Age Old Story

Chapter 5

 The next day for Alan was sleeping until noon, being visited by a doctor, and finding out that Trozz was going to be looking for clues.

Alan's day was boring.

Trozz's day, however, was not.

It began with Arthur opening his door, pulling all of Trozz's blankets off, and leaving. Trozz was thoroughly confused. Trozz padded into the kitchen to have a quick breakfast, took a moment to check that Alan hadn't rolled on either of his injuries (he hadn't, but his blanket had fallen off), and waited for Zart to wake up.

Zart wore the top half of a suit, unable to wear the bottom half properly. He shambled into the kitchen and had an even quicker breakfast than Trozz.

"I've got work at the office," He told Trozz, "So I won't be accompanying you to, well, wherever you're going."

Trozz had said that that was fine, and that Zart probably wouldn't have been helpful anyway.

Zart took that last part to mean that he was too much of a public figure for people to comfortable talking in his presence. Trozz had meant that Zart was terrible with people and that it was a surprise that he was elected to any office.

It was a good thing that Zart didn't know what Trozz had actually meant. Trozz couldn't afford Zart not liking him.

The two goblins left the house together, but Trozz went one way and Zart went another. Being a considerate construct, Arthur stayed home to watch over Alan and make sure the knight got something to eat.

Trozz made his way into what had once been a goblin town and was now the slums of Alfaren. He ignored the people huddling at the sides of the road, not wanting to pay attention to things he couldn't change.

He went into a tavern whose sign was painted with a grinning rat. It was dimly light, the owner preferring to buy beer rather than candles. All sorts of species sat at the tables, some too small for the chairs and some too big. Only two people, a goblin and a dwarf, sat at the bar. Trozz joined them and ordered a drink.

The bartender, a scrawny minotaur, poured him a pint.

"What brings you here?" He asked, putting the pint down in front of Trozz. Trozz took a drink.

"Looking for information." He said. The bartender leaned on the counter.

"Information on what?" The bartender asked, knowing that there was definitely going to be something in it for him.

"Princess Emelia kidnapped. Know who took princess?"

The bartender thought for a moment.

"Sorry pal, I ain't got a clue." He said.

"Maybe refresh your memory?" Trozz asked. The bartender shook his head.

"Can't remember something I don't know. Better luck next time."

Trozz shrugged and finished his drink. He paid and left, ready to find another bartender to question.

The next one didn't have any information either.

Neither did the one after that.

Or the one after that.

Not a single bartender in the slums had any idea who had taken Princess Emelia.

Trozz gave up after that. He went back to Zart's house and took a nap, prepared to deal with the hangover that was his punishment for drinking so much so early.

He managed to leave again before Alan woke up, leftovers evidence that he'd woken up long enough for Arthur to make him food. Trozz ate the leftovers and headed out.

This time he went to the bounty board in what had once been the cyclopes town square. For all he knew, there could be a quest advertisement for rescuing Princess Emelia.

There was not.

Trozz ventured further into the cyclopes town, questioning anyone who looked like they might know anything about Princess Emelia's kidnapping. This method was completely unsuccessful, and Trozz didn't enjoy a second of it.

The crushing hangover and disappointment brought him back to Zart's for the night.

The next day, a headache free Trozz went out again. This time he just wandered the city, trying to figure out which buildings were most likely to have information on Princess Emelia.

At noon, Trozz slipped into a cafe called 'The Little Dragon.' There was in fact a small dragon in the cafe, though it was stuffed and mounted and thus not a nuisance to anyone.

Trozz sat down and ordered a sandwich, looking around as he waited.

The cafe, like most cafes, was cute. This one was simple, with nice decorations and good looking clientele. The employees looked happy to be working, though Trozz guessed that they just looked happy to get good tips.

Maybe they actually were happy, but Trozz doubted it.

He got his sandwich and ate it, noticing that a poster for visits to northern Ludren had 'CANCELED' written on it in big red letters. Trozz waved a waitress over and asked her why the trips had been canceled.

"Oh, the place is infested with dragons. No one's sure why, and no one's been able to get in to take care of them. Were you planning on going there?"

Trozz shook his head.

"No, poster just caught my eye."

The waitress smiled. "Well, it's a nice poster when it's not written on it."

The two waited in silence for a moment before Trozz decided to pay her and leave with the sandwich.

He may not have had a clue to Princess Emelia, but where there were dragons, there was usually a villain, and maybe that villain knew something about the villain who took Princess Emelia.

Even with that lead, Trozz wasn't planning on continuing the quest yet. Alan could wait a week.

So Trozz went back to Zart's and gave Alan an excuse for why there wasn't any new information.

They left at the end of the week with Trouble's saddlebags full of supplies for the long road ahead.