Chapter 10

I opened my eyes slowly. A small hearth was lit up by a tiny fire. I found myself lying on a soft bed, covered with a warm blanket. Everything was blurry. My mind felt numb, delayed in thinking.

Bright eyes looked down at me, beautiful like an ocean of blue and grey waters tangled together perfectly. There was a face, angelic in appearance, confident and bold, yet fair and gentle. And there was hair, flowing down straight down past delicate shoulders, her ear poking out on the left side.

I didn't know where I was or what was happening, and I tried to speak and at first I could only mumble. My thoughts were knotted together and I couldn't seem to sort through them. "Sarah?" I stammered.

The woman laughed softly, her voice like music, "Rose," she said, "my name is Rose."

"What?" I asked, my mind finally starting to come around. I shot up in the bed and my eyes hastily inspected my surroundings. I was in a small room, neat and clean, like the standard room of an inn. My heart was pounding and my mind raced. "Where am I?! Who are you?! How did I get here?!" I shouted.

She remained calm, though she was cautious, "You are in the Hearth Home Inn. I am Rose. You were in a duel, and got hurt. I healed you just before you died."

It all started to come back to me, but it was hazy. "How long was I out?"

"Two days," she answered. She handed me a cup of water that I drank down quickly, just now noticing my thirst. "You looked like you hadn't slept in days. What's your name?"

"I'm Zack, but I go by Aquosin here."

"Aquosin? That's an interesting name. So what are you exactly? A sellsword? Mercenary? "

"I guess you could say that. I just go place to place, getting stronger."

She took my cup and set it down on the table near the door. She is thin, fragile looking, her steps more like a graceful dance than a walk. She wore banded steel armor and had a white cloak with the emblem of the Golden Rose.

"So you're on of the knights?" I asked.

She nodded, "I am."

"I had a bad run in with one of your other members a while back."

She gave a look of guilt, "I don't like them anymore. They are all out of control. At first they were good, but then they all became greedy and selfish."

"Are you planning out quitting?"

"Ya, but doing that is dangerous. What about you, are you in a guild?"

"No, not anymore."

"Why did you quit?"

I hesitated before answering, "We disbanded. We were all a group of player killers. We killed them and took all their items. It was fun to us, and killing players gives you a ton of experience compared to killing creatures. But when the virus broke out we stopped. I went my own way. I guess I felt bad afterward, knowing that if I hadn't been aware of the virus, I could have actually killed someone without meaning to."

"Yeah, that makes sense, " she said, "People play roles that they can't in real life. Weak people play strong characters. For some people it's just a game. But I don't see it that way. People playing bad roles are usually showing their anger that they keep inside them. So to them, it's more than just a game. Showing compassion and honesty is what you've done, by not player killing anymore. It shows a lot of good in you."

I stared at the floor, letting her words settle. They were kind, but I knew she was wrong. I was not a good person. "Ya, I guess so," I replied.

She stood up and walked toward the door. She pulled up a menu and with a few taps sent a confirmation window to me. "I'm adding you. If you want we can hang out sometime, as friends."

I didn't know what she had meant by that. Either she was covering up something or she thought I was pretty pathetic and felt sorry for me. I grinned, "I love how you have to say 'as friends ."

"Well," she replied, "I didn't want you to think I was hitting on you or something." With that she left.