Days earlier, moments after Luz and Amity entered the portal to Amphibia...
The interdimensional portal just fizzles out, leaving Liwin, Lady Olivia, and Hooty stunned behind at the Owl House. Okay, admittedly, it's more Liwin and Lady Olivia than Hooty as the latter doesn't react nearly as strongly as the other two. While Liwin knew about Luz and Amity's research into teleporting and portal spells, meaning that she knew they were working on it, this was still the first time she'd felt such an intense magical aura from a single spell, cast by a single individual. Lady Olivia, on the other hand, merely stares wide-eyed in amazement at the empty spot in front of her, where she could just catch a glimpse of her old home mere moments ago. To say it felt surreal is no exaggeration.
"That's... impossible...", the royal newt mutters under her breath, "Are they really-"
"Yes.", Liwin replies immediately, "I don't know exactly how long the two of them have been working on this, but Luz's goal to return to Amphibia has been established for a long time. Not that that's relevant to you... Regardless, come back in, we're not finished yet."
"I understand."
…
The interrogation. Lady Olivia had almost forgotten about it. Just like the glowing, transparent ring circling her underarm. The one that would kill her if she ever lied while the spell is active. At least that's what she was told, but honestly? She has no desire to find out whether that is true or not.
She and Liwin sit down again in exactly the same seats in the living room where they were just sitting.
"Granted, since Luz and Amity have pushed their part of the plan ahead, we need to speed this up as well because I need to let the others know.", Liwin explains.
'So there really is a plan to defeat Andrias and Darcy...', Lady Olivia thinks to herself, "I see."
…
In the end, Lady Olivia turned out to be a rather useless captive, at least in terms of strategically valuable information. She knows nothing about the castle's defenses or of the troop transports, nothing about the abductees, and nothing about the Frobots. Only the latter is not a problem thanks to Alador who is slowly making progress with his own research. In the end, the only thing she could tell Liwin that was of strategic value was that she knows the entire layout of Andrias' castle by heart and is willing to draw up the plans for them.
And for that very reason, the two of them are now standing outside the Owl House, ready to set off for the CATs' hideout. Lady Olivia has gained enough of Liwin's trust that she no longer needs to be held prisoner in isolation.
Directly in front of the Owl House, Liwin prepares her staff for the journey, while Lady Olivia still stands at the door facing Hooty.
"Hooty.", to Liwin's surprise, Lady Olivia performs a small curtsy, "I want to thank you. Both for your company and for your, admittedly unorthodox but courteous, hospitality."
"It was an honor, my lady.", Hooty also bows(?), "Please come again anytime you want to visit us at the Hotel Hooty-HOOT!"
"We'll see.", Lady Olivia smiles before she joins Liwin, sits behind her on her staff, and the two of them take off together.
…
"Um... what exactly was that just now?", Liwin wonders, a hint of disturbance in her voice.
"Hm? You mean Hooty?"
"Yeah. It almost sounded like you two were like friends... Admittedly, that's not something I could relate to. I mean, as a healer, I've dealt with a lot of different witches and demons, but nothing comes close to this... creature."
"My thoughts were exactly the same at first.", Lady Olivia admits, "From what I had observed of him in the first few days, he didn't seem to have a high intelligence, but a great desire to be found useful. Or no, not useful... involved is a better word. Once I realized that, I was able to control his mannerisms to a certain extent, which made my time a lot more bearable."
"Uh-huh.", Liwin comments, 'She admits to manipulating him... Hmm, it's probably better if Amity's spell remains active for now.'
And as if Lady Olivia had read her mind... "If you don't mind me asking, this truth spell..."
"Ah yes. If you're asking if I can remove it, the answer is 'no'.", Liwin replies, "This is what is commonly referred to as an 'Everlasting Oath', a promise between two parties with the Titan himself as a witness. The only ways to get rid of it are to break the Oath, not necessarily an option in your case, or to wait for Amity and ask her to undo the Oath once she returns. The only other known scenario I can think of is if one of the two people involved suddenly dies. That would also dissolve the Oath."
"I would not dare to hope for the death of a child!", Lady Olivia exclaims in utter disgust at the very idea.
"Then you'll have to wait.", Liwin states, "I can't tell you how long the two of them will be gone, though."
"That's... all right. Sure, it's frustrating, but I'm old enough to be able to wait a little longer."
"Old? What can I say then?", Liwin jokes with a short yet loud laugh.
…
The flight from Owl House to the CATs' hideout took just under thirty minutes and was unexpectedly uneventful. Lady Olivia would have liked to get an aerial view of these new, foreign lands, but Liwin had insisted on flying near the ground to avoid being spotted by enemy troops. On the last sprint of her flight, Liwin flew into a dark forest, full of trees about half the height of Newtopia's outermost walls, allowing only about five to ten percent of the sunlight to even touch the forest floor.
Liwin slows her staff moments before the two of them arrive and land in a clearing. In its center and standing directly in front of them is a huge wooden house - no, a manor, built without any sense or understanding, without any sense of architecture or structural engineering, but... with charm. Lady Olivia recognizes at first glance that this house is several generations old and has been extended and altered piece by piece over the decades and centuries.
The two of them enter the manor and end up in what looks like a spacious dining room. To their left is a huge, round window, where a pink-haired girl with three eyes is sitting on an elongated bench, reading a book. Opposite her, sitting on two chairs simultaneously, is a woman who Olivia can only describe as truly colossal. With short, flaming red hair, a height of more than two and a half meters, and shoulders so broad that with that muscle mass she could be dangerous to Andrias if the two were ever to face each other in an arm-wrestle match. Sure, Andrias would win on sheer body mass alone, but this woman would at least stand a chance...
…
"Huh? You're back already?", she asks as Olivia and Liwin close the door behind them.
"The others left already?", Liwin asks in return instead of answering the question.
"Yo. The last group left ten minutes ago."
"Dammit...", Liwin curses mildly before turning to Olivia, "Looks like we didn't have to hurry after all."
"Hm?", the red-haired woman now notices Lady Olivia, who was standing behind Liwin, and approaches her. Standing a little too close and towering like a mountain in front of her, Lady Olivia can't help but feel a little intimidated inside. A mischievous grin appears on the giantess's face. "So, you're this Lady Olivia that little Luz told us so much about, huh?"
"Um yes. T-That's me.", Lady Olivia stutters slightly, 'Why does she remind me so much of Yunan?'
"Ruby! Leave her alone.", Liwin steps in, at which the giantess laughs out loud.
"Lady, since you seem to have gained enough of Diane's trust, I won't be like that. The name is Ruby. Specializing in bard magic."
"WAIT, WHAT?", the pink-haired witch suddenly shrieks up in genuine shock, "You're a Bard? You?"
"Oh, shut up triclops.", Ruby retorts, not as angry as she looks like, "Just because I can't handle instruments doesn't mean I can't use sounds to my advantage.", she smirks.
"... That's not what I had in mind, but okay.", the pink-haired girl returns to her reading. "Still weird to see Ms. Musclehead as a bard...", she quietly mutters to herself.
"Anyway, back to topic-", Liwin takes up the conversation again, "Olivia here has agreed to support us and provide us with detailed plans of the enemy's main base."
"Wait a minute- didn't Amity and her hum- um, I mean Luz go with you earlier?", the pink-haired witch wonders aloud.
"Yeah, that's the other thing I originally wanted to address with everyone else present at first...", Liwin states, "Luz and Amity decided to go ahead with step one of the plan and left for Amphibia for the evacuation talks."
'Evacuation talks?', Lady Olivia wonders inwardly as Liwin continues.
"But since you seem so concerned about others, I'm assigning you to guard Olivia here."
"WHAT? Why me?", the young witch complains, "Why not mom or Willow's dads? They have nothing to do around here anyway."
"Because you, Boscha, requested to join us.", Liwin reminds her, "Your exact words were, and I quote: 'I want to do something good for once in my life'."
The girl, Boscha, grumbles in annoyance. "Fine."
"You can let her work with you and Alador in the workshop downstairs.", Liwin continues, "Ruby and I are about to head out for our own patrol."
"Yeah, yeah, yeah...", Boscha decides to ignore them and approaches Lady Olivia instead. "So, your name is Olivia, isn't it? You look rather... overdressed."
Boscha examines her from top to bottom. But despite the fact that she is practically a being from another world, the pink-haired witch appears totally unfazed. Her gaze lingers on Olivia's left arm for a moment when Liwin speaks up and breaks her concentration.
"You two seem to get along, very well. In that case, Ruby, we're leaving."
"Yes, boss."
"Oh, and Boscha?", Liwin turns to her one last time with a serious look, "Remember, you're not allowed to leave the premises by yourself!"
Boscha merely glares at her before the two older witches leave the manor, closing the door behind them.
…
"That was rather... hostile.", Olivia comments moments after Liwin and Ruby are out the door, "She treated me rather politely, and she probably considered me an enemy spy at first."
"Are you one?"
"No.", Olivia replies firmly, "I have no intention of ever working for Andrias again."
"And she bought that?", Boscha asks with doubtful raised eyebrows.
"There are... measures that were taken to prevent me from lying.", Olivia explains vaguely. Boscha seems to be very little surprised.
"Yes, the Oath is more than obvious.", she points to Olivia's arm, "What does it do when you lie?"
"I die.", Olivia replies in a somber tone.
"Heh, sounds fun.", Boscha replies sarcastically, "Follow me. I'll show you where you can work."
…
With that, Boscha leads Olivia past the stairs, through a door, and through some unnecessarily complicated corridors before they eventually arrive at the bottom of a staircase whose only door is closed in front of them. Boscha knocks, but with no answer from the other side.
Grumbling, Boscha digs out a key from her pants pocket. "Did he really fall asleep again?"
She unlocks the door and lets it bang open with a loud bang, startling a man at the other end of the room.
"AH!"
"Didn't you say you'd watch until I got back from my break, old man?"
"Huh? What?", the man mumbles in a completely sleepy voice, visibly disoriented. And while Boscha throws all sorts of obscenities at him, Lady Olivia takes a look at this workshop. And it really is just that. A perfectly normal, ordinary-looking workshop... with several robot parts scattered on one side of the room, and two bubbling cauldrons standing on the other. Admittedly, this sight reminds Lady Olivia very much of her tool shed in Andrias' palace, where she used to tend to the Royal Gardens. 'The poor things have probably died by now... A shame, really.'
Lady Olivia has been lost in thought long enough that she has completely missed Boscha's swearing, which, by the way, is not at all befitting of a girl her age, and is now devoting all her attention to her again. "So, you've gone a whole night without sleep again?", she sounds more troubled than angry now, "How many times do I have to tell you that's not healthy?"
"I knooowww...", he whines like a child, "It's just- I've finally been able to gain access to the programming, but I can't for the life of me translate this code.", he complains while gesturing at a floating magically produced text behind him. Lady Olivia tilts her head to the side and glances at the text. And even though she doesn't quite understand what she's seeing, she definitely recognizes words and expressions that are written in Ancient Amphibian runes.
"Um...", she speaks up quietly, "I might be able to help."
The other two look at Olivia with questioning glances, prompting her to elaborate.
"When I was younger, I was forced to learn this language. I'm a bit... rusty nowadays, but I suppose my skills could still be of use here."
"Y-Yes. Yes! YES!", he accepts Olivia's offer without hesitation stands up and shakes her hand with a relieved smile. Only now does she really notice how exhausted the man really looks. Dark circles around his eyes, hunched, weak posture, and he sways a little even when he stands still. "I don't know who you are, but if you can help me, it would save me an eternity of working time... My name is Alador, by the way."
"Olivia. My pleasure.", she also introduces herself, "I can start immediately, but I'll have to take care of my own task later, if that's okay with you."
"Of course, of course...", he nods, wobbling slightly, "In the meantime, I should probably catch up on some sleep, if that's all right with you, Miss Boscha?"
"Why are you asking me? I'm not your boss.", she huffs at him, which he promptly interprets as 'yes'. Completely exhausted, he stumbles past her and Olivia and up the stairs, missing one or two steps as he does so. Boscha and Olivia stare after him for a moment until he is out of sight.
…
"Is he going to be okay?", Olivia asks carefully, at which Boscha merely shrugs in response.
"Meh, it's not my problem."
"If you don't mind me asking... What is the arrangement between the two of you? You say you're not his boss, but...", Lady Olivia asks after starting to translate the first few lines.
"I'm not, he just doesn't have a spine.", Boscha replies, leaning against a table and occasionally glancing at her cauldrons, "He's Amity's dad, a true workaholic for whom the word 'break' is a non-existent word. And since I still want to maintain/rebuild at least some form friendship with Amity, even after what I've done for reasons that are totally unimportant to you, I'm keeping an eye on her father."
"After what you did?", Olivia asks, "Didn't Liwin say something similar earlier, about you wanting to do something good?"
Boscha grumbles audibly at that, before raising her closed fist, the top of it facing Lady Olivia, revealing a yellow-green symbol glowing. "See this? This piece of- ... this thing, is proof that my actions nearly led to the death of my only remaining friend. This thing prevents me from using any other magic that is not recognized as part of the Potions coven for the rest of my life.", Olivia takes a moment to process this, which doesn't necessarily stop Boscha, "In short: I fucked up, got shunned and widely hated, had time to think about things, got forcibly dragged here by my moms, got hated here too, and because I couldn't take it anymore, I'm now in this filthy basement where I babysit Amity's dad and brew potions. The hu- mmm, Luz even said that I've entered my 'Redemption-Arc', whatever that means."
"Sounds like she doesn't hate you.", Olivia comments. Boscha merely rolls her eyes at that.
"I doubt she's capable of hating anyone. She's far too soft for that."
"Huh... Interesting."
"...what?"
"It's just...", Olivia thinks about the best way to phrase it, "Personally, that seems like a pretty superficial assessment of her character."
"And you know better?", Boscha challenges.
"No, not at all.", she shakes her head in reply, "I know too little about her circumstances to form an educated opinion."
"Well, I used to bully her relentlessly, and now she's like my biggest fan to 'redeem' myself.", Boscha explains, "She in particular has more than enough reasons to hate me."
"These two things are not contradictory.", Olivia says, "Some people hold grudges for a very long time, others can forgive easily. I cannot say what she thinks about you and I dare not guess what exactly you have done, but what I have witnessed and learned about Luz Noceda is that she is not a person who gives up on other people lightly... Your bullying of her, was that something that was based on mutual antagonism?"
"N-no.", Boscha suddenly becomes very uncomfortable with this topic, "Just me."
"Did she ever fight back?"
"Not until half-a-wi- mmm... when Willow became my target too."
"What happened?"
"She challenged me to Grudgby-match.", Olivia looks slightly confused, "A magical sport."
"Has she ever done anything to you that you would consider objectively unfair?"
Boscha now has had enough. "What's your point?"
"While I'm sure she saw your behavior as extremely unfair, she didn't seem to bring herself down to your level. She didn't fight fire with fire. Your dislike of her was not mutual."
"So?"
"Boscha, do you regret your actions?"
"A little. Maybe...", she answers lamely, "Why?"
"Because, from what I gather, she wants you to succeed. In general.", Olivia replies, "She wants you to be a better person - to redeem yourself."
"...", Boscha looks puzzled at the newt, "Whatever. Just get back to work. I'm taking a break."
"Are you sure it was wise to leave them alone?", Ruby asks a few minutes after the pair have been flying through the ground within a root cocoon developed by Willow towards their current patrol zone, namely the town of Latissa.
"Sure. Boscha wanted to help, so she's helping.", Liwin reasons, actually not really caring what Boscha does. Because even if she is the child of her colleague/friend Alsa, Liwin remembers very well the stunt that the pink-haired triclops pulled on Hexside back then. "Besides, in case of emergency, Alador, Sarah, and Willow's dads are there in case of any real trouble."
"This Olivia, what do you make of her?", Ruby continues in an uncharacteristically serious tone. It's not often that Ruby shows her true wits and ability to think strategically.
"She understands her place. From what she's said about herself, she's spent most of her life as a servant, so to speak, and the way she acts and reacts reflects that.", Liwin explains, "She'll listen to Boscha and follow the rules."
"You trust her that much?", Ruby asks doubtfully.
"Who? Boscha or Olivia?"
"Both, I guess."
"Hmm... I guess I do trust them to a certain amount. It's a mix of trust and the question 'What could possibly happen?', you know?"
"I don't like this naivety of yours.", Ruby commented.
"Then you probably don't like my idea of officially naming Luz co-leader of the CATs either, do you?", Liwin asks teasingly, though Ruby seems to be giving it some serious thought.
"Actually, I don't think it's such a bad idea.", the red-haired giantess replies to Liwin's surprise, "The kid is already seen as their leader by all the other kids anyway. They do whatever Luz tells them. The small one is empathetic, always listens to the input of others, sees what she sets out to do through to the end no matter the consequences, and she is simply the most powerful of all of us, even if it hurts to admit it."
"I didn't expect that. But... I'm surprised and pleased that you agree with my assessment.", Liwin says proudly, "I'll talk to her as soon as the two Lovebirds are back."
"Heh, don't remind me of that.", Ruby laughs briefly before her tone suddenly becomes more serious again, "Amity is probably the only reason why I doubt Luz should be co-leader. The two of them are far too dependent on each other."
"I know what you mean.", Liwin muses, "Luz would always prioritize Amity's safety first in any decision she makes. Always. The little Blight is definitely her biggest weakness."
"Does that change your decision at all?", Ruby wonders.
"Hmm...", the elder healer contemplates for a moment, "No, not really. She holds a deep personal grudge against both Andrias and Darcy, but also Belos, and from what I can tell, she's definitely not going to lose sight of her targets. That's why she came up with the plan to evacuate the civilian population, after all. So that she doesn't have to hold back later."
"Diane, do you really think that will work?"
"Luz has good speaking and negotiating skills, despite her age. I have no doubt that she will able to convince them. Besides, like you just said, she doesn't let go of her objective once she's set one."
"That's not what I meant.", Ruby replies, shaking her head, which gets her a confused hum from Liwin, "I mean strictly logistical. The evacuation. It's one problem to find a place where we can evacuate everyone, but have you thought about how we can get all the civilians together and get them to actually evacuate? But what if, when the time comes, people are too scared to leave their hiding places? What if people don't dare to go out in the rain? What if people think our offer is a trap?"
"Finding the people is actually comparatively easy. Persuading them, on the other hand...", Liwin stops herself, fully aware that she hasn't even thought about this part of the plan. Ruby nods knowingly.
"Sure, we could force them and take away their choice. The people on the other side at the evacuation zone would then have a very hard time, though..."
"I know...", Liwin speaks softly, "You know, let's all debate together later on what the best course of action is. Pretty sure we need more than just two heads for that."
"Heh, agreed."
"Besides, it's not far to Latissa anymore.", she skillfully changes the subject, "Ruby, you were last there a week ago. What was the situation then?"
"Most of the local gangs had already either given up or lost the fight against the Frobots last time I was there. Rumor has it that the two biggest of them joined forces and withdrew from the fight, leaving everyone else with no chance but to retreat themselves or die."
"Uh... the 'Red Claws' and the 'Hoodlums' if I remember correctly, right?", Liwin asks to which Ruby nods. "Do you think we'd bump into your parents with the Claws?"
"Y-You wanna talk to them?", Ruby asks, utterly appalled.
"Yeah.", Liwin replies, until she realizes she should explain her thought, "Well, with the gangs, not your parents."
Ruby exhales with relief. "I really thought... Don't scare me like that!", she feigns anger towards her, "Then why were you asking about my parents?"
"It was just a thought. I mean, when we first met and got you and your brother out, I had the impression that the relationship with your parents was a bit... difficult, or rather uncertain.", Liwin explains herself.
"Nothing is uncertain when it comes to them.", Ruby spats with utter disgust, "Those child-abusing bastards have nothing to expect from me. They were the lowest of the lowest henchmen within the Claws, but thought they were the very greatest. No one would have batted an eye if they would have died on day one after I was gone."
…
Ruby's parents. Filth of the lowest kind. Growing up in Latissa, it's pretty much impossible not to come into contact with violence or gangs sooner or later. The guards of the Emperor's Coven had actually managed to keep the peace in the city for the most part. Not that that stopped Mr. and Mrs. Ruby's parents from joining a then-small gang at a young age and devoting their entire existence to a life of drugs, intimidation, and violence. They started out as simple lackeys, and they were absolutely horrible at it. Three gang co-leaders died under their protection, they burned down the wrong stores several times for "missing protection money", and they more often than not picked fights with enemy gang members. When they found out they were going to be taken care of within the gang she got pregnant, so they were let go for the time being. Ruby was the second of four children. They had sold the first son for drugs when she was pregnant with Ruby. For Ruby herself, however, they had other plans: Make her do what they were supposed to do. As soon as Ruby could walk, talk, and handle knives, she was the one who had to secretly commit thefts for her parents, put people out of their way, and make money for them. At age fifteen, Ruby had two other younger siblings. She was followed by a sister and a brother a few years after that. Ruby's sister was less "talented" than Ruby, and so she was "lent out" to various clients by her parents and without the knowledge of anyone else. One day she didn't come home and Ruby went looking for her.
She found her after two days of tireless searching. In a dark, empty, and disgustingly dirty back alley near some dumped trash. Motionless and with her clothes nowhere to be seen. She just grabbed her and ran with her through the whole town in search of a healer who could help her sister. This healer turned out to be Diane Liwin, who unfortunately could do nothing more for Ruby than comfort her through her tears.
…
"I see...", Liwin says, slightly lost in thought, "Do you know where the two gangs are joined?"
"The East Pit Market.", Ruby replies instantly, "Also happens to be big enough to hide quite a lot of people. Used to be Claw-territory"
"Current leaders?"
"Benjamin and... Uh, no idea.", she replies, "No idea who's running the Claws at the moment. Been kinda avoiding them."
"Ruby, would you rather I do this one by myself?"
"Nah, it's fine. The mission is more important than my personal feelings."
Liwin frowns at that, "Okay. If you say so."
Mission log – Hunter – Day: I don't know. Lost track
I presume this is now the second week I've spent here in Latissa. Or maybe not. It's hard to say in all this time underground without any sunlight.
I had pretended to be one of the civilian evacuees and was assigned to a shelter with a small family by the local leaders. Space is in short supply down here, as are food, water, and sanitary facilities. Since I arrived, there have been three riots over lack of food and water, but with three hundred individuals spread over an area only slightly larger than Uncle's throne room, this is hardly surprising. I would like to help, but my mission does not allow me to reveal my true identity. And admittedly: It's getting more difficult by the day.
The child in my accommodation is called Shawn, estimated to be ten years old. His fathers are Bashir and Curzon. Both teachers at a local school. The boy had told me that he had just come from swimming lessons when Latissa was first attacked. The three of them have been down here ever since and have only been out once, only to find out that their house was destroyed with none of their belongings surviving. And now they're all at the mercy of Latissa's gangs who have taken over and, to my surprise, are actually trying to keep some sort of order here.
The Emperor's Coven has abandoned all the people here. And not just since the invasion. The presence in Latissa has always been weak. It makes perfect sense that the survivors now prefer to be protected by a gang. The people are desperate. Day in and day out, we feel tremors on the surface all the way down here. The gang members and volunteers who have agreed to scour the surface for food and water come back with fewer and fewer people and supplies each time.
It makes me question what I'm even doing here. Uncle gave me this list of things to get for him, but is that really the solution? Surely, he could have stopped all of this right at the beginning, but he said it was all part of Titan's will. But, is that really true? All the death? All the suffering is what the Titan intended for us? I can't- don't want to believe that.
But I have to trust Uncle. He will have a plan to save everyone. Maybe all the stuff he wants me to get is for a device that can revive the dead. Yes, that must be it.
Anyway, I'm going to join one of the retrieval groups again today to continue my search. According to my sources, two of the things I need should be right here in Latissa. I should check the list again, but I'm pretty sure they're here.
- Echo Quartz(Found in the eastern ring finger)
- Astral Whispers(Found in Bonesborough - looks like water, but smells like rotten griffin eggs)
- Feather of the Forgotten (Most likely in Latissa)
- Photo-Hog (Most likely near Latissa)
- Eonstone(Found at the bottom of Lake Zehensee)
- Moonveil Mist(Found at the ruins of the Knee)
- Glass Kelp (Most likely north of the Skull)
- Galdorstone (?)
'Just four more things...', Hunter muses hopefully, before all hope vanishes into thin air as he reaches the last item on the list. Feeling ashamed and annoyed, he recalls the incident at the Looking Glass Graveyard. 'Those stupid activists or whatever destroyed all the Galdorstones. Even after days of digging, there was nothing left of them.'
"Hey, Shawn. Do you happen to know what time it is?", Hunter asks after closing his mission journal and storing it away. The witch in question lowers a book entitled 'That Time a Slime Built a Nation', which Hunter had actually brought him from his last trip as a thank you for his hospitality. He had also brought gifts for Bashir and Curzon.
"You better get going right about now.", Shawn replies, knowing exactly why he's asking. "Say, weren't you once the one with the perfect sense of time?", he continues to ask in a teasing tone. Hunter playfully punches him in the upper arm.
"I'll get going then. Tell your dads I might bring back some stuff for them.", Hunter says goodbye, grabs Flapjack in his staff-form, and leaves the small-, no, tiniest hut.
…
The hideout he is in is completely packed across all three dimensions. Temporary shelters are stacked on top of- and next to each other along all the walls from top to bottom. There are torch holders at regular intervals on every other floor, providing at least a little artificial light in the complete darkness of the underground.
The floor of the cave is no better, as it is lined with tents or simply sleeping bags with a narrow walkway in the middle that leads from the secret cave entrance to the command room, and adjoining storage room for supplies at the other end.
Hunter walks along the surprisingly empty corridor between all the tents- all the refugees- all the people. Past families with very young children, widows who have lost spouses, children who have lost their parents, people who are completely malnourished, people who are sick or dying...
…
Hunter walks a little faster.
…
At the end of the passage, he stops and releases the shaky breath he didn't know he was holding. At times like this, he is grateful that he is allowed to live in one of the makeshift huts. In other circumstances he would have had absolutely nothing against having nothing more than a sleeping bag, but with all the despair, and pain, and death around him 24/7...
Swallowing this thought, he approaches the door that leads to the room from where the suppliance missions are planned. He stops in front of the metal door when he hears a loud and extremely angry voice from inside. He feels a bang coming from inside and pulls the door open, sprinting inside. "CHIEF!"
As soon as he sets foot in the room, however, his body grinds to a halt against his will as he catches sight of the scene before him. In the wall to his left, which is made of solid rock, yelps a hole about two meters in diameter with what appear to be massive roots growing out of it that were definitely not there before. Directly in front of it stands an older but well-built woman with white hair, bound together in a short ponytail, a bit taller than he himself, with her head exhaustedly in her hands. To his left is a woman with short flaming red hair. Very tall, very muscular, and apparently very angry... at something or someone closer to the wall in front of her. Not that he can avert his eyes to investigate at the moment.
…
"Hey Ruby, you're scaring the kid here!", the older woman to his right exclaims.
"Huh?", Ruby turns to her first, before turning her gaze to Hunter for the first time, who is staring directly at her with wide eyes. "Oh, sorry."
"N-no problem.", Hunter stutters after several seconds of awkward silence. And while Ruby feels a little bad for scaring an innocent kid like him, Hunter has just realized he must have a thing for muscular women.
Ruby takes a step back from the wall, probably in an attempt to cool off, giving Hunter his first opportunity to see what or who she's so angry at. Chief Dagrull. Or Boss, as he has been called by all the members of both gangs since the merger. Directly above his head is a massive, fist-sized crater in the solid wall of rock. Hunter himself doesn't really want to know for sure, but he's pretty sure that Dagrull has peed himself. Instead, he continues to observe Ruby, who is pacing up and down rather upset, and mumbling something incomprehensible to herself.
At that, Chief Dagrull speaks up, his voice timid and shaking. "They- they're not here, if that helps..."
Her head snaps back to him, fury in her eyes. "THESE FUCKERS DESERVE NOTHING LESS THAN A PAINFUL DEATH!", she takes a shaky breath, seemingly ready to punch another crater in the wall, "So tell me, boss, why did you let them live? And think very carefully about how you answer that."
Chief Dagrull breaks out in a thick bead of sweat.
"I, um- we- so-"
…
While Chief Dagrull freezes in fear and stutters to himself with presumably wet pants, here is a short excerpt from his biography.
F. J. Dagrull was not even eighteen years old when the group called the 'Red Claws' was founded. Together with friends at the time, he had made a name for himself in the slums near the harbor of Latissa. Terrorizing people, robbing docked ships, extorting protection money, carrying out raids and so on and so on. His nickname was 'the fearless butcher'. Not a very creative name, but pretty accurate for who he was.
Over time, the number of his followers, or patrons, grew. Some clans later were either fought, blackmailed, or incorporated with him at the forefront of brutal battles until the Red Claws reached their current size. All under Dagrull's iron-hard leadership. Despite his name, he always put one thing above all else: his people. He always fought to protect them, every man, woman, and child under him, even if it meant that others paid with their lives.
Excerpt end.
…
Chief F. J. 'fearless butcher' Dagrull now lies cowering, soiled, and without any dignity left in the corner of the room, while the other two women seem to have completely forgotten about his existence.
"Don't worry Ruby, even if he only banished them back then, I don't think they survived the invasion.", the older woman tries to comfort Ruby.
"Yeah, I know. I was just hoping that at least he'd have enough balls to give them what those bastards deserve.", an impatient throat-clearing reminds the two women that Hunter still exists. "Oh, sorry kid. I'm sorry you had to see that."
"That's okay.", Hunter replies, his tone casual, "I've seen worse. My name is Hunter, by the way. And you guys are...?"
"Oh, I'm Diane, this is Ruby."
"I don't suppose you're here for a supply mission, are you?", Hunter asks.
"No.", Ruby answers slowly, "We're actually here to patrol the area and meet the wimp over there."
"What she means is that we're here to offer our support and get an idea of the situation."
"You're not from Latissa.", Hunter remarks. He isn't really able to articulate the reason why, but something about these two women is bothering him enormously right now. Or rather, something about what they've just said. Patrol? Offering support? In a town like Latissa, where people are largely looking out for themselves, especially at the moment? Yeah, no.
"Technically, we are from here, but we haven't lived here for ages.", Liwin replies truthfully, "But you don't wanna know that. We've just arrived from Bonesborough and we really just want to see what's become of Latissa."
"You're sightseeing?!", Hunter asks incredulously.
"More like gathering intel on the enemy.", Ruby clarifies, at which Hunter's eyes light up.
"You're from the Emperor's Coven?", he asks, his tone relieved.
"Heh, no.", Ruby replies, crushing his hope, "Just the opposite, actually."
"Huh?"
"Don't worry about it.", Liwin shuts Ruby down, glaring at her for a second, "Anyway, you said something about supply missions. What's that?"
At that moment, another person enters the room. A man in his mid-forties, his head almost clean-shaven, and his visible head and arms covered in scars, some of them decades old. "It's in the name, isn't it? Or are you stupid?"
"Flawrik? Is that you?", Ruby stares at him for a few moments.
"I'm glad you remember me, Ruby.", he replies in a completely indifferent tone, "We were quite relieved when you finally disappeared. The fact that you're here now is definitely a bad omen."
"Um, sorry, but you are-?", Liwin asks the newcomer.
"Oh, where are my manners?", Flawrik's tone changes abruptly, "Benjamin Flawrik. Leader of the Hoodlums. At your service."
"I used to rob them regularly. Only got me once. He wanted to take me to his family's farm.", Ruby remembers with a sharp laugh. Flawrik can't help but crack a toothy grin too.
"But only because you kept overpowering my men. I still don't know how you did it...", he shakes his head, "It doesn't matter now... What do you want?"
"Information.", Ruby replies, her tone changing serious in an instant, "About what's going on on the surface."
"And why should we help you?", Flawrik argues, "As far as I'm concerned, you broke in here and did what the hell do I know to Dagrull. Tze, pathetic excuse of a leader."
"What makes you think I need your help? We've managed perfectly well since then without it. In fact, we have a plan to put an end to all that stuff above us once and for all. And without any more civilian casualties."
"Bullshit!", Flawrik retorts, at which Ruby flashes a toothy grin at him.
'A plan? Against them?', Hunter, who has only been listening quietly so far, thinks to himself, 'Uncle, is that what you've been doing?'
"If you say so. I don't care about your opinion. And about your approval even less.", Ruby snaps her fingers at him, "It's going to happen in Bonesborough. After we've evacuated the entire civilian population. We could maybe... Although, forget it."
"What?"
"If you'd be willing to work with us, we might be willing to evacuate some of your people here too."
"HA!", Flawrik laughs out loud at this completely nonsensical offer, "We're in a fucking cave here, in case you haven't noticed, and the surface is swarming with these gray fuckthings. Where are you going to evacuate a thousand people without anyone noticing?"
Ruby smirks at that, "We have a master of teleportation magic among our ranks."
"... Fine, whatever. Do what you want.", he immediately turns his back to them, "In ten minutes there'll be a general briefing from our scouts for the supply missions. Feel free to attend. And Hunter..."
"Yes, boss?", he startles briefly at the mention of his name.
"I know you're not officially under my command, but you're a good kid. Don't let those two out of your sight, understand?"
"Yes, boss."
With great relief on Hunter's part, Flawrik leaves the room again. Why relief? Because, although he would never admit it, Benjamin Flawrik is one of the most intimidating people he has ever met. Even more so than his uncle. Upon their first meeting, Flawrik had immediately peeked through his 'Caleb' persona and realized that he wasn't who he said he was. That he didn't realize he was/is on a mission assignment from Belos was just luck, according to Hunter. Or he knew and just didn't say anything. In any case, Hunter would never mess with this man.
…
The next ten minutes passed annoyingly slowly for Hunter. Now that he has been on his own for so long and is no longer subject to any command structure due to the elimination of the Emperor's Coven, his sense of time has changed massively. Back then, he never knew such a thing as boredom. There was always something to do, orders to carry out or to assign. The coven never slept is what people used to say. But his life since then has been... different. Quieter. More unpredictable.
As for Liwin and Ruby, his doubts towards them have changed very little. Sure, the way Ruby dealt with both leaders of Latissa's biggest and most influential gangs has left a massive impression on him which definitely earns her some extra respect points, but he still can't shake the feeling that it would be a mistake to trust them. For this reason, he follows Flawrik's instructions to the letter and keeps a close eye on them. Even if it means that the three of them have to endure the wait in complete, unbearable silence.
…
One by one, the other volunteers enter the room after Hunter, visibly confused by the huge new hole in the wall, but not questioning it any further. When the last person enters the room and closes the door behind them, there are about fifteen people in the room, not counting Hunter, Ruby, and Liwin. The last person to close the door was in fact Dagrull, who must have secretly slipped out of the room at some point during the conversation with Flawrik to (hopefully) get a change of clothes. With him again is Flawrik, who seems to be in charge of this briefing.
…
Here is a rough summary of the next thirty to forty minutes:
Both ports of Latissa have been completely reduced to rubble, both the commercial and military ones. All boats, ships, and personnel have also been annihilated. The industrial area to the west consists largely of ruins in serious danger of collapse. The city center is overrun with enemy patrols that no longer kidnap people but kill on sight. The scouts were able to find a few trapped people on their way out, who couldn't get out with all the enemies around them. To the east near the museum, the enemy has flattened an entire neighborhood and is building some kind of apparatus. So that area would be avoided.
For Hunter, Ruby and Liwin, however, one thing was certain: they need to go there. And as if fate was playing into their hands, Hunter was tasked with escorting the two witches through Latissa while they did whatever they wanted to do.
"Yo, Olivia. How's things down here?"
"That was a long break, Boscha."
"I took a nap. So?"
Lady Olivia lets out a deep sigh at the girl's obvious laziness. When she arrived, she saw her occupied in a break, and now she has slept for several hours while potentially dangerous liquids bubble right next to Olivia, which is supposed to be under Boscha's supervision.
"I've been translating all these words for two hours now, but I haven't the faintest idea what any of this is.", Olivia reports, slightly exhausted.
"Honestly? You look like you could really do with a break too. Come on, let's go for a walk.", Boscha suggests with a bittersweet tone, as if she has more than just a few ulterior motives. Olivia frowns at her.
"A break?! When you just took one? Don't you have any responsibilities of your own to take care of?", she inquires almost accusingly.
"You say that like I'm lazy...", Boscha clicks her tongue dismissively, "Don't worry. We're just going for a little walk in the forest. There's something I want to see."
'I don't trust this...', Olivia thinks to herself, doubting Boscha's intentions, "You do know that a lot of murder stories start like this?"
"Listen, the only reason I want you with me is because I'm not allowed to go out by myself."
"Ou-kay...", Olivia replies, still unconvinced.
"I'm still kind of in a trial phase. Or they just don't trust me, period. Anyway, none of this will matter if I find what I'm looking for."
"And what are you looking for?", Olivia wonders.
"You'll see when we get there.", Boscha crosses her arms expectantly, "So, are you coming?"
"Do I have a choice?", the newt asks, exasperated.
"Nope."
Boscha grabs Olivia's arm and pulls her confidently out of the basement workshop, up the stairs, and towards the front door. Before they reach it, however, the two of them hear a voice from the adjoining kitchen, where an older man is standing with a warm cup of tea looking straight at them.
"And where are you two ladies going?"
"We just wanted to take a little walk, Mr. Clawthorne.", Boscha replies, again with a bittersweet tone. And from the look on the older man's face, he probably believes her.
"Is that so?", he inquires, his gaze wandering to the window, "It's really nice weather outside for a walk... I hope you do remember that no one should enter the forest if they value their own life, don't you?"
Lady Olivia gulps at that while Boscha speaks up, "But of course, Mr. Clawthorne. I would never risk my own life for such a nonsensical reason."
"All right, then.", he smiles at the two of them, "Have a good time."
The newt suddenly has a very, very bad feeling about this whole operation. Unfortunately for her though, Boscha has no intention of dealing with her worries or fears, or even doing anything about them as she pulls her out of the door and towards the forest. The forest with trees so high that they block out all sunlight. The forest she was specifically told to stay away from. The forest where death is said to lurk. It is precisely this forest that the young pink-haired witch walks purposefully towards with a mischievous grin and Olivia unwillingly in tow.
…
As soon as they leave the sunlight, they have officially entered the forest, and with a jolt Olivia's pulse quickens and her senses sharpen.
'Terrifying...', Olivia thinks to herself before her gaze wanders back one last time as the two of them move further and further away from the clearing of the Clawthornes, and forward again to Boscha, who walks on, completely unperturbed and determined.
For Olivia, the worst thing about this forest after just a few minutes in this murky place is not the darkness itself, but the silence that comes with it and this constant feeling of being watched. A glance upwards reveals close to all the sunlight being blocked out by an eerily dense canopy of leaves, there are no sounds of leaves or bushes rustling in the wind, and no sounds of animals living in the forest. There is nothing but the footsteps of Boscha and Olivia passing through the undergrowth.
The whole forest doesn't just feel empty, but deserted. As if something is living here that has driven out all other life at some point.
And despite all these fear-inducing factors, the two of them keep walking further. And further. And further. Until the ground beneath their feet suddenly makes a completely different sound. One loud enough for both of them to overhear and stop, a morbid look on Olivia's face.
"Please tell me I'm standing on a thick, smooth branch.", the Newt begs Boscha.
"Uh, sure, a branch.", Boscha replies, her gaze also slowly sliding over the forest floor in front of and around her for the first time, "A smooth, white, bony... branch."
Lady Olivia's gaze wanders from the definitely-not-bone up into her surroundings, spotting more in every direction. Big ones, small ones, skull-shaped ones, it's all there.
"Okay, enough is enough.", Olivia puts her foot down, though not literally, "If you don't tell me now why you led me into this frog-cursed graveyard, I'll turn around here and now and you can sacrifice yourself to the forest by yourself for all I care!"
Boscha looks at her with a displeased expression, but Lady Olivia is not willing to give in when she currently has the constant feeling that death is lurking behind every tree, behind every shadow, and she awaits Boscha's reaction with crossed arms and a partly angry, partly fearful look. The triclops sighs.
"Fine, I think you deserve an explanation.", she starts with a tired tone as if she has just had a lengthy discussion with herself, "All of this is the Bat Queen's Forest. Absolutely everything here is under her protection, and from what I've heard, that includes abandoned, rejected, and deserted Palismen."
"Palismen?"
Boscha pulls out her own crab palisman, "This is Maya. She's a palisman, a kind of lifelong companion."
"And you want to meet this Bat Queen? Why?"
"I'm hoping to gain her support for the CATs to improve my standing with them.", Boscha explains, "A win-win for everyone."
"And you know exactly where we have to go?"
"Maya used to live here. She knows the way."
"And this Bat Queen- will she even listen to you?", Olivia asks skeptically about the young witch's plan, "She sounds pretty important. And I mean, look around us. Does this look like an invitation to you?"
"Pfft! It's just a deterrent for the weak-minded.", Boscha exclaims, completely sure of herself. Olivia merely sighs at that in defeat.
'This kid has absolutely no sense of danger...', she thinks to herself, subtly shaking her head, "Okay. Go."
"What?"
"This place reeks of death, and despite everything, will not allow a child to walk into this death trap alone."
"I'm not a-"
"I said go!"
…
They continue walking. Instead of Olivia being pulled behind her by Boscha's arm however, she now walks alongside her somewhat voluntarily, though still kinda mad at her.
They walk for another twenty minutes or so until they come to an unusually wide tree blocking their way. Boscha, and therefore Olivia, stop in front of it.
"Here?", Lady Olivia asks, after the two of them have not exchanged a single word with each other in the last twenty minutes. The atmosphere between the two had become rather tense in the meantime. "Please don't tell me you're lost..."
"Can you be quiet for a moment?"
Maybe it still is.
…
"Maya?", Boscha takes out her palisman, which detaches itself from the staff and which she holds in her hands, "Are you sure we're in the right place?"
The palisman rattles her scissors, which from Lady Olivia's point of view can mean absolutely anything. The Palisman leaps from Boscha's hands to the ground and crawls towards the tree before she slams one of her claws against a very specific spot. Part of the tree's bark suddenly begins to glow and dissolve, revealing a passageway that leads through the tree.
Maya turns back to Boscha, clattering her claws joyfully, before the witch picks her up again and places her on her shoulder.
"Wait.", Olivia stops her from going any further, "Please tell me you have a precise plan."
"Of course I have a plan.", Olivia feels a teeny tiny moment of relief, "I'll go in there and make her an offer."
"All right, so you don't have a plan."
"Heey!"
"Listen-", Olivia starts, her tone firm, "I've lived and worked my whole life for a Royal Family and among royals. I know how to talk to them and how to gain their favor... And honestly, you lack any respect for others."
"Hey!"
"Blame the oath if you want to.", Olivia crosses her arms, "Anyway, do what I do if you want your plan to succeed. Agreed?"
Boscha grumbles under her breath, but eventually agrees, albeit reluctantly.
…
Slowly and somewhat on edge, Lady Olivia and Boscha plus Maya enter the crack in the tree and enter what can only really be described as a sort of half-cave. The floor and all the walls are made of enormously high rocks that merge into trees above, but the area is open at the top. If the sun were exactly over the opening, sunlight could actually reach the floor.
Apart from that, it doesn't look dissimilar to the outside. The floor is partly covered with grass or moss, and various bones and skulls are scattered everywhere. But what catches their eye above all else is the enormous pile of gold at the other end of this half-cave. This otherwise surprisingly empty half-cave.
…
Both with their guards up, they walk on, step by step, until they hear a screeching sound coming from above. Their heads snap upwards, where they spot a creature with two abnormally huge wings flying towards them. Olivia kneels down and pulls Boscha down with her, mere moments before it flies just short above their lowered heads and lands in front of them.
'This is bad... and this must be her. This Bat Queen.', Lady Olivia thinks to herself as Boscha just chokes on her own tongue over what happened. Both of them keep their heads lowered as the Bat Queen approaches them with a quite fierce look on her face. Taking in their postures and lack of reaction to her arrival, she slows down her approach slightly.
…
"Hmm, how very interesting. Most of who approach me have wish of death. You are brave... or stupid."
The Bat Queen stops right in front of the two intruders, eyeing them both critically. Her gaze lingers on Boscha, who can feel her gaze right on her skin.
"You. I remember you.", she says in an ominous tone, "The angry one. Raise your head."
"Y-yes, ma'am.", Boscha finds herself unexpectedly stuttering with her standing that close to her. Every bit of misguided courage she had talked herself into having is gone. For a moment, she glances over at Lady Olivia, who remains visibly composed on one knee, her head down with her eyes closed. Neither of them notice all the others around them.
"You adopted Maya, did you not?", the Bat Queen asks, but doesn't need an answer as her gaze is already set on the little crab palisman on Bosha's shoulder. The sound of clattering claws seems to suffice as an answer. "Maya dear, how have you been?", her voice suddenly no longer intimidating, but almost motherly. Unbeknownst to Olivia, both Maya's and the Bat Queen's eyes light up for a longer moment.
"I glad you have your family. Many of your brothers and sisters do not...", her gaze wanders again, "You! Prisoners of truth!"
Lady Olivia is extremely sure that she is meant and raises her head, but remains down on one knee, unlike Boscha. "Your highness."
"You two have entered my forest.", she hisses at the two of them, "I would have taken your heads if not for Maya. State your reason."
Boscha wants to speak up, but Lady Olivia beats her to it. "Your Highness, we have entered your realm to ask for your help in the fight against the invaders."
The Bat Queen doesn't have to think twice. "No."
"No? But why?", Boscha suddenly exclaims. Something Olivia would love to punish her for just now.
"Witches are just as bad. Not worthy of trust. Not worthy of help."
"If I may speak...", Lady Olivia tries to begin speaking again, "I am not from here. May I ask why you think so?"
"This forest is protection. The broken ones. The discarded. The lost. The forgotten ones. One day Witch came and offered me a deal: New homes for some of my shelterlings. Some, like Maya, got one. The rest were stolen. They were not protected. The trust was broken and my shelterlings lost."
"And everyone deserved to die for that?"
"Boscha!", Olivia scolds her. The pink-haired witch ignores her.
"And you think they'll stop at this forest? They'll attack you too and possibly burn down everything here.", Boscha now sounds angry, "You can hide all you want, but that won't stop you from having to defend yourself sooner or later. And do you think you stand a chance alone as opposed to with allies?"
The Bat Queen remains quiet at that. Lady Olivia stands up.
"Honored Bat Queen. I have spent my life serving under a king I believed to be a true and just one. He betrayed me and all the people who supported him to invade this world. He also betrayed my trust, and I will do everything I can until my last breath to help the people of this world stop him.", the Bat Queen glances at the spell around Olivia's arm before looking at her again.
"Your words speak true.", she mutters, her voice insecure, "But... My help needs trust. Trust takes time. You don't have time, my answer is 'no'."
"Then- what about your legendary trials? Rumor has it that no one has ever been able to pass them.", Boscha argues with a hint of desperation in her voice.
"One did. I owe her."
"Then we can-"
"No!", the Bat Queen exclaims. A shocked silence returns to the half-cave. "You leave." Boscha and Olivia just stand there for a long second. "Now."
"Yes, Your Highness.", Lady Olivia is the first to regain her composure.
"But-", Boscha wants to protest.
"Let's go."
…
As soon as the two of them (plus Maya) step back into the forest, the passage behind them disappears completely, leaving absolutely no trace that it ever existed.
"Well, that was a waste of time...", Boscha complains. In search of confirmation, she turns to Lady Olivia, who seems to be deep in thought. "What's the matter?"
"I'm not sure I agree with your conclusion."
"Why not? She has quite obviously turned us down."
"You may be a little too young to understand, but there's often more to these interactions than the obvious.", Olivia states, infuriating the witch next to her, "Tell me, did you notice anything about her behavior?"
"About her behavior?", Boscha ponders for a moment as the two of them slowly make their way back. "Uh, no. I was kinda busy-"
"While you were explaining the obvious to her, I paid attention to the reactions of the others. Those of their 'fosterlings'."
"What? There was no one else there."
Olivia shakes her head, "Yes, lots of countless little beings like your Maya, observing us. And like the Bat Queen herself, they gave off an aura of worry and unease, which tells me they're particularly aware of their situation and the dangers that come with it." A soft 'huh' escapes Boscha before the newt continues. "I'm pretty sure the Bat Queen will join the fight at some point in the future. Whether she joins us directly or fights on her own terms remains to be seen, though."
"Huh... Then maybe this wasn't a complete waste of time after all...", Boscha mutters, petting Maya, "I don't say this often, but... Thanks."
The sun was already well past its zenith when the respective expeditions set off into Latissa. Almost all the groups immediately headed towards the former industrial district. Except for the trio consisting of Hunter, Liwin, and Ruby. Their destination was somewhere else.
"What do you mean we're not attacking?", Hunter asks while the three of them hide in the ruins of a former residential building. It is clear that it has only recently been attacked judging by the blood and gore that has not yet dried on some of the walls. Hunter saw that and immediately wanted to attack the patrolling Frobots they passed less than two minutes ago.
"Keep your voice down!", Ruby orders him in an angry whisper. "If we attack one, others will be aware of us within minutes. And that's a fight we cannot win."
"Don't let your emotions cloud your judgment. Revenge won't bring these people back.", Liwin puts a hand on his shoulder, which he brushes away angrily.
"That just... isn't right.", he grumbles, "You said you had a plan to end all this, and now you're refusing to fight?"
"We cannot save everyone.", Ruby mutters darkly, glaring at him, "Neither can you."
"What d-"
"Let's keep going.", Liwin interrupts him, "Next stop is the museum. It's still two blocks away."
…
Liwin leaves the room back towards the exit, which in this case is nothing more than a huge hole in the outer wall of the house in the opposite room. Ruby follows immediately, Hunter too, albeit rather hesitantly.
As soon as he takes his first step back outside, he finds himself blinded by the glaring sun. It takes a moment before he can perceive the main street in front of him. He rubs his slightly aching eyes before turning his gaze squinting first to the right where he knows the patrol from earlier was walking down, then to the left towards Liwin and Ruby. Frowning, he makes a small sprint with his staff in his hand to catch up to them.
"You know-", Ruby starts, her tone no longer upset but instead rather amused, "For being our guide, you spend quite a bit of time behind us instead of directing us."
"Oh please, like you really need me to be your guide...", Hunter rolls his eyes. Ruby seems kinda... unhappy with him answer.
"You're no fun.", she grumbles.
"And you're not making any sense.", he grumbles back.
"Quiet, you two!", Liwin commands them in a louder whisper as the trio approaches a small alleyway between two ruined buildings. The older healer takes a look inside before gesturing to them that the coast is clear and they can move on.
…
"You know, since you two are actually from Latissa, I have a question."
"Shoot.", Liwin encourages him to speak.
"Have you ever heard of a 'Photo-Hog'? Or the 'Feather of the Forgotten'?"
"I've heard of Photo-Hogs, but I've never encountered one.", Ruby replies.
"Me neither. However, I once treated someone who was attacked by one.", Liwin says, "It's a creature that feeds on memories. It attaches itself to its victim's head and uses tweezer-like teeth to extract memories, which it then devours."
Hunter gulps heavily. "A-and the feather?"
"No clue, kid."
"Hmm...", Liwin doesn't answer right away. "I think I read once that it's an artifact, but I can't remember exactly what it does. Heh, ironic, isn't it?", she chuckles. "Any particular reason why you're asking?"
"Not really.", he lies, shrugging his shoulders, "My parents are explorers. They left on an expedition before the invasion, and I'm trying to retrace their steps."
"Sorry to hear that."
"It's okay. I'm used to them not being around.", he replies, which is technically not a lie. 'Not that I've ever met them. Or know their names...'
Hunter had actually asked Belos about his parents- or rather his family history in general- several times, but the memories were probably too much for his uncle to talk about. Maybe he'd tell him in a few years or so. No matter how long it takes.
…
A few more minutes of sneaking later, the three of them arrive at a medium-sized open square with a destroyed well in the middle. They're standing under a protruding roof, hidden from the sensors of the Frobots flying through the air right above their heads.
"I count fifteen.", Ruby whispers.
"Eighteen.", Hunter corrects her, "Why are there so many here? That wasn't mentioned in the briefing."
"It looks like they're circling around something behind the museum...", Liwin speaks up too, "Crossing the square like that is too risky."
"Around the outside? Take the long way around?", Hunter suggests.
"The shortcut?", the red-haired witch suggests as an alternative.
"Shortcut?", Hunter asks, confused.
"Trust me, it'll be a lot of fun.", Ruby smirks at him. For some reason, however, Hunter feels mildly threatened by this. Following him, the red-haired witch glances back at Liwin with an expectant look as they suddenly feel the ground shake beneath their feet, accompanied by the sound of a small explosion which just happens to be coming from the direction the three of them are heading.
"Shortcut it is.", Liwin decides, originally not wanting to go along with Ruby's idea. "Sorry, kid. After me."
…
With the healer leading the way, the three of them sneak back the way they came and enter one of the abandoned houses. Hunter, who has absolutely no idea what's going on, looks up at Ruby, who grins mischievously.
"Okay, this is good enough.", Liwin decides, standing in the middle of the remains of a living room, "Kid, brace yourself. It'll only take a few seconds."
"What will-", he is about to ask, when all of a sudden oversized leaves shoot out of the ground and completely enclose him within moments and pull him underground. "AAH-"
…
Hunter immediately finds himself completely disoriented and deprived of all senses. Unable to see, hear, smell or feel any movement, he begins to panic slightly.
'They've imprisoned me?!', is the very first thought that occurs to him, 'No, wait. Remember your training. What exactly am I supposed to do in a situation like this again?'
The (former) Golden guard remembers his time as a cadet. He fondly remembers being locked in a light and soundproof capsule for hours and hours by the commanders of that time. This usually lasted until the next watch shift, when he was let out again and reported on his experiences. The people always had a funny look on their faces that Hunter could never really figure out. 'Wait- how exactly am I supposed to g-'
Before he can ask himself this question again, a small vibration hits him and the cocoon around him begins to rapidly break apart. 'Huh?'
Soft light meets his eyes as he realizes exactly where he is. Polished granite floor around him, high ceiling, and barriers of velvet ribbons spread out...
"We're in the museum?!", he steps out of the rest of the cocoon, where he finds his legs slightly wobbly. Liwin and Ruby seem to have already emerged from their cocoons.
"So? How was your first time?", Ruby asks him with a huge grin on her face.
"It was... okay. I've experienced something similar before.", he replies lamely, to which the red-haired witch merely stares at him for a while with an unrecognizable expression on her face. It's kinda unnerving. "What?"
"You really know how to crush hopes and expectations."
"What?"
At that Liwin speaks up, "Translation: She can't tease you the way she wants. Anyway, let's move on. I'd like to get out of this section in case any Frobots have noticed our intrusion."
"I- I think I need a minute.", he draws her attention to his shaky legs, "You go ahead. I'll catch up."
"Are you sure?", Liwin asks.
"I can defend myself; I'll be fine.", Hunter tries to reassure them.
"The kid will be fine.", Ruby argues unexpectedly in his defense, "Besides, if it comes to that he can shout for us. Then it won't matter who hears us or not."
Liwin ponders with an intense look at Hunter before sighing in defeat, "Fine. In the meantime, we'll see where the back exit is. Don't take too long."
"Yes, ma'am.", he salutes half-heartedly. The healer frowns at him before she and Ruby slowly walk away from him.
…
Hunter lets out a deep breath before standing up straight. 'Finally... ... Huh?'
He looks down at himself and sees his legs still shaking. Frowning at them, he decides to take the time to look around until his body has calmed down. Given the state of almost everything in Latissa, it is more than surprising to see the museum, or at least the wing Hunter is currently in, largely intact. Well, apart from the three new holes in the fairly unscathed floor. Based on the exhibits on display, he appears to be in a natural history wing of the museum.
Directly to his right, for example, is a fossilized skeleton of a Stone sleeper from the Hecktaceous Period, dating back several hundred thousand years. He also notices exhibits that deal with the history of Latissa itself. One example is the remains of a stone hut that has been dated to around three thousand years ago. In this wing there are many skeletons or other remains on display to show how the witches and demons looked and lived back then. But, despite all this, there is no sign of the 'Feather of the Forgotten'.
…
"That's not too bad. After all, the museum is pretty big.", he tries to give himself a little boost of motivation. "Okay, where to now?"
He glances up at a display about the layout of the museum. 'Okay, there's an exhibition about the Titan itself, an art exhibition, local history... Hmm... Local history sounds the most promising by comparison.'
With his legs steadying a little, he makes his way towards the exhibition in question, passing more skeletons on display and a full-scale replica of Latissa as a wooden settlement from around a thousand years ago, which captures his gaze for a longer moment.
Hunter reaches his destination pretty quickly. After all, it's literally right in the room next door. Even if there is no door.
Compared to the last room, this one looks a little less unscathed. One of the window fronts has been destroyed, as have two of the central exhibits in the middle of the room. Nothing more than the remains of stone, glass, and tattered book pages are left. The rest? Comparatively intact. Several display cases holding various exhibits are damaged with the pieces themselves largely intact or with burn marks, most likely from Frobot weapons.
'Probably too few possible hiding places to reduce everything here to rubble.', Hunter guesses to himself before taking a closer look at the pieces on display.
The first long display case shows an open book entitled 'Laws and Statutes of the Merchant City of Latissa'. He skims the pages with little interest before moving on. The next piece is part of the city's old flag, which was flown until around fifty years ago. Further on, there is nothing more than the charred remains of what looks like an old piece of parchment. He walks on.
A row of portraits of famous people who were born in Latissa. Hunter is about to walk past them when one of the portraits in particular catches his eye. He bends down to read the description. 'Diane Liwin - Born 1967, founder and president witch of the 'Society of Free Healers for the Impoverished and Victims of Gang Crime' until disbanded in 1999 by decree of the leader of the healing coven Hettie Cutburn.', he reads in his head, 'Really? I knew there was more about her than I thought. At least it confirms that Hettie's always been a nasty person.'
Hunter goes on, from display case to display case, from exhibit to exhibit, none of it having anything to do with the feather. Throughout his entire journey, Hunter has talked to all sorts of people to see if they know anything about the artifacts Hunter needs to retrieve and where they are located. Including the 'Feather of the Forgotten', which he only found out from a former merchant that the feather is supposed to be in the museum in Latissa. And that the feather is supposed to have something to do with preserving memories, whatever that means. It seems that only his uncle knows its exact function.
…
Hunter wanders through the exhibition, and the next one without finding what he is looking for. That is, until he arrives at a book on display and reads the accompanying explanatory sign with his eyes. '-completed. The author died shortly afterwards. To this day, however, no one can remember her name or ever having met her. Photos of other people found in her house were discussed with said other persons, who remembered the image itself, but not the person next to them. As a result, her house was examined more closely and an artifact was found which was dubbed the 'Feather of the Forgotten', alluding to the author's lack of remembrance. The feather itself can now be seen in the town's archives, where it is safely researched and stored.'
'YES! FINALLY A REAL CLUE!', he cheers in his head. Why? Because the city archives are part of the town hall, which is located in a part of the city relatively untouched by Frobots.
…
"YO, HUNTER!", he suddenly hears Ruby calling his name. He immediately buries all thoughts of the feather, picks up his feet, and runs as fast as he can in the direction her voice came from. Several seconds later, he finds the two older witches two exhibition rooms away, peering out of a huge window. He hears a constant, muffled hammering, but doesn't pay any attention to it just yet. "Well, found what you were looking for?"
"What-"
"Come here and have a look at this.", Liwin interrupts him, whereupon he looks out of the large window and can't help but gasp in shock.
"This used to be a whole housing district...", he gasps as he looks at the completely empty area where thousands of people once lived. Instead, all the three of them see is a huge hole in the ground where a giant metal thing with huge red eyes is sticking out, seemingly vibrating. "What is that?", he asks in a low voice.
Liwin, with an angry look on her face, replies, "They're probably drilling for ores deep underground. But that's not what bothers me."
"What?"
"I have a hunch they're using captured people as forced labor."
"WHAT?"
"Keep your voice down.", Liwin reprimands him, her facial expression unchanging. It's literally freaking him out a bit right now, "Before you got here, we saw Frobots leading some witches down there."
"They're being forced to destroy their own homeland?", Hunter exclaims, "This is beyond disgusting."
His gaze wanders over to Ruby, who has so far been uncharacteristically silent. Even her gaze conveys nothing but barely controlled anger. "We have to save them."
"I know.", Liwin replies, gritting her teeth, "But you know we can't."
Hunter is completely ready to complain again, however, Liwin cuts in front of him, which shuts him up. "We have far too few people and even less information."
"So does that mean we're not doing anything here either?", Hunter accuses them.
"We're not going to save these people. At least not today."
"Huh?"
"Use your brain, kid!", Ruby snaps at him, "That the people are being used as forced labor is a good thing, at least relatively speaking. That they're working means there's a use for them that makes them more useful as labor as opposed to just killing them. Forced laborers can be freed. Dead ones can't."
"I... see.", he lets out a deep sigh, "So, what do we do?"
"Diane and I are going to do what we came to Latissa to do: Investigate. You're welcome to join us, kid."
"I will. I want to help!", he exclaims full of conviction, earning him a genuine glad smirk from the red-haired witch.
…
"Okay, how do we proceed?", Hunter asks after the three of them have returned to their entry point inside the museum. "Not via the surface I suppose..."
"Not unless you want to die.", Ruby comments, "You saw all those patrols out there."
"No, we're digging through the ground.", Liwin explains, at which Hunter visibly recoils.
"You- you don't mean those cocoons again, do you?", he asks, trembling, 'Not again. I'm not going to get trapped like that again.'
Ruby grins at him mischievously, "Why, do you wanna go again?"
"Stop it, Ruby.", Liwin scolds her, which gets a laugh out of the redhead, "No, we'll walk. You'll see."
…
Liwin squats down in front of one of the holes and casts a plant spell, which doesn't seem to do anything at first glance. The chief healer crouches motionless with her eyes closed. Hunter, visibly confused, looks at Ruby for guidance, who herself just stands there with her arms crossed, awaiting whatever Liwin is doing. He lets out a silent sigh before turning his gaze to Liwin's magic circle and noticing something unusual by sheer coincidence. As is usually the case with plant spells, her magic circle is not completely green. Parts of it are red. 'What?'
She opens her eyes again, which Hunter takes as a sign to get rid of all his questions at once.
"What was that spell? The circle wasn't one color? Was that mixed magic? But you have a coven sigil..."
"Oh, this thing here?", Liwin grins, holding out the back of her hand with the sigil of the healing coven towards him, "This is a tattoo."
"This- That is the Healing Coven, but that was plant magic...", Hunter feels like his brain is about to explode.
"Don't worry your little golden head about it.", Ruby teases him, but he doesn't notice because he's too caught up in his own head.
"Hey, snap out of it.", Liwin literally snaps a few times right in front of his face to bring him back, "Anyway, that spell just now was Plant Magic mixed with a bit of Bard Magic. There are ancient, vast root systems all through the ground that I can use to create an inverted map of sorts."
"An inverted map?"
"Basically: where there are no roots, there is a tunnel.", the healer explains again for the fools among them. "And this is where the bard part comes in. I can pick up vibrations and sound through the roots. Basically, what that means for us is that I've found a tunnel with forced laborers and no guards in it."
"That's- amazing.", Hunter says, quite dumbfounded.
"We'll make contact with the prisoners and discuss next steps.", Liwin concludes.
"And what if that's not enough for them?", Hunter interjects.
"What do you mean?", Ruby asks back.
"Well, in their eyes, you're probably their rescuers, and telling them that you're not there to really save anyone.", he elaborates.
"Not gonna lie, that's a valid argument.", Ruby admits, to which Liwin nods thoughtfully.
"Let's take care of one problem at a time for now. We'll see what happens afterwards."
'Aka. She doesn't have a plan.', Hunter thinks to himself.
…
Minutes later, the three of them find themselves in a tunnel made of thick roots with several glowing leaves at regular intervals. These roots are even thicker than usual for Liwin in order to absorb the vibrations from the enemy's digging and prevent the tunnel from collapsing.
Raising her hand, Liwin gestures the other two to stop.
"What is it? Why are we stopping?"
"Do you have to keep asking so many questions all the time?", Ruby wonders.
Liwin and Hunter both disregard her question completely. The healer speaks up. "We're here, and I notice several witches in the tunnel just ahead of us. I'll push the rest of the rock out of the way manually and cut off the mineshaft."
Liwin opens the root web that has dug through the ground for her, revealing a wall of solid rock laid out before her. Drawing a brown circle in the air causes the stone to move out of their way, revealing a manually dug mineshaft in front of them. She draws another circle to close the path to their right, so that they can talk undisturbed to the prisoners without being noticed by Frobots.
…
The three of them enter the manually dug tunnel, only to stop dead in their tracks when they see what, or rather who, is in front of them and is working without being bothered by their presence.
"You're kidding me!", Ruby growls deeply, rage in her voice.
"Uhh, hello?", Hunter calls out to the total of five workers in front of him. But none of the five respond. "Hello? We're here to help you."
Five witches of various ages are working in front of him, equipped with nothing more than pickaxes that hack into the walls. They are also wearing normal, everyday clothes. One of the women is even wearing shoes with finger-length heels and a completely filthy evening dress. There is no safety equipment such as helmets or anything similar, nor are there any safeguards for the mineshafts itself.
"Something's not right here...", he mumbles before deciding to approach one of them. Careful not to get hit in the face with one of the pickaxes, he approaches one of the men, but stops when he discovers a purple collar on or rather around his neck. He looks around and... every one of them is wearing one. He walks around one of them, only to find their eyes glowing completely purple. 'It doesn't even look like they're breathing...'
"Hey, these people are all wearing... collars? What-?" he was about to say when he turns around and spots the scene between the two women behind him. Ruby in front of him, encased arm-deep in rock by Liwin. "What are you doing?"
"LET ME OUT FOR FUCKS SAKE!", Ruby growls, "THOSE FUCKERS DESERVE TO DIE FOR WHAT THEY DID TO RAIN!"
The red-haired giantess squeezes and squirms in an attempt to free herself. Hunter approaches Liwin, but Ruby noticed him first. Her tone changes abruptly.
"Hey Hunter. Be a good kid and free me. Okay?", she requests very politely, but he is skeptical.
"For what?", he asks, a frown adorning his face, "Who is going to die?"
"Come on, be a good Golden Guard and LET. ME. OUT!"
"Wha-", he stumbles back a few steps, not only because of her outburst, "When? How?"
"Oh, all this time."
"Ruby!", Liwin admonishes her, her staff pointed directly at her. She draws a plant spell that wraps a root around her mouth, which the giantess easily bites through.
"All of us know about the little Golden Guard who's been wandering the Isles during this shitshow, asking all sorts of people about strange things. Probably sent by his beloved fucking uncle!", Ruby accuses him. Incredulously, Hunter looks at Liwin, who is clearly avoiding his gaze.
"How?", his voice no more than a whisper and now with his own staff in his hand.
Liwin sighs, now directly looking at him, "You once fought a few of us. The Looking Glass Graveyard. Remember?"
"Does that mean that-"
"Yes, that's how we learned your real name. Descriptions of your appearance from the others helped.", she explains, "If it makes you feel any better, we had no idea you were in Latissa at the same time as us. This was pure coincidence."
"Oh-kay...", Hunter mutters, his mind racing at insane speeds, "What now? Are you trying to capture me?"
The healer takes a deep breath. "Right now, neither you nor Belos are our enemies.", Liwin replies with a low voice, "Especially with the curiosity you showed during your tour, you gave us a good insight into what Belos seems to be planning. We are very grateful to you for that."
"You- you're letting me go?", Hunter asks incredulously.
"Like I said, you're not our enemy."
…
Unbeknownst to them, Ruby has secretly started to successfully crumble the rock holding her captive.
"RUBY!", Liwin shouts as the rock cracks open and the red-haired witch runs into the tunnel towards one of the elderly-looking prisoners, lashing out with her massive fist and smashing her head against the rock, smashing it to pieces in the process. Liwin and Hunter can only watch in bewilderment and horror as Ruby breathes heavily like a wild animal after what she just did.
"That was for Rain, you fucking pig of a mother!"
"M-mother?", Hunter asks in a shaky voice.
"She avenged her younger sister. Don't ask.", Liwin answers in a defeated tone. A moment of silence envelops the tunnel, with only the regular simultaneous sounds of chopping of the four remaining pickaxes.
About a minute later, Ruby straightens up and approaches the others, who look at her with either utter fear or angry indifference. "Sorry you had to see that, Kid. It was necessary."
…
"I... I should leave."
A few days later…
"Uncle? Uncle, are you here?"
For the first time since Hunter was sent on his mission, he returns to his uncle's lab inside the Titan's Skull, his spirits high. Hunter just came flying in though one of the eye sockets on Flapjack. Upon reaching the huge ornate stone door, he pushes it open and enters the lab behind it, which his uncle has used as a base since the beginning of the invasion.
What wasn't there on his last visit is a strange contraption built around a pedestal that rises some two meters into the air. The closest comparison Hunter can think of is a circular, unfinished stone circle, like a kind of passageway.
"Hunter? You're back already?", Belos emerges from a smaller side room, looking more like an engineer than a ruler. His hair is tied back in a loose braid, he wears an overall, and goggles around his neck. Hunter, surprised for a moment, goes to his knees in a deep bow.
"Indeed.", he confirms, "It fills me with joy to have fulfilled all your expectations, my lord."
"Show me your finds.", Belos demands. Without any objections, Hunter takes out a small pouch, which expands to many times its size when he opens it, forming a kind of tent. "Hm?"
"This is an artifact I acquired from a traveling merchant.", Hunter reports with pride in his voice, "It has greatly simplified my efforts to transport everything safely and securely."
Belos nods in satisfaction and enters the tent with Hunter right behind him.
…
Inside, he finds several containers and two cages, one of which is made entirely of glass.
"Over here we have the Echo Quartz, which I found in the eastern ring finger. In the glass cage are the Astral Whispers, which emit a terrible stench. Next to it is an Eonstone and Glass Kelp, the latter soaked in water to keep it fresh. In the jar next to it is the Moonveil Mist, which I... borrowed from a museum on the left knee. Next to it is the Feather of the Forgotten, and in the cage, there is the Photo-Hog. I'm sorry uncle, but I couldn't locate any Galdorstones."
"Why is the animal dead?", Belos asks instead of asking about the Galdorstone, as he had expected.
"Hm? Oh, because it's not possible to transport living creatures with the artifact. Plus, it kept trying to eat my memories. I'm not sure if it actually succeeded in some of his attempts or not."
Belos looks around with a sympathetic look before turning to Hunter and placing a hand on his shoulder. "You did well. The Titan is proud of your accomplishments."
"Thank you.", Hunter bows, "Um, if you don't mind me asking, why did I have to get all this stuff?"
A curious look adorns Belos' face. He contemplates his question. "Come with me, I'll show you."
…
The two of them leave the tent and approach the apparatus unknown to Hunter.
"This here... is the solution to our problems.", Belos begins dramatically, "And the beginning of the end of our enemies."
"What exactly does it do?"
"In colloquial terms, it opens a door to a very distant place.", he says with a smile on his face.
"And there's something there that we can use to put an end to the invasion?", Hunter asks excitedly.
"Indeed.", Belos nods, "And every single item you brought with you will serve a purpose. The hog would have been more useful alive, but it will work this way too."
"I'm sorry, Uncle.", Hunter lowers his head, "I've let you down."
"Not at all, Hunter.", Belos puts one hand on Hunter's shoulder and the other over his heart, "Absolutely everything is going exactly as the Titan planned. And you have successfully done your part."
"Un-Uncle?", some fear creeps into Hunter's voice at his uncle's ominous tone. He tries to take a step back, but Belos' grip on his shoulder holds him rigidly in place.
"You were by far the most loyal of them all. The others have betrayed and betrayed me, but not you.", Belos smiles as Hunter squirms slightly in pain, "And now it's time for your reward."
"Unc- UGH!"
…
A sharp pain erupts in Hunter's chest, and his whole body begins to convulse. His gaze wanders downwards, only to discover that Belos has pierced his chest with his arm turned into a spear. With a shaky expression, he looks back up at his uncle, who has a completely emotionless expression on his face. To his and Belos' surprise, Belos' arm suddenly turns goo, allowing Hunter to stumble backwards away from him. Within seconds, Belos' arm has reformed and he looks down disparagingly at Hunter, who has fallen.
"I missed? Guess I forgot where exactly I put it...", he mumbles. Hunter looks down at the incredibly painful hole inside him, 'Why am I not bleeding?'
His gaze snaps back up in time to see Belos take another swing with his goo-arm formed into a lance. In seconds, Hunter summons Flapjack and dashes to the side just in time.
"Stop. Moving!", Belos orders him. However, Hunter is currently in nothing but deathly fear. Trembling, in pain, and breathing heavily, Hunter dodges another attack and quickly flees towards the exit. Belos teleports into his path several times, but Hunter's short-range teleports save him each time.
Belos teleports to the bridge outside the lab and Hunter instinctively jumps off the bridge. Surprised, Belos looks after him, not realizing that Hunter has already reached the Titan's eyes on the other side, flying behind Belos' back on his staff.
Belos teleports right behind him, still trying to get him back with an outstretched goo-arm, but it's too late.
…
"Soooooooo...", a voice he doesn't want to hear at all appears next to him, "He got away. You must be a reeally good catcher if he's so scared of you."
"...", Belos doesn't answer him, but merely stares after Hunter angrily.
"Don't you want to go after him?"
"... No.", Belos decides, his facial expression resolute. "But it's time I invite some old... friends... to play the game."
Somewhere further south...
"I- can't... anymore..."
Hunter has been flying for about half an hour, and the adrenaline that has kept him awake so far is starting to wear off and he is rapidly losing energy. Flapjack notices this and immediately reduces his altitude and speed.
"Flap...", he breathes out, loosening his grip on the staff. Still two meters above the ground, Hunter loses consciousness and staggers from his staff to the ground.
Flapjack, extremely worried about his best friend, transforms back into his natural form and looks around him for possible help. Luckily for him, someone has been watching the entire thing just now.
…
"Hello Hunter. It's been a while..."
