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Chapter 17 : First shot fired

The Goblins could barely see Juuda and his friendly greeting. The light for

them must have indicated aggression, so while one of them stood in defense, the

other yelled a war cry and charged toward Juuda. Bara immediately took out his

pistol and shot the Goblin almost without thought. The Goblin was about three meters

away from Bara, but the lack of a wound made Bara think he missed. The loud noise,

which in a closed space, sounded like it could take down a wall, was enough to make

both Goblins cower in fear. The lights were shone on the wall on the side so the

Goblins were no longer in the direct beam.

“Move slowly back and leave,” said Bara.

“But we might have the chance to communicate now,” answered Juuda.

“They are scared,” added Konoya. “It’s not the right time to communicate.”

“Leave slowly,” said Alex.

The group started moving backward without words, and when they reached

the stairs, they started climbing them silently and slowly until they had reached

outside.

They began walking toward Argos and discussing the appearance and

attitude of the Goblins. Anais, with Draco always on her shoulder, stopped before

reaching the edge of the city. “I think I will be staying,” she said seriously.

“What do you mean you will be staying?” asked Bara.

“I want permission to stay here and scout the city. I am sure it has a lot more

to offer than what we have seen.”

Bara looked skeptical. “I am not so sure that staying here is a smart idea.

Aren’t you worried or scared to be alone here?”

“I am exhilarated. We are on an alien world surrounded by mystery, and I

worry that until we decide on the next missions, I will drive myself crazy. I can’t stay

idle while there is so much to see and learn. If I stay here, I will be able to scout this

city for a library and hone my skills. I have everything I need with me.”

Bara smiled. “Alex! What do you think?” he asked into the communicator.

“If you are not worried, then I see more benefits than risks. Anais, you have to

This book's true home is on another platform. Check it out there for the real experience.

be careful of any contact you might have with them. If you detect that they are near,

you will need to contact immediately for the right way to approach them.”

“Understood. I will make sure to steer away from them.”

Anais left the group to find an appropriate place to set up camp while the rest

of the group continued their trip toward Argos. The next day, the group had returned,

and a few hours later, Bara and the leaders gathered to speak.

“You should have not shot at them!” said Alex, looking at Bara.

“It was instinct, but I missed either way,” said Bara apologetically. “Although I

shouldn’t have. I don’t easily miss. Something must have been wrong with the gun.”

“Well, apparently you did not miss. Jain, can you show us?”

Jain replayed the feed from the incident. “The Goblin attacked, and its shield

went on its side, exposing its chest. You shot right at it. As you can see from this

small spark, the bullet deflected off its chest. “

“But how is that possible?” asked Bara.

“We are still trying to figure out the details, but for now we know that they are

tough. Their skin might be harder than ours, even with our nanobots in,” said Gakuto.

“It’s hard to explain how they evolved like that, but now we know that an attack from

them could be lethal.”

“Lethal? You mean their spears could penetrate us? How did you deduce

this?” asked Juuda.

Jain explained, “We made some rather worrisome assumptions while you

were coming. The inhabitants of this planet do not seem to mix. It is very rare to see

some visiting other species. We also see the results of a devastating war

everywhere. Steve’s spy planes have detected areas where very destructive

weapons must have been detonated in the distant past. We believe that they all have

traits similar to the exceptional skin of the Goblins. We also have to consider the

probability that their weapons combined with their strength are capable of killing each

other. That would mean that a blow from them could mean death to us.”

Juuda’s eyes opened wide. “I was not worrying at all when he attacked me. It

looked so small.”

“Looks can be very deceiving,” said Gakuto with a smirk

.

“In other news,” interrupted Helen, “we have an idea as to why the biggest

city is not occupied while all the rest seem to be the centers of the species that

control them. As Anais’s scouting showed us, the basement of the big building was

flooded. We suspect that there is a lot of water under the main city which once was

vital for its growth. The Goblins, which seem to have it under their control, live

underground, and therefore the city is almost useless to them.”

“I see,” said Juuda.

“It also seems possible that the main Goblin city, which is four kilometers

away from Alpha, is linked to it. The ones you met seemed like scouts.”

“We need to speed up contact with them,” Alex said. “We need to learn of

their intentions and begin properly exploring the past of this world. We will put

research of the history of this place as our top priority. As far as we know, the

survivors on Earth might be few and dying out. We might be the last humans, and we

can’t risk whatever destroyed this world to be the end of us. Argos needs to finish

faster.”