The Adventure Shop

Vendors and Shopping

Aster took Dahlia to a street with vendors selling all sorts of food.

Dahlia was struck by all the smells, as her stomach became enticed, reminding her that it had been awhile since she had eaten.

"Want to try a few things?" Aster asked and laughed when he saw her eyes light up.

Aster led her to a booth where the vendor was making a food cut into strings that crisped in a pot of oil. Dahlia never thought of cooking food this way.

"What is the cooking method?" she asked the vendor.

The vendor looked slyly at the two as she answered. "You adventurers make me laugh. This is a Cave Stone. A type of tuber vegetable grown in caves. Dwarves discovered the vegetable about one hundred years ago, but couldn't do anything with them. When you boil the Cave Stone in water, it turns from a tuber to a stone-like substance. Cut in small spiral strips and fried in oil is the only way they are edible. They are quite tasty, salted, with any type of sweets, or dwarven spices."

The vendor added fresh cut spirals to the oil as it bubbled up with the new addition to the mixture.

She looked at Dahlia. "You asked how this method was created?" With a nod from Dahlia, she continued. "This cooking method was actually developed by the Ogres because they hated the texture of soft foods. It took them fifteen years to develop this exact process. They began to crisp up any soft vegetable or fruit to make it more palatable to their distinct desire for crunchy foods. Dwarves then took another seven years before they used the method for their own gain, making use of the abundant Caves Stones in the mountain."

The vendor handed them each a pack wrapped in old parchments from, what Dahlia noted, was the town's news flyers dated a few weeks previous. Dahlia noticed how the woman watched them, seeming to want something from the two.

"Well, now that I have shared a story, how about you share one of your own?"

Dahlia thought to answer, but Aster stood in front of her and paid as he told the story of the gelatinous cube that liked her special brew. The vendor laughed and followed up with a question.

"What are you adventurers on the hunt for?" She looked to Dahlia for an answer.

"Oh you know, treasures of a forgotten civilization. We will let you know how it went, if we pass through again!" Aster said, pulling Dahlia away.

He steered her to a quiet street and Dahlia felt like she was about to get a lecture. She was not sure why, but it made her feel slightly defensive.

"I am not naive, Aster. I would have not told her our real purpose."

"Even so, you must be wary in every town we enter what you willingly give away. There are those who are known to work with scavengers, a type of adventurer who prey on new adventurers. A few vendors in each town work for them in exchange for treasure, information, anything they are willing to take really. You must be careful; I do not want to see you or anyone in our party hurt by them."

He looked saddened by words he did not express, and Dahlia wondered if maybe she was in fact more naive to some harsh truths that Aster knew. Aster masked a smile meant to comfort her, but it only concerned her more knowing there was more to this story.

"I have made it a purpose now to find new adventurers and teach them these lessons early. To protect them from those who do not care if a life is lost, as long as they are rich in the process."

Dahlia took his hand and felt her defense soften as she understood his meaning.

"Thank you for teaching me. Before no one cared or saw me as anything more than a merchant who appeared and disappeared without any acknowledgement. I will follow your lead because even in this moment, I am slowly starting to realize how little I knew of this life from my shop."

She dropped his hand as she thought of what she had known. Dahlia thought because she traveled she knew, but it was briefly into other places, without hardship or concern.

"But you can learn. You are not a merchant alone in your shop anymore. You are now also an adventurer surrounded by other adventurers who want to protect and avenge you. It is okay to lean on us for guidance and knowledge. Just as we leaned on you for your expertise when it came to knowledge and materials needed for our journey. There is not one item from your shop that has not helped me in a time of need or a material that did not do what you had intended it to do. Just as we have trusted you for our needs, trust us now for yours."

Dahlia blushed as she realized how different it was now. To be surrounded by others who were standing by her side, to care for her in her time of need. She set a resolution in her heart that once she made it home, she would ensure that everyone was prepared for their journeys, and she would learn everything she could from this one. Also, she admitted to herself that a journey every year or two to make sure she continued to learn what adventurers needed on their journey would ensure that her shop functioned as she intended it to. It was okay to be unknowledgeable now because it gave her the opportunity to learn from others who had experiences she had never known before. And it felt both exciting and terrifying to admit to herself, for once, she did not have all the information she needed to succeed.

"Come on! Let's go get those other provisions for you before we need to meet up with the others!"

Aster grabbed her hand as they walked from vendor to vendor. Dahlia could not wait to see what would happen next as they explored together.

Hazel and Borg kept a watchful eye on the duo while they had their own Cave Stone spirals.

"Ah, to be young and in love!" Hazel commented watching the oblivious pair.

"When do you think they will realize?" Borg asked, dumping the rest of the spirals into his mouth from the rolled up parchment.

"At this rate, I give it two years if she doesn't see and he isn't aware of his feelings for her. But right now they are learning more about each other, and I hope for their sake they take and have the time to learn. But I am sure they will," Hazel replied, shaking her head wondering how two intelligent beings could be so dense in matters of the heart.

"Well at least it is entertaining!" Borg laughed, as Aster brought Dahlia to a weapons stall, pointing out various new blades. Hazel smiled sadly as the two still held hands, seemingly unaware of what she knew for a while. She hoped that her mistake would not take one more life as Hazel wished she could ensure Dahlia's fate was to live.