FSE

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Rodent boys stuck in a foreign land Allow me to offer aid and lend a hand

Sat in a dark corner of the tavern Russet sat in a huddle with Rufus, their head close together as they sorted through the small pile of adverts, requests and job offers littering the table. Sighing, Russet took a sip from his mostly empty tankard and spluttered at the bitter dregs that filled his muzzle. Wiping his whiskers clean, he pushed his drink away and turned to his companion, watching his fellow rodent's pink ears droop as he pushed the adverts away. Both of the rats were lanky with bare, furless feet and hands, long naked tails and large pink ears ears. Rufus was hooded, his head and shoulders brown, the rest of his body white, a bright contrast to the darker, cinnamon of Russet's own fur. Rats in a village of hoofed plodders, oxen, sheep and horses, farmer types who saw every rodent as a potential thief as they'd been finding out all day.

Russet (art by Cat Monk Shiro) Rufus (art by Aggro Badger)

Sat in a dark corner of the tavern Russet sat in a huddle with Rufus, their head close together as they sorted through the small pile of adverts, requests and job offers littering the table. Sighing, Russet took a sip from his mostly empty tankard and spluttered at the bitter dregs that filled his muzzle. Wiping his whiskers clean, he pushed his drink away and turned to his companion, watching his fellow rodent's pink ears droop as he pushed the adverts away. Both of the rats were lanky with bare, furless feet and hands, long naked tails and large pink ears ears. Rufus was hooded, his head and shoulders brown, the rest of his body white, a bright contrast to the darker, cinnamon of Russet's own fur. Rats in a village of hoofed plodders, oxen, sheep and horses, farmer types who saw every rodent as a potential thief as they'd been finding out all day.

"You're right," he sighed, "None of these are any good, they're either taken already or the person who put them up already told us to get lost."

"Well we got to do something, we barely have any coin left," Russet squeaked, his pink tail smothering back and forth on the floor, "We've got skills, we should be able to land a better job than sewer cleaners or farm hands."

"Hah," Rufus squeaked bitterly, picking up his tankard and staring into it before thumping it back down again when he discovered it empty. He'd bought it hours ago as an excuse to sit in the inn and neither rodent could afford another drink, "No one wants to trust a pair of rats. We're too far from home. No one's heard of us; We're just a pair of rodents as far as they're concerned. Back home we were among our own kind, trusted, known. Here.. we're just some rats from the Undercity, not to be trusted."

Nodding slowly Russ played with one of his ears, staring ahead morosely at nothing as his mind played over their options. "We need something, even if the coin is crap, just something to help us on our way back home. Maybe we should have dressed to fit in?" he gestured at the villagers, taking in their collective clothing, rough cotton tunics, hose in shades browns and greens and plain compared to the rats' shorts and hoodies.

"I doubt it; We'd still just be rats to them. Regardless, we do need coin but working a six-month indenture contract cleaning gunk or pulling weeds just isn't viable. I don't fancy hauling vegetables or being paid to crawl through this towns sewer clearing blockages all day long. We're guild trained, certified warriors; we wouldn't be treated like this amongst our own kind."

Russet shrugs and spreads his hands, "I dunno what else to say, we're stuck and these farmers don't want to trust us with anything."

Rufus frowned and shook his head, "We need about five hundred coin between to us to pay our way to the nearest Undercity entrance and that is just to cover the ferry cost, not to mention actually buying food! Last time I let you talk me into a job involving mages and rogue teleporters."

"I apologised already! I didn't miss that that trap on his vault and got us teleported to nowhere on purpose. Come on Rufus we got to focus, we're a team! We can do this..." Russet offered his companion a brief smile but it faded as he glanced down at the adverts and sighed, "Back home we'd be amongst fellow rats, not all these..." he trailed off and looked up as the innkeeper loomed above them, the broad shouldered, muscular oxen stared down at the rats and shook his head before speaking in his deep rumbling voice.

"These what my red-furred sewer-scurrying friend?" he waved a hand as Russet opened his mouth to reply, stalling the rat, "I'm closing up, are you hiring a room or you leaving. You've been nursing those mugs for the last three hours so you're either stingy or broke and my Inn doesn't do charity. If it's to be a room you'll pay upfront or else get out." he snorted through his nose ring and pointed at the door.

Russet sat up straighter, opened his mouth to protest, over-sized incisors on display as his lips peeled back but his words died away in a disgruntled squeak as Rufus laid a paw on his arm.

"We'll leave, thanks for the drinks," Rufus said quickly gathering up their papers, the oxen followed, shooing the pair of rodents outside, hooves clunking on the floorboards as he tried to stay out of the way of their long, pink, swaying tails. Once he had them outside he shut the door behind them, locked it and left them stuck outside, facing the cold drizzle of rain blanketing the village.

"Great, now what?" Russet sighed, sliding out from beneath the porch, pulling up his hood and adjusting the belt around his waist, the hilts of his dagger poking out from beneath the fabric of his red hoodie. Once comfortable he unhooked their lantern from his belt and turned the small bronze switch that caused the flint to spark.

"We go find someplace to curl up where it might be dry and come up with another plan. Failing that we'll just have to live off the land to get home." Rufus followed the other rat, the light from their lantern illuminating the path and the swirling rain. "Maybe we should just steal what we need and move on. I mean what's the point of having a thief along if you're not going to acquire things."

Russet glanced back and shrugged, "I may be an acquisition specialist but I try not to steal from those who can't afford to lose it.Find me a nice fat rich merchant and I'll fleece him for every penny he has."

"Yeah I know but..." Rufus stopped suddenly and grabbed the other's tail, halting Russet in his tracks. he then slid up next to his frozen companion and extended his paw. He pointed to a figure standing at the edge of their lantern light shrouded by cloak and hood. Cloaked figures out and about in the rain were to be expected what was unsettling was that this one had managed to sneak up on both of them. Russet drew his dagger, holding it low and the lantern high, stepping forward to illuminate the figure whilst Rufus slipped into the shadows, palming throwing knives from up his sleeves.

"Calm yourself boys," the figure whispered, its voice low and sibilant, "I mean no harm and want no trouble."

"Well for someone who doesn't want trouble you're certainly acting a bit suspicious, what with sneaking up on us and all," Russet replied, edging forward, casting the lantern behind the figure.

"I apologise... prejudice runs high in this town, the villagers are... simple folk. They want quiet lives and familiar faces. People like us upset their cosy world view. I tried to make a home in this land but they wouldn't have me. I'm leaving, moving on, and rumour has it you boys need a way of making coin and I am need of some strong lads to retrieve some of my property."

"You have a job for us?" Rufus asked warily, the rat staying out of the circle of light, eyes searching the street in both direction as he slowly span his throwing knives between his fingers. The rain continued to soak him, water dripping off his whiskers making them droop, his hoodie was now plastered wetly to his chest, making him seem even thinner then he really was. "We've been sitting in that tavern all day. Why didn't you come there?"

"The innkeeper doesn't like me. Like I said, I don't fit his world view. I can pay well and it doesn't involve hauling refuse or labouring in the fields. Boys with your... 'talents' are just what I need."

Frowning Russet twitched his ears then lifted a paw to tug his hood back into place as the heavy, water-logged fabric threatened to slip off his head. He glanced at Rufus, heavy tail swaying back and forth lightly, "What's the job and what did you mean by, people like us?"

Lifting his hands the dark shape pushed back his hood just enough to reveal a large pair of familiar rodent incisors set in a narrow, grinning muzzle. He then shifted his hood forward again and turned to point toward the hills behind the town. "Through the woods, at the top of the hill are the ruins of an old tower. It used to be my home before I had to leave. Underneath lies a series of catacombs, I need you to travel down into the depths and retrieve something for me and bring it back to the surface."

"Why not get it yourself?" Rufus queried cautiously his tail slithering across the stones.

"It's dangerous. I installed traps and various other defences and in its ruined state, well..." he waved his hands toward his cloak, "Let's just say I am not a pair of spry young adventuresome rats."

The two rodents exchanged a long look, Russet shrugged, "We need money; This guy is offering." Rufus nodded and put his throwing daggers away, the blades vanishing back into the sleeves of the dark blue dripping hoodie as he walked over to Russet.

"Ok, we'll bite... how much you paying?" Rufus asked, his nose twitching, not sure the job was worth the trouble and risk.

"So quickly my young rats? I figured you'd question my motives but then you've seen how the people here treat our kind."

Russet shook his head, "We're rats, we'll go in, get the stuff and get back out because we need money to get home."

"As you wish. In the lowest level of the catacombs there is a box. It is made of ebony wood and fixed with bands of iron and marked with the letter 'U'. Go down, retrieved it and bring it to the surface without opening it. I will pay you 2000 gold."

"Wow.. that is perfect," Rufus exclaimed, eyes lighting up at the sheer amount of cash involved, "Can we take an advance now to get ourselves a night in the inn?" Rufus asked hopefully, a grin showing off his incisors in the lantern light.

"No... no I will pay all when you have earned it, the tower has a basement. Sleep there... or out here under the trees. I'm not responsible for your comforts."

"Well before we agree to anything, I think you need to show us you can pay us. Wading down into a trap filled dungeon we can do. But we need some proof that you can pay us that much gold," Russet said, "You haven't told us where this tower is yet or told us how to find you when we get back."

"I'll find you. As for proof..." the cloaked rat shook his head, "You will have to take my word on that. Retrieve my box, your services shall not go unrewarded and remember I know how much you need this job." turning he pointed at the hills beyond the town, "Walk up the hill for about ten minutes, bear left at an old elm tree split in half. You'll find the remains of a stone staircase, it will lead you to my former home, I suggest you make camp in the first cellar room. It should be dry and hospitable."

Frowning Rufus glanced toward Russet who shrugged at him, as wet and bedraggled and cold as he was they couldn't really argue the point. "Ok we'll take your job but you better cough up when this is over with or else," turning away from their new employer Rufus started off toward the edge of town and a moment later Russet turned to follow him.

Russet glanced back as they reached the edge of the town but he could barely make out the outlines of the cottages and houses, the cloaked figure had vanished. Shaking his head he trudged on besides Rufus, using the lantern to guide their way. The rain was starting to fall harder and by the time they found the split elm tree his clothes where heavy and soaked. Pausing by the ancient, decrepit tree they hunted around until Rufus found the remains of an old stone staircase and they resumed their wet trudge up.

They marched stoically upward together in silence, the odd squeak or raised paw indicating the next visible flagstone, it was not the weather for hearty conversations. An hour later, maybe a bit more they crested the hill and there, looming out of the shadowy, rain filled darkness was a stunted ruin of crumbling, mouldering stone clawing at the cloud filled sky.

"At last," Rufus sighed hurrying through an arched opening into the room beyond. Russet's lantern illuminated ancient flagstones and more rain. The roof was open, the tower was just a hollow shell. "Ugh I just want to get out of the rain... he said we go down can you see anything?"

Casting about, hunting Russet eventually stopped at the far wall, "Here, stairs down... they seem fine. Let's be careful though, you never know." They moved slowly down the steps, clawed feet padded silently on stone, water dripping from tails and clothes but after a few minutes of tightly wound spiral stairs another arch opened into a room that Russet's lantern lit up. It was cozy, dry and there was a huge pile of straw against one wall, a trapdoor in the middle and some tumbled blocks of masonry fanning out from another blocked doorway.

"Well this is better than a tree," Rufus declared, padding in and looking around, "Let's rest here like he said and try and go down tomorrow. With any luck it isn't very deep and we can be back on the road home in a day or so."

Setting the lantern down on a stone Russ nodded and started to peel off his sopping wet hoodie, revealing his smooth, stomach, lanky chest and very wet fur. "Yeah... we can let our things dry out too... hurry up and get undressed so I can turn the lantern off. We'll need to conserve oil going forward."

Rufus paused in his investigation of the hay pile and eyed Russet and then squirmed, tugging at his hoodie, "What if mr cloak and creepy comes down here and interrupts us?"

"Rufus come on, it's an abandoned tower, I'm the only one here and I see you naked all the time. Hang your stuff up to dry and get in the bedding." The other rat stepped out of his shorts and hung them up on a block of stone next to his hoodie. His belt then went into the hay along with his daggers and the nude rat picked up a handful of straw and started to rub it over his fur, drying himself off some.

Peeling off his own sopping wet clothing Rufus hung it up, on another block of stone then hurried toward the pile of hay, his throwing knives and small set of lockpicks clasped in his hands. He burrowed into the hay next to Russet and set about trying to get comfortable. The red rat chuckled and leant in against Rufus and squeaked softly, nudging him with his nose.

"Silly... no one is going to come down here, why do you always get so bashful when we get naked? I mean... we've done plenty more then just look at each other after all."

Rufus grumbled a bit, squirming around, wiggling until he could find a comfortable spot. Russet buried himself down nearby, weapons near at hand and then reached out to turn out the lantern. Exhausted, wet, hungry and somewhat bedraggled the rats soon fell asleep, their snuffling rustling of the hay the only indication that anyone was there at all. Outside the rain continued to fall, the soft, sound of water hitting rock echoing down the stairs as the night to passed slowly and neither rodent stirred as a dark, cloaked figure walked quietly into the room.

End of Act One