Anton waited in the Five-Seven, waiting for the girls to finish their little shopping. He spotted a car making a turn from an intersection further down the street. It made a sharp right turn, getting onto the road and driving on the LAV’s left. It quickly sped away. Another car followed from behind, drifting into the corner. Anton realized where this one headed for, but it was too late. Unable to get the LAV out of harm’s way, the car’s rear slid and hit the Tarup 57’s left side. It scraped the LAV’s left side before making a run for it.
Anton got out through the driver’s hatch, and while grumbling, went to check on the damages. The vehicle didn’t sustain any serious damage, with some scrapes on the side. Anton didn’t buy any external storage compartments, so other than some paint lost, it suffered virtually no damage. It still annoyed Anton, though, Despite being in a peace zone, he wasn’t in peace anymore.
Anton went back into the vehicle, but this time, he sat on the turret operator’s seat, a seat he hadn’t occupied ever since those two girls came by. He swung the turret around, making sure it still functioned. He decided to just watch the turret, in case someone else decided to play with him. Anton saw the first car that went past him going in the opposite way, with some damage to its rear bumper. Anton swung the turret toward it, making it go further to the left, away from the vehicle. It weaved through NPC traffic. Anton then noticed the second car coming in. Like before, he swung the turret toward it and traced its trajectory. It went past, this time not hitting him, but he wouldn’t let the car go. He opened fire, sending 25mm rounds into the back of the car. The explosion threw the car forward, sending it into the sky and tumbling further down the road.
It rested a few hundred meters away from the LAV, flipped upside down, its wreckage consumed by flames. As it continued to burn, Anton noticed the group returning from the inside. The sight of burning flames, and the man crawling from under it, naturally caught the group’s intention. Anton stayed in the turret position until they made their way into the LAV.
Anton then got back into the driver’s seat. Once everyone boarded, he used a button to close the rear door and started driving away from the scene. He closed the hatch, and using the limited view from the cameras, glanced at the burning vehicle, its driver disappeared somewhere. Local police and firefighters had arrived on the scene, but since the police acted more as a decoration, they didn’t catch Anton. They didn’t even look his way.
Anton took the turn, the same turn where the two cars came out from, and continued on his journey. He checked the map, and followed the route up and away from the city. A notification appeared in his view, warning him that he had left the peace zone.
“Kayla, you’re manning the turret?” Anton asked.
“I am,” Kayla answered. As if to show proof, she rotated the turret in a full three hundred sixty degrees turn. Anton could hear the turret swerving, its progress displayed on a small screen on the left that showed some information regarding the vehicle.
Kayla returned the turret to its original position.
“Anyone want to try it?” Kayla asked. Three distinct voices yelled out their interest. The first was Sophie. The second was Daisy, and the third was Michal, Daisy and Charlotte’s friend from university. Charlotte remained silent as usual, while Sophie, despite being an AI companion, interacted more with the others.
Kayla started showing them the turret. She then turned it toward the forest on their right. She opened fire, sending shells into the jungle. Anton watched from the driver’s seat, the screens showing him information regarding the vehicle. Anton saw the turret swerving again, turning left, its barrel pointing upward. It didn’t fire, however. The barrel then went back down, the turret turning further to the left.
“Hey.”
Anton heard Kayla’s whisper in his right ear.
“Yeah?” Anton asked back.
“What happened with the car?”
“Someone hit us,” Anton replied flatly.
“No, I mean that car?” Kayla said. Anton realized that she meant the burning car.
“So you noticed?”
“There are no other weapons near us.”
“Just someone getting on my nerves.”
“Sigh… Your choice, I guess.”
“Why do you sound so disappointed?” Anton glanced back. She saw Kayla shrugging and returning to the group.
“It’s not my fault…” Anton muttered. Anton made a turn and went deeper into the forest. Following the map, he went off the asphalt road and onto a dirt road, heading south. The bumpy ground shook the Five-Seven. Anton noticed the cannon behaving erratically. Someone must have their hands on the control stick as they shook around.
The shaking stopped as they arrived in front of a small village, far away from the hustle and bustle of the city. Anton stopped in front of the gate to confirm the location. The village resided on the left side of the road, meanwhile he noticed a tunnel on the right side of the road. That tunnel reminded him of something, but he couldn’t put his finger on what. He ignored it and turned to the left, entering the village.
A notification appeared, telling Anton that he had entered a peace zone. He stopped the LAV in an open space beside a lone teak tree, a bamboo shack not far behind it. A lone NPC sat on it, a bamboo hat on his head. He looked at the parked LAV. Anton opened the rear door, and the group came bursting out.
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“I’ll handle this,” Daisy said with confidence, leading the rest of the group toward the man, while Anton waited in the vehicle’s cabin. He waited next to the opened rear door, his feet dangling from the vehicle, the LAV parked close enough that he could hear them.
“Hello, sir. We come to accept the quest you posted,” Daisy said.
The group of seven formed three lines of people. On the front, closest to the NPC stood Kayla, Sophie, Daisy, and Michal. On the second line, standing behind them were the AI companions, Daisy’s AI companion, Lucy, and Michal’s AI companion, Lea. On the rearmost, only one person stood.
Charlotte.
Anton let out a sigh and got off the vehicle. He approached her. He kept his distance on purpose, standing beside her. Charlotte looked up at him when she noticed his figure, but she didn’t say a word.
“Ah… young warriors… I am honored… I apologize for not being able to receive your arrival properly. As you can see, our village isn’t in the best of conditions,” the NPC stood up and said. The group looked around, finding an almost empty village with little life in it.
“As you can see… There is hardly anyone here. This village had been like this for a while, now, all thanks to those damn Scumbars,” the NPC continued. His face reminded Anton of the same NPC that accepted his arrival before.
Something about him feels off, triggering a part in Anton’s memory. He decided to pay close attention as the NPC continued on.
“If you can vanquish these so-called forest ninjas for us… it would help us tremendously.”
“Scumbars?” Michal wondered.
“Yes. They attack our village, robbing us of our resources and destroying our belongings. Many of the villagers had moved out of the village out of fear of them. Please, help us protect this tiny village. I know that we may be insignificant to the wider world… but heroes, you wouldn’t let us suffer, would you?”
The dialogue didn’t change.
Anton thought. He had heard those exact words before. He still couldn’t remember a thing, however.
“Of course we’ll help. So, what do you need us to do?” Daisy said, not bothering to hide the excitement in her voice.
“Calm down, young miss. You see… it’s not that I want to underestimate you, but these Scumbars are powerful fighters. They may be devils, but they’re strong, there’s no denying that. My daughter runs a weapon shop here, while my friend has a shop over there. Please, feel free to stock up on equipment. Once you’re ready, come and find me.”
“Alright then.”
And with that, the group turned around and huddled together.
“So, what should we do?” Daisy asked.
“Weapons are ready to go,” Michal answered.
“How about food and healing equipment?” Kayla added. The group turned toward her, most shaking their heads. They then went to the shop the NPC talked about. Anton transferred some funds to Kayla but stayed in position. He then turned his head, looking toward the NPC that stood before him.
“... Have I seen you before, young man?” the NPC asked, scratching his beard.
“Why did the Sumbars attack you?” Anton asked back. The NPC’s, he remembered calling him the village elder, face tensed up.
“Ah, so you know what they are actually called. Have you faced them before?”
Anton then stepped toward him, closing their distance to just a meter from each other.
“My memories from that event are hazy. Can you provide me with some extra information? Like the answer to my previous question?” Anton pushed on.
“Envy. They… envied this thriving village, and they came to rob us of our hard-earned riches,” the NPC answered, keeping his calm voice. Anton then looked around.
“There’s nothing worth looting around here.”
“I assure you, young man. Defeat the Scumbars, and return to the village in a few months, you will see change,” the man said with confidence.
Anton knew that this wasn’t true. It had been years since he completed the quest, or at least he remembered completing the quest. The village hadn’t changed one bit. He then noticed the sound of footsteps. He looked around, finding the group walking back toward him.
“Ah, warriors. Are you ready to embark on this journey?” the man ignored Anton’s eyes and addressed the rest of the group. The group nodded vigorously.
“That is good to hear… Very well, I shall give you the coordinates,” the man returned to his bamboo shack. He took a piece of paper and showed it to the group. Daisy took it into her hands and opened her map. She looked around, struggling to find where to insert it.
“Let me help, you go here, and here,” Kayla went to her and pointed things out.
Anton took one last glance at the village elder and turned around. He headed back to the LAV. He was about to go inside when he noticed the appearance of the marker, leading them far into the forest. He looked that way, looking at a small path that could only be traversed by two people at a time. It could hardly hold two people going in opposite directions, let alone a vehicle like a LAV.
“We won’t be able to drive there,” Anton said, stepping off the LAV.
“It’s three kilometers in. The game didn’t simulate exhaustion, right?” Michal asked.
“No, don’t worry about it. Let’s go, the faster we get there, the faster we’ll receive our rewards,” Sophie said before heading off, the rest following behind her.
Anton went back into the vehicle and made sure that it was turned off. He also checked the hatches before going back out. He locked the vehicle and caught up with the group. He took up position on the rearmost of the formation, with Charlotte walking in front of him. He made sure to not get too close to her. The second they entered the forest, a notification told me that he had left the peace zone.
As they made their way through the forest, the girls, including the AI companion, talked about all sorts of things. They made comments about the forest, noting the rain trees that covered both sides of the path. As he progressed through the path, the surroundings reminded him more and more of that mission that he and Kayla went to back in the day.
They arrive at a fork. Anton checked his map, noticing the marker asking them to head west. The second route went further south. This junction reminded him of something. He remembered something unpleasant as he threaded the path west. He didn’t say anything, because he couldn’t remember. He kept his guard up for traps that may be placed around him.
As they went deeper, he noticed a flat patch of dirt on his left, with no bushes, trees, or leaves on it. At the same time, he felt something stalking him, eyes paying attention to his every move, waiting for him to make a mistake. Anton then heard a crunch coming from in front of him. He noticed everyone frozen in place, especially Charlotte, who had just stepped on a branch.
He heard a faint whistle. It lasted for three seconds, and the second it stopped, he leaped out to Charlotte's right. Just then, at that very moment, a figure clad in full white jumped at them.
“Wind Shield!” Anton yelled, just barely getting a shield up before that figure crashed into them, pushing the two down into the patch of dirt beside them. The patch collapsed under their weight, causing all three to tumble down a deep, dark shaft.