Noah was given a week to prepare for his mission, but to be honest he really didn't have much to prepare. His weapons were a check and his supplies were all good. He was well rested and he was as mentally prepared as he could be. He also didn't want to do any job for fear of getting injured so he couldn't really do anything but wait. He could head into the inner city and could probably find a memory of two in the shop there.
Noah sat in contemplation for a few more minutes, not coming up with any better ideas of what to do so he decided to enter the inner city. Noah placed his helmet on his head and got up to leave his house. He made his way to the main gate and handed over the soul shard that was required to enter the gate.
Noah walked into the city, the smell wasn't great but anything beat the air quality of the outskirts, but the city was relatively clean. Well as clean as a medieval city could get. Noah strode through the city for about an hour and eventually found his way to the marketplace. He browsed the wares not looking for anything in particular. He already had a surplus of soul shards so he wasn't really worried about the price.
As Noah walked through the Marketplace browsing ware he looked around. Even though he was in the inner city, it didn't mean that everyone there was in their right mind. Looking around he could see many people just laying on the streets. Their faces unshaved, dirty, and unkempt and their hair ragged and tangled. They laid motionless , seeming exhausted or maybe broken from the struggles of life. Noah observed these people looking for small details that could maybe explain their situation.
A few months into his stay in the dream realm Noah had picked up some concerning habits. Noah had made a Habit of observing these people and had recently developed a fascination in the way people reacted to their predicament. Not in the scientific way but in a curious or amusing way. It's not like he didn't go through the stages of grief when he first entered this hell scape, but he found an interest in people's reactions. Some took a long time to adjust some to a little, some people haven't even adjusted yet but Noah likes to observe people coping with their situation.
A twisted past time for sure but he needed something to occupy himself with during his down time. All he did was train or meditate so he needed something new. He also reasoned that he did not take enjoyment in causing others suffering; he just liked to see how they reacted to their suffering. So technically he did not enjoy the act of suffering but it resulted . Well at least that's how he saw it.
On the subject of past time Noah had finally now found a reason to be in this marketplace. To find something to pass the time. Noah thought that maybe he could find a memory that could help him pass the time. Something fun like a toy or musical instrument that they could learn. The problem was that the market place did not sell any memories at all. Sure you could probably get one from a merchant that got a little too brave but other than that you couldn't find any in the inner city.
That was for good reason. The tyrant of this small kingdom did not let people sell memories on the street so he had to go to a designated shopping area to get memories.an Noah could only get in with express permission. Noah could only guess that this was some type of power play to keep control of the city, but it could be a multitude of other things. It's not like knowing the reason changed the outcome, in the end he could not buy memories so why contemplated the exact reason.
Noah continued to walk around, looking down every dark alley and every market stand looking for someone to sell him a memory, but he had no luck. He eventually found himself many blocks away from the main market place. He took a right turn and fully expected to find another empty alleyway, but to his surprise he saw a person sitting near the back corner of the alleyway.
Noah cautiously made his way to the end of the alleyway to see a small person. On closer inspection it looked like a man with long facial hair and long straight hair that ran down to his chest . His body was bruised, he shivered in the corner only having rags covering his body. Noah approached the man slowly, his eyes moving to every corner scrutinizing every little movement.
As Noah got closer he tried to engage in conversation to minimal success. Noah tried to greet him but there was no response. Noah checks behind him to see nothing there. He took a few more steps and was right in front of the man. The man who had been looking at the floor seemed to finally notice him. His head rose to meet Noah's helmet.
In a whisper Noah ask" hey do you sell memories?"(need to add more talking here)
The guy just looked at him unanswering, Noah moved his hand back and forth in front of him and watched the man's eyes follow his moment then as again" hello do you sell memories?'
He still sat there unresponsive, then he pointed to his ears and then gave Noah a thumbs down. Noah understood what he was telling him, then pointed at his hand. He summoned a memoir while still pointing at his hand. He then dismissed his memory and then rubbed his thumb and pointer finger together in the universal sign of money.
The man gave a fast and enthusiastic response as he gave the thumbs up. Noah was pretty siked that he had finally found a vendor. The only problem would be how would he tell the guy what he wanted. He briefly considered doing a complicated version of charades but instead settled on drawing what he wanted on the wall with his knife.
His knife appeared in his hand in a blur which caused the man to flinch. Noah, paying no mind to the man movement , started to write on the wall.
He first wrote {music?}. The man nodded and summoned one memory. It was a box that could fit in two hands, it was made of a dirty black stone. It was not smooth at all, its side was jagged with a little crack running down its length . Noah then wrote on the wall again {more?}. The man shook his head which annoyed Noah, but at this point Noah would take anything.
He then wrote on the wall again{price?} The man held up 4 fingers. Noah having a surplus of shards did not mind the price. Noah took out the soul shard which caused the man's eyes to sparkle with either greed or happiness, maybe both but Noah couldn't tell. He handed over the soul shards then the man stook out his hand as if asking for a hand shake. Noah took his hand and felt a spark run up his arm and into his soul core.
Noah opens his rune to see his new memories name (reminder of Dark). He then dismissed his rune and wrote on the wall once more {fire}. The man gave another thumbs up and summoned a stone on the ground. It radiated a bright orange light and produced a strong sense of warmth. The area around the stone was slowly being burnt leaving a scorch mark all around the stone.
Noah's face turned into a grin as he watched the stone slowly burn the ground around it. He looked back towards the man and excitedly nodded his head. The man held up 2 fingers and Noah happily paid him what was needed. The man then again transferred the memory and Noah excitedly opened his rune to see his new memory (scorching stone ) . He tried to summon the memories on the floor so as to not burn himself, but nothing happened. He tried again nothing, then he tried to summon the (reminder of Dark). The jagged stone box appeared in his hand a moment later. He then summoned his small pouch, it again appeared in his hands a moment later.
Perplexed, he tried once more to summon the (scorching stone). Nothing appeared, it was right about then that Noah realized that the scorching stone was so hot that it could damage things. They technically constitute this as a combat memory, so he couldn't summon it.
'Goddammit life can't be easy, can it?' Noah looked up into the sky and clenched his hand in annoyance.
Noah had one more memory on his agenda to purchase. Noah turned to the wall and wrote {water} the man then summoned a bag in his hand. The bag was a good size, about the size of a canteen. The man then tipped the bag over slightly and poured out some of it. Water dripped out the hole of the bag which splashed off the ground and ran through the cracks of the ground. Noah looked pleased by this but wrote just to confirm { Drinkable?} the man Nodded which brought a smile to his face. Noah then paid the man and turned to leave.
As Noah walked away he remembered something, he looked back at the man and gave him a thumbs up and then said "Thank you". The man responded with a slight head nod Noah then continued to walk away in a manner that showed his suppressed annoyance, but a sudden realization hit him.
'How did that guy respond'
As he exited the alley he looked back to see that the man who he had bought his memoires from was gone. Kind of creeped out he looked all around him just to make sure he wasn't being followed, then seeing nobody made his way towards the exit of the castle.
Arriving back at his house he took off his helmet and sat down on his makeshift bed. He then opened his runes to check what he got. His eyes scan his rune till they find their mark. The (bag of blue) seemed to be the new memory that he had received. It was a basic awakening memory of the second tier. Upon reading the enchantments it surprised Noah that the bag didn't create water but instead stored it. The enchantment does not specify how much it can store but based on the amount of water Noah had poured into it, it could store more than a brown bag of the size could logically hold.
The (scorching stone) was a total failure on his part. He did receive some valuable insight on his flaw, but In hindsight he should have known that he couldn't summon the memory. His Flaw specifically said combat memories so he probably should have guessed it extended beyond weapons, armors, and trinkets and into tools and garments. Noah looked back up to his Flaw and glared at it. His face scrunched up in annoyance as he reread his Flaw.
It did not escape him that his essence generation would also be greatly stunted, but right now the memory thing was really biting him in the ass. He then resummoned his runes to look at the (Reminder of Dark).
Memory : Reminder of Dark
Rank : Awaken
Tier: III
Type : Tool
Memory description
( with in the Abyss tainted region under a great mountain range a knight hummed calming melody one last time to his dear companion )
Memory enchantment : (Echo) ( Remembrance )(Parting Gift)
Enchantment description : ( Echo )
(the lullaby radiated through the Abyss Echoing endlessly. No matter where you are you will always hear this lullaby)
Enchantment description : ( Remembrance)
(this box has a indomitable shell, it is very durable able to resist the decay of time and to be remembered through the centuries of wear )
Enchantment description : (Parting gift)
(this song was only meant to be heard by one living being. Only you can hear its soft lullaby )
He dismissed his rune and held out his hands, Summoning the (Reminder of Dark). The jagged stone box appears in his hands. Noah took some time to look at the box in anticipation of what he would hear. Then he grabbed the crank of the side of the box and started to spin it. Small clicking noises could be heard as he twisted the crank. Finally the crank hit the limit and Noah let go. The music box started playing but no music came out. Then a voice, a low hum from what sounded like a man.
The hum was quiet at first then rose as the lullaby kept going. Noah noticed that the humming resembled a certain type of music that he had listened to sparing back in the real world. If he remembered correctly it was called a symphony , but the only difference would be that the lullaby that Noah was listening to didn't have instruments, just rhythmic hums.
After a few short minutes the song came to a soft end and slowly faded out. Noah enjoyed the song it was quite calming to listen to. He laid there on his bed as his body decompressed. his body sunk into the mattress, and his eyes radiating a soft blue energy as he just stared at the roof of his house unmoved, waiting for the days to pass.
The Next few days slowly passed with nothing of much worth happening, but eventually the day had come. Noah's eyes slowly open on a relatively cold morning . He looked around his room as a familiar feeling of anxiety made his stomach sink. He took a deep breath then turned to the side to sit down. As his body rose his feet touched the ground besides his bed. He sat there for a bit before deciding to summon his armor. He stood up and stretched his arms, his bones cracking as he did so. Mid way through stretching the familiar feeling of his disheveled armor filled his senses. Noah then took off his helmet and headed over to get some food while he was still summoning all of his weapons.
After eating Noah made his way towards the gate. As he approached the gate he nervously looked back at his house . He sighed and slowed his pace towards the gate, a worried look Plastered on his face as he made his way up the steps. Making it to the gate he handed the guard a soul shard and entered the inner city.
He made his way through the inner city looking around him as he went. After a good while he had finally arrived at his destination, which was the bar that they had met at a few days prior. Noah nervously walked to the door, took a deep breath and walked in. as he entered the bar he saw many people sitting around. Off in the corner of the room he saw Miles calmly sitting in one of the bars booths. Sitting around him were the pathfinders that would be accompanying them on the mission.
In the booths around the pathfinders were many people which Noah had guessed were the mercenaries who would be joining them on this mission. Noah started to walk over towards where the other mercenaries were sitting till someone in the booth next to them stood up.
"Oi Faker get over here"
Noah's head swung towards the voice. He knew that voice well; it was the voice of someone who would constantly terrorize him, Effie. Noah had a strong inclination to just ignore Effie but then he looked at the booth to see that all the pathfinders were looking at him, so against his better judgment he walked towards the booth full of pathfinders. Once he was within earshot he asked with a curious tone " Faker?"
"Yeah" a smirk spread across Effie's face "you were fake sleeping so it's only fitting."
All Noah could do was sigh and take his seat near the outside of the booth. He sat there unconformably for a bit just listening to their conversation. He was kind of an outsider in this group so after a while he just tuned out most of what they were saying and started to daydream till he heard his name being called. He snapped out of his daydream and looked at whoever said his name. His gaze landed on Leandro. Now having Noah's attention he asked in a blunt tone "why do you never take off your helmet?"
Effie then added "Yeah what are you an edge lord or something"
Noah's face turned slightly pink in embarrassment, but that didn't stop him from satiating Leandro's curiosity. Noah's hand went up to rub the back of his helmet. "Ahh it's kind of embarrassing to say this out loud, but I just don't like to show my face."
He then put his hand down and transitioned into a shrugged "I kind of just got used to wearing it around people so, I guess I'm just comfortable with it now."
Then Noah looked down at the table "Sorry to disappoint you if you were expecting more."
Leandro nodded his head with a small smirk, while Effie just gave him a sideways look that could be interpreted as a 'Really'. Effie then grumbled and reached into her pocket. She pulled out a singular soul shard and she begrudgingly handed it to Leandro. Effie then turned back to Noah and in an agitated tone she yelled" why couldn't it be something exciting like a huge scar or something, come on man I had money riding on this!".
Noah smirked and answered in a jesting tone" Well if you wanted me to lie you should have told me beforehand? I mean I would have done it" Noah took a short pause then chucked to himself and crossed his arms" if you paid me."
Then in a dead serious tone she immediately responded "how much!"
Noah looked at her for a solid second then cracked up in laughter, but as he came down from his laughter he looked back to see that she was completely serious. Not having a real price for he just threw out a spitball answer " uhh like 1-3 soul shards I guess? Depending of the lie"
Then a giant grin could be seen forming on Effie's face"Well then it's a pleasure doing business with you! You know in the future."
The conversations that had followed were pretty light, but eventually the last mercenary had arrived in the bar and it was time for them to begin the mission. As they left the bar Noah had left the sides of the pathfinders and had joined up with the ranks of the mercenaries. Noah had planned to be quite like usual, he was instantly approached by many mercenaries asking questions that had pertained to his relation with the pathfinders. It seemed that his closeness with the pathfinders had not gone unnoticed.
Within about an hour they had finally arrived at the edges of the outskirts. The pathfinders had separated from the group and had started their job, so all Noah had to do was find a quiet place and wait for something to happen. Noah took out his knife and slowly approached a broken down house on the right side of the road. He entered the doorway with his hand near his side. With a knife in hand he looked around checking every corner for any signs of nightmare creatures.
After clearing the last room Noah lazily plopped himself down in the corner of the room. Sitting in the corner he started to summon his weapons and slayed them against the wall to his right and left. He then closed his eyes and focused on meditation. His surroundings faded into obscurity as his eyes started to glow and released the same blue string like tendril that came from his eye when concentrating. Noah fell into a trance losing track of time, minutes became second and hours became minutes.
After sitting there for a few hours his meditation gave way to a drowsy feeling. Not wanting to fall asleep he sat straight up and stretched his body. The main hour of a slouch position made his stretch feel like heaven. He stood up and summoned all his weapons back on to his back in an instant. As he walked back to the doorway he cracked his neck. Feeling the refreshing feeling of blood flowing towards his neck he stepped back into the streets to see that the sun was setting. Most of the mercs were sitting in clicks that had probably formed while he was alone in the house.
It seems that nothing has happened yet which made Noah let out a sigh that he did not know he was holding. Then everyone's faces turned towards him. Noah flinched a bit but realized that they weren't looking at him. He followed their gazes to the top of the house that he had rested in. Not seeing anything Noah backed away from the house and peered over it to see a plum of grey smoke rising in the distance. Noah's heart sank
' That might be a signal'.