"Thank you so much Tharla. I was scared I was going to die in there." Xiaoyi thanked her.
"No need to thank me, I was pretty sure you would live." Tharla said.
Xiaoyi looks a little hurt now.
"You left me even though you thought I could have died?" Xiaoyi said as she started tearing up in her eyes.
"I was sooooo scared!" Xiaoyi cried as Tharla picked her up.
Tharla carried her until they made it to the edge of the village. Before she placed her down. Little did she know Xiaoyi started to see her as a motherly figure as she had missed her mom for so long, and Tharla was the first woman to take care of her in such a manner.
"There there Xiaoyi. It is going to be okay. I'll take you to the car to get your bag, then help you up the mountain. Unfortunately I can't go farther as I didn't ask to leave the village, however I'm sure we will meet again." Tharla said in a calm manner.
"Thank you so much for everything. I will come back if I don't see you for a while." Xiaoyi said as she started to walk over to the crash.
When they got to the car they could see three mounds of dirt beside the car.
"Looks like the others gave these three a burial." Xiaoyi stated.
"Yes, any warrior can not maintain their dignity if their bodies are scavenged by beasts." Tharla says proudly.
"They weren't warriors but it is unfortunate they had to die trapped in the car." Xiaoyi says with a pitiful expression.
"If you want I can dig them back up if that is not human custom." Tharla offered.
"Oh no it's fine let's just get my stuff so I can be on my way." Xiaoyi immediately retorted.
She did not want to see their faces again. They had traumatized her in more than one way. First they kidnap her which is traumatizing. Then she has to crawl over one of their dead bodies just so she can get out of the car. Lastly they beg her to save her after all that they put her through.
She reaches into the car and pulls out her bag that was on the ceiling of the upside down car. Now she has a couple more pairs of clothes that she could wear instead of the same pair she had been using this entire time.
Then they start heading up the hill so that Tharla can help her up the side of the cliff.
"If you weren't so small you could easily get up this. I made this climb at least 20 times. Here, get on my back." Tharla bends over so that Xiaoyi can jump onto her back.
"Thank you." Xiaoyi replied as she jumped onto the massive orcs back.
Tharla walks up to the cliff and gets ready to jump but stops.
"Hey, this is taller than I remember it being. It used to only be two of me and now it's at least 4 of me. I haven't gotten smaller now that I have you on my back did i?" Tharla jokingly asks.
"Haha no you didn't. You are as big as ever. However I think it's the same as how the cave is farther and the cliff is bigger…" Xiaoyi stops talking and ponders while Tharla climbs the cliff.
Tharla pulls and pushes herself up with just the strength of her arms. If a bouldering climber saw this they would be impressed.
In less than a minute they already scaled the cliff that was over 30 feet tall.
"What made you all quiet? Thinking some big thoughts again?" Tharla jokes.
"Actually yes. I think Earth may have gotten bigger. I experienced the same thing when I was in the cave. After the lights everything seemed farther and bigger. You don't think we all got smaller?" Xiaoyi asked with an eyebrow raised.
"You humans call it earth? We call it Aetheria. But the doors in our village remained the same, so I don't think we got smaller. Thruk would hate it if you said he got smaller." Tharla replied while setting Xiaoyi back on the ground.
"Thank you so much. I wish you could have come with me." Xiaoyi said in a saddened tone.
"Don't worry we will definitely meet again. Also watch out for elves. I don't know if they still want your kind gone. Goodluck and come back if I don't find you first." Tharla warned her
Xiaoyi runs up to her and hugs her before trying to run off. Tharla grabs her arm and hands her a small rapier.
"I know we train babies with these, but I am not calling you a baby. It's just protection. I made it from the metal in the wagon you call "car"" Tharla shyly hands it over to her.
The rapier was pretty heavy and she knew that after swinging it for a few minutes her arms would need a break. However, it is not every day you get a gift from one of your friends. So she greatfully accepts it.
"I will! Thank you!" Xiaoyi says as she runs off with a small sword slashing at some overgrown grass.
'Dang no rupees.'
***
It hasn't been long since she left Tharla but she's already feeling lonely. It's been 30 minutes at most of walking down the kinda destroyed road. While walking next to the road she noticed that it seemed as if the ground was a chessboard with multiple worlds.
There would be patches of asphalt from earth then grasses from the other place. She didn't think It was just two worlds though. The reason being is because the grass did not match each other. Some grass was tall and had a hint of blue while the other grass was short and similar to earth but a little tougher.
'If the world got bigger why didn't gravity grow? Who's to say it should when there's now orcs existing. The sun is now bigger and more red than it used to be but I don't feel hotter. I still think there is a possibility of this being a dream. My wounds healed a little faster than I thought they would. They are still there but my side that was jabbed by a giant piece of glass has healed so much. If this is a dream, thank you for letting me make a friend.'
After a few more minutes she started to see the first animal. She assumed the reason there were no animals was because the orcs were the apex predators in the area, and it seems she was right. She found her first cute little bunny hopping in the road with small little horns sticking out both sides of its head.
"Awwww, what is a cute little bunny like you doing all the way out here. Seems like someone needs to get adopted." Xiaoyi says as she puts the sword down and reaches her arms out to the bunny.
"Come here little bunny." She coaxed.
The bunny was brown and was only about half a foot tall. It saw her and slowly hopped closer. Once it was only a couple feet away it lowered its head and kicked with one of its feet at the ground.
Xiaoyi immediately knew what was going to happen. She got up as fast as she could and ran to her sword but the bunny hit her right in the back. She fell onto the floor with the sword barely out of reach. She could feel two little trickles of blood from the two little pricks she felt as the bunny hit her. That was definitely the horns.
A small red -3 popped into her view.
"Owww. System." she called out the system to see she was now at 22 health.
That bunny had taken 3 of her HP. She was so close to being fully healed!
Through the system she could see the bunny turning around and getting ready to attack again.