The next day had passed mostly filled with rest again, with everyone still being exhausted. Thanrie might not have been tired, but she really didn't want to do much walking, so she took it equally as easy.
The next day, Mhyl was the last one of them all to wake up. Lwyn had woken up first, working to make sure there was a decent enough breakfast. Qheria was next, who went to do some physical training after having neglected it for so long. Thanrie was after that, though all she did was find a chair and consider her own thoughts. The two guys, no one knew when they woke up, but they had disappeared at one point. Chyurae disappearing was normal, but while Zyuixqs disappearing similarly was abnormal, the going idea was that someone was probably way behind on expected paperwork.
Mhyl finally got up and out of bed. The moment she left, Lwyn jumped her. "Oh, awesome, I was wondering if someone was going to have to wake you up for breakfast. With Zyuixqs back into the normal schedule, I was thinking we should try and get back to a normal routine too. We have a really nice breakfast today." It seems Lwyn had been very busy so far, and had ambitions to make something of the day. That had her a bit worried. Mhyl finished getting ready for the day, and went to check on Thanrie.
"So, how are you doing?" "Pretty good actually. Gave up on those logs for giving me support, walking without is just a lot easier now." Mhyl was surprised how much Thanrie has been improving. At this point, there was hardly any signs Thanrie had ever been in an accident. Zyuixqs was probably more injured at this point, and he was well enough to get back to work. At least Thanrie wasn't doing anything rough. Lwyn's plan to get everything back to normal might actually be possible today.
Eventually, breakfast occurred. As everything was wrapping up, Lwyn pitched her idea for everyone. "So, I think it would be healthy if we tried to get something done today. We've done a lot of nothing for a while now, even getting fresh air from the surface could be a really healthy thing. So why don't we..." "No." Lwyn was hyped to get something done, but Qheria shot it down hard. "Why not..?" "Thanrie has barely had time to get better, we aren't ready to make any kind of.." Lwyn was getting sad at her plans falling apart, having been shattered by Qheria.
Thanrie however was the one to interrupt next. "Qheria, stop it. You can't keep doing this to yourself, get out of your rut and get your head back in gear. I know you're not even worried about me at this point anymore, what is bugging you is just who is going to suffer next. At this point, you're suffering plenty, and you should stop that. The only way I can see that changing is if we do something."
Rhyde picked this fine opportunity to arrive. As the others had been speaking English, he had no idea what was being sad, but the tones and emotions conveyed a lot. "Is Qheria still at it?" "Yes, she is. She's the only one not willing to actually get back to our original goals." Rhyde picked up on the situation quickly, but Thanrie was being especially snappy with the current subject. "Our goals, as you put it, are just going to cause us more trouble and.." "Ah, yes, I see that she's still lost in her own faults. Qheria, you have to.." "What we have to do is actually stop endangering our lives. This kind of thing..." Qheria and Rhyde were at it again, arguing endlessly about yet another subject, not letting each other stand in. Mhyl looked at the situation rather hopelessly, while Lwyn tried to find an opportunity to do something.
Thanrie smashed the table with her hand, bringing silence to the entire room. "Both of you, 'shut up' quiet. Fighting and arguing isn't going to solve our 'F***ing' problems, we need to get over that right away so that we can fix the real 'F***ing' issue here." Mhyl fell off her chair, she was so surprised. Thanrie had clearly snapped or something, her tone left no impression for compromise and Rhyde and Qheria had actually gone quiet. Her insertion of English into her statement was clearly to project her own intent better, the usage of swears even felt like a desperation to grasp for expression she didn't yet know.
"So, I've been thinking for a while now, ever since I woke up actually alive from.. all that. I can sorta see where Qheria is getting concerned, but you're still missing the point. Our original goals are still sound, our approach is just 'suck'. It is 'F***ing shit'. But that's all been because the danger has been a thrill and the ride has been an adventure. All of us forgot this wasn't some 'F***ing' game. This whole thing is full of danger, full of risk, full of... 'shit'. We forgot to play it safe, we forgot to play it smart, so we just let our luck carry us along. Our luck has carried us really far, we are so lucky I wonder if anyone found a 'four leaf clover' and didn't tell anyone. So, here's a great plan. Lets actually switch from depending on luck and start actually playing it safe. This idea is so genius I'm surprised it never came up before." Only truly understanding Thanrie's English words mixed in with the rest, Mhyl wondered how that speech sounded to the others. She really wanted to know what was going on, again.
"While I agree that having you posted beside something flamable and explosive wasn't the safest idea, I don't think there was much more we could do to play safe, that's why we can't do this." "Wrong, that's why we can't keep doing what we're doing. Being outclassed at the doorsteps of a giant 'super power' in this area isn't helping. What would help is to stop being outclassed so hard. We need a SAFE 'SAFE' solution that doesn't involve us fighting 'war machines' with 'feudal-era katanas'. The most important step is to get our 'head out of our asses' and instead work on setting up something with less risk. To do that, we need more 'tech'. Rhyde, no one in the Rebellion has really cared about any of the Fortress stuff just sitting around, is there anything you know of, ANYWHERE, that would be where the Fortress would throw advanced stuff it doesn't care about, and the bandits don't care, and no one else seems to care, but it's still piped full of Fortress stuff?" Qheria got shut down hard as Thanrie finally expressed the ideas she had been pondering and wondering upon. The trail of English and common words Thanrie used was almost enough for even Mhyl to follow along, she just didn't understand the ending part completely. Something about the Fortress.
"There is an abandoned building near the river that is full of strange things the Fortress did not see need for, and we felt no compulsion to touch. The others would have just lit it on fire, if it wasn't for the fact that there was concerns about water contamination from a nearby open fire. Everyone has just left the stuff alone, not having any want to have anything to do with it. Unless there is more things due for storage in the same way, there won't be anyone in the area." "Oh 'F**k', that's perfect! Yes! A low risk venture where we can poke into something much more advanced than what we're otherwise left with. That's perfect!" At Rhyde's explanation, Thanrie was overjoyed.
"There is still too many complications. Honestly ANYTHING could still go wrong, and I can't... I can't depend on myself to figure out the best way to prevent more problems. This still doesn't change anything." Qheria was a little less impressed. Rhyde stepped in once again. "I know how complications and uncertainty can make things difficult. I know you four treasure the idea of reaching for something much more.. familiar. This expedition then could be considered very valuable, so instead, I'll personally be taking charge of this operation. Qheria, your leadership will be exclusively only required in the context of figuring out how stuff works, I'll have Yuxzn working on ensuring that safety is given its full attention otherwise. We'll find a way to make this work out, don't worry."
Qheria felt outnumbered and fully countered. Everyone was making sure things would happen, no matter what she said. "Then I'm glad to have your expertise working for us." Qheria wiped her eyes clear, considering the plans again. Lwyn turned to Mhyl with Elaethyx, excited to explain what was going on. "Yay! We're going to go make progress, get stuff done, and feel good! Checking out some abandoned stuff from the Fortress is going to make everything safer for everyone. Thanrie has the best idea ever!" It wasn't exactly verbatim.
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Rhyde begun making arrangements right away. He knew almost none of his usual crew would be excited about this mission, so he kept everything low profile. With the exception of making sure that there were tactical operations carried out in key other locations, he didn't press anything of his Marauders. Instead, he would simply be working directly with their usual team of six. Yuxzn would also be joining them.
"So we will be going out again?" Chyurae had shown up after everyone had begun preparing, as if he had learned everything and just materialized from the air. He looked ready to go again, but had no weapons. Instead, he had his usual surface kit. Being skilled with certain thief-like activities, that would only work to their advantage in a situation otherwise expecting no conflict. He would probably be priceless at getting the door open too. "Yes Chyurae, are you ready to go too?" Chyurae nodded and took her hand, ready to go along with her. He had gotten used to being the last to understand everything, being the only elf present with no secondary language.
Mhyl found Thanrie working with Zyuixqs. Zyuixqs himself had his brand new replacement spear ready to go. It wasn't at all anything close to a fortress-style weapon, but Mhyl took a bit of appreciation that it appeared Zyuixqs had requested a Glaive for himself. It would at least compliment Thanrie's style of fighting fairly well. The two were talking in Izhaethyx, so she didn't understand what was being said, but both were getting along much better than normal. Zyuixqs wasn't hiding, Thanrie wasn't upset.. in fact, the two were getting along very well.
Next, Mhyl found Yuxzn and Lwyn, also talking in Izhaethyx. Being elves, she felt this was honestly unfair of them both. Still, she could see Rhyde was just in the other room, clearly this was for his benefit. Yuxzn still had a job to do, after all. Mhyl would just need to keep learning that silly language. They were both working with a map, probably of the area they would be going to. By their tones, Lwyn was asking constant ongoing questions, looking for more and more information. Yuxzn seemed very happy to provide the knowledge they would need to stay safe.
Mhyl went towards the room she saw Rhyde, and noticed he was deep in conversation with Qheria. The unusual part was.. it didn't sound like an argument this time. The two of them were actually planning out everything, working together. Clearly, Thanrie was right, this was something they really needed to do. Lwyn was actually on point with this too, wasn't her own idea very similar? Mhyl felt like she had been a bit too slow today, she should have done a lot more to help push things along. Though, she had been very tired of late, and it seemed the others had taken plenty of time thinking about this over the last day. She had been far too tired to think about anything. Being an elf again, as far as she could figure out. She again felt ashamed of the cursed stamina of elves.
Since everyone was busy, and Lwyn had been on cooking duty for.. days now actually, Mhyl decided she would help pack the supplies they needed this time. Chyurae offered to help her out, so the two of them worked together to get everything they needed to have the energy to get their task done. Being the two with the least energy, they were in the best position to be encouraged to prepare well for the trip. Mhyl found some of the stuff Lwyn had been using to make sandwiches, and prepared a variety of different sandwiches, in addition to ample water. She also made sure they had all of their other gear ready to go.
Unlike some of their more recent trips, their destination wasn't actually nearby. They could stay safely underground for most of the trip, and even leaving underground, they would still be reasonably safe from bandits, given the distance to any nearby camp. However, the sun would be very warm in that area, they would have to worry about more natural threats at that time. She made sure to pack some parasols for the trip, to offer portable shade for all six of them, and looked for other ways she could help everyone stay cool. The heat, while a worry, at least wasn't a danger itself. This wasn't a desert, and even the river was nearby. The problem was mostly the potential for heat exhaustion, which itself was something Mhyl had a lot of worry about. She thought about the uses of sunscreen and how that would usually help in this situation, but it was a shame this world hadn't yet discovered it.
Regarding discoveries though, they would be walking into a bundle of gimmicks that might be familiar to them. Depending on what it was, different things had to be handled in different ways. Most technology also hated heat, so looking after that would be important too. Some needed special storage or to be handled with care.. they might need to carry spare bags or something. Mhyl tried her hardest to ensure that they were properly prepared, as far as they could without finding themselves carrying too much. Mhyl also took for herself some writing equipment, a few sheets which might have one day been used for a report, and the tools to write on them. Having records of what they found might be useful if they had to leave stuff there and come back another time. She put all of such with her Atlas.
Even after all of this work, Mhyl and Chyurae were still ready faster than anyone else. Mhyl felt good, finally catching up enough to be ahead for a bit. She went over to Lwyn, to make sure the plan was ready. When she arrived, Yuxzn noticed and stopped what was being said. "It seems we've lost a bit of track of time, Mhyl is already ready to go." At Yuxzn's closing statement, Lwyn rushed to help Mhyl with their stuff as Yuxzn packed up all the stuff they had been working with. Mhyl guessed they were basically done then, her timing was good. While Yuxzn went to talk to Rhyde, Mhyl told Chyurae to show Lwyn what was packed, then went looking for Thanrie.
When she arrived, she found Thanrie helping Zyuixqs to rebind his bandages on his left arm, so that they would be secure. Thanrie didn't even have bandages anymore, she didn't need them. Mhyl took that moment to decide to pack a bit more medical equipment when she got back. "Thanrie, do you need a hand with tending to Zyuixqs' bandages?" "No, I should be okay. I'm probably not as good at this as you, but this is simple enough. I'm guessing everything else is already ready. We will be down there in a minute or two." Mhyl decided that now would be the best time to pack those extra bandages and such, considering Thanrie wouldn't take long.
Everyone finished getting everything together and promptly set off. Yuxzn took to the lead in this underground portion of the trip, ensuring they took to the correct tunnels. The walk itself took quite a while, endless tunnel after endless tunnel. It was reminding Mhyl of the library she had left behind.. it might even be bigger. Eventually, they had reached their destination, having had need of stopping for a break mid way already. She herself was tired yet again, so they all stopped for yet another break. Thankfully, Yuxzn and Chyurae also seemed to be near their limits too.
Once recharged, the eight of them exited the underground and entered into the heat of the sun above. Mhyl passed around Parasols, to ensure that everyone could endure as long as possible under the sun. Rhyde took the lead at this point, instead of heading straight to their destination, they were heading straight to the river itself. This provided an additional advantage as they faced against the heat, as they would have constant access to water. Amber-leaf bushes grew everywhere, a mossy pattern across the fields around them, a sign the river was close.
Soon after, they even reached the river, which was a cooling welcome to the blistering sun. Even with water present, the air still felt dry. Unlike the last time the four girls had found a river, none of them felt ready to relax quite yet. They knew they still had to be careful, things had only just begun.
Mhyl saw it fairly quick, off in the distance, a metallic structure that looked like a large warehouse. She had noticed that Yuxzn and Chyurae had seen it too, but the others had no idea, not even Lwyn. "So, not that much farther, then." Mhyl noticed that caught Lwyn's attention as she struggled to spot what Mhyl had found. Eventually, she noticed what to her would look like a strange blotch in the distance, and nodded. Those with simple human eyes wouldn't have any way to see anything yet, so they just trusted their elven scouts. However, with time, they too got to see the same sight, as it loomed closer.
Having reached their destination, the eight of them stopped for another break, to have time to go over their plan one more time. Safety was the most important goal, this time.