"So you are with the bears now? It bugs me a little that first Kyle and now you have left and gone to them, but I hope you won't regret your decision.", Gardos told Alice.
It really did annoy him, but he also understood why someone would make that decision. The Guardians, or vultures as some called them, were just that, a small group of strong individuals that took the territory that everyone else wanted as well but couldn't take due to the other group's interventions.
They always had to work hard and fight even harder to maintain and control their territory and most of the time could only do so by asking the other groups for help.
If a strong person like Alice went to another group, on the other hand, they could get a high position fast. And a high position comes with subordinates that can do work for you and give you the security of working in a group. So even though they wouldn't get as much food, the overall conditions were much better.
Especially so when going to the bears who could even give a certain level of medical treatment.
"Ah, no. That's not really the case. I'm... on my own for the time being.", Alice said, completely confusing Gardos.
"Hmm? Then what happened to the girl? What was her name again?", he asked her.
"Her name is Amy, she is being taken care of in the orphanage. I didn't join the bears though. Mister Martin asked me to for a few days before making my decision.", the girl explained.
"The old man from the orphanage told you to wait with your decision? Why would he do that?"
Gardos didn't expect this. If it were him he would have done everything to have Alice join his group. Children of her strength and ability weren't common, so telling her to wait with her decision felt like a wasted opportunity.
"Well, maybe he just wanted me to think about it again a little more? ", the girl thought.
"Huh? Although he is a nice person as far as I've heard, he shouldn't be the kind to possibly waste an opportunity like that. Why would he do that? Maybe it's because of today's meeting?", continuing from that thought, Gardos asked: "Hey Mason, do you guys have some kind of big proposal? Something that would change things that much that it would make any decision she made priorly obsolete?"
"Well, that's not something to discuss here, but even I don't know what old Martin is thinking.", Mason answered Gardos' question.
Gardos was astounded. Mason didn't deny it, so it meant that today would definitely something big happen.
I couldn't be just about them working together in an alliance, although never on a scale were all five territories were involved, it wasn't the first time for something like this to happen and there wouldn't be many changes according to his experience.
'Maybe they plan to not get involved at all or even go against the other groups? If the bears plan to do something to the guardians, they wouldn't be able to fully trust Alice anymore, so that would make sense, but that's not like the bears at all. Hmmm, maybe it's...', Gardos thought but got interrupted.
"Anyway, we should get going, I don't want to be the last one to arrive.", Kiki commented.
"Ah, yeah, sorry. Let's get going. But wait, only two people per territory are allowed. But you aren't even part of the bears, so... I think you can come along and help with guarding the surroundings?"
"Of course I can help, I also wanted to talk to the others, so that would be perfect. Thanks, Gardos.", Alice answered with a grateful smile adorning her lips.
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Well, I'm back, although the chapter is a little short, but its a beginning. I didnt have much time a few days rececently and it didnt help much as well that 'Age of wonders 3' was on steam for free...
(Why do they have to put the option for extra large maps into every strategy game? And why do I aalways have to choose that option? Seriously, a single game like that can take severall days, that really takes to much time to be good for my health...)
Well, that isnt everything, I also wrote myself a little bit into a corner and stubbornly tried to rationalize something that just wouldnt make much sense however you look at it. So I only ended up rewriting the last chapter today. Although it seems like I never published the original version of this chapter in the first place so you wont know the difference.