Book Four – Chapter Three – Part Four – The Joy of Assisting Others

With a face that wasn’t anything less than full astonishment, the client could only utter one thing. “How?!”

“Servy and I are excellent cleaners. She’s fast, too. She’s able to wipe the floor down in no time at all, and I handled the counters using a secret cleaning method my grampy taught me. Ah, I know you didn’t specify the floor, but I hope it’s not a problem we got it done early.”

“No… No, it’s not a problem at all. That was going to be the next thing I ask,” replied the client, who was almost shocked into silence by how efficient the cleaning was handled. By now, the other groups had expressed their surprise at the Swift Singi and Hasty Human, as they had started calling the two and had gotten back to their tasks. The ground rumbled as the hulking Kobolds and Koena took up their posts, and the building was then filled with the smell of soap. It was like that before, but Itarr may have accidentally gone overboard with her cleaning and erased the soapy smell.

“Okay. What’s our next task, boss?” Momo asked.

“I would say windows. If you want to join one of the groups, that’s fine. The walls need to be scrubbed down, but I don’t have a ladder. That’s coming later in the day. Or if you think you can help with the boxes, that’s fine as well. We can start moving them in now that the counters are clean.”

“Servy, what do you want to do?”

“Help!!!” she said, pointing at the wagon full of boxes. Though now, the wagon only seemed to be filled to double its capacity. The group responsible for unloading had developed an efficient method of completing their tasks. Unfortunately, they didn’t realize how soon they would run out of space, so now they were hastily moving things off to the side to create more room.

“Just so you know, the boxes aren’t the lightest things in the world. They’re wide and awkward to get a good grip on. And I’m sorry to save this, but I couldn’t splurge to get the sanded wood. I hope you don’t mind a splinter or two. I think I got some gloves somewhere. I can look for them if you want me.”

“Boss, you don’t gotta worry about any of that. Servy might not look it, but she’s a heck of a lot stronger than me. Splinters won’t hurt her, too. If she does get one, I got a pair of tweezers in my bag I can use to pluck them out. But if she can help with the unloading, I’ll join the window washers,” replied Momo.

“Hmm… Alright, fine. But if your arms start to hurt, go help your friend with the cleaning.” Once their boss had said that, he walked back outside to of the towers of boxes he had made.

“Servy, go help with that, okay? And umm… Itarr, I know you want to help, but using Absorption or Telekinesis in a place where it’s easily seen might not be the best idea. But thank you for helping us clean the counters and floor. Servy and I appreciate it.” Momo gave her friend a quick hug and sent her towards the wagons. “Remember, I’m just gonna be right here, okay? I won’t be far at all!” she added.

The Singi turned on her heels and walked towards the group responsible for cleaning the inside windows. She politely introduced herself and explained the boss wanted her to help them. In turn, the Kobolds nodded and gave her a bucket of fresh, soapy water and a rag. She then promptly got to work. It was boring, menial labor, but it had to be done. But the good thing about that was that she could effectively put her body on auto-pilot because she was just rubbing a cloth over glass.

Still, it needed a bit of a careful touch to prevent the white residue from building up. And when Momo's bucket of water had turned from a clear, inviting color to one of brown and black, she huffed it to the backyard to dump the water. A quick pump of the well later, Momo was briskly walking back inside to continue her cleaning destiny. More than once did the sweat ooze down her lovely face, staining her lips with the taste of salt. Strands of her pink hair stubborn cling to her forehead whenever she bent down to pick up her dirty bucket, and when Momo went to take a drink from her canteen, she swallowed the water with a refreshing sound.

Momo was certainly working hard, and the same could be said about Servi. “Each of these boxes has a number on it,” the boss had told her before she started, pointing to the crates he leaned against. “They’re labeled 1 through 8. The tables you and your friend cleaned are also labeled 1 through 8, though I admit I had forgotten to paint the numbers on them. Regardless, the counter closest to the door is 1. The next is 2, and so on and so on. You only need to place the box on the table that matches the number. Can you handle that?”

Servi nodded and said the word ‘help’ twice over, and her client started to feel something strange. He erased any thoughts from his mind with a quick shake of his head and a wipe down with his sweat towel.  “Alright. Let’s get to work,” he said, cleaning his glasses and taking another sip of his water. Servi walked right past him and picked up two boxes with the utmost ease.

The client nearly spat up his water in surprise. Those things are packed to the brim with thick cloth! And the wood isn’t light, either! She doesn’t even have any muscles on those skinny sticks she calls arms! Thoughts like that ran through his mind as Servi walked into the store. She sat the boxes down where they were meant to be, and Servi soon returned for another handful.

The client just shook his head and realized what time he spent thinking needed to be used for working.

For the next hour, all was well. Momo steadily found herself sharing stories of her childhood and early adventurers with the Kobolds and Koena she worked with after realizing they were her seniors. “Rank 6? That’s amazing!” she had said upon glancing at a co-worker’s dog tags. The vocal Singi had meant to keep her mouth shut, but in terms of calmness, she had a tendency to blurt things out.

Soon, Momo realized that the Kobolds’ and Koena’s large hands were more suited for wiping down the windows. So instead of slowing them down, Momo handed off her rag to the Koena on bucket duty and took his job. She was much faster than him unless he used Pulmoni Oxygeni, but was using such a technique to dump and fill buckets worth it? No, it wasn’t. But being mobile meant she could hop around to the group cleaning windows outside, and she became their bucket runner as well.

Simply running around, dumping and filling and dumping and filling buckets was enough for Momo because speed and quickness was her strength. Perhaps she didn’t have the stamina to keep up with the inexhaustible Kobolds or the durable Koena, but she knew she was faster than them. Besides, bouncing to the different groups meant she could talk more with her seniors. She valued any kind of tips or stories she could get her hands on.

Servi, on the other hand, was so good at her job that the client forced himself to double up on boxes. The strain visible on his face was immeasurable. His soft skin had turned a bright red. Quick puffs of air were exhaled as soon as he breathed, and the shirt he wore was more like a soggy piece of fabric. It had absorbed so much sweat that it had started to sag downwards. Multiple times, he had tried to talk with Servi, but she only replied that she wanted to help in a way only she could.

Ah, but work was work, and as with things like that, there soon came the need for a break.

“Alright! Everyone, let’s take a short break right quick!” announced the client. “Everyone, let’s head into the shop for a quick minute.”

Everyone followed his directions and barreled their way inside. Momo quickly met up with Servi, who was still outside and grabbed her hand, then the two joined the others. She looked around for their client, but she didn’t spot eye or hair of him. Just as she was starting to get worried, he appeared from a room in the back, but he wasn’t empty-handed. A large table with wrapped brown bags was being pushed by him, though he did wish the wheels were of better quality. They squeaked an awful lot, and he felt a bit of pain when that pink Singi cringed and covered her ears.

After a quick apology, the client explained that he had prepared sandwiches as a way of offering lunch to those who took on his quest.  “It’s mainly just ham and cheese sandwiches, but I hope you enjoy them. And please, eat as much as you want. If you’re thirsty, I have another table in the back with a cooler full of water and some cups. I’m gonna keep them back there because it’s the coldest place in the store. Warm water on a hot day just doesn’t hit the spot.” At his request, the ravenous Kobolds and hungry Koena took the client up on his offer. Their large mouths rendered them capable of biting through a simple sandwich in a single bite. In the time it took Momo to finish one, her new Kobold friends had devoured five. She knew their appetite was on a whole other level because Feral always seemed to be working for food, but still…

“Hey,” Momo said. She was sitting on the clean floor with her back against one of the long counters. Servi was right beside her with her legs crossed, which differed from Momo, who chose the opportunity to give her calves a nice stretch.

“Help!” replied the girl, whose face was stuffed full of bread, ham, and cheese. She had a bit of food stuck around her lips, but before Momo could get it, Itarr struck first. Internally, the cute Singi pouted because she wanted to do it.

Ahh, but what can you do with the mother-of-all-cleaning-Goddesses is living inside you? Momo, you gotta act faster next time!

A couple of minutes later, after a one-sided conversation that drew the attention of the client, he finally walked over and waited for the right time to ask a stubborn question he couldn’t ignore. He squatted down in front of them with two cups of water. “Here.. You two gotta stay hydrated, especially you,” he said, pointing at Servi.

“Thank you, boss,” Momo said, speaking for Servi as her hands took the cup with grace. She downed it almost immediately, not even taking the time to savor its delectable coolness. She didn’t even drink in separate gulps. It was like her throat opened up and didn’t close until the cup was empty. It was a far cry from Momo, who took small sips and swooshed the water around her mouth.

“I don’t mean to be rude or anything, but I was kinda curious about why she doesn’t seem to speak? Err—I mean...why she doesn’t seem to speak very well. It’s always the same word.” Their client stuttered when he asked, knowing that the reasoning behind it didn’t concern him at all. At the same time, it wasn’t against the rules if a client wanted to learn more about the person taking on their quest. Was it common? No, it was far from it. Most people wanted to show up to a quest location, do the work, get paid, and go home. Truth be told, that was how the other contractors acted when the client tried to get friendly with them. They only opened up to Momo, and the reason was either because she was a bubbly, cute Singi with a fiery passion, or they respected her as a member of Warden. Neither of the two could be applied to the client.

"I’m sorry, boss, but that’s a personal thing,” Momo said. She didn’t have a problem telling the falsified truths to someone like Claire because they were close, but how could she explain it to a stranger? Could she really sit there with a calm face and explain that Servi was mentally recovering after killing people to save her? Momo just felt like that kind of info was only reserved for people she trusted.

“Ah, I understand. I’m sorry if that was rude,” replied the client. He stood up from his squat and stretched his back and arms.

“No, I’m sorry. It’s just hard to talk about, but regardless of Servy's speaking ability, I think she showed just how useful she could be.”

“You’re right about that. She doesn’t look it, but she’s stronger than me. And without you two, we wouldn’t have made nearly as much progress. I want to personally thank you, Momo, and you, Servy, for helping me today.” The client flashed a smile and adjusted his glasses. He then made the rounds, speaking however he could to the other three groups. They all thanked him for lunch, and he replied that it wasn’t necessary. He wasn’t going to make the people helping him work without food and drink, especially when it was so hot outside.

The friendly banter between them all, including Servi and Momo, continued for five more minutes. After that, it was back to the grind. When the Singi was separated from her Human, she looked at the windows and was amazed at how much progress had been made. The windows actually looked like windows. That gnarly black, slimy, ugly garbage was finally gone, allowing more sunlight to illuminate the building and its glory. It wasn’t all done, of course, but there couldn’t have been more than two hours left. If they kept the same speed, it might be even before that.

As for Servi, who was on box duty, the girl never slowed down for a single second. She never performed the motions to actually breathe in oxygen, meaning her facial expression stayed frozen. Having that eternal smile on her face sure did wonders in striking the flames of competition in the Koena and Kobolds working with her. They saw just how determined she was to see their task through to the end. Before long, boxes were being moved from the outside to their proper counters in stacks of two, in the case of Servi and the client, and stacks of five, in regards to the Kobolds and Koena.

Just when the sun had reached its highest, the client realized he was trying to grab the empty air. He blinked twice, almost not believing that the terrible, fearful towers of boxes upon boxes upon boxes had finally been defeated. In his mind, he stood proud at how much was accomplished. A smile soon followed because he was just that much close to opening the store.

The client took a well-deserved break on the wagon and cleaned his face with a damp towel. This was also an excellent workout, so I don’t have to do any of that tonight. I can just relax and sleep until the morning. After a big dinner, of course.

He heard the shuffling of feet and looked up, meeting Servi’s red eyes. He thanked her again then announced that the work was complete. “There are just no more boxes to move. Now that they’re all on the counter, I can get to work organizing the clothes they’re holding. It’s not really something anyone can help with because I have a specific way I like to do things. As my mother always said, ‘there’s a method to my madness.’ Hey, let’s go inside with the others. From here, I can tell they’re just about done.”

By the time the client and Servi spoke, Momo was just returning with a bucket in each hand. It was sure to be the final water run of the job, so she was thankful for that. She bent over, letting go of the buckets’ handles when their bases touched the floor. One of her new Koena friends thanked her for such good work, and he started on the last window with a layer of soapy water.

“You’re welcome. I’m gonna see if the others need anything,” Momo replied. She hopped to it, almost skipping over to the other group, and that was when she passed by Servi and the client. “Ah—Servy!” she exclaimed, stopping in her tracks. The clean hardwood flooring squeaked as the soles of her shoes came to a sliding halt. She used that brief moment of respite to brush her hair out of the way, and she looked as beautiful as ever.

“Help!!!” replied the helpful Human, who copied her friend’s motion and moved her own hair aside.

“Are you done?” Momo asked. Then she turned to the client.

He responded by pointing towards the eight long counters, their surfaces completely covered with boxes, both big and small, long and wide. “Yeah, it’s all done. I just gotta return the wagon to the rental place—”

“Do not worry about it, boss. We will deliver it now if you tell us where you got it from.” One of the Kobolds on the box team—group 3— spoke up as he walked by the client. His massive chest was just covered in scales, yet his face was mostly skin with a bit of tan fur near his nostrils.

“Ah, that’s mighty kind of you. I got it from Carol’s Carriages a few streets over. Do you know the place?”

“I do know where it is. We will take it there and come back,” spoke the only Koena of the box group. He looked to his bestial teammates and nodded, then all three went to the wagon. The client watched the Koena lift the front end on his shoulders while the Kobolds pushed from the back. Once they had turned the corner and disappeared from view, he turned back to Momo.

“How are things coming along in here?” he asked.

“We’re about done on this side, and I think that group there is on the last window. But what about the walls? And I thought we had to organize clothes and stuff for the upcoming play?” Momo asked. She was eager to get to work.

“That all still needs to be done, but there will be another group of workers coming in later on today. They’re the ones bringing the ladders. I’ll have them handle the walls, ceilings, the unruly grass outside, and everything else I think of. For the clothes and fabric, I have to be the one to do that because I have a certain method to my categorization madness. It’s hard to explain, but if the clothes aren’t folded or stored in just the right way, my rhythm slows down, and I get irritated. I think I got that from my mom when I used to help her run the store. Ah…”

“Eh? What’s wrong, boss?” Momo said upon witnessing a stream of tears flow from his eyes.

The client shook his head and used his thumbs to wipe his eyes. “Sorry about that… This store was my mother’s whole world, and so when I got the news that she suddenly passed away, I had to drop all that I was doing just to rush down here, but the letter didn’t say anything about a robbery. Imagine my surprise when I show up to an empty building. That was when I realized some awful criminal had probably killed her to rob the store. That was only proven true when I heard about the attacks on the slave markets… If those people wanted clothing for the slaves they freed, why couldn’t they just take them? Why did my mother have…to die?”

The client’s tears started to fall more rapidly, yet he controlled his voice to an excellent degree. If any odd whimpers or upsetting hiccups were to be had, it wouldn’t be now.

“I spent so much money trying to get this place back to how it was! I sold my house, I had to sell the ring she gave me for my birthday, and I had to get rid of the family stable and our horses just to have enough to replace everything that was selfishly stolen from me! This store…it’s more than that! This is the last reminder that my mother was alive! She always promised it would be mine, but I didn’t want to inherit it like this…”

Momo was left speechless—there wasn’t a single that came to her mind. Even if something did, did she have the right to say it? The person responsible for everything the client went through was standing in front of him. Servi had stolen the life of this man’s mother, but it was out of revenge for how she was treating a slave boy. Yes, Servi stole everything because she needed clothes, but she gave most of it away to the slaves she helped freed.

Suddenly, Servi dropped to her knees and stared at the ground. It was so quick that it took Momo a second longer than she wanted to respond. She already knew what was coming, so she hugged her friend tightly against her chest and whispered in her ears.

“Wwwaaaaahhhhhh!!” Thick, fat tears soaked the already sweaty Momo. The sobbing came as a direct result of seeing the sheer pain and anguish that naturally came as a result of her actions.

This wasn’t the first time such a thing had happened. Back when Servi and Momo were leaving Arcton for the final time, they were part of a small convoy-- a group of people who just so happened to abandon the city at the time. The cause was unknown, but people soon started to share their stories of what happened to them. Mothers had lost sons, fathers had lost daughters, and vice versa. It was a collective aura of depression disguised as a makeshift therapy session where people could talk about their loved ones one last time.

Unfortunately, Servi was the single link that connected the stories together because she was the culprit. If they had known the one responsible for ruining their lives, including the lives of thousands of people, was right there, a flash mob with revenge on the mind would’ve spontaneously appeared in record time.

Even the most peace-loving, pacifist father would find it hard to not strike back at the monster who killed his daughter.

That wasn’t the main reason Momo grabbed Servi’s hand and ran away, but it was one of them. She just couldn’t take hearing story after story that ended in death and sadness. That went doubly so for Servi, though one could argue that listening to her victims was the absolute least she owed them.

But what made the two situations different was the state of Servi’s mind. Back then, in Arcton, she had only experienced the first step in a treatment that would normalize her emotional levels. It was important to note that was before her heartfelt declaration to Momo.

Since Servi was still well within the second stage of the healing process, it wasn’t known how much this would set her back. On the off chance, it was probable that seeing the truth of it all would encourage whatever forces at work to kick into high gear. But regardless of how it might affect her inner mind, Servi’s loud wails had a profound effect on all those around her.

It didn’t take long for the window washers to realize something was wrong. A few rushed over to see what was going on, but the majority stayed behind to finish up their work. As for the client, he felt horrible about telling a harrowing story to a girl who only wanted to help. In his heart, he cursed himself because he always failed to think about how his words were affecting the people around him.

Damn it! Why did I have to talk about that?! These nice girls came to help me, and here I go making one of them cry because I felt sad? You aren’t the only person in the world, Jon. You have to think!