After the system update notification, the only thing Merida wanted to do was hunker down and let the storm pass. And that is what they agreed upon beforehand, as Ember trusted Merida's judgment when predicting sapient behavior.

However, Ember was not so sure about that decision anymore because of the mission she had accepted. Sure, it was better for her individually to play it safe in the short term. She also understood that trying to convince people to do the right thing in the middle of a potential war zone was also set up for failure. But on the other end, it was also the perfect opportunity for recruiting people in exchange for protection.

Sure, sapients at this stage would not join in good faith, but they might do so in numbers at any moment, whenever they would need their help the most in the ongoing chaos. On the other hand, it would be harder to convince so many people once things would have died down and people found other means to achieve a semblance of security on their own. There might even be some defiance because they had the potential to help but chose not to.

There was also the fact that Ember was the first of her kind, but the system warned her that more would join soon. And if she wanted to be ready and welcome them or simply to influence her peers in what she thought was the right direction, she had to take the initiative while it was her choice to make and not one of many.

Ember wanted to help as many humans as possible, give them the benefit of the doubt, and call on their side of the bargain once things had calmed down. But that very thing she wanted came in direct conflict with Merida's will to play it safe.

And so, here she was, trying to make a deal they could both agree upon.

You wanna protect them? You can't even defend yourself if some maniac decides to shoot you. How exactly do you plan on saving them, then? You need to grow stronger first before you can even think of it.

'Who is saying I have to fight to protect them effectively? You are the one rumbling about prudence being the better side of valor. Can't we merely help them avoid conflict? Offering them shelter here, where they should be safe from all the craziness going on?'

So you want to bust our shelter by inviting people here? You have to be aware there is no way to be sure they would not summarily thank you and kick you out of your own home and steal your food, you know?

'Maybe we can do some screening? Help only those that need it the most and are the least likely to do that. There are vulnerable people out there, like children, sick, and elderly. Are we just going to let them die?'

I reckon saving children would not be that bad. It would help our image a lot. But we would have to be smart about it, like going out at night when humans are less active. And only save isolated people that would not make it without help.

'Then that's settled. I can find people, and you can heal them. Even if they don't need and want our help, it should get us some goodwill,' Ember concluded.

Speaking of goodwill, it might be worth seeking for allies while we are at it. Maybe we can go back to the police station while we are on our way and see if they would help.

'Not sure about that,' Ember mumbled. 'Last time we went with your plan, it did not pan out. What if they lock you down permanently this time?'

Good point. But I still want to try. I will go there alone and rely on illusion to get away if things go wrong.

Ember was not overjoyed about that amendment to the plan but let it go down. It was new to Merida to want to do things on her own, and it was her life. Ember had to trust her partner that she would see to her own safety. In the same way, her companion would have to do the same, against her best judgment.

So we go after sundown and make our way around the city suburbs up to the city center and back before sunrise. If we can't make it to the police station, we will have to leave it for the next day. If we meet a group of people and they are injured, we offer healing but don't stick around. Only vulnerable, isolated people get an invitation, and I want a veto if I feel something is wrong with them. You will let me deal with the policemen, and I will trust you for everything else. Rinse and repeat every night until things calm down. Deal?

'Deal,' Ember agreed, happy that they found common ground, although she did not like being so active at night.

She was not nocturnal, and her eyesight was poor. She could rely on smells and sounds just fine, but she did not like it one bit. She also did not like leaving groups of injured people behind but understood Merida's distrust. There was only so much harm a single individual could do. But a group with a common objective? They would be stronger than the sum of their part. And for now, Merida and Ember were only a team of two. They needed trusted allies before they could feel safe dealing with groups.

Hence the necessity to seek the police station too. Ember did not like that part of the plan either, but she knew those policemen were decent people. Or at least, most of them were. She had no love wasted on that leash-puller guy who felt like he would use every chance he would get to abuse his authority. Those kinds of people were not pack material and should be put down immediately.

'I want a veto too. I trust your judgment, but I do not trust that leash puller one bit. If he wants in, that's it,' Ember finally said.

I agree, but I'm also afraid the policemen are going to be a package deal. And we need any allies we can get. Badly.

'Temporarily allies then. I don't want a pack member that would bite my tail when I least expect it.'

And this time, the puppet did not respond and only nodded before she got lost deep in her thought.

★☆★

In the end, wandering around at night was for the best. Cause it was a moonless night, and there was nothing else to see but what her akashic sight would show her. It was only for this cantrip that she could move around and detect the mind of people hidden within the walls of whatever house or shelter they could find. And she found out she could tell who was in need of help based on how agitated their mind were.

The most agitated were healthy and still awake despite the late hour. Those in groups had outbursts of sudden activity here and there, and Ember avoided those. Then came those that came to sleep: Their mind was calm but very much active and, again, had sudden outbursts of activity though those could not compare to those awake.

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Then came the feeble ones, awake or unconscious. Those were Ember's targets, people in need of their help. However, most of them were behind closed doors, out of their reach, and would not respond. It was probably for the better, as Merida told her. There was no telling what their intentions were, and others might be doing the exact same thing they were doing with the least honorable intentions.

Yet, a few groups did open the door to Ember whining. And after listening to Merida, they allowed her to heal their wounded. They were few and far between. But none of those who responded and opened their door caused any issues. Some offered payment to Merida, but she refused them all and never once mentioned the mission, just promising to come back tomorrow to heal them some more.

People are likelier to join after being shown kindness without ulterior motives or strings attached.

Merida explained though it did not make sense for Ember cause the living puppet did have ulterior motives. Keeping those close to her chest did not change the fact they did have other motivations for doing this.

'Liar,' Ember called out softly as they left yet another broken family in their broken house behind.

Now is not the time nor the place. Let's move on.

And so they did. But Ember noticed that the closer they got to the city center, the worse it became.

That's because people panicked and went to ransack the general stores for food and primary goods. With the self-induced shortage, people started fighting. Then, it was already too late, as there was no taking back violence. They either dropped dead or ran away to lick their wounds. There are also those who try to take advantage of the confusion at other people's expense.

'Why would they panic about the system notification? Those are nothing but floating words in the air,' Ember retorted as she could not comprehend it.

For you, that's all there is to it, but not for humans. They were told the world they painfully terraformed to meet their needs was all gone.

'That’s not what the system said!' Ember retorted.

You read it wrong. You never realized how much humans shaped the world around you. Countless humans are going to die in the next few months. And that's why you are here: to choose which humans you want to save

'It can't be that bad!' Ember exclaimed defiantly.

But this time, Merida did not respond.

And so they kept going, one house at a time.

★☆★

The first human they met that met Merida's criteria had been left for dead in the street. And truth be told, the man was on his last leg, with some metal thingy holding him in place through the other.

"This is over for him," Merida told her out loud. "He would need amputation to survive. And I don't have the skill to heal him to that extent. If anything, he would die from the blood loss, and I would only prolong his death, a very long and painful one."

Ember whimpered plaintively but said no words.

"I swear. I want to help him as much as you do." The doll kept talking. " But that would just be cru..."

"Help me..." The voice of the man interrupted her, begging for help.

"You were awake all along, weren't you?" Merida asked the man, to which he nodded and winced. "Then you heard me. I can't save you."

"I don't wanna die here." The man managed to say, very slowly, in between long heavy breathing, gripping at Merida's foot, the only thing he could reach.

"Do you have any family waiting on you?" Merida asked, and the man nodded.

The doll kept quiet for quite some time before she decided:

"That much we can do."

And then, she proceeds to help the man toward their cart before asking him for directions. It was not the kind of help Ember had been thinking about, but she could not argue against this logic. The man's place was with his pack, and helping him return to them before he died was the right thing to do. However, the people who answered at the door to Merida did not seem to be of the same opinion.

"Ember, we have to leave now!" Merida said after hastily offloading the man while his pack was shouting angrily at them.

And so they disappeared into the night, leaving the screaming humans behind them.

★☆★

They did not talk about the incident as they kept helping whoever they could on their way back home. Ultimately, they could not do anything but provide very little help. Merida cantrip was only good for minor wounds or to prevent infection of larger ones. But at least they had tried. And Ember got to see for herself what the doll had been talking about all those times.

It had been one long horrible night.

But at least they learned quite a few things. In a single day since the notification, the military had apparently attempted a coup on the White House and started a civil war. Ember could not comprehend any of it. But according to that same news, most humans did not either, which was somewhat reassuring. Information from outside Great Falls was chaotic, but at least there were some.

Ember could not picture it. Somewhere else where apparently, things were already ten times worse and still worsening.

'Why?' She asked when they finally got home. 'Why do they have to be like this?'

Unfortunately, being sapient does not make people individually wiser. When they lose trust in each other, they essentially devolve into a dumber version of themselves.

'That doesn't make sense.' Ember exclaimed, 'Shouldn't they cling to their pack even more in time of need?'

That's because humans do not think of their pack the way you do. They have family, friends, jobs, and neighbors. And arguably, all those things could be "pack" to them. But most of the time, none of those things are really "pack" to them.

'What nonsense are you speaking? Don't humans have a pack? Who do they call for help then?'

Ember was growing more unhappy the more that talk was going on, but she needed answers. She needed to understand.

Humans are very social animals. They have extended social circles of people they know and love. But paradoxically, their bonds to each other are not as deep as what you are thinking about. They don't cling to each other for survival. Because they don't know what it means, or rather, humans forgot what it means. And now, they are about to learn again.

'So you are telling me they are tearing each other apart because they don't know any better? And there is nothing we can do about it?' She summarised, disheartened.

You are right on both counts. However, you did help a great deal tonight! You should be proud.

Go get some sleep. You deserved it.