The ongoing adventure of Eared Grant, purveyor of human artefacts
Thanks to @GnarledMonster for the drawings of Eared and Kester!
As Eared Grant, travelling merchant, groggily opens his eye, the first thing he sees is his loyal pack rat staring into his face. At least, he thought Kester was loyal - his companion ran and hid at the first sign of trouble!
A gang of rats set upon the two of them while they were approaching Rolling Coast, where Eared has been hoping to find the noblemouse who owes him money. A very one-sided fight ensued, as Eared didn’t even have a chance to make use of his trusty slingshot. The gang easily defeated them and took everything - all the human curios he had collected were taken by the violent rats. It looks like Kester dropped his pack as he ran off, so now they had nothing.
Eared sat up and rummaged through his pockets. At least the rats had left his eye patch, his slingshot and the meagre food supplies he had with him - apparently his snacks were deemed too unworthy for a meal. Small mercies. They were wrapped in something far more valuable, though - a note issued by the noblemouse he’d been seeking, saying just how much the pompous cur owed him: 20 pips. Not much in the grand scheme of things, but a week’s worth of food for Eared.
Eared and Kester dusted themselves off and moved off the path - this wasn’t the first time they had been attacked, and it probably won’t be the last. This time, however, Eared vowed to get stronger - train up, find some better gear, and be ready for when the next assault came. Looking up at the towering edifice that is Rolling Coast, he decided this would be the place it would happen. Many mice had made their fortunes here, and Eared decided he would join their ranks. He would get his goods back, find the mouse who owed him money, and do what he could to become stronger and more capable of defending himself.
But first, they must rest. Kester set to work making a small fire to keep them warm, and they huddled around it. Tomorrow they would enter Rolling Coast and see what fortune had in store for them.
Waking up the next morning, Eared felt refreshed and ready for a new adventure. He stretched his legs, smoothed down his chocolate fur, and took stock of his body, feeling energised with his new mission.
He looked over at Kester, who was stretching his legs and looked ready to get moving.