The four walked for quite a while on the dirt road. They passed a number of farming plots before seeing a wooden shack at the end of the plot of land.
"Do you think that's the place where the people who farm the land live?", Samantha inquired.
"It's likely. We should check it out.", Garett responded.
The four walked over to the house.
It was not a large home. It was one story, and had a small porch with steps leading up to a square boxlike building with one window on each side. Considering the vast amount of farming land that they had passed, it was an isolated place.
They were still quite far off from urban civilization. This was important information however for the group. The Empire had a single large military encampment followed by a large amount of rural land which was far removed from civilization.
It was easy for Ashley to guess why. They didn't want their cities and people to live near a place where monsters like her could attack so easily. Even in the case that the wall was breached, a monster army would have to traverse for quite a while to do any major damage, which would allow for time to muster up a responsive force.
Fortunately, thanks to Trevor the group was now able to use fast travel. This meant that if any arrogant jackasses decided to look down on her, that they would be able to find them, root them out, and destroy them without a trace. It didn't matter where people were, or if they tried to tuck themselves in an obscure corner of the world. Resistance was futile against the antiheroes, whether it was fighting, running, or hiding.
Fast travel was derived from Trevor's speed of light skill, however it worked more like teleportation, as he would select a location and then they would travel there on autopilot after being transformed into rays of light. However, under regular usage, when Trevor used his speed of light skill, time would literally slow down due to special relativity, and he and his comrades would be able to walk around in a world where time was almost completely stopped, doing as they pleased.
Because they were able to visit any location they had previously visited, their work as mercenaries gaining information was extended to exploring more places so that fast travel would be an option available.
How convenient. Soon these regions would be under their control, and they would be able to pop in to check up on how things were going at any given time.
Their subjects would have to live knowing that there could be a surprise visit by none other than the dictators themselves at any given time.
Disloyalty or rebellion would be smashed at its roots.
Ashley giggled as she let her imagination run. She loved being a dictator- probably moreso than the other four (Claire included) because she was always looked at as a bum or a loser in her previous life.
It was such a wonderful change of pace to be loved by subjects... however it was an even better change of pace to be able to shut up those people who looked down on her with nothing more than a single word.
Ashley realized something about herself that day.
It was not that she wanted to be loved. It was not that she wanted to be popular.
It was that she wanted to destroy those who treated her like shit.
These three were enough for her to feel like she fit in. To feel like she had somewhere she belonged.
She didn't care about anyone else- she had now obtained something in this world that she never would have obtained in the previous one. Comrades.
Now that the hole in her heart was filled, all that was left was a desire to lead others on into thinking that they were better than her, only to crush their hearts and laugh as they looked at her in surprise and begged her for forgiveness.
She had not met anyone who looked down on her in the same way that the people of earth looked down on her since she met Rithargus. Even him, he looked at her more like a rebellious child to a parent, or like a powerless citizen to a haughty noble. It was far different from the type of arrogant look the people of earth gave her.
Ever since then, people only looked at her in fear.
But now, she was in the human realm.
There were sure to be people here who would be under the impression that she was as a mere elf, and not as a being of terror.
What a strange feeling.
She was feeling... happiness, or delight at the fact that there might be people here who she could put on her list of people to torture for looking down on her.
'keh keh keh.... just watch.... make a nasty comment about me... say something behind my back... give me a filthy glare like those hard working people on earth... I will look forward to seeing that look on your face turn to one of despair...'
----
The four knocked on the door of the home after stepping onto the patio before hearing a female say "Just a minute!"
The door opened a bit later and a woman wearing nothing but ragged overalls and a t-shirt came out. She had a short braid and golden brown hair, and her clothes were dirty as if she had just come back from working in the fields.
"Hello. We are new to this country, and we are looking for directions. Could you point us to where we could find a town or a city?", Trevor asked.
The woman smiled brightly before swinging open the door wide.
"Hello! I am Bella, and this is our humble home! Please, come in! Make yourselves at home! Of course, I will give ya'll directions, but we don't get many visitors round these parts. Are ya'll hungry? Perhaps I could fix up som'n for ya'll to eat?"
The woman was young, but she clearly reminded Garett of a southerner. Accent, hospitality, and all.
Ashley looked somewhat disappointed, and the four smiled as they all walked in.
'Tch... a nice bitch... I suppose I can't add her onto the list of people to kill... well, that's fine I guess... I suppose I don't mind people being kind to us.. make one wrong step tho....'
At that moment, Ashley's intuition told her that this woman was a person she would get along with very well, so she gave up on any opportunity to try and torture her for messing up and insulting her.
"Thank you. I appreciate the offer, and we will indeed take it up.", Trevor responded.
The entire house was made of wood. On the outside, the wood was a light brown, however on the inside almost every single plank had a red tint to it. Strangely, the ceiling did not have this red tint- but only the planks on the floor and walls- along with the furniture. It looked like a mohagony wood, and strangly had a nice contrast with the furniture and ceiling colors.
The four sat at a wooden table with stools for seats and the woman got to work quickly in the kitchen, whipping some things up quickly before setting what looked like a thick helping of mashed potatoes steaming hot in wooden bowls in front of each of them. They seemed to be mixed with cubes of a white-pinkish meat.
"I made this from the taters from the last harvest, with a little bit of the livestock that was freshly butchered! I hope ya'll enjoy it!", she exclaimed as she sat at the end of the table next to the antiheroes with her elbows on the table and her hands on her mouth.
She was a curious girl, but she didn't seem to be a bad person at all from Garett's perspective. Whether they could trust her was another thing, but he slowly checked this place off as somewhere to spare from the fighting if they ever had to mount a campaign through this large Empire.
After all, she invited them into her home and gave them food without any pretext or reason. It indeed reminded Garett of the southern hospitality in America. He didn't intend to pay back this kindness with malice.
The four ate the mashed potatoes quietly with the wooden spoons before placing their plates in the center of the table.
"How was it?"
"It was acceptable. You have our thanks.", Trevor stated politely.
Ashley leaned back in her stool with her arms above her head. She was actually floating, however from the perspective of one who didn't know that she was a ghost it would look as if she were merely holding herself up with her back muscles.
"I liked the meat. It was an interesting addition to the dish. What is it made from?"
"That's a family secret. I can't be going and spilling the beans on something like that now can I?"
"Alright."
Samantha then flashed a smile to the woman before the real conversation began.
"Now then... I take it that you don't live alone here? You said 'our home', after all."
"Ah, I don't live alone. Oh no. My children are right here with me."
The woman said this while holding her arms forward as if she were patting two young children on the head, however...
There were none. She was patting the air in front of her.
Was this lady insane, or delusional? Perhaps it would be better to ignore it.
"I see... how could I have missed them. Now then... regarding the information around this area... do you go into town once in a while to sell your crops? Surely you don't farm for only you and your family?"
"Ah, of course not. Me and my children here sometimes go to sell our taters and grain to the village of Erthos to the southwest of here. Can you believe these two though?! They always refuse to carry anything when they're with me! I gotto fit what I can into a sack and carry it on my own! They really are good boys at heart. They help out so readily when I'm not looking... sigh... if only their father wasn't gone..."
The woman seemed to slump onto the table as if she were a drunk person reconsidering their life.
"I see... southwest..."
Trevor snuck a glance at Samantha who was mouthing the words 'Lets get out of here' to him.
What things was she hearing right now inside the mind of this insane woman? He could only guess.
-----
'Oi, Durst... get back over here. You can't be botherin the guests like that. No buts! Come back over to mama. Faux! You too. Ah! Stop tugging at that elves tunic! Yer bein' rude! That's right. Both o ya'll come over here to mama. Right into my arms. Mhm. There we go. After this, we can go out on a horseback ride to the fields, but ya'll have to be good boys and help out, or no dinner tonight!'
Samantha heard these things throughout her meal with the woman, and wondered at first if these were the memories of the woman that she was thinking of.
However, it soon came clear to her that this was not the case.
When she put her hands out as if she was taking care of two kids by her side...
'There there... mama's right here.... say hi to the guests now. Put on yer best manners. Oi, Durst! Don't stick your tongue out at the nice elves! Be a good boy like your brother. If ya'll don't play nice with other people how will ya'll ever grow up to be fine men?'
The woman truly believed that her two sons were right in front of her.
Just what happened to bring her to this point?
A traumatic experience?
Did the sons who she was imagining actually exist at some point, or were they merely a figment of her imagination? Was she a schizophrenic, or perhaps she was simply lying to herself about having sons to the point where she actually believed the lies?
Either way, Samantha didn't want to spend a second longer here.
"I think its about time we left."
The woman frowned.
"I... I see... should I get drinks for ya'll or anything to go?"
"No thank you.", Trevor replied bluntly, while uncomfortably getting up from his seat.
Ashley and Garett followed and the four headed towards the door when the woman grabbed Trevor's shoulder.
"Wait."
"Is something wrong?"
The woman's face turned rotten for a moment.
"Don't I have a lovely family? Aren't you gonna say something about my sweet two sons? Well?"
"Ah, yes of course. I am sure they will grow up to be wonderful men.", Trevor said in a perfect act.
Ashley and Garett had stiffened up and were preparing to attack at any moment, but the face of the woman soon changed.
"Ah.... I see... they are really lovely children, aren't they! They may be a bit mischievous, yes... but I promise ya that they're good boys at heart! They don't mean no harm to ya! Say goodbye to the good elves, Durst, Faux! Wave now! Wave!"
Trevor crookedly smiled and pretended to wave back to the nonexistent children.
Ashley and Garett were still frozen up, however the tension had left.
However, Trevor could sense it.
That woman was reaching for a knife behind her back when she asked him that question.
Was she a psychopath?
Did she kill travelers who didn't play along with her little game?
Trevor didn't want to stick around to find out.
The four left without any issues, but Ashley and Garett were on guard as they left, and Samantha had a disturbed look on her face.
'We... we should never go there again... that woman was nuts.", Samantha said, out of breath.
"Indeed... should we do something about it? No... it would attract attention where unnecessary. Let's leave her alone for now and deal with her as needed if the time comes.", Trevor speculated.
"I suppose...."
"Now then... lets hope that the woman we just met was an outlier. If not, there might be some deaths in the next town..."