-Day 4: Wednesday-
Coco's gaze rested upon an untidy pile of cardboard that had been dropped on the map. Past that, past sleeping Velvet, was a fireplace, cold, with a pot sitting on charred wood. The leather was an unfortunate failure, not even chewable. Too processed? The clothes hacked and torn into tiny pieces with scissors, knives, and hands at least gave them something to swallow, but the process to tedious, large bites nigh impossible, and it seemed to serve only to reawaken slumbering stomachs. Cardboard was the only thing that worked at all. Brown paper. The item by which tasteless food was measured, although I doubt many have actually considered tasting it. She moved her head to look at each of her teammates in turn, noting that despite the sun lighting the room all three were sleeping in. If only we could just sleep through the hunger.
Coco pulled her scroll to her eyeline to check the time, squinting at the light. 9am, terribly late for these guys. Are they slowing so much that they need more sleep? I wanted to focus on the tower today, maybe getting a bit of a break from frantic searching (although the order and regiment had felt nice, a small consolation) while doing so. The tower is likely our only hope, but the time it would take for it to come, could we survive it? Technically it is a few days without water, a month without food, but not a week in and our defenses are falling. I read that after a while it stops hurting. Did I doom my team by suggesting cardboard and clothes?
She rose from her bed quietly, tiptoeing out to use the other bathroom, for the toilet and washing her face. I suppose there is no reason to brush teeth that have not eaten, although the taunt of the paste without being able to consume it unscathed might just be torture. She shook a feeling of dizziness from her head, holding the sink. If the others ache and feel as slow as I, then today could very well be the last we are capable of hunting. It is a risk, a big one given the report of grimm, but we need something. A fight might even wake us up, if only for a moment. Something, anything so that this place stops feeling like the final slumber of starvation.
Fox was already sitting up when she returned, Velvet beginning to stir.
"What time is it?" asked a groggy Velvet, unlikely to be surprised if the reply was evening or the next day.
"Mmm I think around 9?" replied Fox, yawning as he stretched his arms.
Yatsuhashi was the next to stir. Coco returned to her mattress, wrapping the sheet over her shoulders, and proceeded to stare at the map as the others got ready. She had not had the heart to wake them at 8, or 7, and 6 would have been cruelly early, yet she had been up, checking the time about every half hour. At some point she displaced the cardboard, tossing it to Fox's empty bed except for a piece she nibbled on.
The opening near our landing point would make it possible for hostiles to follow us into the settlement, where we have some sense of safety for now, but it would be hard to bring back any luck from the other side given the natural drop and cliff-face barrier. What about that spot where the drop met the cliffside? Coco leaned forward, marking that spot with the pen. It would still be difficult, if not impossible, and were our strength to fail us we would be without a shelter or what supplies we do have. Her attention shifted back to the circle marking where they landed. Markers showed where the wooden fence was in relation to the spot, and the clearing was backed by a wooded area, the most likely place for game. Her decision cemented itself as her team settled back into the room, awaiting today's plan.
"We need to acquire food, and although we have not checked the whole settlement it seems that a more direct approach is now required. Today we will hunt, starting in the clearing. The opening in the fence would force any grimm to trickle into the village instead of stream in." she accentuated this using the blunt end of the pen to point at the relevant areas of the map. "The three of us will have a photo of this map on our scrolls for reference, we will split up into pairs but not wander far off. Fox, we will need another afk message." Coco tossed her scroll to her partner and stood up. Without waiting for any agreement or comments from the others she walked to the kitchen and picked out two knives, then wrapped each in a dish towel. After tucking one into her boot, she went to give the other to Yatsuhashi.
These pairings should be okay, Velvet can sneak, Yatsu and Fox have quiet blades to kill, and I will be the lithe one in our pair. Velvet and Yatsu lack range though, but my gun will just destroy anything found. It is definitely best to keep Fox and Velvet separate, he has the best chance of getting something and she probably would have difficulty with it, especially if there is a rabbit.
By 10 o'clock they were standing in the clearing. Winds blew through the leaves, the sound loud on ears that had not heard anything but their own voices and rustling for too long. They were still close enough to the village, though, that birds could not be heard. After agreeing to not stray far, Yatsuhashi and Velvet left the clearing and went right, while Fox and Coco turned left. Stay close to the clearing, be ready for grimm, but search for food. Stay close to the clearing, by ready for grimm, search for food. At the first suspicion of trouble, fire into the air, scream, or call regardless of the possibility of the other pair losing a possible catch.
Walking farther from the village but just out of sight from the clearing, Fox and Coco heard rustling. With a glance to the other they held still with baited breath, Fox ready to shoot lunch and Coco just a twitch from opening her gun and unleashing it upon a grimm. The shink of Yatsuhashi reading his sword alerted the frozen two that it was merely their teammates and that they had been spotted. Held breath released, Coco stepped forward. "Ha, looks like we need to go farther. Just be sure your scrolls are within range of ours, that should be within assistance range." The four smiled, then turned back the way they'd come this time in a wider arc.
They had met the second time before any other sign of life, excluding plants, made itself known. Shortly after separating for the fourth arc around the clearing, Fox and Coco froze in place once more. A second howl broke through the silence, from a large beast. Coco's gaze looked to Fox just long enough to meet before immediately looking upwards, over where the other half of their team should be. Sparks fizzled through the leaves and with them any notion that they had remained unnoticed, or that food would be found before the grimm found them. Fox and Coco ran, as fast as they could without any consideration towards being quiet.
Coco tripped. Her mind curious to what, despite urgency. Bones? Something rotting off of them. Standing up she saw the whole picture, an animal, a goat perhaps? Or a deer? Not picked as clean as the settlement though. She looked to Fox, as he took off ahead of her. One last glance around was spared before following him. Had I been so focused on finding movement and sounds that I missed the scraps of clothes around here? They seem so obvious now. As she ran through the trees tiny blurs of colour suddenly seemed incredibly obvious.
Despite their auras, Fox and Coco felt the limbs and underbrush tugging on their clothes. Coco cursed as a step took her path into a thorned plant that seemed to do well here. Her boots came up fine but it ripped through her pants. Merely two or three minutes after Velvet's signal the team was all together. Two boarbatusks were down, a third was cleaved in two by Yatsuhashi's sword the moment it came into view. Two beowolves, as large as average ursai, were next, one already engaged by Velvet. Around them all four knew this was not the end. Fox jumped into the fray, distracting Velvet's so she could use dust. Yatsuhashi stabbed his greatsword into the one before him. Meanwhile, Coco unfolded her gun, and stood ready to mow down the next wave.
Three more beowolves, even larger, came forth with four over-sized ursai. "Retreat to the clearing!" ordered Coco, as she started her gun. Nothing, nothing, more nothing, then GIANT freaking grimm in grand numbers? How?!
"Fuck."
The seven before her were falling from the first spray, but only two were down for good. Her expletive was not for them however, but the squawk heard from above, and the feathers that had just launched. Coco fled to the clearing, followed by one beowolf and the four ursai, all now slower. Two nevermores? That size? How is the village still standing? Why is it not swarmed? This - This could never be an extermination mission, eight full hunters would not be enough, they'd need a strategist, and air support, all assuming this is just the start. Maybe this was it. Maybe these 14 are all? Another Nevermore?! FIFTEEN?
Coco breached the clearing, running past her teammates who were sheltering from the feathers at the tree line. "Behind me!" The looked, perhaps it was unclear if that was an order of what their location should be, or if it was the location of more threats. Without clarification Coco aimed up at the approaching nevermores, hoping she could wait until all three were within shot. It did not take long before the other three saw the 5 land-bound grimm approaching.
Yatsuhashi held his sword as a shield to block an ursa slash, Fox darted around the side to engage the second and Velvet was ready to unleash upon the third as Yatsuhashi moved to the side, letting the ursa that had swung a paw at him to stumble forward. Yatsuhashi brought his sword up, and down on the remaining beowolf, but an attack from the fourth ursa slashed across his back and threw him against a tree. The roar of gunfire ended its second sweep, the nevermores probably died in the first, but best to be sure.
"Retreat to the wall! I'll cover but there will be more!"
Coco's words were shouted over the sounds of gunfire and nature that did not exist. The clearing will be easier to fight in, now that the damn birds are dealt with anyway. She looked at the rest of her group. The beowolf was down, and an ursa, but two more of the bear-like grimm remained. Yatsuhashi was using his sword to get back to his feet, Velvet was distracting one ursa by dodging, and Fox was getting a few hits in but expending most of his energy on not getting hit. At least hordes are my forte.
"GO!"
And they did. Velvet looked to Fox, who disengaged; the moment he broke the tree line she finished off hers and followed. Yatsuhashi took a swipe at the second ursa, which had tried to follow her, knocking it into the other before he took off himself, holding his sword over his back as their retreating shield. Coco let loose, nearly empty, focusing on the two ursai, but spraying a larger sweep as well in case anything was planing to jump out after she turned. There were roars and howls, the usai may have been down, but there was definitely more of something around.
Coco ran through the opening, Fox and Yatsuhashi already starting to slide the gate closed. Just maybe, maybe this fence will hold, no more nevermores, maybe we can sleep tonight . . . She looked beyond the opening, ready to shoot anything that entered the cleared field, but curiously enough, she saw the eyes glow from the trees but not one left their cover.
The gate closed and the four looked at each other, each catching his or her breath. Yatsuhashi's breathing was different, he had one hand bracing himself against the wall and seemed to be gasping.
"Yatsuhashi?" her eyes searched him, resting on the bottom edge of his blade. A red streak graced it, a drop rolling down, and dripping off at his feet, where behind him was a trail from where the edge of the door had stood open.
Velvet screamed and ran to him, asking what happened. We just got ambushed by an army of giant grimm in a place that has had no other life for days.
Fox looked at Coco, and words not spoken out loud passed between them. My aura was shockingly low, I doubt the others are fairing any better. Without some food or help, he may not be able to heal at all.
Coco looked around, the buildings here did have grimm damage, they had noticed as much when they arrived, yet none of it matched the size of those met today. Here seemed to be more industrial, with warehouses, a factory, and a barn. A Barn.
"Let's head to the barn to check him out. Fox, you get the door and check inside." Coco sprung into action, taking Yatsuhashi from the wall side and along with Velvet, helping him inside.
Yatsuhashi was lying on the floor, his back exposed. The cuts were deep, four gashes cut across his back, mostly horizontal. The puncture was deepest, then the slash, and the rip from being thrown with enough force to pull the claws out. Velvet was in tears, sitting against a wall, not looking. Fox was using their four canteens to clean away the blood with Coco's scarf, giving her time to think through what was next.
"I will run back to our camp, as fast as I can, to refill the water bottles, grab the extra shirts, and any medical supplies. My weapon is the loudest, and I will check for any messages while there." Fox looked at her, meeting her eyes with the final phrase. He knows. He knows I am doing my best to be the only one getting the messages. Could he assume any reason but the truth? That I have intentions to censor anything? Foolish ideas, the others would hear the ping, and any message at all would at least be something. A chance. Even if help would have to wait for the message to reach Vale or Beacon it would be something.
Coco looked to Velvet, unsure of what to say and opting for silence, before taking off.
She returned as described, with a backback containing clean sheets and their small med kit, usually only good for villagers injures when accompanying an extermination, arms laden with stolen cotton shirts and shoulders with canteen straps. Of course no alcohol was around, or medical supplies. She had only checked their house and the one they were using for water.
She and Fox stitched Yatsuhashi's back up the best they could; all three knew Velvet would have been a much better choice, given her hobby of making plush dolls, but Yatsuhashi would have to make do with Coco and Fox as Velvet was in no shape to be part of this. The medical kit had a needle and thread, but they had also emptied the disinfectant and no one spoke of his aura being too low to affect the injury. Velvet had mostly stopped crying by the time they were done, probably from exhaustion given the small whimpers still escaping.
Coco and Fox sat back, finally having a moment to let the day's events sink in. After a moment Coco pulled out her scroll and handed to Fox. It was one, three hours since they had left the village in how many days? Today is number 4. A message had come in, it seemed that Fox had scheduled his to send a low battery alert.
"I guess the tower is next." stated Fox, looking to Coco for approval after he stood up. Velvet suddenly looked up, as if just now realizing they were still around.
"Yep, Velvet, you stay here as guard and make sure Yatsuhashi is" Coco paused. He was laying front-down on a hard dirt floor with no pain killers and four gashes in his back. "comfortable. We will leave the two canteens of water for you two." and no food because clearly we found none. We could bring back cardboard, that would fix everything. Why was leaving a good idea? Why did we not start with the tower from the start? Her cynicism faded when she recalled how they were still expecting to find people at first, and had not quite grasped that there was zero to consume. In no world without time travel would any of that have been different, I suppose. Perhaps if we were less than 9 hours away from the city, starting with the tower would have won.
"Velvet, can we have your scroll? Mine sent a low battery warning to Coco's and her's is going to be the second most drained." Fox had already walked over to her while Coco was thinking. Velvet nodded, and handed hers over. "He's patched up now, Velvet. You can sit next to him if you like, we just need to wait now." Her hesitation had been plain, but his words seemed to offer a small comfort. Velvet nodded, but did not get up, and seemed to not trust herself to speak.
"We will get the tower working long distance, and bring back more supplies before dark." offered Coco, walking out and closing the door behind Fox.