When the day ends and the darkness floodd in I stand up. When in my room I close the door behind me and sit on my bed, still a bit dazed from the story Astonax told me. "I'll help with his revenge." That was the conclusion I came to after a few minutes of processing what he told me.
"Yes, I'll definitely take those people out." I nod once more after saying it out loud, confirming it to the world. But I want to check out Bo and An, maybe I could try that out too, then they don't know I'm coming.
I open the window and jumped out, it's only slightly higher then the ground anyway, about a meter and a half. I roll on the path in the garden and move on, into the forest. A few minutes running into the forest later I stop to summon Goba and Fi.
"Goba, first priest, bringer of truth. Fi, mother of flora. Join me in here and walk with me as we seek out our brothers!"
And again, with a little flash that even in the night isn't too obvious if you're not looking for it, Goba and Fi stand in front of me. They're actually kneeling, a knee and fist on the ground, the other fist on their heart.
"We're here Master." They said in unison, Fi is still so small, but she seems to have grown already, she's also wearing a little dress that seems to be woven out of grass, it still looks fresh.
"it's Good that you're here Goba, Fi. I wanted to go check out An and Bo, see how they're doing. It's a few kilometers deeper in though, maybe it's best if I carry you Fi?
"Yes! Please master Gosamu, I'd love that!" she runs towards me and I pick her up. She holds her arms around my neck as I hold her to my chest. Like this I don't have to be afraid that a branch hits her like I'd need to worry about if she was sitting in my neck.
"Okay, let's go Goba. And look out for beasts to hunt or energy rich plants, I want to send Fi home with some seeds so she can practice on more than just grass." After I said that I heard small a "Thank you Gosamu."
Like that we started running again, while we do I had some small talk with Fi. "Did you make that dress yourself Fi?" I feel her nod. "I did, don't you think it's pretty?"
It actually looks rather simple, and if it dries out it'll be a lot less nice, but for now it's pretty. "I think it is, can you keep it fresh like that though? Otherwise it'll become hard and less nice to wear."
"Uhu, I can keep it like this, it's actually only two blades of grass and they both actually set root inside my skin! In a way this dress is a part of me." Doesn't that sound rather dangerous? But if it's only 2 blades of grass it can't be that bad, and plants mostly feed from the sun and air anyway, if she drinks a little more she should be fine, right?
"That's a special idea Fi, how did you think of it?" I hope she isn't someone who would just put everything in her skin, not thinking of the consequences.
"Well, I asked Goba where he got his cloak, as it is extremely pretty! With the black and gold, just like Gosamu. And he told me that it was his son's cloak, but after Goba became part of Haven the Tower changed Goba and what he had, now he became one with his cloak, scythe and book! That's amazing right? So I thought 'I can make my clothes be part of me too!' and so I did! Are you proud of Fi?" My free hand goes through Fi's short hairs.
"Yeah," Goba really has changed, hasn't he? "I'm proud of you Fi, keep thinking of smart ideas like that." But so have I
And like that we continued into the forest, killing small beast left and right, gathering seeds and nuts of everything that looks interesting.
~~~~~~~~~
"Goba, Fi wait here, both An and Bo are just further down." Fi walks over to Goba while I crouch down and move towards the bushes. I'm like the sun at night, I'm there, but everyone forgets I exist.
I look through the bushes and see a shade darting through the sky, chasing mosquitos and moths, but she misses a lot of them! I once heard people say a dragonfly never misses! But before my disappointment seeps into the night I notice something, all the bugs that she missed move towards a single direction.
And then it happened, a big tongue darts through the night sky, grabbing the bugs out of the air, almost like a sticky whip instead of a grabber, all the while An flies through the swarm with her sharp wings, slicing the bugs in half before they disappear.
Every time she kills a bug another tiny spot on her carapace lights up. I can't see Bo, I can see where he is by his tongue, but it just looks like a little pile of mud with a tongue to me. I think something similar happens to him when he absorbs the souls of those he eats.
It warms my heart seeing them still hunting even this late in the night. But why don't they send those souls directly to the Tower? I step back to ask Goba, I'll let them be above their little lake for now.
After asking Goba why they can't send those souls right away he tells me he can't either. He summons his scythe and there are a lot of small flames hovering around it from the different beasts we just hunted.
"Maybe we can build an altar, then they could send them to the Tower through the altar. They could also speak to you by praying to it." That does sound really useful!
"Let's do that, it does sound like it'll come in handy." And like that I made our location known to Bo and An, before I left I made it feel like I never left the house, I'm their master, why would they always know where I am?
Only a few seconds after An could sense me she was before me. "Master, you came!" She's so excited but doesn't forget to bow, I think it's cute, I like it.
Only then did Bo come out of the bushes, toads were never fast creatures to begin with. And that's okay, we all have our strong suits. "Master, we're not ready yet to protect you, I hope you're not disappointed?" Bo sounds slightly insecure as he speeks to me while bowing his head down, but still happy to see me.
"Of course I came, it's your first day here in this world, I need to see if you're doing okay. You're both important to me." both An and Bo lift their heads to look at me, happiness in their eyes. If I can make them happy by these little actions there's no reason for me not to. "So, while being here, you found something nice already? It's okay if you haven't."
Bo and An look at each other, then Bo speaks up. "Inside the water here I felt something, something that almost feels like it calls for me, I'm not sure why. But when I tried getting close I felt something dangerous, so I had to step back. An and I decided to stay here and figure out what caused that dangerous feeling."
Oh, they really did find something! "I know the feeling you speak about, a few days ago I found two fruits, and they made me feel like I really wanted to eat them. And since I did my hair and eyes turn golden during the day and black during the night, my reflexes are faster and I feel more in tune with my environment. If something makes you feel like that it could be something truly amazing!" It's always good to be supportive, just like Goba was back then.
"Goba, can you see something down there, and you think you can do something about it?" I ask this even though Goba is already walking over, taking a look at the water. While he's doing that I pick up Bo, he settles down into my arms as An sits down onto my shoulder. I didn't invite her, but it's.. okay.
"I can see what Bo's talking about, there's definitely something there, but I don't see anything dangerous down there. Just some fish." He says while shaking his head.
I think I have a plan. "Bo, try going down there again, but when you feel something dangerous again come out right away okay?"
Bo nods as I put him on the ground, and like that he wades his way into the water, walking over the bottom. Then Goba suddenly says "There definitely is something down there, but it's really good at hiding, both it's body and energy, it's practically the same as the river here. If it didn't move I wouldn't have noticed anything!" And here I thought that Goba could see anything.
Bo comes out right after Goba saw the thing in the water. "So, Goba, can you do something about it?" I'm kind of disappointed in him, I think I can let him know.
He doesn't look me in my eyes now, he holds his head down. "Master! I think I can try two things, the first thing is to try and cut it with my scythe and hope I can hit its body or soul. The second thing is try to convert it, let it see the truth, for the betterment of the Haven it will give up what's down there. Even if I can't convert it, I might be able to fulfil a wish. It will probably go away then too."
After thinking about it for a while I look at Goba, right into his eyes as he has lifted his head up. "First priest Goba, show me what the first priest can do. As long as it can think, you should be able to convert it, show me your worth."
Right away Goba kneels down on one knee. "Yes Master, I will not disappoint!"
"Fi, An, Bo, you three will build a shrine for me, a place where all my followers can send their souls and flesh to the Tower. And think about what we stand for, make it a haven in this forest." They also bow in their own way, saying they won't disappoint. And like that I make my way back alone, leaving those four with their own tasks, I hope I won't need to babysit them. I'm not old enough to truly have babies yet.