The tallest of the group, a girl with copper hair tied up in a ponytail, pointed at Kabaka. “The big man is down. Get the other two and let’s get them to squeal on Godlike.”
The boy took off. Before anyone could react, he had lifted his leg and delivered a sharp kick to the side of Kabaka’s head. Matteo was on the verge of shouting but clamped his hand on his mouth in time.
Shaury was on her feet. Her shin struck the boy between his legs. Matteo winced in automatic empathy as he watched the boy’s eyes practically bulge out of their sockets. Clamping both his hands to his sensitive area, the boy fell down hard to his knees, a mewling sound escaping his lips.
One of the other girls, with dark hair that flowed to her shoulder blades, was beside Shaury, delivering a punch to the other woman. Shaury fell on her back, hand gauging her bloodied lips to check the extent of damage.
“That is going to earn you a whole lot more pain, you skank,” Dark Hair screamed at Shaury.
The two remaining girls joined Dark Hair. When Copper Hair, who seemed like the leader, looked at Kenji, the young boy raised his hands.
“I’m just twelve and I got tossed in with these guys. I had no say in the matter.”
Copper Hair jerked her head toward the forest. “Get out of here while you still have your diaper on.”
Nodding vigorously, Kenji made his way around his teammates, receiving a glare from Shaury. One of the girls was helping up her fallen comrade, who got up on shaking legs. Together, their attention fell on Shaury, completely dismissing Kenji’s quiet approach to Matteo’s tree.
The remaining girl, who also sported dark hair, looked over at her companions. “So, what do you think we do now? Maybe tie her up?”
Shaury tried to get on her feet but Copper Hair pushed her down with a kick. “Stay down, skank.”
“Do you really know how to use that word, little girl? Or are you just throwing it to hide your insecurity?” asked Shaury, which earned her another attack to her face from Copper Hair’s boot. This time, Shaury’s hands were up in time to save her from another bloodied lip.
“I say we beat the crap out of her,” said the boy, standing on wobbly feet. He seemed more than eager to recover his lost pride through his fists.
“We came here together,” said Dark Hair 1. “We are going to leave this place together.”
“How cute,” retorted Shaury, offering a smile filled with contempt.
“Can we just beat her until she gives up Godlike’s location?” asked Dark Hair 2, once again looking to her companions for support.
Throughout the exchange, Matteo had noticed Kenji walking up to stand below him. When the young boy looked up, Matteo used two of his fingers to make a walking motion and then pointed at the forest. Run there.
Kenji looked up in confusion, but his look turned to one of understanding as he watched Matteo remove his shirt. The shirt was rolled into a ball to prevent the wind from carrying it away as it was dropped down. Kenji caught it and replaced his shirt with Matteo’s, which almost seemed to reach his knees. He had to lift the shirt up a little to allow his legs to move freely. Matteo gave a quick nod, tightly holding onto the piece of branch he had taken earlier.
Kenji took off, trying to be as silent as possible. It didn’t work as well as he had planned. A twig snapped, and Matteo watched the uniformed group turn in the direction of the sound.
“Go, Matteo,” shouted Shaury, playing along.
“Did she just say Matteo?” asked the boy. “I knew he was nearby. That’s Godlike.”
Copper Hair turned toward Dark Hair 1. “You stay here. If she so much as moves, I don’t care what you do to her so long as she is lying on the ground, unmoving.”
“You two, follow me,” she ordered the boy and Dark Hair 2. The trio moved cautiously toward where they had last seen Kenji.
Perhaps the trio thought that the legendary Godlike might need three people to bring him down. Maybe they had underestimated Shaury, thinking that just one person would be more than enough to keep watch over her. Whatever their reasons, they had just given up any advantage they hoped to hold.
Dark Hair 1 faced Shaury.
Matteo swung the arm holding the branch a few times while he aimed his throw. He felt energy flowing into his leg, a physical indication that the effects of paralysis had come to an end.
“You know,” said Dark Hair 1, “I could still beat the crap out of you for what you did to Andrew. All I have to do is say that it was self-defense. After all, I d—”
The rest of her words were drowned out in a sudden gasp as the piece of branch struck her square in the back. Dark Hair 1 fell forward. Shaury quickly sprung to her feet and ran to the branch. She turned around, holding her new weapon like a baseball bat. “Hey,” she said.
Dark Hair 1 looked around. Bits of wood burst into the air as the branch connected with the side of Dark Hair 1’s face, and the girl went down quickly. Shaury held the branch, breathing heavily.
“Samantha,” a shout echoed out from Matteo’s right. When he turned, he saw the shocked expressions of the three remaining members of the uniformed group. Beyond them, he watched Kenji get on top of a branch. He was bouncing a small rock in his hand.
“There he is.” The boy named Andrew was pointing at Matteo.
Kenji flicked the rock from waist level. His aim was true. Matteo watched, clearly impressed, as the rock sailed through the air like a bullet and bounced off the side of Copper Hair’s head. The girl screamed as she fell sideways.
“Aubrey,” the boy shouted.
Within seconds, Shaury had covered the short distance to where the boy stood. He faced her and she mimicked aiming for his private region. The boy reacted instantly, using both hands to protect from an attack that wasn’t coming, leaving his face wide open. Shaury swung the branch right into his nose, the impact throwing the boy backwards into a nearby bush.
Dark Hair 2 was the only one remaining. The girl held up her hands as soon as Shaury faced her. “Can I join you guys? I promise you will not even know I am there,” said the girl.
“Then what’s the point of being on our team?” asked Shaury.
The girl opened and closed her mouth a few times, like a fish out of water.
Shaury raised the piece of branch. “You have fifteen seconds to disappear.”
It took just four seconds for the girl to make herself scarce. A nearby groan caught Shaury’s attention. Copper Hair—Aubrey—was slowly getting to her feet. Matteo hung from the branch he was standing on before dropping to the forest floor. Kenji walked up to him and handed over his shirt.
“Nice shot,” said Matteo, putting on his shirt.
“What else did you expect?” asked Kenji, his face showing just how much pride he took in that accomplishment.
Shaury had the leader of the uniformed group blacked up to a wall, the tip of the branch touching the space between Aubrey’s collarbones.
“Two members down and one just fled without so much as a backward glance,” said Shaury, her voice carrying with it a hint of menace and possible violence. “I personally think that your friend who ran away had the most sense. What about you? Are you going to make a sensible decision, too?”
Aubrey looked at her fallen comrades. It almost seemed like she was about to try and rescue them. “If I leave, you won’t follow me right?”
“No, we won’t,” said Shaury, without lowering her weapon.
Inching herself away from the tree, Aubrey broke into a run at her first opportunity. Matteo watched flashes of red hair between the trees until, eventually, all he could hear was the sound of running footsteps.
“Anybody holding a health potion?” asked Kenji.
Matteo and Shaury made their way to the boy, who was looking at Kabaka with a helpless expression. “I don’t know how he could survive all those.”
“He’s probably Rank 3 at least,” said Shaury, kneeling down beside Kabaka.
There was nothing they could do to save Kabaka, that muc
h Matteo was certain of. The prisoners were quite literally given one life to make it out alive, and possibly earn their freedom. Although, knowing what freedom really meant, Matteo was not certain if it was truly worth it.
Something about what Olympus said tickled Matteo’s mind. “There are items scattered throughout this forest.”
“That’s great,” said Kenji. “Why don’t we take out our item detectors and get going?” He pressed his finger to his lips and pretended to think. “Oh, wait, we don’t have anything like that with us, do we? Unless you happen to know where every item is stashed.”
Matteo looked around, as though doing so would somehow reveal the items to him. In actuality, he was wondering what area of the forest could help them right now.
“He has ten HP,” said Shaury.
“How do you know that?” asked Matteo, wondering if she had a power that he was unaware of.
Shaury looked at him as though he had asked her whether the moon was made out of cheese. A sudden realization dawned in her eyes.
“You need to allow yourself to see it,” she said. “Just mentally say the phrase ‘check life’ and then speak the name of the person. You can say it out loud, as well, if you like.”
Matteo thought about it for a few seconds before saying, “Check life Kabaka.” When he looked at the big man lying on the ground, he noticed a transparent bar with a sliver of red in it. Above the bar, in a small font, Matteo saw 10HP/1100HP.
“He’s a Rank 3,” whispered Matteo in surprise.
“How else do you think he could take two Crossbolt shots without falling flat and never breathing again?” Kenji chipped in.
“We need to get him to safety, now,” said Shaury, urgency creeping into her voice. She faced Matteo. “Come on. You know this area. Where do we go next?”
Matteo mapped out the forest in his mind. At this point, he knew that it would be futile to try and look for items. They could be anywhere. There was a higher chance of his group running into another group than there was of finding a stray item. Not to mention that even if they did find an item, there was no guarantee that it would be capable of healing Kabaka. For all they knew, it could be a weapon. Or something that could create a distraction.
No, Matteo had to look for something else. Something that would not move. A landmark.
More specifically, a place that allowed healing.
“We need to go that way,” said Matteo, pointing his hand toward the forest. “There’s healing there that can help. It isn’t too far, either.”
Shaury and Kenji looked in the direction he was pointing, and then looked at him with bewildered expressions on their faces.
“Did you hit your head a little too hard when you fell?” asked Kenji, incredulity swarming in his voice. “You want us to go toward the rest of the prisoners? Might I also add, they are looking for you? In case you just forgot that, let me repeat it. They are looking for you. And there was also that one little fact about,” Kenji pretended to think, “how they are looking for you.”
“If we don’t heal him when we have some chance of saving him, then what are we going to do when we are surrounded by our enemies?” asked Matteo, not holding back the frustration he felt.
“You are Godlike,” said Shaury. “Figure out another way.”
Matteo cursed inside at Olympus for revealing his name. “There is no other way. The only other choice is heading through the forest around the town, reaching the other side, and walking for hours.”
“Then why don’t you go and bring the healing water here?” asked Shaury.
While his automatic reaction was to reject her idea, Matteo thought about it for a while. There was some logical sense to the suggestion. Rather than coming up with a better plan, Matteo looked around him, seeing if there was something he could use to carry the liquid from the healing well.
“Firstly, we need a container,” he said.
Kenji was the first to react. He began walking around, his eyes searching the forest floor, trees, and even bushes.
“What are you doing?” asked Shaury.
“Do you have a plan?” said Matteo, watching the kid walk around like he was finding the exact spot where he had hidden a treasure.
“I have a plan,” said Kenji, not hiding the irritation in his voice. “Why? Thirteen-year-olds can’t make plans?”
“That’s not what I—never mind, Kenji.” Matteo turned to Shaury. “We need to get rid of the unconscious people before they wake up to cause trouble.”
Shaury nodded. “What about Kabaka? We need to move him, too. There are two people out there in the forest who know where to find us.”
Moving as quickly as possible, Matteo went up to the unconscious boy from the uniformed group. Placing his arms under the boy’s armpits, he dragged the rather light body across the forest floor. He saw Shaury drag the girl, but she wasn’t being too kind. She simply pulled the girl’s body by the hands.
The duo dragged the bodies for nearly twenty minutes, just to be certain that they were far enough. They deposited the bodies in a small glade near the edge of the forest. When they were done, they took a few moments to catch their breath. Matteo watched Shaury lean forward on her knees, taking in deep gulps of air.
“Well, now we deal with the big guy,” said Matteo.
When they returned, they spotted Kenji sitting next to Kabaka. Beside him, on the forest floor, were objects that Matteo at first guessed were green cups. When he paid them enough attention, he realized that his guess was right, but no in the way that he thought.
Kenji had taken large leaves and folded them into cone-like shapes. This allowed them to act as containers. Small pieces of wood pierced the cone-leaf at sporadic intervals. securing the shape of the leaves. The wood pieces ensured that the cone would not unravel itself easily and while Matteo doubted they could hold the shape of the leaf for long, he was still impressed with the idea.
“That is brilliant,” he remarked.
“I know,” said Kenji.
Shaury snorted, but offered a smile, showing that she appreciated Kenji’s remark.
“Now, we move Kabaka,” said Matteo.
Matteo turned the big man around to a prone position. He wrapped one arm around his shoulder while Shaury wrapped her arm around the other and Kenji balanced Kabaka’s chest on his back.
“I don’t know about you guys, but I’m short enough already. I don’t need back problems, too,” said Kenji.
“Let’s just find a good spot to hide him,” Matteo replied.
“You mean, like, behind a large hill, maybe?” asked Kenji, who was also doing the double job of holding on to his leaf-cones.
The trio carried Kabaka into the forest. For a while, they suggested different hiding spots, but each time one did, it was rejected by the others. Eventually, they came upon a large foliage. The trio carefully maneuvered Kabaka into the newfound hiding space, covering him with leaves, branches, and other debris to make him blend into the surroundings. Matteo remembered the position he had taken when he was stunned by Olympus in the great hall and when he had fallen to the forest floor earlier. He turned Kabaka on his side and arranged him in a fetal position, allowing the big man to take as little space as possible in order to hide better.
“All right, here is what we are going to do,” announced Matteo, looking at Shaury. “Kenji and I will go get the water of the healing well, while you watch over Kabaka.”
“I’m sure there is a good reason why I am here,” said Shaury.
“You can’t expect Kenji to watch over Kabaka.”
“Really, now?” said Kenji, looking like he was just slapped across the face.
“Can you defend against a group of people?” asked Matteo.
No response.
“I am the only one who knows exactly where to find the healing well, but I can’t go there alone. Not sure what I might encounter. I might need someone to come with me,” continued Matteo, eyeing a thick branch lying nearby. He walked over it, continuing to
speak as he did so. “Shaury can remain here until we return. We won’t be long. At least, I hope not.”
Matteo tossed the branch to Shaury, who deftly caught it. Kenji held his leaf-cones, which were a total of four, in both hands.
“We set?” asked Matteo.
For a few moments, no one answered. Eventually, Kenji broke the silence. “I’m not giving you guys a hug or anything.”
Matteo planted his arms on his hips and thought for a few seconds before saying, “Let’s go save our friend.”
Level 6
The walk to the healing well was nerve-racking.
Matteo’s head was swarming with ideas on the many ways a random group might come across him and Kenji. For the first fifteen minutes, the duo would take frequent stops to listen for sounds or watch for movements in the forest. As time became a pressing concern, they began to take the stops less frequently. In his mind, Matteo calculated that it would take nearly twenty minutes to reach the healing well if he was in the game. He hoped that no one else had found the healing well.
Kenji had discovered a few rotten hanging vines and made a makeshift item belt, holding on to his precious leaf-cone cargo. Might as well. There was no guarantee that they wouldn’t run into someone who might, for instance, be standing just beyond a large tree.
“Are you an Agri?” asked Kenji, breaking the silence that seemed to have stretched without either of the two noticing.
Matteo considered the question. In all honesty, he realized that he did not know the answer to the question himself. “I wish I was. It is better than not being aligned to any class.”
“I think it is better for you to be an NPC than be an Agri.”
“Xipe Totec visited me when I landed here,” said Matteo. It was information he had refused to divulge to anyone. Right now, it did not matter if he spoke about it to someone. Kenji was in the same predicament as he was, and even if the young boy spoke to someone, what was the worst that could happen?
When Matteo thought that Kenji was not going to respond and was pondering another question to ask, the boy spoke. “So, that old man didn’t give you anything to defend yourself? Not even some bread for your journey?”
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