Chapter 15

Fox nodded slowly. “The Great Storm... I fear I have over hyped something that may not have ever existed. There used to be a Spirit Tree. Some say there was more than one, but anyhow, they were supposed to be empowered by a Great Storm. Stories say that the tree, or trees, would absorb the rain from the storm, and then send the rain into the clouds. And then,” she looked skeptical, “it would rain and rain until the magic ran low and it was time for a new storm.”

Oskar thought about the tree, and wondered if it had been called an Omnitree. That might explain why the spear was so durable, but would not explain why- or how- he’d been given it. He considered while he drank as much water as his belly could hold and relaxed.

Relaxation was always a relative term, though. As Fox had explained to him when they'd originally stopped, a tapped Wayspring could attract predators. So again, Waysprings were no place to be complacent. There were a few things in their favor, though. This one was not open to the air, they could avoid any scent based threats, but apparently there were some could sense it in other ways. After a Wayspring had been dug, people usually drank as much as they could, filled their skins, and left the area to those drawn to it, be it predators or other wanderers like themselves.

They snacked on strips of dried meat Touwon had in his pack that were filling enough they mostly sated his hunger. Oskar didn’t ask what the meat came from. An hour or so later, Penny retrieved a fat little lizard that Touwon perked up at, and Fox asked if Penny could retrieve one or two that they could cook and dry over a fire. Penny had happily obliged, finding one nearby before scouting out further to find another. She seemed pleased with herself, and all three showered her with praise just to see her preening in the sun.

Touwon had dug out some dead and dried out cactus plant which was flammable. He had a fire going by the time Penny returned, dragging an even larger lizard to go on the coals beside the first. The Kobold laid the strips out on a square of leather and rubbed them with a salt-like stone he’d kept wrapped in a thick woven cloth. He then sat in the tent’s shade to cool off.

Two of the lizards were plenty enough food for all three as long as Oskar didn’t hope to get stuffed. If Big Blue didn’t go through Touwon’s pack, they had enough for tomorrow as well. Fox said the Crocs usually hunted for themselves, though. They only burdened the Kobolds for water since that could take all day, and they suspected he kept extra water buried nearby, hidden from the Kobolds, just in case.

They spent some time just sitting in each other’s presence. Oskar had been trying to reach out further with his water sense, and he was noticing an increase in range as he moved slightly further from the Wayspring, and then reached for it with his senses until he could feel it again. And Fox was tossing little things at him to distract him. Little did she know she was probably helping him get better.

// Water Sense Range updated 12.3 feet.

Increase to ???? Mastery 0.2% //

So, still no name for “the magic above.” Air magic, I guess?

Other than the earlier comment when he'd revealed his matching Gear to the Kobolds, he'd gotten no reaction from the PUB, and couldn't figure out why it was being so quiet.

Nothing I can do about it now. I hope you're okay.

Oskar had more questions, of course. For one, he was curious about the different races, but didn’t know how sensitive the subject was, so he kept that question to himself as they hydrated and kept an eye out. The day passed slowly in the heat. He took small naps in the tent’s shade until Fox indicated it was time to pack up and make their way back. It was close to two hours from the time the blue sun would disappear behind the dunes, and so they were walking before the red sun had totally disappeared.

They walked back the way they came, getting their stories straight so that if questions were asked, they would all be on the same page. Oskar’s story was straightforward. He was to play dumb and simply claim they walked for hours, dug out a spot that turned out to be dry, and then were lucky enough to find a Wayspring around three hours after that.

Stolen from Royal Road, this story should be reported if encountered on Amazon.

If Big Blue wanted more details than that, he would hopefully think Oskar was too stupid to answer anyhow. Fox also explained that there were creatures with exceptionally good hearing that could hear water splashing in water-skins when they were only partially full. The best thing to do if you didn’t know how to walk to mute the sound was to drink your waterskin empty and then try to keep a completely full one as a backup.

Oskar asked what she meant by “knowing how to walk” with water and she stood, showing him an exaggerated sway for his benefit, and then her actual walk, which was far more subtle. Knowing what to look for made him able to tell the difference after she went back and forth between the two a few times.

The safer way to walk made the water spin a little more than splash, which was enough to keep most trouble at bay. It almost looked like someone had already gotten a hula hoop going and was barely moving enough to keep it going.

She mentioned you could also carry it in your hand because the natural sway of your body was smooth enough if you were careful. The downside of that was that you were then walking around with valuable water that was easy to see from great distances. Apparently, there were higher quality waterskins that would make this unnecessary, but they were something most people didn't have access to. Apparently, Touwon could make them. They'd been taken and traded away when the Kobolds had first been captured by the Vulk Collective.

Because of his prosthetic foot, it was difficult to perfect the walk smoothly enough for Fox’s comfort, so he was going to stick to carrying only full or empty water-skins until he could get the hang of it. She laughed at his attempts and brought up their first meeting, poking fun at how loud he’d apparently been.

“We heard you splashing around like a cactus bug by the time you stepped into camp with Falk poking his spear in your back.” Oskar did not know what a cactus bug was, but he assumed she didn’t intend the comment to be hurtful, just playfully teasing.

She let out a wheeze of laughter and then said, “I think Vulk sent you out here with us hoping you would get us killed, stomping around like Chief Biggums.”

Even Touwon broke out into barking laughter at that comment, and infected by their laughter, Oskar joined in. When he caught his breath, he asked, “Who is Chief Biggums? Is he the one in charge of the Great Oasis?”

That was either the funniest or stupidest thing the two had ever heard because both of the Kobolds completely lost it.

Fox was on her back, tears streaming from her eyes so badly that she had to lift her Goggles and dry her eyes. Touwon was doubled over on the verge of vomiting up his belly full of water between peals of laughter.

Oskar was confused, but he sat there smiling and chuckling at their antics as they slowly regained their composure. He did, however, note that Touwon’s laughter lacked the hyena-like pitch changes Fox’s had, but said nothing, allowing them to enjoy the moment.

Eventually, Fox sat leaning against the dune, and holding her sides as she breathed heavily, Touwon faring no better behind her.

"Oh, sweet shade, that was wonderous. It was needed, know it as true."

She finally explained that Chief Biggums was a made-up Crocodilian character of an endless number of Kobold stories and nursery rhymes that always ended up with the Chief, or sometimes King, embarrassing himself or being tricked by his Kobold slaves into doing their work for them.

Usually, the culprit was a tiny Kobold by the name of Little Luth who had a knack for getting the Chief into compromising situations that usually ended up with the little Kobold running things by the end of the story. She told one story that ended up with Little Luth riding the Chief around like a horse for a full day that had both Oskar and Touwon laughing again. The laughter and comradery were a welcome distraction from the heat that refused to retreat with the fading light.

Oskar didn’t miss his phone, or the last year or more of his life for that matter, but he realized he did miss the connection he was feeling now. He’d missed it so badly. He’d ached for it, but the ache was just another pain that had gotten lost in the mix. For Oskar, there was comradery of sitting around telling stories in miserable heat with people you trusted, or at least people you hoped you could trust, with your life.

Even through their antics, all their heads were on a swivel. Always watching, always paying attention. He’d been lost after he got out of the Marine Corps. Why was it that he felt so at home right now- when he’d never been more lost in his life?

Lost with people you like feels less alone than knowing where you stand surrounded by people that make you feel alone.

It was a somber thought, but Oskar was already sick of thinking in full emo, so he just enjoyed the comradery. On the surface, he knew it was insanely dangerous to trust these strange people with his life after a single day, but his options had been limited. He still felt they were worthy of it, though.

His little group was near the bottom of the food chain in this world, so it could be bonding through shared hardship.

However, whether or not their growing trust and friendship turned out to be temporary, it was all he had other than Penny, who he knew was nearby, and his spear.

As far as they knew, he had nothing of real value. Moreover, if they had wanted him dead, he was quite sure they were capable of it without needing to betray him.

He needed to get stronger. To not be a liability. He needed to be more like his brother.