacked in four rows. I notice that the scrolls are all the same color as my contract.

  So, Boss probably knows when each task is completed. It’s also more than likely he’ll know who completes it as well.

  The wall is only about seven feet tall, which puts everything within arms reach of most of the medium-sized races, such as humans, ald, fiora, bolg… fuck, Brick… and other people of similar build. All the way to the far left of the wall is where Boss leads me, and I note that all of the delivery tasks are here.

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  Surprisingly organized for this group of etheriless, misguided miscreants. At least it will be quite easy to find the proper assignments. If only Brick was here to see this. He’d love it… Maybe I’d also be able to find pleasure in the neatness of it all.

  Regardless of my ruminations, the source of my spite speaks.

  “Here we are. You’ll be pulling your jobs from here. If your skill tree ever has additions that you believe will allow you to successfully fulfill any other category of tasks, come find me and I will review your capabilities and direct you to the categories that you will be allowed to undertake. That is all. If you ever need me, I will be in my office, there.”

  He points to the building directly across the street. To my utter bewilderment, it’s considerably less dilapidated than the buildings surrounding it. He pauses before adding another cryptic statement.

  “Always remember, I brook no foolishness. If you come to me, it better be important.” His withering glare causes my shoulders to stiffen, a shiver travelling down my spine.

  “Yes, Boss!” My inner thoughts however, do not match my verbalization.

  As if I’d ever let you know that my skill tree evolves to the point where I have more useful abilities.

  “Do not test my patience, boy, or you will come to find I have very little left.”

  I blanch at his sudden, unexpected words. Holy shit, can he read my mind?! Seemingly satisfied, he gives a curt nod, before turning and striding toward the aforementioned building.

  I give the delivery tasks a quick skim, quietly noting the overabundance of words like ‘smuggle,’ ‘secretly,’ ‘sneak,’ and the like. A sour taste fills my mouth, the implications of what I’ve been bullied into finally clicking in my brain, with force. I feel sick to my stomach with every new task I read. Deciding to glance at the rest of the categories, I start moving slowly toward the other end of the wall.

  After ‘delivery’ comes ‘labor,’ then ‘intel,’ followed by ‘theft,’ ‘escort,’ ‘cleanup,’ ‘robbery,’ ‘heist,’ and finally… ‘assassination.’ My skin crawls with the implications of this. Maybe ‘implications’ is a misnomer. These categories are quite clear as to the putrid purposes of their presence.

  I hesitate before moving back to the beginning of the board, not wanting to stay in this cold longer than I have to.

  Even if I do get better skills going forward, I never want anything to do with most of these task groups. Maybe to keep Boss happy, I’ll let him know when my box size increases, or when I get more of them. Depending on what’s in the utility path, I might let him know about some of those upgrades. That way he doesn’t become too suspicious. Maybe I’ll eventually be assigned to some tasks within the labor category, moving construction materials or something.

  I crouch down in order to be able to better browse the board’s easiest tasks. I quickly find a few feasibly simple tasks to start with. Now… which one? I decide to do one labeled ‘small package delivery.’

  I scan the contents, and suppress a sigh when I spot ‘see Smitty’ at the bottom of the blue scroll. Alright… I guess it’ll have to do, I already pulled it off the board. As I think this, the buzzing starts anew in the center of my chest.

  I quickly summon my Heart Scroll, perusing the primary page to see if something new has appeared. As I do this, I see that I still have a Skill Credit I haven’t spent. I also notice the flashing word, ‘Quests.’

  Before anything else, I review my skill tree to see what my options are. The only ones I can afford are the first increases in number and size. The number just adds one, and the size adds six inches to each dimension of the box, keeping it as a perfect cube.

  I mentally mull it over for a moment, but it doesn’t take long for me to decide. While size may allow me to take slightly bigger package delivery tasks, I’ll need to hide the extra rings I’m earning from the quests.

  I inwardly focus on the ‘second box’ selection from the first column of my skill tree, and I now know innately that I can summon two boxes simultaneously. Another vibration emanates from the scroll in my hand, so I return my focus to the main page. Now, both the ‘Quests’ and ‘Inventory’ selections are flashing dark blue. I decide to check my inventory page first, thinking about changing the scroll’s focus.

  Now, on the inventory page, it has two headings.

  Inventory A - 1% capacity.

  5 copper rings.

  Inventory B - 0% capacity.

  Satisfied with my selection, I think of seeing my quests.

  New quest found!

  Category: Delivery

  Aspects: Hidden location, no recipient

  Level: 1

  Time Limit: 3 hours

  Description: Find Smitty to receive the package, then deliver it to the given location.

  Quest progress: 0 of 1 package delivered.

  Reward: 2 SC and 5 copper rings

  Penalty for failure: 1 SC or 5 copper rings

  Seems straightforward and simple. Plus, two whole Skill Credits! That’s fantastic!

  I nearly jump with joy, but catch myself in the nick of time.

  What’s the point of feeling joy without Brick by my side? Plus, I wouldn’t want someone seeing me getting too excited and start asking questions. But at this rate, I’ll be breezing through my skill tree like there’s no tomorrow! I’ll keep this second box a secret. I’ll act like I have two when I get my third.

  As I dismiss my Heart Scroll, I see someone else walking up to the board to take a task.

  I hope he didn’t see my Heart Scroll…

  I follow my internal quest compass back through the streets to Smitty’s house. For all the twists and turns the thugs took to get me here, Smitty’s hovel is just down the road, with a single left turn. I walk past a few buildings down the second street, and arrive at my destination.

  I rap my fingers on the rickety door, calling out through it.

  “Smitty! It’s Luck! I’m here to pick up a package from you!”

  The shouting exacerbates the lingering remnants of the concussive migraine, but it’s nearly faded by now. It’ll most likely be gone in a few hours… I hope. I get a feeling of deja vu as I hear shuffling from the inside. This brings a pang of sadness with it, as I remember the first time.

  Brick…

  There’s a crash from within, followed by a few choice expletives, one of which is new to me. ‘Father’s fish filets’ is surprisingly mild for the old codger. The door slams open, revealing the disheveled man in all his morning glory.

  “Wha’d’ya want?! Oh… the boot burglar… You back for more?!” Smitty’s aggressive stance shows that he’s ready for any sudden movements I make.

  “No, sir. I’m here to pick up a parcel.” My hands pop up in a placating pose, and I move back a step.

  “Hmm? Ah, been recruited eh?”

  He goes back inside, returning with a paper package that has the distinctly skunky smell of mari flower. “Dead drop’s a mile north of the main exit! Go on, get gone!” He thrusts the package into my hands, beginning to close the door as he slinks back into his smelly abode.

  I put up a hand to hold the door open. “Um… Where’s the main exit?”

  “Granddad’s ganja, you’re useless! It’s east of the task board! Now shoo!”

  I take the necessary time needed to summon Box B, placing the paper-wrapped bundle into it as he once again slams the door in my face. I note that it barely fits before unsummoning it.

  I follow the path I took to get here, easily finding my way back to the task wall. From there, I keep walking, until I reach an archway with the charcoal letters ‘SoS’ scrawled on the side. As I walk through the arch, I hear a distinctly feminine voice.

  “Hello, Human. You are mine now.”

  I start looking around, only to feel something rub against my leg. I glance down, surprised to see a sleek white cat, with golden accents around its eyes, paws, and tail.

  “Awww! Hey there! Are you lost, little kitty?” I reach down and scratch behind its ears, eliciting a loud, rumbling purr.

  “I am not lost, Human. I am found.” Once again, there’s that feminine voice. I only now notice that I’m not hearing it, per se. It’s being projected into my mind. By the cat.

  Taken aback, I start to remove my hand. If this cat can talk, I wouldn’t want to offend her by treating her as a pet.

  Before my hand gets out of her reach, she gently bats at it, putting one claw into it and pulling it back to her.

  “You will not stop petting me, Human!”