Whatever that was did not seem like a bad thing, his body felt comfortable and his stamina replenished. He remembered the first time he woke up on the beach here when he killed his first.. Animal? That wolf was too big so calling it a creature suits it best. At that time, Connor felt exhausted, but after every kill he felt like he could go on more, which helped him survive and reach the old house. For a guy who just woke up from an accident and fought his way forward, he did not feel that tired.
"Is this an effect of killing monsters here?" Connor thought. "I felt the same way back then but not by this much.. Was this creature somehow special?" The Moth creature was way tougher than any of the monsters he fought back at the beach, but with the right strategy he managed to kill it.. Maybe there was a reason, but whatever it is he'll figure it out at some point.
"Should I go in?" Connor thought. He was very curious about the Ruins and if the inquisition or whatever other faction raided it already, it would potentially be safe to explore, other than maybe if a few creatures managed to find their way inside, so caution was still advised.
It was indeed dangerous in so many ways, but Connor probably will not find a safe Ruin like this again in the near future. With some reluctance, he stepped in. A stairway that led down greeted him alongside skin crawling darkness, but he could faintly see some light ahead. After his eyes adjusted, he started walking down. As he was taking his steps wearily, his head jolted up, looking in every direction. Connor could have sworn that he heard some sort of whisper, a low growl of a whisper. The words were incomprehensible, but it still gave him the chills. The direction it came from was not downstairs, but from everywhere, as if the Ruins itself spoke.
"I'm seeing red flags everywhere, but why am I still going in?" He sighed, continuing on until he reached the torches. They were held by an iron grip as they lit a doorway. Seeing the torches gave Connor some comfort. He grabbed one and walked in.
The room was wide with nothing inside of it other than some boulders that fell from the ceiling and weird crystals protruding from the walls, glowing slightly. As Connor scanned the area, he saw that the floor in the middle of the room was slightly off, some chunks of a certain square area were falling off and some other room beneath it could be seen. Out of curiosity, Connor reached with his foot and pressed on it when suddenly the floor opened like a door.
"A trapdoor.. It would have been invisible if not for the corrosion!" He said, walking around it. The area down there was a little too dark for him to see properly and he was not about to lean in for a better look.
On the other side of the room was another doorway, which Connor walked to. As he did, he heard the familiar screeching of the moth-like creature.. From where though? He was not sure.
"It's echoing too much for me to find the source!" He thought, peeking around the corner and finding another set of stairs that led further down. The more he walked, the more cracks and dirt could be seen, with the glowing crystals. He knew that he was way underground and if this place caved in it would be his end. The stairs turned to the right, which led to a doorway blocked by an iron gate. The door was blocked, with spiderwebs everywhere, but inside, he saw the source of the screech. A moth creature was flying around, trying to find a way out. It kept trying to reach the opening in the ceiling but its wings were not strong enough to carry it up there.
"The trapdoor!" Connor thought, backstepping and going back.
He looked through the trapdoor at the moth as it screeched, unable to do anything. "Should I go?" He thought, eyeing the 2 ancient looking chests in the far left and right. It was entirely made out of stone but on it were some engravings made with gold. "Greed is a bitch" Connor said, jumping down onto the moth. He managed to use its body to soften the fall and luckily its stinger didn't stab him by accident. He quickly held the thing down, taking his machete and repeatedly striking its head.
"Nice!" Connor muttered, feeling the comfortable wave washing over him again. He quickly stood up and walked towards the left chest.
A torch, a closed jar with what smelled like wine in it and 10 gold coins. As for the right chest, another torch, a water bag and what appeared to be a Small Mana Potion, which were common on the inquisition's ship. Connor threw away the torches and barely managed to carry the rest, adding them to his now bulging bag of items. Calling it a bag is a compliment, as it was made out of a few sheets Connor found in the old house and made into a hobo's go to backpack.
The room had a lot of broken chests, which were probably the actions of whomever raided this place. What he found was most likely considered trash by them.
Making his way out, Connor took a deep breath, happy with his winnings. Although not much, the Mana Potion might be sold for some coins.
The path turned around the Ruins and so Connor walked towards it, but as he looked around the corner, he quickly pulled his head back.. "What the fuck?" He thought. "So those moth things go in groups rather than alone?" He said. Not too far away, a group of 4 moths were flying around. This was an obstacle Connor would not take head on, so without hesitation, he went back and took the other corner of the Ruins, making his way into some tall grass and bushes before he successfully made it back onto the path.
As he walked he did not forget to collect plants that seemed useful, even with the lack of space he still shoved some in his shirt and whatever pockets that had enough space. A house appeared in the distance once more, old and abandoned as well it seemed, but there might be something useful inside. Carts and wood were broken and thrown about everywhere in front of it. As Connor made his way inside, a hand quickly and smoothly grabbed him by the shoulder, turning him around and slamming him onto the floor. A sting was felt on his neck as a man spoke. "Who are you and what are you doing here?" He asked. Connor started to panic. He would usually peek in and keep his guard up but he forgot to do so this time, and at the one time he really needed to.
"Whoa.. Keep calm.. I'm no threat!" Connor yelled, feeling the blade pressing harder on his skin.
"You did not answer my question" The man said, pressing the sword even further as blood started to fall.
"OK OK.." Connor quickly yelled. "I don't exactly know where I am.. I swear!"
"Right now you're on the wrong end of my blade, so you better answer.. Who are you?" The man asked.
"The ship I was on sank and I ended up on the beach!"
"Hah.. So one of the crew survived the storms eh? We'd heard it was just the elder.. You don't look like you're with the inquisition" The man said.
"I was a servant!"
"On an inquisition ship?"
"Yeah, they saved me and the next thing I knew I was in their debt, doing their dirty work!"
"You're lucky they didn't make you join them!" The man said, easing his blade and letting Connor stand up. "You survived the storm and got away from the inquisition, something must be looking out for you, and I ain't gonna mess with that.. But don't push your luck" The man looked like a ginger, with red hair and a red beard. He wore some leather armor with fur around it, keeping him warm. "You better not say anything about you being in the inquisition's debt, or who ever you tell won't hesitate to sell you out, ending up in the monastery around those lunatics"
"Yeah, i know"
"If you want my advice then find yourself a good weapon and armor, you won't get far with that rusty thing!" The man said, looking at the machete on Connor's waist. "And if I may ask, what's with the plants and that bag?" The man asked, confused.
"The bag has some things I found along the way, as for the plants I thought I might be able to sell them for some gold" Connor explained.
"Let me see" The man said. "Hmm.. some Health plants, a Mana plant.. And as for the rest… garbage"
Connor sighed and threw away the plants the man called useless while memorizing what the other ones looked like.
"Oh, is that wine?" The man asked.
"Yeah!" Said Connor, grabbing the jar and handing it to the man.
"I haven't had a drink since I was sent to guard this place.. Thank you" He said. "You can go to the room upstairs, i found a weapon as i was looking around and it should be way better than that machete"
"Thanks!" Connor said as he walked upstairs. He found a Silver Sword with a red handle. It looked like it was in good shape as Connor swung it around. "I know nothing about sword fighting but I should be able to use this better than the machete" And just like that, his companion was easily replaced, thrown on the table where the sword used to lay.