The pub can be so many things to so many people. It’s a home away from home, a sanctuary, a group therapy meeting place, a banquet hall or a party hot spot. One such place was wasting away in a dark corner of Divinity’s Reach. It was one of the poorest sections of town and was known aptly as The Dead End. This urine soaked tavern was a breeding ground for thieves and thugs. It was often the scene of bloody fights and basically served as a place for money and stolen goods to change hands… amongst other things.
Across the map, in the smoky kitchen of the Great Lodge in Hoelbrak, Arey looked up from the charcoal crusted grill she had been tasked to scrub and made up her mind. Without hesitation she walked over to her boss, handed him her apron and walked out of the door. She made her way to her room, a dingy little square of space behind the kitchen. It had no windows and just enough room for a small bed and a chest for her things. She quickly began to pack, putting her meager belongings into a bag she could sling on her back. Before she left she laid on the floor and pulled a locked box from the far corner of the area under her bed. She pulled a key from her pocket and opened it, smiling at what was inside. She had everything she needed to get out of Hoelbrak and on with her life at last.
As she made her way to the portal that would take her to Divinity’s Reach, the city she hoped to call home, she didn’t even bother to look around her. She had lived in Hoelbrak her entire life and it had held nothing but disappointment and failure. Her father and brothers were away fighting battles and her mother was too busy herding dolyaks and spinning yarn to really have much time to give her daughter advice. That is why Arey decided if she was going to accomplish anything, she had to do it on her own. Getting out of her hometown was the first step.
“Thank you for using our portal services!” A chipper cream colored Asuran waved at her as she stepped into the swirling vortex.
Arey had no idea how the portals worked, but she was glad she wouldn’t have to trek across the dangerous terrain of the world to get to the city, as she hadn’t really spent much time fighting. While she had watched the men in her family get strong and learn how to battle, she could only watch, trying to suck in all she could. Her father didn’t want her to fight, instead fostering her natural skill at cooking and baking and sending her into the kitchen of the Great Lodge to learn her trade. Arey had spent the last of her teenage years there and knew that while she could probably make a living right where she was, the world simply held too many amazing things for her to box herself into some tavern or pub serving drunken mercenaries and farmers. She wanted more.
Divinity’s Reach was beautiful, everything she wanted. She had traveled there often over the years, taking baked goods to the various pubs and restaurants, even baking a cake for the queen for a festival. It had always been an exciting experience, walking the crowded streets, listening to the chatter, browsing exotic materials and foods in the marketplace. The bitter bite of snow was replaced with a breeze laced with the smell of cherry blossoms and clover. It was nothing at all like Hoelbrak.
The portal let her out right in the center of a beautiful garden, trees spiraling gracefully into the sky, neatly trimmed shrubs and flower gardens lined the path in front of her. Beautifully dressed nobles strolled along the pathways, heading to the temple for worship or to some other elite activity that Arey had never been able to be a part of. She smiled, holding the box close to her chest. It was time to change her fate.
The scenery soon changed, leading her out of the perfectly groomed and sweet smelling air to an area covered in layers of soot and slime, smells you’d rather not identify, and people you probably want to avoid. Arey didn’t mind, standing tall over most of the humans she encountered, it was almost natural that she was left alone for the most part, besides a few poor beggars and a child asking for her help to pull a kitten from a branch in a tree too high for them to reach. She knew the East End only in passing, but she had met many fine people from the area and they had told her about the bar that was pretty close to closing its doors and becoming a home to squatters and more criminals. This was her chance and she walked into the building with utter confidence and determination.
The place looked terrible. Cracked tables and wobbly chairs were scattered haphazardly around the room. The stench of stale beer, bodily fluids, and gelatinous meat made her gag a little as she waited by the warped wooden bar for the owner to make his appearance. He came from the back, a weasel of a man with a short thin nose and beady eyes. He ushered her to a back room and shut the door. It was small and dark and smelled of tobacco and shame. There was a desk with one chair. He plopped down in it with a satisfied grunt and looked up at her, staring directly at her to assert his dominance even though she towered over him and could crush him with her thumb if she wanted to.
His attitude didn’t deter Arey as she quickly began her pitch, giving him a more than generous offer for the place. He listened with closed eyes until she was finished before reaching into his pocket, and pinching a tuft of green material from a pouch. He winked at her as he slid it into the side of his cheek, taking an extra moment to poke his finger into the skin of cheek a few times, stretching it out suggestively. A stench filled the room as he chewed the skunk weed, revealing the very apt reason for its name. He continued to chew, looking at her and drumming his calloused fingers along the top of the desk. After a few more minutes he lifted a tattered tin cup from his desk and spit a wad of mushy green paste inside it before making his attempt at a counter offer.
“I’m no fool, I can’t just hand this over,” He said, eying Arey with a little more than greed in his eyes. “I know what it’s worth.”
“So do I,” Arey slammed down a sack of gold coins, the sound of them clanging together seeming to echo in the dank office.
It would seem that the owner wasn’t that hard of a sell after all and without any questions asked, she was given the deed and a wave goodbye. Arey’s eyes misted over, stinging a little as she tried to read her name as the owner on the document through the curtain of her fresh tears. She had done it. She was now the owner of her very own place! While it hadn’t been her first choice, it was definitely a dream come true.
Soon she realized that the purchase of the building was the least of her troubles. The place was truly a hazard and should have probably been condemned in the first place. However, Arey was never one to be without friends, and soon she had rallied the help of a crew to help her rebuild and renew the property. Little did she know that same group of people would soon become more of her family than the one she had left behind, her guild of friends and fighters.
None of them knew it yet, but it didn’t stop them from bonding in ways that nobody thought was possible. They gave their time, their money, their labor and sweat and tears. They spent days working and nights warm around the fire with mugs of cold beer and slabs of flavorful meat on sticks and hunks of fresh soft bread. It was a simple life, full of hard work and good friends and in the end, they all stood outside of the place they had built with each other and looked it over. It was perfect.
The dirty bricks that made up the outer facade were replaced with clean smooth stone, fit together lovingly with a cream colored mortar. The soot covered shingles that dangled from the roofside were cleared away and replaced with smooth green moss and handmade terracotta tiles. The huge wooden door, covered in knicks and scratches was lost in place of a hand smoothed maple slab with simple metal accents and a little window just large enough to peek inside and scope out the room.
What you would see was enough to make anyone want to walk inside. The walls were refinished with the same beautiful wood as the door. It was soft and imperfect and made the place feel warm and cozy. While the building had only one small window, it seemed vibrant and alive with candles on the tables and lanterns suspended from the ceiling on elegant metal chains. Pictures adorned the wall, carefully selected paintings of adventure, battle, romance, and celebration.
If you opened the door you’d first notice the cozy lounge located right across from the check in counter where you could leave your weapons and bulky gear. Wooden benches and arm chairs had been adorned with overstuffed pillows in jewel tones like ruby reds, emerald greens, and jade blues. There was a rectangular fire pit in the middle with smoke spiraling up to a circular opening in the roof where the stars would twinkle down at you if you were to look up. Quaint end tables held twinkling lanterns made from pottery shaped like leaves and trees, completing the comforting atmosphere.
If a nap isn’t what you are looking for, you need only proceed around the corner behind the lounge and into the main bar and restaurant area. The room was larger than it appeared to be from the outside and the ceiling was open with beams criss crossed over head. New tables of warm colored wood were arranged strategically around the room to facilitate talking to new people and letting the conversation and drinks flow. The bar, once dilapidated and uneven, was replaced by a beautiful combination of wood and stone. It stretched in a sleek line along the entire northern wall of the room, drawing the eye. Behind it, a glittering mirror like material lined the back, glittering with the reflection of the bottles and jugs that lines the shelves.
If you turned around and faced south you’d see a beautiful oval shaped stage. Resting there you could observe a guitar, piano, and a few other instruments waiting for musicians, poets, bards and storytellers to regale the patrons with their gifts. already set up. There was a small square of space directly in front of it for dancing.
On the west wall was a large set of double doors leading to a storage room. It seemed like a useless place at the start and was soon filled with boxes and food deliveries. It was a beautiful room with velvet upholstered walls and a smooth stone floor. It seemed like it was meant for more, but it had not been realized yet.
As if that wasn’t enough, The Dead End housed one of the biggest kitchens in the city and Arey could imagine all of the food she’d be able to cook in it. Enough to share with the citizens around her and maybe make a few dollars selling to nobles in the marketplace. It had four huge wooden ovens, a grill that rivaled the one in the Great Lodge and several cook tops that begged to be filled with simmering pots and pans full of delicious sauces and garnishes.It was a dream come true.
If Arey hadn’t participated in fixing it all with her own hands, she wouldn’t have believed it was actually hers. It was perfect, and she finally felt like she could being to live. But first she needed to come up with a name.
That was when Arey decided to throw a celebration. They could come up with a name then. She definitely wanted the help of all her friends. It would also be the first big meal they would enjoy in the newly renovated space and everyone who had worked so hard had definitely earned it. It took her two whole days to come up with a menu and her shopping list was three pages long! The morning of the event, Arey set out the market on the far end of town to gather ingredients.
It took her a few hours and she struggled with the boxes and bags that held her haul. She knew she’d probably need to borrow a wheelbarrow or something to get everything back to the bar. She stopped next to a flowering tree to count her coins. She had just enough to hire a worker and his cart. It would mean she’d have no more money until she opened the place. The thought was a little bit daunting. Arey sighed and let the coins clink into her purse which she hung on the side of her belt.
“Can I help?” A voice asked as she pulled the straps of one of her overflowing bags over her shoulder. She looked behind her but didn’t see anyone.
“Hello?” She asked turning in a complete circle, a confused expression on her face.
“Down here,” the voice said, causing her to lower her eyes to the ground. Standing in front of her was an Asuran, short and covered in a coat of fluffy black and white fur, he resembled a chubby little panda complete with black circles around his eyes.
“How do you think you can possibly help me?” Arey laughed, picking up a box of spices and vegetables.
“Well, I have a wagon parked right over there and nothing to do but escort you home and help you carry these things inside.” He grinned, wiggling his bushy eyebrows suggestively.
“You’re strange,” Arey smirked. “But I do like the idea of a wagon ride. I’ll take you up on the offer. My name is Arey, by the way.”
The Asuran did a quirky jump and scrambled to pick up a bag of flour that was sitting at Arey’s feet.
“My name is Gurofart Miscellaneous Georgio Macklemuck… but most people just call me Panda…” The furry creature said scurrying ahead to get to the small wagon he had left on the side of the roadway.
“Guro-what?” Arey asked laughing a little to herself.
“Just call me Panda, on account of I look like a panda…” He put down the bag of flour in the bed of the wagon and scurried back to grab the last few sacks that had been left behind.
“I can see that. Panda is a lot better,” Arey called out to him as he sped past her. Soon the two had finished loading up supplies and set out to the other side of town where the bar was located.
“Why would you go all the way across town for simple groceries?” Panda asked as he flicked the reigns on his dolyak to make it pick up the pace.
“This side of town is where the nobles shop, it’s just got better quality and more variety. It’s almost crazy how much they keep to themselves as if we can’t just walk over here and get what we want.” Arey chuckled but you could see something burn beneath her eyes.
“Hmmmm, would probably be a better idea to hire a courier. I could get that arranged for you. I know a guy,” Panda responded. “Now lets see, if we go past the crafting station we’ll hit a lot of congestion, but the back alley past the zoo will get us to the East end in about 27 minutes. Much better!”
It was if you could see the wheels in his head turning as he tried to calculate the most efficient route back to the East End. Arey watched him with appreciation. He was smart, as most Asurans were, but there was something else, something more intense about his demeanor. She couldn’t quite put her finger on it, but it made her feel at ease, as if she knew she was in good hands. She shook her head a little, trying to shake the strange sensation in the back of her mind. Arey knew plenty of Asurans, some she even called part of her circle of best friends, but she had never met one quite like him. She found herself wanting to know more but not quite sure where to start.
“Your dolyak is gorgeous, what’s his name?” Arey asked as they turned a corner. The dolyak’s flowing fur bounced as it jogged and tossed it’s head. It was obviously very well cared for and someone spent a lot of time brushing it to make sure it’s coat was so silky. It was as good a topic as any, and far less imposing than asking him about his personal life.
“His name is Kuro, he’s one of my best friends! I don’t leave home without him!”
It was obvious Panda loved his dolyak as he casually reached in his pocket and pulled out a carrot. With a click of his tongue and a flick of his wrist he tossed the treat up in the air and without missing a beat, Kuro caught it in his mouth and seemed to grin as he chomped down on it, prancing down the street happily.
Arey smiled and settled into her seat.
“I like him, you guys are a good pair,” She said. “I really don’t know how to thank you for this ride. It was going to take me all day to get home and I still have to cook for the feast tonight.”
Panda’s ears perked up, their tips pointing inward towards his head signaling that he was paying very close attention.
“Feast?” he asked, licking his lips a little.
“Yeah! Hey, why don’t you come? It’s the least I can do for all this. Plus, I think you’d like my friends!”
Panda agreed quickly and they talked excitedly about the menu until they pulled up the building.
“Hey, I have a little house next door with a stable in the back. I don’t have anything to put there yet, so Kuro is always welcome to stay and make himself comfortable…” Arey remarked as they finished unloading her goods into her kitchen.
“Well, I could use a good tea and I saw you got some lavender blossoms and rose hips. I know a great brew I can make for us to refresh ourselves. I’ll need a fire at 147 degrees and a stainless steel boiling pot please.”
Arey laughed. This quirky Asuran was quite amusing and seemed to not even realize how odd some of his remarks were.
“Well, I can do my best, come on,” Arey welcomed him back into the pub with a smile on her face.
Dinner preparations would have to wait until after tea.
*Screen Shot / Photo Editing / Written by Momo