The late afternoon sun provided a pleasant warmth as the wind rustled through the tree leaves. The chirps of the birds had begun to die down, and the wolf howls had grown quiet.
Grendal sat outside the bunker with the two girls, each sitting on their stumps—all three going over their CI's chat log. It was a mess.
Frowning, Grendal slid to the bottom of the chat log and shook his head at the last message.
User: ID 8464 ["You guys need to understand. It doesn't matter where you're from, the Deadlands or Braxus. Strength is all that matters. And I am that strength."]
User: ID 2527 ["So what, are you going to go and conquer the dungeons all by yourself?"]
User: ID 8464 ["If I have to. But I'll need people, willing or unwilling. So, if I run into any of you, you'd better be willing."]
"Cocky one, isn't he?" Lucy said, glancing up at Grendal. "Just like a Braxian."
"Maybe." Grendal's CI orb closed and moved back to his side. Stretching, he considered what needed to be done.
The Husk workers he'd sent out after placing the mines had returned with some food—to be exact, berries. It wasn't exactly a filling meal, though it stopped the rumbling.
But more was needed. Across the clearing, two Husks milled about the clearing edge, patrolling for any threats.
"You two, we have work to do," Grendal said. It was getting late, and the sun wouldn't be up much longer. He needed to find food—yesterday, even if it was just some berries.
"What's happening?" Tia said, turning to him. "Are you placing another one of your facilities?"
"Nah. I don't plan on waking up hungry tomorrow, so I'm heading out with those two." Grendal said, gesturing to the workers. He then stood up and made his way over to the two Husks, who had stopped moving.
"What about us?" Lucy asked. She frowned, looking from her sister to Grendal.
"What about you?" Grendal stopped before the two Husks, looking over their white forms. When he was sure they were okay, he focused towards the forest. "You two can stay here. The tower should protect you, and the three other husks are here."
"You're going in there alone?" Tia asked.
Smiling, Grendal turned to Tia. "You are more than welcome to tag along if you wish."
Tia's blue eyes were filled with composure as she turned to her sister. A composure which, no doubt, came from being the eldest—even if it was just by a few seconds.
"I'm going with him," she said. "You are hurt, so stay here. You heard what 8464 said. I need to be strong enough if he comes across us."
"And I don't need to get strong?" Lucy's dry cracked lips thinned as her eyes bore into her sister. "I should just sit by and do nothing. Tia, I told you we need each other. You aren't going off alone."
"I—"
"No!" Lucy shouted, her small fist thudding into the dirt beside her. It was pathetic.
Sighing, Grendal stepped towards the two. "You should both rest. It's safer if I go alone anyway."
And I don't need this drama to continue unfolding—it's wasting daylight.
Grendal turned away from the two women and walked into the forest with his two husks following.
He wandered around the forest for some time, examining plants that seemed both familiar and foreign at the same time. Eventually, he stumbled onto one he'd seen before—the berries his husks brought him earlier.
The vibrant red colour was that of a lollipop, fresh from the packet. Its taste was sweet and sour, with such a punch that it would floor you if you weren't expecting it.
"CI, how did the husk know to bring us this particular berry?" Grendal asked, gesturing for the two no-name husks to go forward and pick some.
"USER: ID 2244. The Red ball berry and its subspecies are common fruits found throughout many forest realms of the infinite realms. Though not all of them."
So, I got lucky. Great. But it's not enough. Can't I find a sheep or something? Surely, they got dragged into this mess as well.
Grendal surveyed the immediate forest area—there was nothing special—the same old trees, no different than the outskirts of Dunlupin. The same old dirt dappled with random patches of grass; it was all the same.
Frowning, Grendal walked over to a tree, resting his back against it and sliding down. He watched as the two Husks continued to strip the berry bush, placing all the collected berries in a pile before it.
He sighed. "Am I just going to have to live on berries for the next few days, till I stumble upon something I can eat?" His right hand flopped to the ground and impacted wet, sticky dirt.
"Huh," he said, pulling his hand up to his face. Caked on the back of it was a mixture of dirt, blood, and leaves, forming a revolting layer on his skin.
Shooting to his feet, Grendal gagged as he slapped his hand furiously against his leg and onto his pants.
I need to wash it off, I need to wash it off.
Grendal scrambled to remember when he'd last seen water, then it hit him—he hadn't. Water is one of the most crucial things for his survival, and he hadn't even thought about it.
In the village, you could use a tap and there it was—but he wasn't in Dunlupin. He was in a forest.
Glancing at the blood on his hand, then down to the blood by the tree, he frowned and gagged. That was either human blood or animal—but at the end of the day, if it was animal blood, the creature had to get water from somewhere.
He looked back to the pile of berries the husk had formed. They could also provide some water, but it would not be enough—an animal needed water, and this blood could lead him to one.
If he followed it, at worst he found an animal corpse—or human. But at best, it could lead him to a source of water, maybe even the lake that the police officer mentioned.
"You two, stop." He made his way over to the Husks. "You pick up the berries and you follow that blood," he said, pointing to each worker.
One husk scooped up the pile of red ball berries, carrying them firmly in its metallic arms while the other made its way over to the blood. It then paused for a few seconds before walking deeper into the forest.
"Alright then," Grendal said and followed behind it, the husk with the berries trailing after the two.
Grendal and the two Husks moved through the forest for several minutes.
The calming call of birds he couldn't see, and the rustling of leaves welcoming a cooling wind, brought some joy to the silent walk.
The blood trail grew thicker along the way until they came to the edge of another clearing with a sheer cliff at its head. At the base of the cliff was what looked to be a goblin camp.
"Well, great," Grendal said, placing a hand on the side of a large rock and using the bushes for cover.
Embers sprang off a large roaring fire resting in the middle of the camp—a goblin-made fire. Several jagged wooden structures, Grendal hazarded to call tents, crowded around the fire just far enough not to be set ablaze. No doubt, an idea forged from experience.
The camp was unbelievable for the simple fact that it existed. The Goblins had seemed so chaotic, but in fact, they had civilization.
A chime from the CI orb pulled Grendal's eyes from the camp as it flew in front of him and opened up into a screen.
"User: ID 2244. System quest: raid the goblin camp, and kill its captain. REWARD: Tier 1 spear. 2 exp"
Is this thing serious? There are like twelve Goblins in that camp.
A cry drew Grendal's attention, and he turned to the far corner of the camp. A cluster of decaying wooden cells—Goblins' craftsmanship seemed to be of poor variety—sat in the corner.
People were sitting inside each cell, broken, bruised, and battered. But still breathing—one even had enough energy to scream.
From the bushes, Gendal couldn't quite make it out, and getting closer didn't seem like the best idea, but the individual looked like a young girl. The poor thing couldn't be older than fourteen.
I guess the system doesn't give missions requiring you to save people.
Grendal and his two husks moved backwards through the bushes. What to do? The two husks with him weren't enough to launch anything close to a proper assault. Furthermore, he didn't want to leave those people there to suffer; only the Emperor could know what they would do to those prisoners.
"You two, we are heading back," he said, his gaze lingering on the camp before he turned and slinked away.
He couldn't save them now, but he could do it later. The Goblins were active during the day, but that didn't mean they would be active when it was dark. All he had to do was wait till then.