Whack-A-Rat
Kill ten Chem-Rats, earn a copper coin! What can a copper coin get you?
Well, the economic system was simple: coins with holes in them, holed coins, and full coins. Two holed coins made a full coin. Ten full coins equaled the next full coin up. Ten full coppers equaled one full silver.
Copper → Silver → Gold.
A half-copper would get you a snack at most, while a full copper could get you a meal, depending on where you went.
Now, that's not to say a meal with meat or a meal with a quality that wasn't as questionable as Taco Bell leaving you on the shitter for hours, but it was a meal. And it kept you alive.
If you wanted a meal that didn't have the chance to ruin your stomach? A copper and a holed copper.
A meal with meat?! Well, now you're looking at two coppers.
What about quill and parchment? That's around five coppers.
A single alchemical vial? One holed silver or five coppers. Distillers and other tools went up from there.
And mechanics? Maintenance crews? Well, adjustable wrenches were recently invented in Piltover, but they jacked the price up to a full silver coin. A normal wrench you could get for a copper but who uses only one wrench, unless it's adjustable, but even then!
A full toolbox of wrenches runs a silver coin.
Can't even blame inflation here. Only greed.
So, back to the original point: ten Chem-Rats for one potential diarrhea meal? Doesn't sound terrible if these were normal rats but these were Chem-Rats. A full meter in length and highly aggressive when approached.
I tilted my blunt 8 cm (three-inch) blade.
I was in a crew of four standing before our first Chem-Rat which began hissing angrily at us. An older man and two other kids close to my age.
"It's a blunt knife…"
"It's not the size or sharpness that matters, it's how you use it." A gray-haired old man chuckled, clapping my shoulder with a grin. "They work well enough for the job. Grab its head, pin it down, and finish quickly."
I eyed the bluntness skeptically before looking up at the hefty old man in a one-piece tunic. He sighed before grabbing the knife from my hand after seeing my doubt.
The man, late thirties maybe, cautiously approached the Chem-Rat. It hissed angrily, rearing up and backing away at first. The old man raised his arm with an open palm, eyes fixed on the creature.
It lunged with surprising speed and leapt up at his chest, which was about my head height. He caught it just behind the head, twisted its body, and slammed it into the ground. Its body flailed as it squeaked and squealed, rotten claws scratching and clawing at the floor before he rammed the knife into its neck. It let out several gurgled cries, still flailing.
"Now, kids," the man grunted. "You've got two options here. Let it go and let it bleed out… or keep it pinned. Stab it a few more times, doesn't matter, as long as you know you hit the artery."
"Why wouldn't you choose to let it go and bleed out?" the kid with short ginger hair asked, wide-eyed.
"Well," the man said, eyeing him carefully, "if you think this is bad, try letting one go. You'll feel worse and wish you ended it."
Wiping his nose, he added nonchalantly, "You risk losing your proof of kill if it falls into the Chem-sewage too. I'll say it again: do not jump into the sewage for any reason. You will regret it."
I wasn't exactly new to this, coming from a rural area, but I still couldn't help grimacing.
When the rat finally stopped moving, he still refused to remove his hand for a minute or two as he continued talking.
"Now these Chem-Rats, you can't eat them either. Their flesh is too tainted. The rats you see in the market are farm-bred or come from the upper districts. Sometimes from ships passing through the canal."
Finally letting go, he cut off the tail and tossed it to the red-haired boy.
"Put it in your pouch. Now," he said, walking over and handing me the blade back, hilt first. "Today is the only day I babysit you three. I don't suggest slacking off and make the most of it."
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"Squeak!"
My blade pierced another rat's throat. Because of the size difference, trying to copy the older man was difficult. It took most of my strength to pin a rat and finish the job.
I'd already sacked five rat-tails while the ginger kid had three, including the one the instructor gave him, and the brown-haired kid only had one so far.
Putting the sixth tail in my bag, I eyed another rat around the bend.
"Do you guys want this one?" I asked, pointing.
They both meekly shook their heads, and the instructor behind them remained silent.
"More for me then." I smiled and skipped forward.
Soon I'll have ten. This isn't as bad as I thought it'd be.
The rat in the distance squeaked angrily and ran directly at me.
Raising my knife, I prepared to stab but it was building too much momentum. It leaped and I impaled its neck as usual, sidestepping as its claws swiped wide, trying to find their mark. Because of this I also had to let go to avoid getting scratched.
It yelped and screamed, flailing across the ground with the knife still sticking out. I rushed over but couldn't find a way to pin it while it was on its back.
It screamed, it yelped, it cried, and somewhere amidst it all, I managed to rip the knife free.
It should start bleeding out now, I thought, wincing as I watched it stumble around in pain and dazed confusion. When I glanced at the other kids, they were frozen stiff in fear and shock. They stared at the dying rat, then at me like I was the monster.
The adult remained silent, arms crossed. He'd done this himself. He'd warned us.
I felt sympathy for the creature too, but much like pests on a rural farm, sometimes you have to do the nasty business to keep the business going.
The rest of the day was quiet. I managed to bag fifteen tails, earning me a copper coin and a half. The others, after witnessing what I did, only earned enough for a single half-copper.
Whack-A-Rat success! Not bad, not amazing. It was only my first day too. I can save up with this especially if I'm not slowed down by the others.
Smiling to myself, the man from the sewer approached me as I was about to exit the guild.
"Well done kid! Varyn, right? You did good. If you keep it up,you'll be able to save up and get out of here." He paused. "We also have other lines of work but the guild wants you to run a few rounds doing this before we open up the boards a bit more to ya."
"The boards? You mean like other jobs?"
"Yeah. It can be anything from maintenance, apprentice work…" He paused again, watching me carefully. "There's some more dangerous jobs too, if this is your kind of thing…"
I frowned. "I'd have to think on it, but thanks for letting me know!"
The man smiled and nodded. "Any time, kid. You take care."
"Thanks! You too!"