The wind rushed by my ears as I galloped past the fields atop my Charger. Dusk had fallen and the lens flare of my machine bighorn sheep thingie glared a bright blue light across the road ahead leading to my current destination. Which so happens to be none other a cauldron, or in this case; the 'haunted ground' as people tend to call it. From what I had heard, that cauldron was different from any I've ever seen and not in a good way. Because everyone seemed pretty terrified of it from how they start shitting ingots every time I ask about it until an Utaru scout told me a few words of warning.
Listen, Carja. There's something you need to know. To the far north, there's a forest infested with evil spirits. Many have ventured there and were never heard from again. There have been sightings of a group of dead bodies scattered above a metal ground by a triangle shaped door. You'd best stay clear of the Haunted Ground.
Got it! Going to that place it is, then!
I'm so paying that Haunted Ground a visit. If there's ever an opportunity to uncover a mystery and learn something new in the process, I gotta clutch it between my teeth. And it's not just about the override. Because apparently that cauldron has something that no other cauldron possessed and whatever that is, it caused a lot of trouble and tragedy. So I gotta see what all that is about. Meanwhile let's recap to a couple days ago.
Killing machines is one of my specialties. And that specialty, understandably so, is in high demand when you have killer robotic animals for nextdoor neighbors. Now I have another job requiring said specialty, and that would be assisting a group of Utaru farmers with their struggle against the deadly junkyards. Classic.
It was thanks to this little tip I had heard from that Tenakth scout this morning that I was able to learn about this whole issue. Those guys sure are right when they say that you need to keep your ears strained for every nitpit of information when it comes to survival in the wild, whether mine or anyone else's.
"Watch out, Outlander. Southwest of here is a Grimhorn site that's causing trouble for a small Utaru settlement. You might want to provide assistance." And that's exactly where I'm planning to head off to whenever I could. After thanking the woman for providing me with the piece of info, I went to scrap some jobs off of my do-to list of upgrading my arrow pouch, my spike thrower – which I refer to as my boomstick – finishing a contract and helping out folk from the other tribes. The Utarus should be okay for a couple more hours before I show up, no?
And off I went to do my next job, which involved around this one Oseram chick who told me to find her missing cousin. She said that the last time she'd seen him was when they got involved in a fight and like an anime character, he ran off in distress. This wouldn't be the first time I get exposed to drama like this when I get involved in a missing person's case and sure as hell wouldn't be the last.
And so I did the routine job of heading over to where the girl had told me she saw her overdramatic cousin run off to, and did the routine of using my Focus to track down the guy, and did the routine of finishing off some machine bitches on the way. Until I have finally found him seeking refuge atop a boulder surrounded by a trio of Leapslashers, who had received the same treatment I provide to most machines I meet: stuffing them with arrows.
Once their dead still sparkling bodies littered the grass, the subject of my quest jumped down the boulder to come greet me properly.
"Never thought I'd see a Carja around here. You have my thanks for saving me from those pesky machines. I thought I was a goner for sure." I told him to go back to his cousin before she loses her mind. Seemingly, he felt bad for what had happened between him and the girl. Turns out that she accused him of hoarding too much scrap for himself and he kept denying.
"…and don't run off like that again just because you had an argument." I added. "Remember we're not alone. There are machines out there looking for fresh meat. You could always resolve your issues without inviting the machines to chase after you."
"Thank you, Outlander. I didn't want to admit it but I realized that I do have a bigger portion of the scavenge and that's why I went for this site where I could find extra scrap piles to make up for it. I thought I'd find just Scroungers but I ended up with Leapslashers instead. But thanks to you, I can finally share what I find with my cuz." And then I watched him run off in the direction of the Oseram camp. Luckily, he didn't make it very far on his little runaway charade so the journey back should be quick and safe.
Yet another soul I saved. I thought with a satisfied grin.
Speaking of which, I might as well go assist the Utaru group I heard about earlier. While my chores didn't take too long, I started doing them somewhat late and it was getting dark. And just like that, I was trotting with my Clawstrider beneath the purplish orange sky to finally help out the grass eaters. Ahem, don't tell them I said that!
"Outlander! Over here!" one of them waved for me as I yeeted myself off my mount and landed with my spear straight inside a Borrower instantly finishing it off. Its body emitted one last spark before its eye lens turned completely dark and body laid still. It was the last Borrower here as others of the same type were already dead thanks to the Utarus. But it was far from over. I had to watch out for a pair – no, five horns dashing in my direction. All sprouting from a face shrouded in threatening yet VERY familiar angry red light coming from a single eye lens inside its mouth. I hurriedly dodged as the Grimhorn rushed past me like a truck – you know, one of those strange vehicles I've seen pictures of that the Old Ones made - before nocking an arrow to my bow and aiming at the blaze sac attached to its back. My arrow shot off rabidly right to where I aimed it, causing the targeted part to glow and emit distinct mechanical noise as if disapproving of the abuse.
Now let's be reminded what that damn thing's weakness was again. And in a second, my Focus scanned the machine for all the info I needed. Hmmm, acid it is then.
"Kill the machines!" "Hurry! Shoot that thing!" "Watch out!" "It's coming in that direction!" "Ah crap!"
I could hear the alarmed yells and outraged screams of my company as I was just done dousing the Ceratopsian machine with the corrosive chemical using my acid bow. Its whole body got covered in green and its body parts would glow noisily in protest as its armor gradually weakened. I made sure to inflict the blight on its two other friends to make things easier. And thus, me and the Utarus were facing off against three unhappy acid covered massive machines whose horns produce fire.
I made sure to dodge and aim at the weakspots being revealed to me by my device which marked them with golden glows only I can see. I shot my boomstick at that one's torso while dodging the charge of another giving me an opening to have a shot at its tail; Arrow hitting the designated target with a loud bang.
"Ugh!" I grunted as one of the Grimhorns finally managed to land a hit on me with its horns, and I almost got my ponytail scorched by the flames from another one. I quickly made to put some distance between me and those monstrosities before stuffing my face with medical berries. "Much better." I mumbled to myself before hurling another boomstick at that blasted blaze sac, finally removing it off its hinges with an explosion – that upgrade gave off good results after all - And shot another arrow to break off the horn of another machine. The third one already lost its frill.
The fight went on for a few more minutes. Arrows flying against flames. Machetes hitting against horns. Parts were torn off and blood was shed. Every time an Utaru gets hit, their squadmate quickly rushes to their cover. Even my mount helped out here and there and managed to deal a good chunk of damage to our adversaries. The raptor machine leapt on one of the Grimhorns with a screech tearing off a tail clamp with its claws, before it was sent flying by a ram from another one. Yeah, I could already feel the pain in my shard sac that I'm gonna use to fix that thing…
One of the Utaru men managed to finish off a Grimhorn with a well-aimed arrow at the frill. While that woman managed to shoot off the tail capsule which was exposed when my raptor hit the tail clamp, followed by an arrow to the mouth from me, promptly killing off the machine. Sparks flew and parts exploded away before it fell down to the ground, eye turning lifelessly off.
Ok, two down. One more to go.
But where is the third one?
It was a stupid question considering something that big and angry couldn't be missed. Said big and angry thing blew off fire at us from the tip of its remaining horn before I shut it up with a strike of my arrow breaking the horn off. The other Utarus kept on shooting arrows and swinging with machetes at the last now hornless Grimhorn wherever they could aim without mercy. Until the machine died at the final strike courtesy of my arrow tearing off the tail clamp at full draw.
Everyone could breathe easy now that the battle was over. No casualties but they were definitely wounded.
While the farmers tended to their injuries, I took the opportunity of stripping the machines of their parts and didn't neglect to gather the ones that flew off midfight. Those horns have been driving me insane to get and off into my hammerspace pockets they went.
I could hear my company murmuring worriedly amongst themselves while I was scavenging for shit in the background like a moron oblivious to the subject of their discussion. But I had no interest in interfering with what I assumed was none of my business so I minded mine and carried on with rummaging for the collectibles until I suddenly remembered my poor Clawstrider who was standing over there emitting sparks from its injuries.
"You sure do cost me a lot of shards, do ya, pal?" I chuckled as I approached my mount to fix it back into shape. Once my pet machine was taken care of – and me with less shards – I went back to stuff my pants with anything I find useful like a hungry Oseram.
"Outlander. Over here." I heard one of those guys calling for me just as I pocketed a couple of medicinal berries. I consumed like eight of them during the fight and it wouldn't be the first time I'm forced to restock after an annoying ass rumble like the case earlier. That's just how pain in the cheeks Grimhorns are.
"Is everyone alright?" I approached the group. And when I finally took a closer look, I saw that they were three men and two women. All dressed in their usual grass and wicker outfits making them look like a group of baskets. Their white leave pattern tattoos on their arms and faces make a sharp contrast to their tanned skin.
"Glash yo showed up." Said a guy as he was holding one end of a bandage between his teeth to tie it around his forearm.
"Those machines have been a constant threat to us since we got here." Explained a young woman as she adjusted her bow around her torso. She had a bandage wrapped around her ankle. "We chose to camp in this place for a while seeing as it had abundant vegetation and spots to collect plants and herbs from. Its major downside is that it is right next to a Grimhorn site."
"Pfft. Just our luck." Scoffed another woman who was the tallest in the group.
"We were lucky indeed to have our savior show up!" appeared another male who looked way too cheerful for someone with a bloodied bandage wrapped around his head. "Now that those Grimbags are gone, we can finally harvest in peace thanks to our Carja friend here." He said as he merrily clapped his clanmate's back causing the latter to bark out a small yelp.
"Watch it, Ahmik. His back is bruised." Growled the tall woman. She pressed a small piece of cotton to her shoulder where little blood trickled from. The third male next to her flinched a little as he did the same to a cut on his pec. Luckily they seemed to have been able to stay clear of the grimhorns' flames as none of them suffered any burns. All in all, their injuries were nothing too serious.
"Oh don't be such a sourpuss, Zohha. Surely a guy who got smashed by a machine can handle a simple slap, amirite?" chuckled Ahmik.
"Well, that's the problem…" mumbled Zohha, clearly seeing no point in arguing against such cheerfulness. Apparently, the victory got the guy into such a good mood. Like a weight that just fucked off his shoulders. Just how long were they being harassed by those machines? Now I kinda feel bad for taking my time to come to their rescue. I mean I could have arrived to help earlier but I had too much to do on my list. And as much as those people needed the assistance, there were others who needed it as well. Not to mention the upgrades I had to undergo to guarantee better performance when I do come for someone's backup. So basically everyone had the same priorities.
"We need to get some rest, Ahmik." Said the same girl who had explained the case to me earlier. Her hand on her clanmate's shoulder with concern showing on her eyebrows. I guessed he's the leader of that small group.
"Yulia, take everyone back to camp. I'll be with you shortly." The Yulia chick nodded before escorting the others to where they can get to relax properly.
"So, to who do I owe our victory, savior?" grinned Ahmik.
"Just call me Talanah." I smiled humbly.
"Thanks a bunch, Talanah. We've been fending off those inferno sacs for days. Then you grace us with your presence and our problem is suddenly solved!" Before I could answer, his goofy face suddenly melted into one of concern.
"Is everything alright?"
"Look, I don't want to look like I'm asking for much." He said raising his hand. "But the machines weren't our only problem. A group of Tenakth rebels seem to have made camp and you know those savages don't share lands. We would fight them off but …" he gestured to his bandage.
"Say no more, buddy." I put my hand on his shoulder. "Just leave them to me. And before you know it, you and your squad will be bathing in herb concoctions."
"All by yourself? That's impossible. Do you know how big their number is? They may not be an army but it's still an entire outpost out there." He said waving his arm at the general direction of where the outpost was. But all I saw was pitch black darkness interrupted by the bright blue of machine lens flares in the far distance underneath the starry nightsky.
"Because you haven't seen me in action against those guys, that's all." I reassured with a grin. If I told him I had singlehandedly taken out entire camps and outposts of those tattoo'd douchbags, he'd have a better time believing that I eat Thunderjaw's heart for breakfast.
"Still I'd like to help you out. You helped us with the Grimhorns so I'll help you with the rebels."
"Except that you're injured. You and your friends stay here and recover while I go and handle those guys by myself."
"But-"
"No buts! I'm going alone and that's final!"
Before he had time to object, we were approached by Yulia. "Ahmik, maybe we should discuss this issue in the morning. None of us are in the mood for anything else right now." That seemed to get the guy to calm down a bit. So he nodded and we all headed to their camp. They invited me to spend the night with them and while I wasn't very tired, I figured I might as well settle down for bit during what little freetime left for me.
Everyone were snoring their asses off on their bedrolls while I stayed a fair distance on my own sleeping spot. The camp was a relatively cozy place covered by a canopy supported by thick branches forming a roof above our heads. In the corner, there were supply crates next to a workbench. There was also a cart containing pots half full of whatever plants and herbs the Utarus managed to acquire. Right across from the loot, said group of people was lying down on round mattresses made out of the same material that made up their clothes: grass and wicker. A few feet outside the camp, there was a dead Lancehorn missing one of its horns was being kept up straight on its legs using a few rigid support beams. A practice dummy, I presume.
I was sitting up straight with my Focus on to scan for anything that would occupy my mind until I could fall asleep. My Focus accidentally fell on one of the sleeping Utarus and his body partially glowed in purple under the device's scan. When my device is on, it enhances my sight and hearing. Not only could I activate visual analysis, but I could hear voices at much bigger distances even from behind walls. And so when I analyzed the sleeping form a few feet from me, my ears caught the sounds of some… noise pollution. In one of the Utarus' sleep, the sound of his snoring is comparable to that of a Longleg's screech. Dunno how the others are sleeping through that but either they are heavy sleepers or they're just ignoring the noise. Gotta pay attention to something else before I go deaf.
I moved my head around until the hologram target circle in my line of sight fell on a glyph on top of a small round table by a weapons rack nearby the sleeping folk. It was covered in a purple glow topped with small shiny triangles of the same color marking its presence. Once the scan was done loading, the screen opened for me to see what that was about, which wasn't much beyond a list of what those guys have been planning to collect.
Handwritten glyph
Item list
Beamstem ×20
Bitterleaf ×10
Medicinal Skybursh ×40
Azure bloom ×10
Fire kiln root ×30
Once collecting the items on the list is over, we take half of them to the tribe, the other half is for trade.
I aimed my attention at another glyph not too far from where I'm sitting. That one seemed suspicious as it was hidden beneath a leather cover as if whoever kept it there didn't want anyone to see it. But not me. It was thanks to my Focus that it was glowing from its hiding place as if inviting me to open it. When I scanned its contents, I couldn't believe what the hell I was reading.
Handwritten glyph
Data corruption minimal
The shadow people
I saw them! They were everywhere! Black shadows! One of them as big as a Tallneck! The rumors were right! That place is infested with evil beings! They had us surrounded but I managed to escape! One of them got ahold of Kai and he got (data corrupted)
My entire squad didn't make it. Those things couldn't be harmed no matter how many arrows we shoot at them. I'd rather be stuck in a cave with a Rollerback, a Shellsnapper and an entire clan of Clumberjaws than encounter any of those freaks again.
They were like ghosts. Entities from another world. Harm yet cannot be harmed. It was the most terrifying (data corrupted)
I hear one of them approaching (data corrupted) they twisted my leg. I can't run anymore. I'm an easy kill. Now they will (data corrupted) this is the end for me. They told us not to go and we should have fucking listened.
There it is. The ghost. That son of a (data corrupted)
BEWARE OF THE SHADOW PEOPLE!
Once the Focus turned off, it felt like I was back to earth again. That glyph contained the weirdest shit I've ever read. Ghosts? Shadow people? What was that all about? I've read about people getting attacked by either machines or rebels. But ghosts? What kind of paranormal mumbo-jumbo was that?!
"Hey." My Focus almost flew off my temple from the scare of Ahmik suddenly showing up. "Whoa there! Getting spooked on me all of a sudden? And I thought the mighty machine slayer is known for having nerves as strong as the machine steel itself!" he giggled as he took a seat next to me and handed me a large steel mug of ale while nursing one of his own.
"Well, it was thanks to your glyph over there." I gestured to where I have found the little horror story.
"Nah I was just teasing ya - wait, how did you know?" he curiously leaned in my direction, ale almost spilling from his mug. With a smirk, I tapped my Focus which was all he needed to know. "Ah the one that sees the unseen. That's why you seemed so familiar." he wiggled a finger at me. "Been hearing rumors of a blackhaired Carja with the fighting ferocity of the Tenakth themselves. My doubts were especially confirmed when I saw you showing up on that Clawstrider."
"Word got around, mm?" I mumbled as I was lowkey scanning the ale for anything suspicious. However friendly I am to strangers, I'm by no means 100% trusting. I know those guys mean no harm but where I come from, there's no such thing as being too careful.
Ale
A type of beer brewed using a warm fermentation method, resulting in a sweet, full-bodied and fruity taste.
No signs of funny business. Yup, looking good.
"So you're going to tell me about that glyph?" I narrowed my eyes playfully as if leaving no room to hide anything, taking my first sip of the drink feeling its flavor invade my taste buds.
"Aahh…" he hesitated rubbing the back of his bandaged head. "Alright, I'll bite. But I want this between you and me. I didn't tell the others about it cuz they already have enough on their plates."
"It's that serious, huh?" I remarked as I eyed him sideways taking another bigger sip. Man, I never realized I needed that stuff until now.
"I don't know much myself but…" he turned his head towards the others to make sure they're asleep before speaking in a lower voice. "From what I had learned, it has something to do with the paranormal. But as you can see, there's not much details beyond that whatever those shadow people are, they don't sound like someone you'd wanna cross paths with."
"Where did you find the note anyway?"
"Oh you would not believe that one. I found the note on a Tenakth soldier who attacked me yesterday morning when I went to search for more herbs." He downed his drink almost finishing half of it in a single mouthful, slowly swallowing what remained in his mouth as if mentally preparing himself for what he's about to tell me next. "You should have seen his face, Talanah. His expression was distorted, his eyes were completely white and he was foaming at the mouth. His movements were sporadic and unnatural and some weird noises came out of him. Even his foot was facing the opposite direction for goodness sake and that didn't even stop him. It was like he got possessed by… an evil jinn."
I almost spat out my ale. "*cough**cough* an evil jinn? Really?" I rasped.
"Keep it down!" he hissed. "My grandfather used to tell me about them when I was younger. Tales about explorers going into places and never make it back out and it's not because of the machines. Objects moving on their own. People getting hurt or even possessed. Shadow figures were even sighted. Everybody thinks it's the wicked spirits. They were the talk of my tribe recently. And even then nobody really knows much about them besides the fact that they're otherworldly beings. Deadly even."
I went silent and closed my eyes trying to take it in. some of that was actually familiar. "You know, I've seen recordings from the Old Ones. Some of them were self-proclaimed ghost hunters who used to venture into what they believed were haunted places."
"Yes! That's exactly what I'm getting at!"
"Hey, keep it down-"
"According to the note, those Tenakth weren't there to find someone to bully." He continued in a lower voice. "They probably knew that place was haunted and so they headed over to investigate. They didn't know how true that was until it was too late."
"Where was that?"
"I'm not sure exactly but I have heard rumors that the incident took place on... a ground made of metal." I fought back a grin. Nothing fits that description like a cauldron. My favorite place. And you know what a cauldron means? More machines to override! And when I want to learn a new override, not even ghosts can stop me.
"What about that Tenakth settlement you mentioned?"
"It is 5 miles northeast of here. I was desperate for a place where I could find something to feed my tribe without the constant threat of machines. And what do I find instead? A Tenakth rebel and a possessed one at that! He must have survived long enough to write down that message before those… 'ghosts' got him and turned him into what he was." I gulped as if that would help me swallow all that crazy talk. But that was akin to swallowing a machine heart.
"Listen, Ahmik. Even if any of this was true, that doesn't necessarily mean it was the doing of something paranormal. And those black shadow people? They might have been something else." I expected him to show outrage at my attempt to debunk the jinn theory but to my surprise, he breathed softly through his nose and sipped his ale seemingly contemplating my words. Because let's face it: the people here can become superstitious sometimes and annoyingly so. That's why I have learned to never take their word for it when they start talking nonsense.
Last year, before I arrived at the Forbidden West, I was helping out a group of Noras who wouldn't shut up about that forest being haunted somewhere a few miles away from their camp. When I headed over to investigate, turned out it was a Stalker site. With the machine's ability to turn invisible, combined with the Noras' tendency to believe in bullshit, they automatically assumed it was the work of a paranormal activity.
Ghosts were shooting lasers at us! Be careful, Carja! I rolled my eyes at the memory. It's not like they weren't familiar with a Stalker. They simply didn't know what the machine was capable of. And to go so far as to think it was something else entirely is kinda amusing now that I think about it.
I mean to be frank; I've seen lots of Old Ones' recordings back at my base from that large ancient online platform known as YouTube. And while I'm inclined to be openminded and choose to stay neutral in case those things were actually real, I had a hard time knowing what to believe from any of that mindfuckery. Gotta admit those so-called 'videos' were pretty interesting to see, albeit a bit unnerving at times, yet they were most likely nothing more than special effects made by the makers to make it seem like it was real. In retrospect, sometimes I'd ask myself if these weird phenomena could be for real to be perfectly truthful. And even if they were real, it's just tricky to tell the difference between genuine and fake content. But one thing is for sure: those recordings were hella fun to watch!
"You might be right actually. Then could this be a new trick pulled by the machines?" wondered the Utaru with his mouth hovering over the rim of his mug.
"Never heard of machines creating images of shadow people." I mumbled before downing the last drops of ale.
"Then what do you think they were?!"
"A group of normal humans dressed in dark clothes and using shadow tricks?" I shrugged.
"Still doesn't make sense. The note said they can't be harmed, remember? And what kind of humans that could slaughter a whole group of hard trained figh - No, no, no. not buying that." he blinked repeatedly.
"One way to find out. I go over there and see what's out there myself." Aaaand I regretted it the moment I said that.
"I'll come with you!"
"Ahmik, no." I deadpanned.
"Just hear me out." He adjusted his seat to face me better. His now wide-open eyes locked with mine. "It might be dangerous for you to go alone. Think about it: The Tenakth are powerful warriors. Even if it was a machine that wiped them out, they should have been able to fight back and at least survive. But whatever was out there must have been strong enough to kill off an entire squad with no chance to defend themselves."
"All the more reason I should go alone. Don't want anyone else getting hurt."
"You WILL get hurt too."
"You might get hurt worse than me!"
"Better than letting you get hurt alone!"
"That's not any better!"
"Yes, it is!"
"…." I breathed hard through my nose. I tried to facepalm but my hand met the headgear I'm wearing. This level of stubbornness is what's preventing me from doing my job in peace. It's not that I mind having some company by my side – if anything, it's more than welcomed – but unless you're a veteran fighter, you'll end up more of a liability than an asset. And those guys barely stood against the Grimhorns even with their teamwork. If I go alone, it will be easier for everyone involved. But let's face it: this whole thing is unsettling to think about. However, if we thought rationally, we might end up discovering that whatever those entities were, while most likely powerful, may not be ghosts after all.
"Talanah-"
"There has to be a logical explanation." I asserted putting my empty mug firmly on the ground. "There has to be a reason why those Tenakth didn't make it. Maybe it was something else… eh, I dunno. Something they missed." I shook my head as I spoke, feeling my ponytail swishing from behind. I realize my attempt at explaining this bizarre case sounded awfully lame, but I was desperate to make sense of any of this.
"Oh they missed it alright. They walked into evil jinn territory. That's what they missed." He emphasized by poking my shoulder before emptying his mug as well.
I stayed silent thinking deeply about it. If those things weren't machines, what could they be? Because if it really was a machine, it must be a new type capable of pulling off whatever killed the Tenakth. But what if it wasn't a machine? What if that thing can't be killed yet pretty much capable of slaughtering an entire group of warriors? In both cases, we're talking about a new horrible threat. One we have never faced before. And it's probably deadlier than a Thunderjaw and a Stormbird combined.
"Let's discuss it tomorrow." yawned Ahmik. "All that talk about ghosts and spirits can really wear a guy out." He got up taking the mugs with him before we wished each other a goodnight and he left to lie down next to his tribemates.
I supposed I could use the rest as well. Got an outpost to annihilate tomorrow and some shuteye should help me pull that off nicely and smoothly.
I rested my head on my palm slowly closing my eyes. My last thought before completely drifting off to sleep was a sweet new cauldron opening its door for me.
Mmmm. Cauldron….
Overrides...
Ghosts…
Zzzzzz…