p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"The last few days passed through Aloy's mind in a wild blur. She had won the Proving, becoming a Brave of the Nora tribe. Her victory was short-lived as a battalion of Carja rained down on the contestants. Arrows flew, spears clashed, and many of them fell. Bast, she wasn't too sad to see go, but Vala had nearly brought her to tears. The young Nora had presented herself as a friend only to be cut down hours later. The three of them were able to get a majority of the others safely down the rope and back to the village, but Aloy hadn't been so lucky. While she still lived, she felt dead inside./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"The leader of the Carja soldiers had held her over the mountain's edge, his dagger pressed to her throat. She could feel the bite of it as it pressed into her flesh, blood dripping slowly from the wound. She had the absent thought of the man ruining Teb's perfect handiwork, but she knew this would be her end./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"Just as she had prepared herself to die, the large Carja growling to "turn her face to the sun", a spear crashed into his back. Aloy fell and thought she might be lost to the mountain, but somehow kept her footing despite her pain and blood loss./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"When she looked up she saw her savior./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"Rost./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"The man she knew as her father stood battling the Carja. The fight was a blur. She couldn't stay focused, thinking she would pass out at any moment. Then he was at her side, holding her, preparing for their demise. It was then that she passed out./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"When she awoke, she was inside of the mountain and everything hurt. Her neck, her shoulder, her legs all incredibly sore. She could barely get out of bed but forced herself to move. Her first realization was that all of her gear was missing, including her Focus. She felt naked and exposed, even if there was no one around to see her./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"She stumbled through the foreign place searching for anything that would help her get a better sense of what was going on. After finding her gear and her Focus, she found another of the devices. She was taken aback by the information it held. The Proving had been attacked because of her because these men saw Aloy through Olin's Focus. A kill issue had been ordered against her. She also found information about a woman who looked exactly like her, but maybe twice her age. Was this her mother?/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"So many questions arose that day. Mother Teersa adding to the confusion. She had taken Aloy to a door, where something had recognized her, be it the Nora's Goddess or something different. It spoke to her, telling her about corruption. This lead Mother Teersa to believe that the Goddess wanted her to heal the corruption, and naming her a Seeker of the Nora./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"Aloy didn't understand anything that was happening. She was usually so confident. Her knowledge of the world around her had always exceeded others, and now she had more questions than ever before./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"She left the tribe. Turning her focus to getting answers. She had told Erend that knowing who her mother was wasn't important. Now it seemed it would be her driving force in discovering what was happening to her, her tribe and the derangement of the machines./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"She made it to the gates of the village and Teb was there waiting and ready to fight. This surprised her. He had told her only a day ago that he was not a fighter, that his skills were better left to mending armor and bodies. More shocking was that she discovered War Chief Sona was missing. She had gone in search of the men who had attacked the Proving. Aloy knew that this was more for the benefit of the tribe, but it made her stomach flutter to know someone cared about what had happened to her on the mountain, someone was going to avenge Rost's death./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"She asked for the gates to be opened, receiving no small amount of resistance from the man taking Sona's place. She recognized him as the man who had wanted to bar her entrance into the contestant's cabin, the one who had stood and laughed as Bast shot her trophy from her hands. She informed him that she was a Seeker with the blessing of the Matriarch's and that he needed to stand aside. She didn't know how long he would have stood there arguing with her because, as she was about to lay into him, machines crested the hill in front of them./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"These machines were not normal. Their usually blue lights were red and something coated their metallic plates. It undulated around them in a nightmarish shadow. She heard the word Corruptor but still had no clue what it was she was seeing. She flipped on her focus to scan the machine and it told her that it was indeed a Corruptor and it was somehow controlling the other machines around it. It also told her that these machines were susceptible to fire./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"Aloy brought up her bow, fire arrows at the ready. The Corruptor slammed into the gate, knocking everyone back a step. She was glad she had stepped up to the edge, for she would have fallen had she stayed just above the ladder she'd climbed to reach this height./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"It broke through, machines poured into the village. Aloy climbed down, taking aim. Her Focus told her where to shoot. She began taking out the guns that rested on the machine's back. She was making quick work of it, setting the metal beast alight when a Strider crashed into her. The pain was overwhelming and sickness spread in her gut. Whatever was wrong with the machines could be spread when it made contact. Knowing this, she kept her distance. Fire leaped from her bowstring./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"The battle was soon over and she dismantled the Corruptor, finding the piece that allowed it to override the other machines. It connected with her Focus. She lashed it to her spear knowing she would be able to do the same if she could get close enough./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"She left then, making her way to the gates of the Embrace. She was finally leaving and leaving the tribe who had shunned her for so long. There was something freeing about it. She found herself drowning in anticipation of what was to come. Giddiness settled into her heart, her curiosity finally having an outlet./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"As she neared the gates, a group of Striders came into view. She pulled her spear from her back. Time to test this thing out, she mused aloud. She crept through the tall grass, her focus on one of the machines grazing near it. Silently, she made her approach. When she knew she could reach the machine without detection, she shoved her spear into the beast's metal plating. It didn't take long before the metal animal was hers. She mounted it, thinking this would be the way to travel from now on. She would be covering vast distances with no problem. She tested the stride, giving the beast a nudge with her heels when it wouldn't move. This made it pick up the pace and she found it exhilarating./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"She rode the Strider to the outer gates, stopped only by the sounds of battle. She dismounted quickly, but it wasn't necessary. The Braves guarding the gate had the machine down before she came through./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"Most were impressed by her mount, but none more so than a Brave about her age named Varl. He introduced himself, stating that he was Vala's brother and War-Chief Sona's son. She gave her sympathies for Vala's loss, letting the young man know that she had liked his sister. He held his emotions in check, focusing instead on his mother. He asked Aloy if she would be willing to track her down, find out what happened to the party that had gone missing after their hunt for the Proving's killers./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"Aloy was more than happy to assist anyone going after these men and she assured Varl that she would indeed look for the War-Chief. He informed her that there were dangers along the path ahead. She had assumed he meant machines, but he informed her that bandits also littered the countryside./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"After leaving Varl, Aloy's excitement grew. She was outside the gates. The world was open to her. She wasn't even sure where to start but assumed the trail of the War-Chief would allow her some direction. She knew she needed to head to Meridian and track down Olin, but she didn't even know where Meridian was. She decided to stick to the trail for now. It would eventually lead her somewhere./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"After riding for a while she decided she would need to find a place to make camp. It was getting dark and she didn't want to be left trying to fight bandits or machines when she couldn't see. She was about to pull off of the trail when she caught sight of a man in Carja gear, surrounded by downed bodies. The gear and his appearance made her nervous, but when his eyes landed on hers and he didn't attack, she decided to approach./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;""There's danger ahead girl," he stated bluntly./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"Aloy knew this of course but found it curious that he thought more about the danger for her than himself. All of the Nora would be hunting for the Carja that attacked them. "Danger for you, Outlander. This is Nora land."/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"He nearly smiled, or grimaced, she wasn't sure which. "Yes, yes, yes. Trespass is forbidden on pain of death…" he paused and this time he did smile, taking in the bodies around him. "Strange phrase, pain of death. See, this one's in no pain at all." He pointed to one of the dead men at his feet./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"Her natural curiosity had her asking, "Who was he?" It felt strange asking the question instead of asking him why he had killed them, but she assumed the Carja had to have some motive for killing all of them./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"The man shrugged. "A thief, a slaver, a killer – the kind that gives honest killers a bad name."/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"She sighed, "Varl told me there would be bandit ambushes on the road." She hadn't thought to encounter any so soon, so close to the gates./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;""Well, it's not all good news. They don't always come to you. Most dig out a camp, and there they'll sit, like spoil on meat."/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"She found his wording a little odd, but pressed on, a smirk coming to her lips. "Unless… someone does something about it?"/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"His smirk widened, his grey eyes shining. "I like you. Follow the trail of smoke, on the other side of the ruins. I'll be there." And with that, he was off./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"Aloy stood for a moment, unsure if she should follow. He had said he liked her, why? She wasn't sure she would get used to that. First Erend, now this Carja. They knew nothing about her but decided they liked her after only a bit of conversation. It was unnerving. However, taking out a bandit camp would benefit all in the region. The last thing the Nora needed was another threat./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"She mounted her Strider and headed in the direction the Carja had taken. She didn't lead the mount at a fast pace, unsure of the Carja's motivations. For all she knew, he could be leading her into a trap./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"As she crested the hill, she saw the Carja's headdress. She took a moment to examine the man as he crouched in the grass. He didn't look like the men who had attacked the Proving. His body was lean and tight, as many of the Nora she had seen. His chest and abdomen were sculpted in fine lines, which were left exposed by the vest he wore. She found it odd that he wore so little armor. If he was a bandit hunter, shouldn't he at least have some protection? His skin was a soft brown, like the leather armor she wore, and he sported a black goatee. His grey eyes turned to her, sensing her presence and she knew she couldn't stand there staring at him any longer. She dismounted and approached, crouching in the grass next to him./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;""I'm glad you came." He nodded his approval./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;""You're glad, why?'/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;""Call in a shared interest. And call me Nil."/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"A shared interest? Why did people keep speaking to her this way? She could tell by the look he gave her that he was sizing her up, but she was unsure as to why./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;""Look there – those old rocks? A bandit clan squats under them. Disturb the rocks, and they'll come wriggling out, worms that they are."/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"She was slightly disturbed by the imagery he conjured. "Bandits, why have they come here?"/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"He gave her a slightly condescending look but answered her anyway. "The Nora are in trouble. Rumors spread like blood. With no Braves to guard the border, killers hungry for sport slip right through." He smiled at the last bit, and it had Aloy wondering if he was still referring to the bandits or himself. "My partner and I shadowed these scum for days. Good tracker, but he went on ahead without me. We'd talked about this kind of behavior." He sighed and shrugged. "Still I understand. Leave it too long and your fingers itch for the bowstring. Say, how about you and I work together? Kill them all?"/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;""I don't know you and I have no reason to trust you." She stated flatly./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"He smirked again. "Trust is a rare egg to find, isn't it? I'm just a traveler, with a bow, concerned about the state of these lands, and a missing partner."/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;""I don't think you're 'just' anything at all." Aloy's apprehension over the man in front of her began to grow as something nagged at her, telling her he wasn't being completely honest with her./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"He hummed, trying to decide what to say next. "Let me put it another way. Are you a bandit?"/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"She was slightly offended by the question, huffing her exasperation. "Of course not!"/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;""Then you have nothing to fear from me." His smile was slightly devious, setting her teeth on edge, but she could see that he was telling the truth. He wouldn't attack her or turn on her, not in this moment at least./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;""Alright, someone has to stop them from hurting others." She resigned to her new partner./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;""And we will. We'll stop them from doing anything, save screaming a while. Go ahead and take the lead. I look forward to seeing what you are capable of." He leered down at her then and she felt like she was his prey, even though he had just said he wouldn't hurt her./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"She went ahead of him and she could feel his eyes on her body. It stirred something within her, something that was very unwelcome in this moment. She felt as if she should have told him she could do this alone. But, even if she was a near-perfect shot with her bow, she felt this would be a daunting task to complete all by herself. She sighted the alarm as he pointed it out, nocking her arrow, and she felt his skin brush against hers. He sidled up next to her, aiming the sentry just above the alarm. His shot would hit, just as hers did, giving nothing away./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"She loosed the arrow, happy when it met the distant target and she heard the snap of Nil's bow as well. He shadowed her to the gates, taking out two more sentries as she took out the ones who came to investigate./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"They entered the camp and were nearly through all of the bandits when cries of alarm sounded. They had been seen. Aloy strapped her bow to her back and palmed her spear. Nil did the same, pulling daggers from his waistband. A slow smile crept along his face as if this was what he had desired from the beginning. They nodded to each other and leaped from their hiding place./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"Aloy's spear split the first bandit through the middle. Nil's daggers slitting the throat of the man before him. Blood sprayed them both as their targets fell./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"In a rush of adrenaline, Aloy charged her next two combatants, bringing her spear arching over her head and spinning her body in mid-air beheading both in one swoop. When she landed, her pulse was racing. She surveyed the area looking for her next target but found none. She tapped her Focus but detected no more enemies. She was breathing heavily, her body now ramped up and ready for a fight that wouldn't come. She tried to shake the nerves from her hands and arms, but it wouldn't calm./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"Nil approached her then, his body coated in crimson liquid. She knew she must look the same./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;""Feels good, doesn't it? Hold it inside of you, one last breath. Then let it out." He breathed in deeply, a look of pure elation on his face, but that was not what held her attention. Nil stood erect in his trousers. She had never seen a man in full arousal, and after what they had just done, she was semi-disgusted and completely turned on./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"He saw where her eyes landed and his voice became husky as he closed the distance between them. "You can touch it, if you want."/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"Aloy's heart pounded in her chest. An answering wetness coated her below. "I… uh…" she had no words, and Nil inched ever closer. His fingers finding her bare skin and sliding through the blood that coated her arm. It made his arousal twitch and goosebumps crawl along her flesh. Her eyes closed of their own volition and a shaky breath escaped her lips./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;""Nora girl, so wound, like a bowstring ready to snap." His lips found hers and he pressed his hard length into her hip. His fingers slid into her hair, tugging gently as he tilted her head back, nipping at her pulse./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"Her hand found his hardened length without thought. He moaned into her skin. His hand slipping under her armor to tweak her pearled nipples. She gasped at the touch. Her mind refused to come back to sanity. She knew this was wrong. She knew everything about this situation was disgusting. But his teeth, his hands, they were making her feel things she had never felt before./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"She didn't remember removing her armor, but one second it was there and the next her body and his were exposed to the cold, wet air. He took hold of her coppery strands and her waist, pushing her against the side of the cabin closest to them. The hand that had been holding her waist slipped between them and his fingers found her core. He rubbed at the little nub, sending her brain into overdrive. She came quickly, having never felt another's touch where only her hands had been before. She had thought she'd reached the peak of pleasure, but then his fingers delved inside of her. She screamed, causing Nil to growl into her mouth. His lips pressed into her, hard and unforgiving. He worked his fingers, pumping in and out of her. With every stroke, he sped up causing tiny bursting moans./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"She wasn't sure when he removed his fingers and began stroking her opening with his cock, but she knew in this moment, she couldn't have said no, even if she wanted to. Her body was his./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"As his head penetrated her, he lifted her leg to give himself more room. The pain of his entry was sublime. It seemed to fit that this should hurt. But the pain quickly dissipated as he filled her. He pumped sure and hard, her back pounding into the wooden siding. He dipped his head to capture her nipple into his mouth. She went dizzy at the shared sensations pulsing through her./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"She came around his cock, her insides pulsing and Nil lost his pounding rhythm. He pulled out of her a few moments later, and as he saw her blood coating him, he didn't even have to touch himself to finish. The pulsing organ spewing along her thigh./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;""Already bleeding for me." He leaned in and captured her mouth once more./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"When it was over, and they were gathering their belongings Aloy wondered if she would regret this moment. For now, all she could feel was complete satisfaction./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;""We shall meet again, Huntress." Nil smiled as he walked away./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"Aloy wasn't sad to see him leave, but she felt a thrill course through her body and hoped his words were true./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"The leader of the Carja soldiers had held her over the mountain's edge, his dagger pressed to her throat. She could feel the bite of it as it pressed into her flesh, blood dripping slowly from the wound. She had the absent thought of the man ruining Teb's perfect handiwork, but she knew this would be her end./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"Just as she had prepared herself to die, the large Carja growling to "turn her face to the sun", a spear crashed into his back. Aloy fell and thought she might be lost to the mountain, but somehow kept her footing despite her pain and blood loss./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"When she looked up she saw her savior./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"Rost./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"The man she knew as her father stood battling the Carja. The fight was a blur. She couldn't stay focused, thinking she would pass out at any moment. Then he was at her side, holding her, preparing for their demise. It was then that she passed out./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"When she awoke, she was inside of the mountain and everything hurt. Her neck, her shoulder, her legs all incredibly sore. She could barely get out of bed but forced herself to move. Her first realization was that all of her gear was missing, including her Focus. She felt naked and exposed, even if there was no one around to see her./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"She stumbled through the foreign place searching for anything that would help her get a better sense of what was going on. After finding her gear and her Focus, she found another of the devices. She was taken aback by the information it held. The Proving had been attacked because of her because these men saw Aloy through Olin's Focus. A kill issue had been ordered against her. She also found information about a woman who looked exactly like her, but maybe twice her age. Was this her mother?/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"So many questions arose that day. Mother Teersa adding to the confusion. She had taken Aloy to a door, where something had recognized her, be it the Nora's Goddess or something different. It spoke to her, telling her about corruption. This lead Mother Teersa to believe that the Goddess wanted her to heal the corruption, and naming her a Seeker of the Nora./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"Aloy didn't understand anything that was happening. She was usually so confident. Her knowledge of the world around her had always exceeded others, and now she had more questions than ever before./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"She left the tribe. Turning her focus to getting answers. She had told Erend that knowing who her mother was wasn't important. Now it seemed it would be her driving force in discovering what was happening to her, her tribe and the derangement of the machines./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"She made it to the gates of the village and Teb was there waiting and ready to fight. This surprised her. He had told her only a day ago that he was not a fighter, that his skills were better left to mending armor and bodies. More shocking was that she discovered War Chief Sona was missing. She had gone in search of the men who had attacked the Proving. Aloy knew that this was more for the benefit of the tribe, but it made her stomach flutter to know someone cared about what had happened to her on the mountain, someone was going to avenge Rost's death./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"She asked for the gates to be opened, receiving no small amount of resistance from the man taking Sona's place. She recognized him as the man who had wanted to bar her entrance into the contestant's cabin, the one who had stood and laughed as Bast shot her trophy from her hands. She informed him that she was a Seeker with the blessing of the Matriarch's and that he needed to stand aside. She didn't know how long he would have stood there arguing with her because, as she was about to lay into him, machines crested the hill in front of them./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"These machines were not normal. Their usually blue lights were red and something coated their metallic plates. It undulated around them in a nightmarish shadow. She heard the word Corruptor but still had no clue what it was she was seeing. She flipped on her focus to scan the machine and it told her that it was indeed a Corruptor and it was somehow controlling the other machines around it. It also told her that these machines were susceptible to fire./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"Aloy brought up her bow, fire arrows at the ready. The Corruptor slammed into the gate, knocking everyone back a step. She was glad she had stepped up to the edge, for she would have fallen had she stayed just above the ladder she'd climbed to reach this height./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"It broke through, machines poured into the village. Aloy climbed down, taking aim. Her Focus told her where to shoot. She began taking out the guns that rested on the machine's back. She was making quick work of it, setting the metal beast alight when a Strider crashed into her. The pain was overwhelming and sickness spread in her gut. Whatever was wrong with the machines could be spread when it made contact. Knowing this, she kept her distance. Fire leaped from her bowstring./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"The battle was soon over and she dismantled the Corruptor, finding the piece that allowed it to override the other machines. It connected with her Focus. She lashed it to her spear knowing she would be able to do the same if she could get close enough./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"She left then, making her way to the gates of the Embrace. She was finally leaving and leaving the tribe who had shunned her for so long. There was something freeing about it. She found herself drowning in anticipation of what was to come. Giddiness settled into her heart, her curiosity finally having an outlet./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"As she neared the gates, a group of Striders came into view. She pulled her spear from her back. Time to test this thing out, she mused aloud. She crept through the tall grass, her focus on one of the machines grazing near it. Silently, she made her approach. When she knew she could reach the machine without detection, she shoved her spear into the beast's metal plating. It didn't take long before the metal animal was hers. She mounted it, thinking this would be the way to travel from now on. She would be covering vast distances with no problem. She tested the stride, giving the beast a nudge with her heels when it wouldn't move. This made it pick up the pace and she found it exhilarating./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"She rode the Strider to the outer gates, stopped only by the sounds of battle. She dismounted quickly, but it wasn't necessary. The Braves guarding the gate had the machine down before she came through./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"Most were impressed by her mount, but none more so than a Brave about her age named Varl. He introduced himself, stating that he was Vala's brother and War-Chief Sona's son. She gave her sympathies for Vala's loss, letting the young man know that she had liked his sister. He held his emotions in check, focusing instead on his mother. He asked Aloy if she would be willing to track her down, find out what happened to the party that had gone missing after their hunt for the Proving's killers./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"Aloy was more than happy to assist anyone going after these men and she assured Varl that she would indeed look for the War-Chief. He informed her that there were dangers along the path ahead. She had assumed he meant machines, but he informed her that bandits also littered the countryside./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"After leaving Varl, Aloy's excitement grew. She was outside the gates. The world was open to her. She wasn't even sure where to start but assumed the trail of the War-Chief would allow her some direction. She knew she needed to head to Meridian and track down Olin, but she didn't even know where Meridian was. She decided to stick to the trail for now. It would eventually lead her somewhere./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"After riding for a while she decided she would need to find a place to make camp. It was getting dark and she didn't want to be left trying to fight bandits or machines when she couldn't see. She was about to pull off of the trail when she caught sight of a man in Carja gear, surrounded by downed bodies. The gear and his appearance made her nervous, but when his eyes landed on hers and he didn't attack, she decided to approach./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;""There's danger ahead girl," he stated bluntly./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"Aloy knew this of course but found it curious that he thought more about the danger for her than himself. All of the Nora would be hunting for the Carja that attacked them. "Danger for you, Outlander. This is Nora land."/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"He nearly smiled, or grimaced, she wasn't sure which. "Yes, yes, yes. Trespass is forbidden on pain of death…" he paused and this time he did smile, taking in the bodies around him. "Strange phrase, pain of death. See, this one's in no pain at all." He pointed to one of the dead men at his feet./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"Her natural curiosity had her asking, "Who was he?" It felt strange asking the question instead of asking him why he had killed them, but she assumed the Carja had to have some motive for killing all of them./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"The man shrugged. "A thief, a slaver, a killer – the kind that gives honest killers a bad name."/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"She sighed, "Varl told me there would be bandit ambushes on the road." She hadn't thought to encounter any so soon, so close to the gates./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;""Well, it's not all good news. They don't always come to you. Most dig out a camp, and there they'll sit, like spoil on meat."/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"She found his wording a little odd, but pressed on, a smirk coming to her lips. "Unless… someone does something about it?"/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"His smirk widened, his grey eyes shining. "I like you. Follow the trail of smoke, on the other side of the ruins. I'll be there." And with that, he was off./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"Aloy stood for a moment, unsure if she should follow. He had said he liked her, why? She wasn't sure she would get used to that. First Erend, now this Carja. They knew nothing about her but decided they liked her after only a bit of conversation. It was unnerving. However, taking out a bandit camp would benefit all in the region. The last thing the Nora needed was another threat./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"She mounted her Strider and headed in the direction the Carja had taken. She didn't lead the mount at a fast pace, unsure of the Carja's motivations. For all she knew, he could be leading her into a trap./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"As she crested the hill, she saw the Carja's headdress. She took a moment to examine the man as he crouched in the grass. He didn't look like the men who had attacked the Proving. His body was lean and tight, as many of the Nora she had seen. His chest and abdomen were sculpted in fine lines, which were left exposed by the vest he wore. She found it odd that he wore so little armor. If he was a bandit hunter, shouldn't he at least have some protection? His skin was a soft brown, like the leather armor she wore, and he sported a black goatee. His grey eyes turned to her, sensing her presence and she knew she couldn't stand there staring at him any longer. She dismounted and approached, crouching in the grass next to him./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;""I'm glad you came." He nodded his approval./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;""You're glad, why?'/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;""Call in a shared interest. And call me Nil."/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"A shared interest? Why did people keep speaking to her this way? She could tell by the look he gave her that he was sizing her up, but she was unsure as to why./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;""Look there – those old rocks? A bandit clan squats under them. Disturb the rocks, and they'll come wriggling out, worms that they are."/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"She was slightly disturbed by the imagery he conjured. "Bandits, why have they come here?"/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"He gave her a slightly condescending look but answered her anyway. "The Nora are in trouble. Rumors spread like blood. With no Braves to guard the border, killers hungry for sport slip right through." He smiled at the last bit, and it had Aloy wondering if he was still referring to the bandits or himself. "My partner and I shadowed these scum for days. Good tracker, but he went on ahead without me. We'd talked about this kind of behavior." He sighed and shrugged. "Still I understand. Leave it too long and your fingers itch for the bowstring. Say, how about you and I work together? Kill them all?"/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;""I don't know you and I have no reason to trust you." She stated flatly./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"He smirked again. "Trust is a rare egg to find, isn't it? I'm just a traveler, with a bow, concerned about the state of these lands, and a missing partner."/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;""I don't think you're 'just' anything at all." Aloy's apprehension over the man in front of her began to grow as something nagged at her, telling her he wasn't being completely honest with her./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"He hummed, trying to decide what to say next. "Let me put it another way. Are you a bandit?"/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"She was slightly offended by the question, huffing her exasperation. "Of course not!"/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;""Then you have nothing to fear from me." His smile was slightly devious, setting her teeth on edge, but she could see that he was telling the truth. He wouldn't attack her or turn on her, not in this moment at least./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;""Alright, someone has to stop them from hurting others." She resigned to her new partner./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;""And we will. We'll stop them from doing anything, save screaming a while. Go ahead and take the lead. I look forward to seeing what you are capable of." He leered down at her then and she felt like she was his prey, even though he had just said he wouldn't hurt her./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"She went ahead of him and she could feel his eyes on her body. It stirred something within her, something that was very unwelcome in this moment. She felt as if she should have told him she could do this alone. But, even if she was a near-perfect shot with her bow, she felt this would be a daunting task to complete all by herself. She sighted the alarm as he pointed it out, nocking her arrow, and she felt his skin brush against hers. He sidled up next to her, aiming the sentry just above the alarm. His shot would hit, just as hers did, giving nothing away./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"She loosed the arrow, happy when it met the distant target and she heard the snap of Nil's bow as well. He shadowed her to the gates, taking out two more sentries as she took out the ones who came to investigate./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"They entered the camp and were nearly through all of the bandits when cries of alarm sounded. They had been seen. Aloy strapped her bow to her back and palmed her spear. Nil did the same, pulling daggers from his waistband. A slow smile crept along his face as if this was what he had desired from the beginning. They nodded to each other and leaped from their hiding place./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"Aloy's spear split the first bandit through the middle. Nil's daggers slitting the throat of the man before him. Blood sprayed them both as their targets fell./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"In a rush of adrenaline, Aloy charged her next two combatants, bringing her spear arching over her head and spinning her body in mid-air beheading both in one swoop. When she landed, her pulse was racing. She surveyed the area looking for her next target but found none. She tapped her Focus but detected no more enemies. She was breathing heavily, her body now ramped up and ready for a fight that wouldn't come. She tried to shake the nerves from her hands and arms, but it wouldn't calm./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"Nil approached her then, his body coated in crimson liquid. She knew she must look the same./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;""Feels good, doesn't it? Hold it inside of you, one last breath. Then let it out." He breathed in deeply, a look of pure elation on his face, but that was not what held her attention. Nil stood erect in his trousers. She had never seen a man in full arousal, and after what they had just done, she was semi-disgusted and completely turned on./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"He saw where her eyes landed and his voice became husky as he closed the distance between them. "You can touch it, if you want."/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"Aloy's heart pounded in her chest. An answering wetness coated her below. "I… uh…" she had no words, and Nil inched ever closer. His fingers finding her bare skin and sliding through the blood that coated her arm. It made his arousal twitch and goosebumps crawl along her flesh. Her eyes closed of their own volition and a shaky breath escaped her lips./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;""Nora girl, so wound, like a bowstring ready to snap." His lips found hers and he pressed his hard length into her hip. His fingers slid into her hair, tugging gently as he tilted her head back, nipping at her pulse./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"Her hand found his hardened length without thought. He moaned into her skin. His hand slipping under her armor to tweak her pearled nipples. She gasped at the touch. Her mind refused to come back to sanity. She knew this was wrong. She knew everything about this situation was disgusting. But his teeth, his hands, they were making her feel things she had never felt before./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"She didn't remember removing her armor, but one second it was there and the next her body and his were exposed to the cold, wet air. He took hold of her coppery strands and her waist, pushing her against the side of the cabin closest to them. The hand that had been holding her waist slipped between them and his fingers found her core. He rubbed at the little nub, sending her brain into overdrive. She came quickly, having never felt another's touch where only her hands had been before. She had thought she'd reached the peak of pleasure, but then his fingers delved inside of her. She screamed, causing Nil to growl into her mouth. His lips pressed into her, hard and unforgiving. He worked his fingers, pumping in and out of her. With every stroke, he sped up causing tiny bursting moans./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"She wasn't sure when he removed his fingers and began stroking her opening with his cock, but she knew in this moment, she couldn't have said no, even if she wanted to. Her body was his./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"As his head penetrated her, he lifted her leg to give himself more room. The pain of his entry was sublime. It seemed to fit that this should hurt. But the pain quickly dissipated as he filled her. He pumped sure and hard, her back pounding into the wooden siding. He dipped his head to capture her nipple into his mouth. She went dizzy at the shared sensations pulsing through her./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"She came around his cock, her insides pulsing and Nil lost his pounding rhythm. He pulled out of her a few moments later, and as he saw her blood coating him, he didn't even have to touch himself to finish. The pulsing organ spewing along her thigh./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;""Already bleeding for me." He leaned in and captured her mouth once more./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"When it was over, and they were gathering their belongings Aloy wondered if she would regret this moment. For now, all she could feel was complete satisfaction./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;""We shall meet again, Huntress." Nil smiled as he walked away./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"Aloy wasn't sad to see him leave, but she felt a thrill course through her body and hoped his words were true./p