Chapter Seven: Presence, Melancholy

Walking for a few hours, the tree’s around Waynev slowly changed.

From the old braided tree’s with cuts in them to light brownish tree’s. The bark being thin, making it obvious to Shadow that this area had warmer temperatures or was prone to fires.

At least she didn’t have to worry about the cold Shadow chuckled inciting a ‘What’s up’ from Waynev.

Their routine for the last two days had made Waynev a lot fitter, whether it was because of her near-constant moving and plentiful meals or because of her stretching and gymnastics/kickboxing/mix of whatever physical activity she had done in the past was irrelevant.

Right now her stats were improving… However with no teacher or mentor to guide her, magic was still an issue to Waynev.

Magic and time.

Quest:

Meet the inhabitants on Temporous.

Meet up to one friendly inhabitant of Temporous. Meet up to one hostile inhabitant of Temporous.

Consequence:

One of your forearms will be taken.

Time Limit:

Zero days, Fifteen hours, 58 minutes remaining.

Time was ticking, if she didn’t meet at least one friendly person in Temporous it would cost her an arm.

Literally.

Shadow on the other hand had been progressing smoothly, though very carefully.

To not invite any worry or suspicion on the fact that Shadow also would need a teacher to learn how to use the mythical gifts given.

Talking about gifts, Shadow found an interesting trait that telepathy had. It had incited many questions from Waynev though not from the trait, rather from her mood.

Waynev and Shadow shared a lot of things and living in Waynev’s head for so long had left Shadow particularly vulnerable to hiding her emotions from Waynev. Which had led to more than a few questions, all of them being met with various excuses.

Such as ‘I’m sure that we're close now!’ or ‘Did you hear that? I think I heard someone’.

After the gaslighting technique had been executed a few times Waynev was successfully defused, Shadow trying to hide her delight, failed again.

“Did you hear that?” Shadow gasped, trying to move Waynev’s attention away from herself.

“Shadow come on this is the third time to-”

“HAHAHAHA I told ya she could pull it!” A deep bellow interrupted Waynev causing her to duck and try to look at the direction the voice came from.

“Shadow!” Waynev’s voice went up a pitch, leaning slightly forwards continued.

“Those are actually people!” Waynev’s giddiness infecting Shadow.

Roughly 4 bushes away stood two… people.

Humans!

They were outfitted in what seemed to be stained pants with some rips and tears along with their shirts, all of their clothes were linen and both were wielding a one-handed axe.

Her eyes sticking to the axe, her leaning legs stopped and tensed.

“Wayne.”

“We're going to have to stalk them for a few hours-” Shadow’s voice was tuned out as Waynev watched the two men, were they friendly? What if they were monsters changing how they looked?

Could she finally finish the quest?

Waynev’s questions bordered paranoia, she tuned back to Shadow’s calculated, safe yet slow plan.

“-we’ll see if they will let us in.” The plan was safe, smart and hopefully going to work… but it seemed excruciatingly boring.

“Can’t we just, talk to them then run if they try and attack me?” Waynev already began inching away.

Debating whether to reveal herself on purpose or to follow the safe route.

Not noticing the branch behind her slowly being pulled back.

“We already talked about this. You have to be ready to take things sl-”

THWACK

“Oww.”

The bush shaking, sounds of leaves and falling debris came from Waynev’s formed bush.

Along with an instinctual yelp.

“Shit.”

Shadow had read about how in history, people often caused the things they feared most. Hell, Caesar’s assassins killed him to avoid a dictator state but that led to the republic being abolished and Caesar’s successor ruling Rome as a dictator through military state.

The very thing she wanted to avoid by acting was caused by her actions.

Now it seemed her mistake would lead her to kill the two intimidating-looking men, the opposite of her initial intentions.

“Wulfrun to me!” The larger man shouted, gathering his companion they both put their axes forward, eyes daring the perpetrator to come out.

“Who’s there?”

His eyes squinted at the nearby bushes.

His legs spread making it easier to dodge.

Then they began closing in.

Thinking to Shadow “Shadow-what-do-I-do?”, words falling over each other as she crouched lower in the bush.

“...Say you're friendly and accidentally found them?” Shadow took a stab in the dark, hoping that Waynev could at least lower their guard long enough to slip a bone fist into their jugular.

“Wait, I'm friendly! I’m friendly!”

The slightly older man, likely the younger one’s older brother stood back, on the opposite side of his brother.

“Hey friendly, I’m Wulfrun.” The younger man snickered hearing the female’s voice and changed his combat stance to a slightly more relaxed one.

The older man looked at his companion like an adult would a naive child, turning back to the bush he shouted.

“Who are you, traveller? Why were you hiding in that bush- And Why are you still hiding in it.” His suspicion rose with the volume of his voice.

Waynev noticing the younger man had loosened up, took a risk.

Bursting out of the bush with a fountain of old leaves and sticks falling around her, Waynev looked at the surprised strangers with a ‘welcoming smile’ which looked a bit crazed to anyone whose brain was smoother than silk.

As Waynev was about to speak, Shadow had an insight.

“Introduce yourself with only your given name, surnames were important back in the medieval days.” Her interruption caused Waynev to open and close her mouth, licking her lips and she tried again.

“Hello. I’m Waynev, I’m a traveller and am a bit lost. Can you spare me a few minutes?” Her smile easing into a half-nervous grin.

“He’s very wary of us.” Shadow noticed the look in the older man’s eye.

The older man looked guarded.

Until he saw Waynev’s watch, his face visibly loosening the folds turning to creases with his smile.

“If he tries anything to run back to the strea-”

“Ho there Waynev!” The older man’s voice sounded deeper, safer.

“Thought you were [Un[Contracted]] for a second there, weird looking band you’ve got, where’re you from?” He finally crossed his arms, axe still being held in his left.

As Wulfrun put his axe back into his holster, Waynev gestured her hands open symbolising her gratefulness.

Waynev and Shadow had prepared for meeting travellers, Shadow would analyse while Waynev would adapt to their culture. At the moment Shadow was listing possibilities and questions to ask about what a ‘[Un[Contracted]]’ meant.

“I’m from the mountains! I’ve come a long way, following the river till I found you two,” Her backstory already prepared Waynev easily answered.

“Oh wow, you survived up in the mountains? Your parents must’ve been at least [Hollowed]!” Wulfrun ran his mouth, earning a look from the older man.

He sighed before looking back to Waynev, his footing back to normal.

“Sorry for the caution Waynev. My family calls me Siward, my son and I are lumberers we’re simple folk [Contracted] to Aestern further south of here. Oh and not to worry our contract lasts all of Dockern, but on that note-sorry for not noticing your contract but is it part of Dockern’s?”

Shadow almost inhaled the information before her quick thinking urged Waynev to agree.

Waynev however was still surprised the two of them weren’t brothers, took a second before noticing their looks and responding.

“Of course, all of Dockern for me as well!” Her voice imitated Siward’s friendly tone and pitch to the best of her ability.

“Do you mind if I follow you two back to Aestern-or could you two give me directions?”

Wulfrun and Siward both looked surprised and looked at each other with Siward turning back to Waynev.

His brown eyes and once intimidating face looking more fatherly and protective.

“We can give you a ride back to Aestern, we were just finishing loading up our pack donkey.” Siward gestured to the cart, hidden almost entirely by the tree’s around them, walking back to the cart sideways so Waynev would still be in his view.

Siward gestured the two back.

“Come! You tell us how it's been living in the mountains on the way down, we should make it to Aestern midday at this rate.”

“Sure but first can I ask about names?” Waynev took another small leap of faith.

“Do people have last names in Dockern?” As her question came out, Wulfrun slightly scrunched his mouth up at a memory while Siward had his poker face on.

He answered slowly.

“Yes, some do of course. Waynev does your family have a name?” His eyes were judging Waynev, especially flickering to her Watch for some reason.

Making her decision she decided to tell the truth.

“No, my family didn’t but I’ve heard of family names being rare, do you know the reason?” The ‘truth’ that her story lined up with of course.

Wulfrun, not noticing his father’s suspicion let his tongue go wild to try to impress the young woman, a mistake many young men make, unfortunately.

“Only nobles or the [Forlorn] have the privilege of family names, my father’s great grandfather had a [Forlorn] rank but his son didn’t make it past [Hollowed] and Siward obviously isn-”

“Wulfrun.” A thousand-mile stare met Wulfrun’s space, speaking of his mistake of rambling.

Waynev, however, was ecstatic, as was Shadow.

New ranks! A question for later, when Siward’s guard was down…

Or if she could get Wulfrun to try and impress her.

Following Siward, Wulfrun skipped around the trees and tangles of roots, rocks and flora that littered the forest’s floor.

While she did Shadow whispered in her ear.

“Waynev, have you seen their stats yet?” Shadow’s silence and sudden outburst startling Waynev, forgetting that she did, in fact, have another person in her.

‘We can check? Why didn’t we-’ Waynev’s outburst interrupted by a sudden root nearly pulling her leg off the ground.

Yelping she looked up to the two men blushing slightly “Sorry.” she mumbled.

Siward had made it next to the cart and was beginning to load branches and cut lumber as Wulfrun did the same, no longer distracted by Waynev’s novicity.

“At the time with the old wolf I was… distracted by new… anyway I forgot. Check them out it’s interesting” Shadow pulled her interest away from her distraction.

‘I’ll check now’ In Waynev’s mind’s eye she told Shadow.

These last few days she spoke aloud, treating Shadow like another person to stave off the loneliness. Hopefully, it wouldn’t last for long Waynev thought.

‘Status’ She eyed the two burly men in front of her.

Siward’s Status:

Agility:

6.3AH

Strength:

??AH

Vitality:

??AH

Wisdom:

??AH

Mana:

(Locked)

Siward’s stats were mostly unidentified, was it the difference in her stats or rank?

“Whatever his rank is, he’s high enough that our gift doesn’t work. If this happens against foes…” The unspoken words were hopefully just that.

Just words and not a sign for what was to come.

Wulfrun’s Status:

Agility:

5.4AH

Strength:

??AH

Vitality:

7.35AH

Wisdom:

3.2AH

Mana:

(Locked)

Wulfrun’s stats were similar to her own but by the looks of it, he was the equivalent of 5 humans in agility. 5 people worth of stats.

Were these two extraordinarily powerful?

Or…

Was she extraordinarily weak…

Pchick!

A sudden noise slapped her out of her thoughts.

Looking up she noticed she was nearly running into Siward as he cut a particularly big bush in half that was in front of one of the wheels of the wagon.

Noticing the stares he grinned at her.

“To a man with an axe EVERYTHING’S A TREE.” His loud shouts scared Waynev then caused her to blush.

Wulfrun meanwhile looked unfazed and by the slight scowl on his face, it wasn’t the first time Siward had made that joke.

About to joke back Waynev was hit back to back with two blue-screens.

Quest:

Congratulations!

Not failing the first quest means you were more than just a scrawny face. You thought I was going to say pretty?

Think again.

Meet the inhabitants on Temporous.

Meet up to one friendly inhabitant of Temporous. Meet up to one hostile inhabitant of Temporous.

Consequence:

One of your forearms will be taken.

Time Limit:

Zero days, Twelve hours, 58 minutes remaining.

“Wasn’t too bad-” Shadow smugly claimed before another screen appeared before her.

Quest:

Find Aestern.

Reach the city before nightfall. Meet two races other than humans. (0/2)

Consequence:

Elise will not live to see you succeed in beating the inevitable.

Time Limit:

Zero days, Nine hours, 59 minutes remaining.

Oh.

Shadow.

“You cun-”