Chapter Thirteen Waging A Campaign
Aryn
I stood outside her door longer than I needed to.
It wasn’t that I didn’t know what I was going to say.
It was simple enough. Knock, ask what her plans were for the morning, offer something casual that didn’t feel like pressure.
Breakfast or a walk. Something easy to accept or decline without upsetting her .
The problem wasn’t the plan. It was the execution, and more specifically, the part where I had to decide whether this was a good idea at all.
I raised my hand, hesitated, then knocked anyway.
I waited, just long enough to make me wonder if I should have texted instead, followed by the sound of movement and the soft click of the lock.
The door opened.
Meri stood there, one hand still on the handle, her expression slightly surprised. “Aryn."
“Good morning," I replied with a smile.
We both stood there for a moment and I realized she was still wearing my hoodie paired with black leggings. Had she slept in it? The idea pleased me.
“I wanted to see what your plans were for the morning," I said, trying to fill the silence.
“I don’t have anything scheduled," she replied. “Just the afternoon."
“I was going to grab breakfast. Maybe take a walk by the river, or stop by the museum. There’s a library not far from here too. I thought I would…” I stopped myself before I listed anything else. “See the city a bit. I was wondering if you wanted to come with me?”
She considered that, her expression thoughtful but not indecisive.
“I’m going to pass," she said.
“Okay," I replied, because there wasn’t anything else to say to that. I was disappointed but it wasn’t like I could force Meri to spend time with me. Maybe she was still embarrassed about last night, or perhaps she just didn’t like me.
“What were you planning before you knew I was here?” she asked, tilting her head a little
I paused for half a second, weighing the answer before I spoke.
“I was going to meet my friends. We had planned to play a round of Dungeons and Dragons before the convention events started. Then we were going to meet some of the authors and watch the panel discussion. Well, they will watch, I’m supposed to be part of the panel. "
I watched for the reaction, expecting some version of polite neutrality at best. D&D wasn’t something everyone was into. Back in school, we had often been made fun of when people asked us what we were up to on the weekends.
She tilted her head slightly. “Could I come?”
I blinked. “What?”
“I’ve never played," Meri revealed. “But I have always wanted to."
“That’s—” I stopped, recalibrating quickly. “Yeah. Of course. You can come."
“Okay," she said with a nod and a smile.
“Okay," I echoed, a bit struck at how pretty she was, and that the idea of playing D&D with me and my friends had made her happy.
There was another brief pause, then she stepped back into the room.
“I just need to grab my room card," she added.
“Take your time," I said.
I waited in the hallway, leaning lightly against the wall. She came back out, locking the door behind her.
“Ready?” I asked.
“Yes." She gave me another blinding smile and for a moment, I felt a little dumbfounded.
“They’re a good group. We’ve all been friends since high school," I said as we reached the game room. “They might ask questions since you’re new."
“I can answer questions," she replied.
We had all managed to reserve rooms on the same floor so it was a short walk to Topher’s suite where he had everything set up for the game. I pushed the door open, stepped inside, and held it for Meri.
“Well, this is new," Ben said in surprise as he spotted us..
“That’s one way to put it," San added.
Topher looked between the two of us, his expression shifting from curiosity to interest. “You brought a guest."
“This is Meri Bennet," I said. “Meri, this is Topher, Ben, and San. They are my best friends."
“Hi," she said.
“Hi," San replied, already sitting up a little straighter. “Welcome."
“Do you play?” Ben asked.
“Not yet," she said, nervously playing with her sweater sleeve. “I’m here to learn, if you don’t mind having an extra player."
“Please join us. We could use another player. Aryn is proving to be dull and you might just spice up the game a little," Topher told her with a grin.
“I’m not dull. I’m a mage. They can’t be dull," I dryly told him as I grabbed an extra chair. “Here, have a seat. I might have to revise Topher’s status as a friend."
“I’m wounded," Topher mocked.
“Behave," I warned him.
“Is anyone else coming?” Meri wondered.
“Ben’s girlfriend Kitty joins us sometimes," San added, gesturing to the empty chair. “She’s out of town this weekend or she would be here. It’s too bad, we could have used her archery skills."
“I have a sister named Kitty," Meri murmured as she sat down.
“What are the odds of that?” Ben wondered.
“Probably less than one percent," San mused.
“We keep it simple since we only intend to play in the morning before going to the convention," I mentioned before San could go on about the mathematics involved in calculating something like the number of people who had the name Kitty in the country.. “Short session and basic setup."
Meri nodded.
I grabbed an extra character sheet and slid it in front of her, along with a set of dice.
“Okay, this is your character. Think of it as..." I paused, adjusting the explanation. “A role with defined abilities and choices. You don’t have to memorize everything. We’ll guide you through it."
She glanced down at the page, scanning quickly. “What’s the objective?”
“Depends on the scenario," San explained, leaning forward. “Right now, it’s exploration and survival. Usually we have individual goals and a team goal. Mostly the game is about enjoying storytelling."
“I enjoy stories," she replied.
Ben grinned. “You say that now. You haven’t survived one of Topher’s campaigns."
We started simple. Topher set the scene, his voice shifting into that familiar cadence as he described the environment, the situation, the choices in front of us.
Meri listened. Really listened.
When it came to her turn, she asked, “What are my options?”
I pointed to the relevant section of the sheet. “You can move, interact, or observe. Or combine those, depending on what you’re trying to do."
She nodded once. “Then I’ll observe first. What stands out?”
San smiled slightly. “Good question."
Topher gave her more detail, expanding the scene just enough to give her something to work with.
“From where you’re standing, the outer edge of the city looks worn but stable.
The deeper you look, the more damage you see.
Buildings closer to the center are cracked or partially collapsed, and there are dark marks along the stone as though something burned through in specific places instead of sweeping across everything. "
“So there’s a pattern," she said. “The damage isn’t random but targeted."
I leaned forward. “What do you mean?”
Meri gestured lightly toward the map. “It’s concentrated in specific areas. That suggests intention, not accident."
Ben blinked. “That’s useful."
“That’s very useful," San agreed. “If it were a deliberate attack on certain areas, then why were they targeted?”
I almost smiled but tamped down the urge. I had the feeling that with enough practice, Meri would become a better player than me.
We moved through the session, her decisions becoming more confident as she settled into the game.
At one point, San leaned back and looked at me. “You didn’t tell us she would be good at this," he said.
“I didn’t know," I replied. “It’s her first time playing."
“Are you sure? It seems like she’s been making a lot of good decisions," Topher murmured.
We all watched as Meri rolled a one . I bit back a groan.
She looked around the table with uncertainty. “Is that a bad thing?”
“Well, it means that you’re not going to get the outcome you wanted. So, you rolled a one . You asked to talk to the townsfolk to see if they had any witnesses or information they wanted to share. Unfortunately, they think you’re very nosy and refuse to speak to you anymore," Topher told her.
“Can they do that?” Meri wondered with a frown.
“They can do whatever they want," Topher said with a smile.
I knew he had given her a bit of a break since she was new at the game.
If I had rolled a one , Topher probably would have had me in the stocks in the main square, hoping someone could bail me out for an exorbitant amount of gold while the people threw rotten vegetables at me. He had been kind to her.
Besides, Meri was cute when she pouted.
I glanced up to see Ben raise an eyebrow at me and I knew I was going to have some subtle questioning from him later. He could always see through me.
I liked Meri Bennet. What wasn’t there to like? She was smart, cute, funny, and had the makings of a fantastic D&D player.
She fit.
I could easily see more times like this, gathered around and enjoying each other’s company.
Suddenly things were a lot more complicated.