"And we're sure there are no other human settlements around? Nothing else at least in close proximity to this one?"
"This is it. Next closest is that one place called E-Rantel, but it's on the other side of the forest. At least according to the map we have."
"Then we need to head in there and start talking. We shall accomplish nothing if we continue to sit here and debate this."
Ankoro shook her head at that, leaning against a tree and crossing her arms.
Ever the blunt one, aren't ya, ol' Coup? Ankoro mused, idly watching as the androsphinx scouted the human settlement that they had been sent to.
From what she knew of historical lumber camps back in the old world, It appeared ordinary enough, save for additional buildings that wouldn't look out of place on a farm. However, this was mostly from an outside perspective, so she'd need to get in and take a look to make a confirmation. There were some additions that didn't fit the definition of a standard lumber camp though.
It was a decently sized, fortified area, complete with stalwart log walls and spikes planted into the ground all around the perimeter. If she had to take a guess as to the population size within, she would wager no more than a few dozen. If they were really pushing to capacity, they could manage maybe a hundred.
Wooden sentry towers lined the entrances of the camp, manned by grizzled men in simple cloth shirts and pants. Bows rested in their hands, looking just as comfortable as if they were holding saws or axes.
What looked unnatural were the steel swords strapped to their belts, hung haphazardly on their hips. While her eyesight had been enhanced, details blurred around twenty-two meters, making it somewhat difficult to make out the expressions of the armed men.
Wonder what's got them all riled up?
"The humans' look ready to go to war, Aunt Ankoro," commented Lupusregina, kneeling by an oak at the tree line right before the settlement. "Think something might've happened to make them fortify so heavily?"
"If we were to take an educated guess, with the disappearances of the dryads, it might not be unreasonable to assume that the humans have either been harassed or had one of their own taken as well," Coup De Grace stated, resting on his haunches in the cool shade of the tree they stood under.
Blue Planet leaned against his staff, absent mildly running his hands along the carved grooves of his chosen gear. He gazed intensely at the lumber camp, his eyes tracing every last detail of the fortification.
He was analyzing, searching for ways to get in and out of the place should things get hairy, Ankoro imagined. But when she herself studied the druid and watched the carefully controlled twitches of his face, she couldn't help but wince.
She knew that ever since they had all arrived in the new world they were in, he had slowly begun...changing. Not in the sense of his core personality, for he was still just as cheerful and nature-loving as he always had been.
Rather, it seemed like something else was developing alongside the old Blue Planet, something that was restless and writhing like a den of snakes. He hadn't calmed down ever since Bellriver came back to Nazarick, something that she still didn't understand.
As far as she knew, he had been missing in action for the last four years of Yggdrasil's lifespan. He had died, and yet, there he was in the middle of a field wearing a crown of dandelions. But the event had been like a switch in her nature-loving friend's mind, and now here they were.
She internally chuckled to herself, with the direction their small adventure had taken. If she didn't know any better, she would say they stumbled upon a hidden quest in Midgard of Yggdrasil.
"Before we even start talking to anybody, we should try and figure out what exactly is on the other side of those walls," the seilenoi said, never taking his eyes off of their objective. "We got summons we can use, and we even have Nubo to check this place out. We have options."
"Yeah! I'd even be willing to go in for you as well, my lords and aunt," Lupusregina offered, giving a fantastic imitation of the senior werewolf's award-winning smile. It filled her with pride to know how closely the junior canine took after her and her brother.
Her closeness with the NPC had been an extremely pleasant surprise that she didn't foresee. Her brother Mekongawa's willingness to take on the creation as his own child was also blindsiding, but it was a decision that had cemented the family dynamic she had now.
She had never given thought to having any family beyond her parents and brother, let alone children of her own or even a niece or nephew to dote on.
But the created werewolf had snuck herself into Ankoro's heart anyways, and provided an opportunity she never entertained the notion of being able to partake in. She reached over to ruffle Lupusregina's hair through her maid's cap.
The NPC looked up in surprise, but giggled and held her hand down. Ankoro grinned fondly and then gently lifted her paw away from the pleiade's scalp.
"No need kiddo," Ankoro easily said, "we got plenty of other expendables to work with, and most importantly, we got me to work with."
Coup De Grace hummed in thought. "Time to go and survey like old times, my friend?"
"Definitely, but first, we should probably get some backup to help out with that. BP, would you do the honors?"
"Are you sure you don't want to just send in the summons?" Blue Planet asked, "it might be safer to send in something we don't really care about, rather than you guys. I'd hate for-"
"Relax, we'll be fine. We used to do this sorta thing all the time back in Yggdrasil, remember? Besides, I'd like to do at least something other than catalog and negotiate with tree spirits."
The Druid looked like he wanted to say something, but nodded and held up two fingers to his ear. "Hey Temperance? Mind if I ask a favor?"
The elder werewolf didn't hear the answer on the other end, but Blue Planet frowned, shaking his head in agitation.
"No, man, listen, we just need some summons. Yeah, shadow demons. I'm thinking maybe three? Send them over when you can."
He lowered his fingers, giving his friend an exasperated look. Ankoro could only chuckle while her partner shrugged. Lupusregina smiled and nodded along.
After about a minute, the shadows of the tree they rested under darkened, and three pillars of murky, black masses rose up. Though they had no eyes, the canine scout got the impression that they were staring at them for orders.
"Me and Coup De Grace are going to scout out that settlement over there," she gestured in the rough direction of the lumberjack camp, "Follow along and make sure nothing sneaks up to bite us in the ass, ya hear? Whatever me and ol' Coup don't look through, you will. Understand?"
The tips of the masses, their heads if she had to assume, shifted as if they nodded. Ankoro glanced over her shoulder to look at her partner. His runes were already flowing with the mana needed to enact the spells needed to successfully sneak through.
She dropped to all fours, her body shapeshifting into a direwolf morph to give her greater speed and agility. "Time to activate [Perfect Unknowable] and get going."
The androsphinx did the same, his fur coat shimmering as the light bent around him and rendered him invisible. The elder werewolf followed suit as she muttered more stealth based spells under her breath, silencing her footfalls and general ambience she emitted.
It was curious to look down at her own paws and see only the grass beneath her. At least she knew that anything below level seventy would be completely fooled, but she could never be too sure, hence the extra spells.
"Shall we?" She inquired of the faux empty space where her survey partner had been.
"Of course. I'd hate to be left behind," the Hunter replied, the only hint of his presence being the grass stamped down where his feet struck.
The two of them then immediately dashed from the tree line, the dust they kicked up sinking down as their spells assigned artificial weight to obscure their existence.
The shadow demons sank into themselves to become flat as puddles, following closely behind. For an irrational moment, Ankoro half wondered if they would melt in the sunlight, but they were quite fine slithering across in broad daylight.
They were at the walls in no time, the scout eyeing the rapidly closing distance between her and the spikes set up. She tensed her legs, pushing off the ground with nary a sound and clearing the wall.
She landed softly, her magic muffling the noise. She had her head on a swivel, noting the buildings in her immediate vicinity. She spotted what she thought to be a storage warehouse, laden high with freshly sawed logs.
Nearby was perhaps a mess hall where several men walked in and out of the doors. Many of them were strangely quiet and downtrodden. They seemed sapped of morale or any sort of positive emotions.
Seems like Coup was onto something after all. But if there really are missing people, I wonder just how many they've lost.
She trotted along the perimeter, weaving past guards and tall, slender buildings she guessed to be outhouses. Much like the men seen coming out of the mess hall, they were of the same downcast spirit as their peers.
Her nose twitched at the pungent scent of sweat and other bodily odors, internally retching at some of them. She chanced a peek at a shadow demon sliding into one of the various buildings, likely taking stock of who or what exactly was around.
While walking, she happened upon a glass building she recognized as a greenhouse, stopping to look through the panes of glass and see what she could find.
Inside were two men that were similarly depressed. They were working diligently, but the plants they tended to were wilting, devoid of color. The dirt was fresh, black with fertilizer, but it didn't nothing to help the plants grow.
One of the men stood up after angrily shoving his spade into the moist earth in front of a Lily that lost all its luster. He was wearing a white, baggy outfit with a mesh net covering his head. He walked up to a wooden box, a few bees lazily zigzagging through the air.
The beekeeper pulled up on a handle, pulling up a frame and revealing a handful more bees buzzing and covering his hand. Ankoro wasn't too familiar with the art of beekeeping, but she recognized when the man didn't find what he was looking for, as he slid the frame back down and sighed.
Sensing there wasn't much more there to see, she left, padding along and swiveling her head for any other places that piqued her interest. She eventually settled on a path that led to a small gate, which in turn led to the earlier buildings that looked at home on a barn.
The gate was closed up tight, a lock keeping it shut and preventing anyone from going in or out. Deciding that she could come back later and take a look, she turned right around and continued on her way.
Eventually she managed to sneak her way to the center of the settlement, seeing a decently large manor that could serve as the home of the camp's leaders.
There was an overhang for the porch, with a window situated above it facing outwards from the second story. It would provide an excellent vantage point for not only her, but whoever else was inside the manor.
Like with the wall, she bounded up easily enough and plodded along the simple wood paneling. She walked up to the window, seeing that it had been left open with the curtains billowing in the mellow breeze.
She gently poked her snout in, sniffing out two different scents, that of two men. She saw the both of them sitting at a polished oak desk, conversing in whispers.
One of them was well beyond his youth, wrinkled as if he spent all of his time drying out in the sun. He was completely bald with age spots sprinkled all around his scalp. His hands were curled up into claws as they rested on the desk.
Unlike most of the lumberjacks she had seen thus far, he wore a simple brown robe that flowed over the chair and down to his boots. There was no other color to his attire except some Forest green at the cuffs of his sleeves.
He sat at the desk with his back towards Ankoro, across from a considerably younger but still older man who was barely entering his twilight years. There were hints of grey in the thick handlebar mustache on his upper lip.
His muscles were massive but losing definition due to age. The sleeves of his work shirt looked ready to tear themselves in half, as did the legs of his pants. Like the man in front of him, he was also bald but lacked the age spots.
Her ears automatically adjusted to tune into the quieter tones.
"I don't know Pops, it just doesn't make sense for Svend to run off like this," said the mustached man in front of the desk, "my boy may love Tulipa, but he knows better than to sneak off like that. Especially with everything that's been going on since the last month."
"Now, now, Bjorn," said the wizened elder with a raised finger, his voice extremely raspy, "You were no different than Svend when you were his age. I agree that recent events have been troublesome, but Svend and Tulipa have proven themselves more than capable of defending each other and others if need be."
"But seriously? His room was empty when I went to check up on him. He's always ready by at least dawn to get his shift done. I should've paid closer attention to the way he was acting last night. I knew that he was off, despite what he said."
"Peace, my son. Svend shall come back home soon enough. All we need is patience, and something to help boost the morale of our workers. We must have faith that all shall work out for the best. The Elder Roots have provided in the past, and they shall continue to do so, I just know it."
The mustached man, who Ankoro assumed was Bjorn, rubbed his face with an exasperated sigh. He looked as if he had had a similar conversation like what just took place many times before.
He gave the elderly man in front of him a pained smile. "Pops, I don't know what you want me to do. We've had too many people go missing over the last month. Too many of our people are losing hope. We're lucky the traders made it in just before this all started, otherwise I feel like the men'd run off from lack of supplies."
The elder, Pops as the senior werewolf would now call him, hummed. He drummed his thin fingers along his desk in thought.
"All we can do now is hope that Naaru pulls through and returns our communications. If worse comes to worse, I will venture into the forest myself to find our boy, you have my word. Without the help of the dryads, however, we are very much on our own and at the mercy of our unseen threat."
As this conversation was happening, Ankoro had slowly slid into the room that both men were in, whatever scrapes or noises she made along the way were heavily muffled by her stealth magic.
She took in the portraits of what she assumed were the two men in their younger years, Bjorn holding a bundle of rags. Perhaps Svend as a baby? It was only in perhaps the earliest portrait that she took note of a plain-faced but strong woman, an arm wrapped around the waist of a teenage Bjorn.
Wonder what happened to her? The werewolf scout mused, wandering around the room as the men continued to talk. She'd mostly tuned it out as she explored the knit-knacks that were strategically placed around the room.
From the entryway to the desk were several podiums where unique artifacts were laid out. One was a mask made of stone, fangs poking out from the upper lip. There were slanted, sharp eye holes to see through and a raised ridge that ended in a spiral on the forehead.
On another was a double edged sword that was wreathed in a combination of fire and ice, with a cross guard forged in the shape of snarling dragon heads and their necks. The handle was wrapped in black cord for easy gripping.
The only other object that really captured her attention was a leather bound book with a raised cover in the shape of an oak tree. Though it was closed, she could see the edges of the pages were cracked with age.
She refocused on the older men who were still seated at the large wooden desk, having fallen silent in contemplation. Ankoro settled by the side of the door, her bulk taking up a good portion of the wall she rested on.
"Naaru really has forbidden the rest of his clan from coming out? There's no way to reach him and ask for a guide to help us find our boy?" Asked Bjorn.
Pops spread his hands placatingly, the creases of his brow becoming valleys. "I'm sorry, but until they themselves come out of the forest, we must keep using written messages. We have no idea what's out there, and we cannot risk more of our men disappearing."
The younger lumberjack quieted, before violently slamming his fist down on the desk hard enough to rattle the reports laid messily. The elder didn't even flinch, patiently folding his hands in front of him.
"Damn it Pops! How much longer is it gonna be until we send out a cry for help to the Adventurer's Guild? Because at this point I'm tempted to just brave the woods myself if it means something gets done around here."
Bjorn stood up before his superior could say anything, shoving away his chair and stomping towards the door.
"I'm gonna go talk with the other supervisors. I can't just wait for whatever damn monster is out there to just drag me kicking and screaming into the forest at night!"
Ankoro scooted over just in time for the lumberjack supervisor to strangle the door knob and throw open the door. He thankfully didn't slam it, as his outburst had slightly hurt her sensitive hearing.
She got up and quickly padded after the man, leaving the elder alone to stew with his thoughts at his desk. She took a flight of stairs down to the first floor, where the lumberjack was pacing agitatedly.
Ankoro was in the living room by then, her wolfish eyes honed in on the man as he ran his hands constantly across a nearby armchair. Based on his expression, he himself didn't seem sure whether he wanted to flip the furniture over or actually sit down.
He decided on the latter, slumping into the plush chair with a sigh. Ankoro circled the perimeter of the space, looking out some of the windows to see if anyone else was coming.
Just from a quick scan of the square room she found an open door that led to a kitchen area and dining room. Another door was completely shut, but the elder werewolf dared not open it for fear of her target seeing it.
She watched Bjorn pinch the bridge of his nose, his marvelous mustache quivering from a mixture of emotions. He stood up again suddenly, the chair scraping across the ground from the force.
He went back to pacing again, muttering under his breath. "Gotta get a search party but we need a guide. Gotta get a search party but we need a guide…"
He sat down and stood up over and over again for a few minutes. Ankoro found herself amused with how quickly Bjorn changed his mind and with how he looked like a fish out of water.
Wait, this guy's son is missing. Why do I think this is fun to watch?
She shook her head and tried to dispel the faint tinge of entertainment, but it was persistent. It was the same way she imagined she would feel by watching a bunny rabbit try to dig itself out of a hole.
Before she could really delve into her feelings and try to sort them out, the lumberjack stood up a final time and headed straight for the front door. He threw it open without a care and stomped outside.
The doorway would be a tight squeeze, but seeing as how Bjorn had left this door open as well, it made her job getting past easier.
With how open these guys seem to leave everything, it's no wonder things managed to sneak by and take their men.
Her mind instantly went back to the creature in the forest, how utterly disgusting and wrong it had seemed. Its ability to mimic different sounds and even speak was an interesting marvel all on its own.
As she followed behind Bjorn and watched him gather up men along the way, to follow him to wherever it was he was leading them, she reflected back on Naaru's words in the grove.
If she had been one of these men, who had to give up everything to come work out in the middle of nowhere to support themselves or even the friends and family they had back home, she wasn't sure if she could resist the temptation of following the voices of loved ones.
It seemed silly, in retrospect, as how could those same loved ones make it out to the forest without being heard or seen. Yet loneliness and isolation even among peers could drive one to desperate thoughts and measures.
After all, she could attest to this. Both her and her brother could, as a matter of fact.
She stopped right before the doors to the same mess hall that she had seen on her way in, a sizable horde of lumberjacks all following after Bjorn inside. She watched them filter in from the side after quickly moving out of the way.
A familiar presence made itself known to her, the feather light touches of Coup De Grace's wings patting her on the back. Rather than looking at where his face would be, she looked down at the indentations in the dried grass he left.
"Follow my footsteps," he whispered low enough for only her sensitive ears to catch. She then watched as he intentionally stepped hard enough to leave semi-permanent footprints.
Ankoro traced them all the way to a nearby warehouse, the same one she had spotted on her initial trip inside of the camp. It was devoid of any life.
"The shadow demons are already scouting around the perimeter," Coup De Grace said, "No one should be coming to bother us, and if they were, we would know."
The she-wolf nodded, then realized that she was still invisible to the naked eye. She dispelled the invisibility and stealth spells she had on, watching as her body steadily reappeared.
"It's one thing to do it ingame, but another thing entirely to see it happen in real life."
She returned to a bipedal stance, placing one hand on her hip as the androsphinx revealed himself to her. As always, he was in a quadrupedal mode. His runes were softly glowing as he cut off the rest of his spells.
He narrowed his solid electric blue eyes. "What have you managed to find out from your portion of the scouting?"
Ankoro shrugged and recounted what little she had seen. Her partner nodded every so often, though he raised an eyebrow when she described the artifacts that were in the manor's office. His brow furrowed when she explained the two older men that had been arguing.
"And you're sure that you didn't recognize any of them? Maybe some Yggdrasil items?" the hunter asked, his wings fluffing themselves in thought.
The werewolf scout shook her head. "Nah. At least I don't think so. Haven't really seen anything that screams 'Yggdrasil' since we got here. Why? Something sound familiar to you?"
"I'm not too sure, but the book sounds like it could be of interest. Blue Planet might want it on account of the tree."
"I don't think our resident druid is gonna like every little thing that has a theme of nature to it."
Coup De Grace scoffed at that, giving his compatriot an incredulous look. Ankoro tried to hold his gaze for as long as she could before she looked away.
"Okay, yeah, this is Blue Planet that we're talking about here. But still, I don't feel comfortable stealing from an old man whose grandson just went missing."
"Such sentiments didn't stop you from doing what you needed to do in the back alleys of Hong Kong. I remember at least that much from our first time together as a guild."
An involuntary growl of warning lept from her throat at the reminder, taking the andropshinx aback. This time she was able to meet his stare head on. Fiery fury boiled in her chest.
"That was completely different. Besides, Mekon and I cut ourselves off from that life during our little 'gamer break'."
"You mean to tell me that you two actually managed to get out? How many heads had to roll for that to happen?"
"Just one...It was a long three years during the time that I quit Yggdrasil, ya know."
Several thoughts ran through her head as she momentarily lost herself to the memories. She still recalled the dank diner that she and her brother would hide out at, sleeping under the counter and living off the kindness of the old man who ran it.
It really had been a tough few years, and one of the primary reasons why she had to quit playing with her friends in the first place. She imagined that if she had stayed, she would've ended up just like Momonga.
Crazy how time just seems to fly by. And now here we are, with a fresh start.
She dragged herself out of the musings, sighing as she slapped her cheeks to reorient herself. Coup De Grace caught her attention with the clearing of his throat. He inclined his head.
"Apologies, old friend. I did not mean to bring up painful memories. I'm very proud of you for being able to escape that kind of life. We should go and report back. I'm sure Blue Planet and Lupusregina are getting worried by now."
Ankoro said nothing, opting instead to grunt in agreement. Though she tried to shove the resurging thoughts to the back of her head, they seemed intent to keep playing on repeat against her will.
Thanks for apologizing man, but seriously? Dick move.
She was so concerned with her old demons she walked out of the warehouse without reactivating her invisibility. The shadow demons that her partner had set on patrol emerged from the earth in front of her, patiently awaiting her command.
"Go and let Blue Planet and my niece know we'll be back in a few minutes. Just gotta double check and make sure we didn't miss anything."
The summons made no move other than to sink back into the ground as inky puddles and dash across the dirt, sliding up and over the walls with haste.
Her nose twitched as it caught a new scent, before the full force of it slammed her in the face like a sledgehammer.
She gagged and plugged up her nose, waving frantically to ward off the smell that assaulted her.
"God almighty! Did somebody die while we were in there talking? Smells like a public restroom during a rave party."
"That's probably because one of the outhouses is currently occupied at the moment," the feline hunter said from behind her, pointing towards a tall, thin building slightly off to their left.
She retched a few more times before she was able to get her reflexes under control, turning away from the outhouse to see her friend.
"I thought you said that there wouldn't be anybody around to bother us?"
Coup De Grace tilted his head. "Evidently this one would not. I commanded the shadow demons to patrol and keep away those who may pose a threat or attempt to enter the warehouse. It seems whoever is in there did not fit either criteria."
There were some slight groans of pain coming from the cheaply made restroom, only to fall silent moments later. There was no discernible flush, due to its primitive state, but the wooden door flew open once the occupant was done using it.
He was a plain looking man, with ruffled hair as if he had just rolled out of bed. Ankoro Mocchi Mochi raised an eyebrow at how thin he was, despite his apparent work environment.
His overalls and work boots were covered in a fine layer of saw dust and dirt. The man stretched his back out as he slammed the door shut.
"Well, it's settled. I'm never going to eat Pop's cooking ever again," the man said, his face scrunched up in the fading moments of his personal agony.
He rolled his neck, his eyes landing directly on the werewolf scout and androsphinx hunter. It took the former a moment to realize that she had never reactivated her invisibility spells, while the latter tensed up in slight apprehension.
Shit! He can see us! I was hoping to just get in and out before we introduced ourselves, but that just went out the window.
Surprisingly, the skinny man did not scream, or even overly react at all. Instead, his brows raised as he watched the two heteromorphs.
Ankoro was the first to dash forward, reaching their observer in what seemed a split second, blasts of wind flowing off of her sleek form as she pushed off the earth with considerable force.
She clasped a hand over the man's mouth, the man stumbling backwards as her greater strength unintentionally shoved him. She made sure to hold back as much as she could, especially considering what she had heard Garnet did during their first three days in the new world.
The man's cool and collected facade dissolved into something considerably more panicked as his back hit the ground, all the wind being driven out of his lungs. His eyes darted behind the elder canine.
The body of a crossbow nestled itself over Ankoro's shoulder, the tip of an arrow bolt engulfed in blue flame aimed directly at the man's head.
"Apologies, young man," Coup De Grace said with poise, "We do not wish to hurt you. We had hoped to do this in a more...civil manner, but it seems I worded my command to the shadow demons rather poorly. You weren't supposed to see us yet."
The thin lumberjack patted at Ankoro's hand, whose claws were starting to dig into his cheeks. She hastily let go, instead bracing her paw against his chest to hold him down.
"S'no problem at all!" The man said with great enthusiasm, which startled the pair. "You must be those people ol' man Naaru and Pops were always talking about! I knew they weren't growing senile."
His abrupt change in attitude and genuine joy at actually seeing them gave the werewolf scout pause, and the crossbow retracted as well.
"You're not scared of seeing us?" She asked, not moving yet to gauge the man's reaction.
The lumberjack shook his head. "Not at all! Me and my people, we've seen some things out in those woods that are plenty scary, so you two aren't that much scarier in comparison."
The man held up both hands as best he could, to make himself as non threatening as possible. He even went for a friendly smile, showing off teeth as clean and as even as crumbling tombstones in a graveyard.
Ankoro and Coup De Grace shared a look, the werewolf trying to decipher what her friend was thinking through those glowing orbs he called eyes.
Though she was unable to discern his intentions that way, she still sensed them anyway. She gently rose off of the thin lumberjack. However, she kept her claws out in case he changed his mind and chose to attack. She even pulled out one of her divine level Imperial Gold daggers just in case.
"Alright man, We'll trust you, but only because Naaru sent us here to try and find you guys anyways. Who do we need to talk to?"
The lumberjack stood up and beamed at that. "Good! I knew I could trust you the moment I saw you. If Naaru really sent you guys to help us out with our problem, then we need to find Pops as soon as possible and let him know you're here."
"Before we continue any further with that line of thought. I just wish to confirm this so that we are all on the same page. Some of your people have gone missing, correct?" Coup De Grace inquired.
The skinny man made a noise of acknowledgment. "Yeah. Since last month we've had people just up and vanish, but that's something we need to save for when we go and get Pops and the others."
The Androsphinx nodded in agreement. "I saw a good amount of your men started to go towards a rather large building. I believe it may have been your cafeteria."
Ankoro shook her head. "I did too, but this 'Pops' that Mr..."
"You can just call me Arne. That's what everyone calls me anyways," the newly named Arne offered.
"Right. I saw Pops hanging out at the big manor after he argued with someone named Bjorn. Seems like the situation is not being taken care of as well as Bjorn would like."
Arne's face fell at that, and a patch of dirt off to his right suddenly became very interesting to him.
"Pops has always been a follower of the Deep Roots. He has a book that he constantly reads that his dad gave him. It came from a patron of ours a really long time ago, a forest god I think? Naaru and Pops follow its teachings very religiously."
Then the thin man turned in the direction of the manor. "Come on, we should try and find Pops as soon as we can. Something tells me my brother Bjorn will meet us there too, knowing him."
With that said, Arne began to power walk, his forlorn look quickly replaced by something far more determined. Ankoro and Coup De Grace were easily able to keep up.
"So once we do reveal ourselves to the old man, how do we proceed from there?" the elder werewolf asked.
The lumberjack stared ahead and did not meet her eyes. "Well, I don't really know. Like I said, Pops has been holding out hope that someone like you would show up, which is why he hasn't done anything yet."
"Your leader does not seem very competent at his job if he has waited this long to do anything," the feline hunter quipped.
Arne shrugged at that. "He's a follower of faith, and about as stubborn as they come. If he and Naaru agree on something, then he'll be dead before he lets that interfere with their plans. Nauru and him have consulted the book, and apparently they believe that it points towards some savior who will come in our greatest time of need."
Coup De Grace hummed at that, and made no other comment. Just as they were in sight of the manor, the distant sounds of clamor rose up over the camp. Ankoro glanced over her shoulder to see the same group of men that had entered the cafeteria from earlier.
All of them held a weapon of some kind, ranging from axes to swords to bows. A few even carried shields and held maces. Bjorn was at the head of the group, leading them on. They all shared the same expression of raw grief and pure fury, and it was aimed in only one direction.
"It would appear that your peers have come to enact change, which is more than I can say for those back home," the andropshinc said flatley, rising to his hind legs and pulling out his crossbow. It was still loaded.
Ankoro pulled out her secondary dagger from her inventory space, and a golden rope appeared wrapped around her left forearm. She bared her fangs in challenge.
Both her and Coup De Grace took a step in front of Arne.
"They're not going to do something they're gonna regret, are they, Twig?" The elder werewolf asked, raising both daggers to chest level.
"Bjorn probably riled everybody up to try and force Pops to do something. I may be happy to see you, but I don't know if - wait, did you just call me a twig?" Arne asked, appalled.
"I'll admit, you've got a bit of charm to you, but don't let that go to your head."
"Uh…"
"Perhaps now is not the best time for such things. We must first make sure that the lumberjacks do not try and kill the old man," the androsphinx said simply.
It didn't take long for Bjorn and his posse of armed wood cutters to notice the two heteromorphs. Much like Arne, they didn't express the horror and hatred that Ankoro came to expect from humans or those who looked like humans.
The mob stopped, staring down both members of Ainz Ooal Gown. The scout and Hunter stared back, neither side willing to lower their weapons before the other.
Apprehension was still present from the human's side, but they did well in stamping it down. Arne wasn't lying when he said that the lumberjacks saw their fair share of horrifying creatures, for how else could someone see a heteromorph and not run away in terror?
The supervisor stepped forward, pointing a sword towards Arne. "I don't know who the hell these two are, brother, but I'm more interested to see why you're there with them. Mind explaining yourself before we go and meet with Pops?"
Before the slimmer lumberjack could say anything, Ankoro took the lead.
"I'm Ankoro Mocchi Mochi. The gentleman to my side is Coup De Grace. We come from...elsewhere, but we don't want to hurt anybody. We're here on behalf of Naaru."
The looks of frustration and anger on many of the workers' faces vanished as a cacophony of whispers replaced their desire to hunt down their leader. The younger workers looked on with awe at the two guild mates, while the older ones reserved looks of suspicion and judgment.
Bjorn's sword lowered but never completely fell to his side. "You're here because of Naaru? Somebody is actually here to help get us out of this goddamn mess?"
"More like we came out here of our own accord, and then got roped into this little adventure by running into one of his spawn. A child named Pinison," Coup De Grace said, the tip of his bolt dipping slightly.
That name drop seemed to be all the other workers needed to hear, as they fully lowered their weapons in relief and excitement.
Bjorn did not join them, his sword instead flying back up to eye level to point directly at the androsphinx and werewolf's heart.
"So you wouldn't have even shown up if it weren't for some twist of fate! Instead, we would've had to keep waiting for some goddamn 'savior' to come by and either help us find our people or kill whatever's been taking them!"
Arne gently pushed past the scout and hunter to face his brother head on. "That doesn't matter, Bjorn! What matters is that they're here now and they want to help. We need to introduce them to Pops. He'll know what to do from there."
The supervisor snarled, a vein throbbing on his temple. "Why?! So he can meet them and just tell them to wait for somebody else to show up? No thanks."
"Okay look," Ankoro started, pointing her daggers downwards so she could gesture with the handles. "We don't really know what's been going on, but ever since we got here, it seems like some freaky stuff has been going on. Hell, we met something out in those same woods that could talk like a person, but it got away before we could even figure out what it was."
"Did it look like it had a deer skull for a head?" A voice in the mob shouted from the back, raising a hand to indicate who had spoken.
Coup De Grace nodded. "Yes it did. It also appeared as if it were starving, with how thin it was. It also seemed to emit a form of black goo as it ate. You've seen them before?"
Many of the men nodded their heads yes, glancing over the manmade walls of their settlement to the trees beyond as if they expected that very same creature to start crawling over it.
Icy fear weighed on the mob like a snow sheet from an avalanche. Even Bjorn looked uncomfortable discussing the cause of their problems so openly.
Then the supervisor sighed, fully sheathing his blade to focus on Ankoro and Coup De Grace. "You know what? Fine, let's just take you to the old man. I don't think rioting at the manor would have done us much good anyways."
And with that, the mob intermingled with the three individuals ahead of them. They moved as one group the remaining distance towards the largest building in the entire settlement.
The elder werewolf felt the gawking stares of many of the men, all of them having to crane their necks to try and look her in the face. It cemented the fact that ever since she had become her own avatar, she had gained quite the growth spurt.
She waited for any of the men to say something to her, even if it was to ask a basic question about her appearance or what her home was like. None of them were forthcoming and averted their eyes when she tried to meet their gazes.
When they eventually reached the manor, Ankoro noticed how unusually quiet it had become. Even with her enhanced hearing she picked up nothing that indicated something was alive.
She scanned her environment, squinting her eyes to see that the watchtowers still were manned. Only now the guards seemed intently focused on their group, mainly the androsphinx and scout herself.
They had their bows drawn and pulled back, but they were not aimed at her or her partner. Evidently Pops had seen the sizable horde on their way to the manor house, because now he was seated in a wicker chair on the front porch.
He was still garbed in the robes that Ankoro had spied him in, but they gleamed as if freshly washed and dried only minutes ago. His face was clean shaven, making him look like even more of a raisin than he already had been.
"And so my words of wisdom have come to pass, my sons," Pops rasped, struggling out of his rickety chair to stand before them all.
Bjorn huffed and crossed his mighty arms, while Arne kept his attention on his patriarch.
"Did Naaru and I not say that saviors would come to help us in our time of need?" The old man rhetorically asked, spreading his arms. "And now they are here. Here to help us return our kin, if not by blood then by bond."
He took agonizingly slow steps down towards them, meandering over the slight rise of the porch.
"We have long awaited you, they of the Elder Roots. Now you shall help us, and we shall offer whatever it is that you want as compensation for your invaluable services."
Bjorn' s head whipped around at that statement. "Okay wait, hold on a minute. They said they'd help but they haven't even done anything yet. If we're already considering payment, shouldn't we wait until after they've actually found Svend and our people?"
"Peace, Bjorn. Something tells me that if they so choose, they're capable of incredible violence. The fact they haven't ripped us to pieces is proof enough that they're quite kind and just."
"He is not entirely wrong there," Coup De Grace butted in. "At the very least, some of our friends are. Quite violent, a lot of them."
Ankoro tried for her best smile, though it became strained as she grit her teeth. "Dude, we're here to help these guys out, not tell them about what murderhobos our friends can be."
"Apologies. I will say no more."
"But I will admit that we have some more friends just outside of this place. They're waiting for us and probably wondering where we went, so we should probably go and grab them before they start to get all gun-ho and bust in here."
As soon as the elder werewolf finished speaking, the light refracted and shattered like glass around a central point where Pops's chair had been. The chair itself was blown away as the light coalesced into sharp, jagged edges of glass in mid air.
The men gasped and backed away, pulling out their weapons of choice. Bjorn shoved his father behind him, while Arne joined him at his side. The supervisor reached into his pant's pocket and pulled out a short but thick spike-like dagger.
Arne took it gratefully, and the two men watched as the planes of glass came together and smoothed themselves into a homogenous surface a little over seven feet tall.
Ankoro recognized what it was immediately, as did her partner. Both relaxed as the familiar antlers of Blue Planet the Druid pushed through, inclined so as to avoid scraping the roof of the porch.
The men scrambled back further to avoid being gored, their weapons clanging against each other as they tried to both get closer and spread out in their temporary panic.
Arne and Bjorn merely stepped aside to let the horns pass, before the rest of the nature enthusiast came through. His iron wood mask had been fitted into place, and his staff glowed with crackling green mana.
Lupusregina bounded through the portal at his feet, ready for war in her secondary werewolf form. She bared her fangs in challenge and barked, driving the men even further back.
Her head hardly moved, but her eyes shifted around constantly, searching for Ankoro most likely.
The junior and senior werewolves locked eyes, an unspoken question coming from the former to the latter. Ankoro slowly shook her head and made a "time-out" sign.
Lupusregina's wolfish grin faded as she whined. She looked pleadingly to her aunt, only for her to repeat her actions to her niece. The younger wolf let out a huff of air as she reverted back to her usual maid form.
The men let out exclamations of wonder at that, and some of them even began to ogle the youthful woman who now stood before them.
The portal began to collapse in on itself. The tinkling of glass shattering as it coalesced into a small mirror no bigger than the palm of the average man's hand.
Blue Planet had to crouch to fully stand up, as while he would've had clearance enough to stretch out naturally, his antlers prevented it.
His hooves made a sharp clop on the wood, and the cape attached to his armor flapped with his ministrations.
"Sorry I'm late guys," the Druid said politely, "I know you said you would just be a few minutes, but when those guards up at the towers started getting antsy, I figured it was high time to come and get you."
Lupusregina crossed her arms with a look of disappointment. "Yeah! And I thought I'd get to look all cool for my aunt by saving her, but I can't disobey her word."
Ankoro gave the created being a small smile, pushing past the crowd to stand next to her friend. Coup De Grace followed her example, though he had to use his wings to nudge the humans out of the way.
The lumberjacks were star struck, their jaws metaphorically and literally hanging open at Blue Planet's unorthodox arrival.
"I'm surprised you still have a Magic Mirror after all this time, man. How come you didn't use it earlier to get us here?" Ankoro asked.
The seilenoi shrugged. "I was going to, then Nubo gave us a [Gate] to use instead. I didn't want to just fight my way through this camp, so here we are."
"Even still, that's a rare piece you have, old friend," the androsphinx commented, "just make sure you don't lose it."
It was then that the elder werewolf remembered that they were still among other company. She turned to see the group of men staring slack jawed.
"Uh, BP, these are those people we came to see. The three men in the front are Bjorn, Arne, and Pops. They're the leaders of this camp," she said, gesturing to those in question.
All three of them seemed to stumble forward in a daze. The supervisor reached out a hand in greetings.
"We weren't expecting you, or, well, someone quite like you to show up. I'm the one who's called Bjorn."
The atmosphere didn't exactly turn frigid, but it seemed to chill considerably with the aura that Blue Planet started emitting. The Druid took off his mask.
"I'm Blue Planet. Nice to meet you," he said in a professional, clipped tone. The staff had been shoved into the ground deep enough to help it stand upright and free a hand.
He didn't grasp the man's hand with any considerable force, at least from what the scout could see, but the semi tight grip still looked highly uncomfortable.
"Woah! You have a very strong handshake there, sir," the supervisor said, smiling but trying to hold back a grimace.
Ankoro winced, as did her partner. Lupusregina merely looked on with a smug look. Thankfully the moment passed fast enough for it to be barely perceptible except those who truly knew the nature lover.
Bjorn let go, and then Arne came up to also shake Blue Planet's hand. Arne received more or less the same treatment, though he didn't have the same restraint to hide his pain as well.
This more or less continued as the men in the group grew brave enough to come forward and greet the satyr. They would ask some question or grant a small compliment on his attire, but the seilenoi always replied with curt responses and tight smiles.
Shockingly, the last one up was Pops himself.
He must have snuck to the back so he could be the last one to say hello. Probably wants to savor it.
The thought amused her, reminding her of days gone by and of a certain mirelurk back in Nazarick. The old man's expression was so crinkled from the massive smile he held on his face that his facial features had disappeared.
"My word-I-I don't know what to say-please, my name is Hagnar Rolfsson, it is personally my honor to welcome you to this camp. By any chance, do you happen to recognize the name Grover?"
The elder patriarch grasped Blue Planet's outstretched appendage with both hands, shaking quite vigorously.
This caught the Druid off guard, and he offered a genuine smile in return at the senior citizen's antics. It was like watching a child meet their personal hero out in public.
"Name itself somewhat rings a bell, but we'll have to discuss it further before I say anything else."
It was a rather sweet moment, but eventually Pops let go, smoothing his robe down.
"Please, I would say follow me into the manor, but it would appear that your horns may get in the way. Why don't we head over to the mess hall where we can all speak as one? I'll grab the tome while my sons show you the way."
With that, the old man rushed into the house, a new spring to his step that he most likely hadn't had since his younger days.
Bjorn shook his head while Arne laughed, some of the other men joining him.
"Come on, I'll show you where we need to go. Just follow my lead," the supervisor said. He herded the other lumberjacks to walk ahead of the guildmates and pleiade, giving them ample time to talk to each other without interference.
The nature enthusiast pulled his staff out of the ground, and then followed behind the larger mob from a healthy distance. Ankoro and the others joined him.
"So you wanna talk about what's bothering you so much man?" Ankoro asked, taking a page out of Coup De Grace's book.
The Druid didn't say anything at first, then he rubbed the back of his neck in embarrassment. "I'm sorry, is it that noticeable?"
"Just be thankful that it was us who saw, rather than our hosts. Now, tell us what's on your mind," the androsphinx prodded.
The conversation took a pause when the old man caught up with them. Ankoro figured it would have taken much longer for him to arrive and merge with the group. But then again, they hadn't strayed far from the large wooden abode.
Lupusregina's glare could have burned a hole through the patriarch, and he seemed to get the message. He quickly rushed past the heteromorphs to rejoin his sons at the head of the pack.
"Sorry, my lords and aunt. What is the matter, Lord Blue Planet?" the younger werewolf attentively asked.
Blue Planet was still holding onto his iron-wood mask, so he placed it back within his inventory space to have a free hand.
"Alright, don't get me wrong. From what Pinison said, they seem like good people. They give back as much as they take from the environment, and they have a really great relationship with the dryads," he started slowly, gesticulating as he spoke.
"But ever since we learned of their existence, you have not been yourself," Coup De Grace mentioned.
"It's just...ever since we got here, and now I can see nature for the first time, real nature, it just doesn't feel right for someone to be taking from it at all, even if they mean well."
"But they do require the wood for their own needs. They cannot do without it, nor would they last very long if they did."
"I think what Blue Planet means is that with everything that went on back home, it didn't sit right to see nature disappear again before his eyes," Ankoro said, subtle understanding filling her consciousness.
The druid snapped his fingers. "Exactly! And now I have a chance to actually protect it and keep it safe. No more volunteer groups going nowhere to save patches of grass and bushes doomed to die from the start. No more arguing over internet forums with brain dead morons on why we need to repair our ecosystems."
"So that's what you meant earlier when we were on our way to meet that pest Naaru!" Lupusregina exclaimed, "So First World's forests really were gone, or at least very close to disappearing all together."
"You pretty much hit the nail on the head there, Lupus," Blue Planet confirmed, before Ankoro had the chance to reprimand the younger werewolf for her name calling again.
At least she's not a little brat. She'll learn to stop, probably.
The group of lumberjacks reached the mess hall first, filtering in and speaking in hushed tones. Ankoro and her friends were the last to go through, with Pops holding open the doors for them.
They had to duck slightly to be able to fit through, while Blue Planet had to practically do the limbo just so he could get his antlers past.
The workers which had come in first were spreading out to other tables, keeping at bay those who had not seen the elder werewolf and the other heteromorphs at the manor.
They were not hostile, and displayed the same sort of awed interest that might come from finding an entirely new species of animal. In a way, it was flattering and relieving to know that so many humans were not out for her blood.
That would be pretty hard to explain to Naaru why we had to kill them all, if that were the case.
There was no center stage where they could really stand above them all to be seen, so the Nazarick denizens ended up migrating towards the center of the mess hall. Some lumberjacks had the foresight to move the long, rectangular tables and single chairs out of the way.
More mutterings pervaded throughout the dining space as Ankoro felt like she had been put out on display in a museum. Though none of the stares were disrespectful, she didn't appreciate how the men's eyes wandered all over her form.
She especially didn't appreciate how they were eyeing Lupusregina's body. Those she found in the crowd guilty of ogling she gave her best "wolf's eye", until they either lost interest or made some move of nonverbal apology.
Pops was the first to speak up, the acoustics of the dining hall helping to carry his voice.
"For those of us who were not present for the arrival of the beings before you, allow me to introduce to you all the saviors of our settlement! The ones who will find our missing brothers."
Gasps rang out from the crowd that surrounded them, as well as a few confused claps from some of the men. Pops grinned from ear to ear before he continued.
"But there is one among them whom I would like to hail as truly special, one who is mentioned time and time again in our sacred texts. One who shall be able to truly connect us with nature and make us one."
Now Ankoro's heart began to beat faster, as she was unintentionally hyped by the excited and almost showmanship like attitude that the patriarch showed.
The old man certainly used flair to his advantage, holding the book of the oak tree high above his head and deepening his gravelly voice.
He lowered his book, and then pointed a single finger like a claw towards the Druid "Lord Blue Planet! He of the Elder Roots, sovereign of our own lord, Grover Sprigganson! The Great Nurturer, creator of the Floral Plains! He of the great pantheon of Ainz Ooal Gown!"
The men cheered at that, clapping one another on the back and fully applauding Ankoro and her friends.
However, her stomach just about fell into the soles of her feet at the old man's last sentence.
Did he really just say...no, there's no way that he just announced that we're really from Ainz Ooal Gown.
But when she turned to look her friends in the eyes, they had similar panicked, stunned expressions.
"Indeed, my brothers in bonds," Pops continued, either not noticing or not caring about the reactions of the guildmates. "The teachers of Grover have arrived, and they will help us reclaim the ones stolen from us!"
More cheering erupted, flowing over the heteromorphs like a tidal wave. Ankoro only heard the ringing in her ears, and the sensation of being watched from afar.