Mia woke with a start, her heart pounding in her chest as she scanned the room. The faint glow of the weakening Light Rune was barely bright for her to make out the sleeping figures of her friends. Her eyes fell upon Hector, slumped against the wall with his mouth hanging open, snoring softly. Panic surged through her; he was supposed to be keeping watch.
"Damn it, Hector," Mia muttered under her breath, as she pushed herself up from the cold stone floor. She nudged Diana awake, who sat up and looked around slowly.
"Wha...what's going on?" Diana asked groggily, her eyes narrowed in confusion.
"Look." Mia pointed at Hector, her voice tense and angry. "The idiot is asleep."
Diana's face hardened. The grogginess disappeared near instantly, replaced by cold anger.
"Hey!" Mia hissed, kicking Hector's leg none too gently. He jolted awake, eyes wide with surprise and disorientation.
"Wh-what happened?" he stammered, rubbing his eyes and trying to sit up straighter.
"Nice job on the watch, Hector," Mia said, her voice dripping with sarcasm. "Did you fucking forget the monsters? For fucks sake you still have your own blood on your shirt!"
"Come on, Mia," Hector protested, running a hand through his short, dark hair. "I was just resting my eyes for a moment. I didn't think—"
"Exactly. You didn't think," Mia interrupted, her anger flaring. "We're in a dangerous place, Hector! We could have all died!"
"Alright, alright," Hector said defensively, trying to diffuse the situation. "I made a mistake. I'm sorry. I'll make it up to you guys, I promise."
"Promises aren't going to keep us alive," Mia snapped. She needed to make him understand the stakes. Someone could really die, irrevocably, no second chances. Dead.
"Enough!" Frank interrupted before the situation could spiral out of control. "Hector fucked up, but were fine, we got lucky. Move on."
Hector's eyes burned with frustration and he looked about to say something, but he held his tongue. Which was just as well for Mia. She knew being dressed down so publicly stung his ego. He deserved it, maybe he wouldn't fall asleep next time.
Mia took a deep breath, attempting to push her anger aside. They couldn't afford to be at each other's throats; they needed each other if they wanted to survive and get back home. She needed to balance her anger and try for the best possible result.
"Boy, this place must be pretty safe if even our fearless protector can catch some Z's," Frank quipped "Maybe we're not in such a bad spot after all."
"Are you for real?" Mia snapped, her eyes narrowing as she clenched her fists. Her anger redirected to Frank "This is serious."
"Alright, alright," Frank said, holding up his hands in surrender. "I was just trying to help. No need to bite my head off."
"Can we all just take a step back and breathe?" Diana interjected, scanning the group. "Arguing isn't going to solve anything. We need to focus on what we can do to keep ourselves safe."
"Thank you, Diana," Mia said, taking a deep breath. Again. "We need to come up with a better system for keeping watch so this doesn't happen again."
"Fine," Hector grumbled, his mood evidently foul. "I'll take double shifts tonight if it'll make everyone happy."
"Nobody wants you to take double shifts," Diana replied, her voice calm and cold.
"Seems your trust stock is currently quite low buddy" Frank whispered to Hector who gave him an angry glance.
"Maybe we should set up a rule against sitting?" Frank suggested, scratching his chin thoughtfully. "No way to fall asleep that way"
"Sounds dumb but workable," Diana agreed, nodding hesitantly.
“Its not dumb if it works, also there is a reason why its called standing watch, Diana” Frank said.
"Enough," Mia snapped, frustrated. "We're wasting precious time arguing when we should be finding food and water." It was time to take charge of the situation again. "Without them, we won't have the strength to continue or defend ourselves against whatever fucked up monstrosity we encounter next."
Her friends didn't object. It was obvious she was right, and their empty stomachs were a great motivator.
The group unlocked the entrance and then got to searching the immediate surroundings. Room after room, they found nothing but desolation. Their search felt increasingly futile. The place seemed to have been abandoned for centuries, making it difficult to find anything fresh or remotely edible. Mia continued to search, rummaging through pile after pile of rubble or rotten wood.
"Anything over there?" Mia called to Frank, who was inspecting the remains of what looked like a large wooden table.
"Nothing ," he replied, tossing the squishy remains of wood aside with a look of disgust. "This is hopeless."
"Wait!" Diana said suddenly, her eyes widening as she spotted something among the debris.
She bent down, her fingers gingerly brushing aside a layer of rubble. Suddenly she recoiled and fell down on her behind. Mia gagged at the smell and at the sight - a lifeless, decaying monster, crushed by the rubble from a nearby wall that collapsed on it. Like the monsters weren't enough, they needed to watch for collapsing walls too.
Mia's voice finally broke the silence, though it was weak even in her own ears. "We need to be even more cautious. Keep searching."
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Mia's eyes scanned another similar room, her hands were covered in cuts and she could feel she was loosing hope. Just as she was about to call off the search, a glimmer caught her attention.
"Over there," Mia called out, pointing through a partially collapsed wall. In the room beyond, a beam of light pierced through a hole in the ceiling, revealing a small pool of water that had formed in a sunken corner. The shimmering liquid seemed to call out to her, and she was suddenly aware of just how thirsty she was.
"Water," Hector breathed, relieved. He rushed toward the pond but Mia stopped him in his tracks.
"What if it's not safe?" she hesitated.
"Only one way to find out," Frank said with a shrug. "We draw lots. Whoever gets the short straw takes a sip first."
Mia held her tongue for a couple of heartbeats hoping for Hector to step forward. When that didn't happen she said: "Frank’s right," One in a four chance, not so bad. "It's fair that way."
Mia hesitated, her fingers hovering over the straws Frank had fashioned from broken wood.
"Alright," Mia said finally, exhaling sharply as she drew a straw from Frank's closed fist. She held it up for the others to see, her heart pounding in her chest. It was a longer one.
One by one, they drew and revealed their straws.
"Looks like we have our winner," Frank murmured, holding up his notably shorter straw. His usual grin was nowhere to be found, replaced with a tight-lipped grimace. "What a great idea you had, Frank."
"Be careful," Mia whispered.
"Hey, I'm always careful, and I'm going to drink this extra careful" he replied, attempting to inject some humor into the situation. But Mia noticed the slight waver in his voice.
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"Alright, let's get this over with," Diana said, her eyes locked on Frank as he knelt by the edge of the water. Mia saw his eyes darting between the water and his friends' expectant faces.
"Here goes nothing," he murmured, giving Mia, Diana, and Hector one last glance before scooping up a minuscule amount of water with cupped hands. "Always am," Frank mumbled to himself. He brought his hands to his lips and, with a steadying exhale, took a cautious sip.
The group watched with bated breath, their eyes glued to Frank's face for any sign of distress or discomfort. His face was fearful, a bead of sweat forming on his forehead as he looked at them.
"Frank?" Mia asked hesitantly, her voice barely above a whisper. "Are you okay?"
"I... I think so, but honestly I'm amazed at myself that I did not pretend to choke and die." he said, his gaze still unfocused as he tried to discern any abnormal sensations within his body. "I don't feel any different. Yet."
"Alright," Mia declared, her tone firm. "We'll wait here for a couple of hours. If nothing bad happens to Frank by then, we can assume that the water is safe enough to drink. Not like we have much choice"
As they settled down to pass the time, it was impossible not to notice the thirst that tormented them, even more with water so close. The minutes dragged on, each second feeling like an eternity as they kept a watchful eye on Frank.
Mia watched as Hector paced along the edge of the water, her eyes narrowing in anger, still not forgetting him falling asleep. They needed to focus on finding food, on surviving, she admonished herself. No time to be angry.
"Hey, look at this," Hector called out, crouching down near the water's edge. His fingers traced over a set of indentations in the thin layer of dirt around the water – tracks that bore a resemblance to the clawed feet of the monsters they had encountered before.
"Damn it," Mia muttered under her breath, her knuckles turning white as she clenched her fists. "They must have found this place too. We won't be able to get water safely"
"Calm down, they are not here now," Diana reminded them. "We'll run if they come. They didn't seem concerned about stealth before."
"Agreed," Mia said, nodding. "Let's just hope that the water isn't the reason they are so twisted."
As the hours trickled by, relief began to settle over the group. Frank showed no signs of illness or poisoning, and it seemed that they had a somewhat-secure watersource.
"Frank, how're you feeling?" Diana asked, her laced with anticipation.
"Surprisingly okay," he replied, a tentative smile forming on his lips. "I guess we can consider this water safe..."
With Frank's okay, the group rushed to the water, each swallowing with desperate thirst. Mia never tasted water soo good, it was coo
"Alright," Mia said, wiping droplets of water from her chin. "We've bought ourselves some time. Let's go back to searching for food."
"Agreed," Diana chimed in, her tone content. "The sooner we find some, the better off we'll be."
"Hey, maybe we'll find a hidden stash of candy bars!" Frank quipped, trying to lift the mood, but his words just pissed Mia off. She cast him an angry glance for making her think about candy.
“I know we’re all hungry, ” He made a placating gesture, ”but on the bright side we have days before we start getting physically weak from lack of food, maybe longer because we have water now”
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The group set into a routine, resting in the grand hall and looking for any food source during the day. They checked their marked building, and a couple of nearby ones. By an unspoken agreement, they stuck to the ground level as it offered the easiest escape. Any time they heard anything suspicious they ran towards the safety of the grand hall.
Hunger gnawing at their stomachs, they delved into another building, searching through every corner, every pile of rubble, every crevice that might hold something edible. The light filtering through collapsed walls cast shadows over the empty halls, making them feel like intruders in a forgotten world.
"Anything?" Diana asked, her voice echoing through the desolate space.
"Nothing, not even fucking mold or shrooms." Mia replied, frustration boiling within her. "How can there be nothing? We're not going to last much longer without food."
"Keep looking," Hector urged, his voice strained. "There has to be something here."
"Maybe if someone hadn't fallen asleep during their watch, we wouldn't be in this mess," Mia snapped, unable to hold back her anger any longer.
"Enough, Mia," Diana interjected, her brow furrowed. "You're not even making sense. We need to focus on the task at hand."
"Fine," Mia muttered, biting back a retort. She clenched her fists and forced herself to keep searching, trying not to let her emotions cloud her judgment.
Hours passed, and the group's energy waned, their hunger growing more urgent with every fruitless search. It happened a bit sooner every day, even with access to water they were growing weaker. Desperation seeped into Mia's thoughts as she rummaged through a pile of debris, willing herself to find something, anything.
"Damn it!" she exclaimed, slamming her hand against a crumbling wall. "There has to be something!"
"Let's regroup," Diana suggested, her voice weary. "Maybe we need to change our approach."
"Or maybe we just need to face reality," Mia said bitterly. "We're stuck in this godforsaken place, and there's nothing left for us here."
"Then we'll just have to find a way out," Hector declared. Mia didn't know whether to be jealous or annoyed by his optimism.
The team returned to their makeshift base, shoulders slumped, hope was in short supply. The room, which had previously been a godsend, felt suffocating and empty. Frank's usual jokes had faded into a somber silence, and Mia's spirit had dimmed. They gathered in the dim chamber, their expressions showing the price of surviving in such an unwelcoming place.
"Guys, there's only one option left," Diana said, breaking the heavy silence. She took a deep breath, evidently bracing herself for the reaction she knew was coming. "We need to hunt one of the monsters."
"Are you insane?" Mia asked incredulously, rubbing her temples. "We barely made it out alive last time!"
"Look around, Mia! There's no other choice!" Diana insisted. She continued, "We're weak, we're hungry, and if we don't do something now, we won't have the strength to do it later."
"Can we really do this?" Mia asked hesitantly, she could feel the icy tendrils of fear gripping her heart at the thought of fighting those things.
"Maybe not," Diana admitted, "But I'd rather die trying than starve slowly in this place." Mia expected more resistance, but as she looked around at her friends' gaunt faces, she saw only resignation and exhaustion.
"We might still have some time before we starve, but we're getting weaker already," Hector muttered reluctantly. "Let's hunt."
Mia nodded, once the decision was made there was no reason to delay. She took charge as the group began their preparations. They checked their makeshift weapons, each one was crude and untested, but they clung to them like they could save their lives. Maybe they could.
“Wait, I should enchant your weapons before we go hunting,” Diane said.
“You said each one will take four hours, this will take forever. Can I get my dagger enchanted first?” Frank said.
Hector shrugged and agreed, the rest of the team settled in for the wait. Mia hated the idea, it gave her hours to overthink the whole hunting idea. She knew herself well enough to realise she needed to act right now or she'd hesitate later. However it seemed there was no escaping it this time.
Meanwhile, Diana carefully cradled the dagger in her hands, her fingers tracing the rough edges of the metal. She began the enchantment ritual, her movements deliberate and precise. A soft incantation escaped her lips, whispered words in no language Mia had ever heard before. As she channeled energy into the blade, a faint, ethereal glow began to envelop it, casting a gentle radiance in the otherwise gloomy room. Diana's face bore a look of intense focus, her eyes locked onto the dagger as the enchantment took hold, infusing the weapon with newfound strength.
Four hours later Diana announced “It's done!” The rest of the team gathered to watch the dagger.
ENCHANTED SCRAP DAGGER
ATTACK: 10-15
DURABILITY: 34/35
RANGE: 0.5 METERS
RARITY: COMMON
ENCHANTMENT: BASIC
As Diana handed the newly enchanted dagger to Frank, he examined it with an impressed grin. "Wow, Diana, this dagger looks almost as sharp as my wit!"
Mia rolled her eyes, while Hector chuckled, "Let's hope it's sharper, Frank, or we're in real trouble."
“Shit, I have bad news,” Diana said. "It seems the enchantment is fuelled by my mana. I got a ten point decrease for my max. If I enchant all of your weapons I'm down to half my mana."
The team huddled together, their faces concerned, as Diana revealed the unexpected downside of her enchantments.
Mia bit her lip, deep in thought. "We can't keep enchanting everything, then. We need to be selective. Can you dispel the enchant?"
“Yeah, at least my mana is not gone forever, I just have to want it dispelled.” Diana said.
Frank chimed in with a smirk, trying to lighten the mood. "So, how about we only enchant the weapons that have the best punchline potential?"
Diana managed a weak smile. "As much as I'd love to do that, we have to be practical. Let's prioritize the weapons we use the most, the ones that will give us the greatest advantage in tough situations."
They knew that every enchantment came at a cost, and they couldn't afford to deplete her mana reserves completely. The team's struggle with this dilemma highlighted the harsh reality of their situation - every choice came with consequences. In the end they enchanted Frank’s second dagger and Hector's mace, because of the skills they had with the weapons.
ENCHANTED RUST MACE
ATTACK: 12-17
DURABILITY: 25/40
RANGE: 1 METER
RARITY: COMMON
ENCHANTMENT: BASIC
“It's time to hunt,” Hector said, picking up his new mace with joy on his face.