《Crimson Violet》 The Ironclad - P1 -"Pressure - 7000, issue a gradual increase to 8500!" -"Yes, sir!" -"Status update: Crystal temperature - 32,000 C and rising! Sir, the suits won''t be able to withstand much longer, we need to stop the experiment and get them out of there!" All 4 peoplein the small, isolatedexperiment room, hearing this message through their radiofeel like they are being burned alive- the heat and the pressure are so immense, that even their specially-issued protective suits are almost melting in front of their eyes. -"Sir, we''ve been trying to push the crystal to it''s limits for too long, let us proceed with the experiment!" With blood dripping down from his lips from the numerous bites, the old scientist issues a command: -"Proceed with the experiment. May God be with you." -"Do you really believe in God, professor? The only thingthat can help us here is science! Claus, Morgan - inject stimulants. Lizabeth - pull the trigger. We are going in!" ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ 21th December, 2008 In the middle of the Atlantic Ocean stands the largest and most expensive scientific station on Earth -Project Miracle.This enormous, yet strangely beautiful station is the pride of the United States - supporting more than a 1000-men crew and burning more than $500,000,000 a year. Surprising, you may say? Well, this is, perhaps, the center of all the human technology. This is the heart ofknowledgeandlearning.This story has been unlawfully obtained without the author''s consent. Report any appearances on Amazon. For the past 2 years, after numerous ship and plane crash incidents, the World Government has issued an investigation in the particular area in the Atlantic Ocean, where, as it seems, people lose their minds, electronic devices malfunction, paranormal effects take place. Being the closest to the''Zone N82'', the United States could not miss the chance to spearhead the investigation of this strange activity. The President himself issued the Science Department and the Military to cooperate and construct a base of operations close to the anomaly, which they have, through several failures due to all sorts of malfunctions. In the end, they have built ametropolisin the ocean, a largeplatform complex of solid metals and plastic on the surface of the water, and a maze of metallic pipes descending down to the found ''anomaly''- a large blue crystal-like ball the size of a truck, brightness of lightning, floating at the bottom of the ocean, unmoving. Numerous of divers have died in the process of discovering this seeming source of the disturbance, and now there stands a large fortified laboratory around it, connected to the station on the top. In this underwater structure, thousands of meters below the water surface, in his small sleeping cabin, Colonel Taylor Davidson wakes up early in the morning to the sound of loud footsteps outside his room. He has gotten used to the constant noise of the people surrounding him, as he''s been away from land and home for several years now - being a labrat for the scientists. -"Just one more week, Taylor, one more week..." And indeed, this was the last week before Taylor would be finished with the 2-year task issued to him by his commanding officers. He could finally go home, have a night of silent sleep, drink beer and watch a football match in the evening with his son Kile. The payment is several times above the average officer, and his 21-year old son gets to visit him twice a month at theProject Miracle, and the cabins and food aren''t too bad. After getting up, having a shower and brushing his teeth in a small shower booth in his cabin, Taylor quickly puts on his blue-camo uniform, equips his fancy brown-leather watch on his left wrist, holster with a pistol to his belt and takes his black suitcase filled with documents in his right hand. It''s time for him to get to work. The Ironclad - P2 Sweepingpast scientists and soldiers, through long and narrow metal-pipe hallways, Taylor Davidson rapidly makes his way towards the designated chamber N.5, where the rest of his research team should have been gathered, awaiting orders. Davidson is a handsome, 36-year-old man, with slick but short black hair, sky blue eyes. His posture is firm and his physique is that of a trained soldier. And some of these features didn''t just come naturally to him - after all, he had to endure intense training and almost 20 years of serving in the US military to become one of the most profound and skilled soldiers and commanders - earning him the officer rank of Colonel. Being efficient with his time, Taylor looked at his watch and slowed down his walk. After all, the gathering schedulewas set to 7:30 AM, and rightthen it''s was only 6:50 AM. Pausing at a crossway, Taylor turned to the right - towards the cafeteria. -"I''ve even got time to have some morning coffee and toast. Marvelous!". After 5 or so minutes of walking, he has finally reached the small but comforting cafeteria area on the side of the path. This small area is humble and simple - 4 small round metal tables with a metal chairnext to each, a small counter area and a back room that is the kitchen. Paying $8 for a fresh cup of coffee and a hot toast, Taylor sits down at one of the tables and pulls out some files from his suitcase. Lt. Claus Diaz - Born in 1982, Bilbao, Spain. Moved to the United States in 1998, attending a military academy in Washington. Wife - Sofia Diaz. Daughter - Valeria Diaz. Proficiencies - Engineering, Tank Driver. Lt. Morgan Flores - Born in 1978, Connecticut, United States. Has been serving in the United States military by contract since 1996. Proficiencies - Medic. Lt. Lizabeth Ross - Born in 1982, Texas, United States. Has been serving in the United States military by contract since 1990. Father - Major General James Ross. Proficiencies - Recon. Taylor is reading through the private documents on the rest of his research team yet again. He has been working with these people for the past 2 years, and today is the day they depart from each other. Each andeveryone of them Colonel Davidson trained personally, so the relationship between the team members grew tighter and closer as the days passed by. The thought of his lost wife cannot pass by considering the upcoming event, and his face turns from a light smile to a serious look. -"7:12, time to go". Cleaning his face with a napkin, Taylor stands up from the table and heads back to his designated zone. 7:30 AM, Chamber N.5. As Davidson puts his I.D Card against the white magnet lock that reads "N.5", the thick steel door opens up inward into a large square chamber, where the 3 other members of his research team - Lizabeth, Morgan and Claus swiftly stand up from the benches, form a line and salute to the Colonel. The younger, bald and thin-looking man, Claus, steps forward. -"Lt. Diaz, Lt. Flores and Lt. Ross under your command, sir!" - he shouts out in a loud, commanding voice. -"Rest, lieutenants" - all 3 of them synchronously relax their bodies and stop saluting. -"Any news from the association, Claus? Is our department command still in force?" - Says Taylor whilst walking towards one of the lockers. -"Actually, sir, I wanted to report to you on this matter. The Association has issued to prolong our contract by 2 days,"-pulling out a sealed file from his briefcase -"Here are the orders" -says Claus. -"What?!" -completely caught off guard yells out Taylor -"What kind of idiot let that order go through?!". -"To our expectations, it was Doctor Raymond, sir". To the Colonel, it was a completely unexpected matter. The New Year is coming soon, and he had already planned and booked tickets for himself and his son to go on a holiday to Egypt. Even though his thoughts didn''t escape his mouth, it was quite easy to tell what''s on his mind. His face started to turn red from anger, but he was trained enough to keep himself from breaking something or somebody in the room. After a brief pause, Taylor takes the sealed file from Claus and sits down behind his desk. He takes out a small pocket knife from his belt and breaks the seal, pulling out a small stack of papers. Everyone in the room were silently waiting to hear the orders listed in the documents. -"Issued by Doctor Raymond, approved by Lt. General Roberts," -Taylor starts whispering to himself, loudly enough for the rest of the team to hear -"the research team under the command of Colonel Davidson are to follow Doctor Raymond''s orders in the following experiments with the Miracle, thus prolonging his and his team''s work contracts until 23rd of December, 2008". -"We''re not going to make it for the new year, are we?" - says Lizabeth in a gentle, but sad voice. -"It looks like so. I hope we''ll at least get a compensation" - Morgan follows up. -"A command is a command, there is no point to be sad about it. If even the Lt. General had to personally approve the sudden extension of our contracts - it just means that we are seriously needed here" - explains Claus. -"The document also has the schedule written down. Looks like they are planning on something big today. Anyways, gather your things and equip the suits. We are to be in the Anomaly Core Zone by 8:30" - commands Taylor. -"Yes, sir!" ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ 8:15 AM, Anomaly Core Zone, Main Laboratory. -"Are you completely sure about this, Professor? I know that the suits have been specifically designed to withstand high temperatures and pressure, but 9000? Have you gone completely nuts?!".Help support creative writers by finding and reading their stories on the original site. -"I have done my calculations, boy. Don''t underestimate the power of science. The power of the ''Miracle'' is getting stronger and stronger, and this is the only way to weaken it and let the soldiers finally approach it. Today we will celebrate for our success, I can see it!". -"What are you going to say, if the experiment team dies? How are you going to explain to the Association if the laboratory suffers a disaster? I am not going to be part of this. Wish you best of luck, Professor". -"Pft, you''re too young to understand. Go on then, leave. I''ll make sure they cut your salary for disobeying". With a big bang, the younger scientist leaves the chamber, leaving only Doctor Raymond and 3 other scientists inside. Through the multiple layers of bullet-proof glass in this room, Doctor stares at the image of the pulsating blue crystal ball - the whole reason he is here - the Miracle. After a little while, the door into this chamber opens again, leading Taylor''s research team, who are all equipped with heavy white resistant suits, inside. Walking in one by one and holding their helmets in their arms, Taylor walks forward towards Raymond and in a commanding voice says: -"Lt. Diaz, Lt. Ross, Lt. Flores and Colonel Davidson have arrived by your command, Doctor Raymond". -"Glad you are here on time, Colonel." -scanning the rest of the team head to toe Raymond continues - "Gather the stimulants and have the pills - they are on the table over there. Standby after that". With a nod, Taylor and his team slowly approached to the designated table in their heavy suits. Each of them took 2 syringes filled with brownish liquid and a blue pill, which they swallowed a minute later. -"Can I ask you, why exactly did you wan''t us to do more experiments, Doctor? We have already gone through so much, and now you are ruining our New Year". - says Taylor. -"Colonel...The Association is growing tired of our failed attempts and our meaningless results. We are losing sponsors, the fundings are burning out rapidly - and all for no results. I have a clue on how to make this thing open itself to us. I have a way to prove the world that they are wrong". Taylor sighs heavily. -"I hope we can do this quick, whatever you are planning". -"Didn''t take me long to convince you. Good. I''ll make sure you all get compensated for this". Doctor Raymond starts yelling out commands to the other scientists in the room to prepare for the upcoming experiment. The machines are starting to boot up, the lights turn brighter, everyone in the room starts putting on gas masks and checking the radio, contacting the headquarters. In all of this chaos, Taylor and his team are sitting quietly, feeling their muscles starting to slowly tense - this is the effect of the pills they have taken. The substance not only provides with a higher level of alertness to the user, but also increased vitality. This is practically a drug that had to have been approved by the Goverment specifically for the use of the experiment, since it shortens the life span of the user. 10 minutes of intense conversation between the scientists pass, until Raymond stands up and walks towards the research team. -"During this, you might find yourself heavily dizzied, unable to move, it will be extremely hard for you to breath at times, and, most likely, you will start passing out. If you feel your mind starting to get clouded - use the stimulants immediately. And remember - do not back out. Your courage is going to be the decisive step towards the success of this experiment. I wish you the best of luck, comrades." -"Yes, sir!" - the whole team yells out and stands up simultaneously. Putting on their helmets, Colonel and his team starts heading towards the large steel doorway - the entrance to the room with the Miracle. Pulling the triggering lever, they all start going through a pressure-normalazing room. After a few moments, the air has been completely pulled away around them. They press the small buttons on their arms that trigger their air gallons - they can now breath normally. -"We are going to be slowly increasing the pressure, your job is to gradually make steps towards the Anomaly. Clear?" -says Raymond through the radio. -"Clear, sir!" - responds Taylor. -"Then let us start with experiment N.378 - Breakthrough!" -"What a flashy name..."- thinks Davidson to himself. -"10.. 9.. 8.. 7.. 6.. 5" -the whole rooms goes silent and holds their breath. "4.. 3.. 2.. 1.. "Pressure release to 1000 initiate!". The door in front of the research team starts slowly opening and they start hearing loud cracking noises, almost like a storm being brought into this room! They all form a line and start slowly moving in closer towards their objective. "1500...2000...2500..."-Raymond is notifying the team of the current pressure state. As the number starts increasing, breathing for the team starts becoming harder and harder, their bodies feel more and more heavy with each step. "3000...3500...4000". At this point it becomes extremely hard for them to see anything in front of their eyes - breathing gets to an impossible state - their minds are starting to black out. At this point Taylor, who is in the front of the team, yells out: "Stimulants, now!". This message hit the rest of the team instantly - they all inject the syringes they picked up earlier in their veins, stimulating their bodies and pushing themselves beyond their physical limits. "4500..5000..." "Doctor, they won''t be able to hold much longer! Issue retreat" Raymond, witnessing all of this through the bullet-proof glass, bites his lip to the point of bleeding. "Doctor, we can do this. The stimulants will be able to hold us for much longer, let us proceed!" - Taylor yells out through the radio. Unexpected of this request, Raymond hesitates: -"15 meters away, the pressure is 6000...They will make it!" - Raymond yells out -"Proceed with the experiment. May God be with you." -"Do you really believe in God, Professor? The only thing that can help us here is science! Claus, Morgan - inject the 2nd round of stimulants. Lizabeth - pull the trigger. We are going in!" As commanded, Claus and Morgan quickly inject the 2nd round of stimulants in themselves, while Lizabeth rushes over to the wall to pull the red lever - the trigger to the last layer of protection for the Miracle. -"6500...7000...7500!" Taylor starts slowly passing out but hesitates to inject a 2nd round. "Pull!"- Taylor yells out desperately. With a clicking noise, Lizabeth pulls the red lever with all of her might and starts rushing over to the crystal. The last layer of Miracle''s protection - the force field - is shut down. There is now nothing standing between the research team and it. "We can do this!". "Yes!". Raymond couldn''t help but smile as a reaction to these soldier''s courage. Will his work finally be finished? Will he finally be able to unveil the secrets of this anomaly? Will this be the new step for humanity? Exhausted but determined - the team follows their commander until the end. "7800! Distance - 3 meters! Unbelievable!". Taylor pushes himself beyond his imaginable limit - he thrusts himself towards the crystal with all of his remaining might. "8000!". And with that, Taylor touches the blue crystalline ball with his hands. The time in here for everyone stops. This moment that everyone has been waiting for is finally here. What is going to happen? What is coming next? These questions were going through every singular mind in the vicinity. And suddenly...Bang! A flash of white light as bright as the sun followed up with a large explosion fills in the whole area. The scientist''s skin and eyes, including the Doctor''s, immediately burn away, revealing the muscles and the bone. Their heads start popping like balloons, and the multiple layers of bullet-proof glass cracks and breaks within an instant. Within less than 10 seconds, there were 4 melting flesh bodies of once living humans, a ruined laboratory slowly filling with the outside water, and Taylor''s research team - the bodies of which were absent. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ "Uhh..."- waking up on a cold, rock floor -"What...what happened?"- Taylor whispers to himself, with a major headache and stomach pain -"Where the hell am I?!" End of the Ironclad Chapter. Stormed Valor - P1 -"Where the hell am I?!" Those were the first words that Taylor Davidson yelled out after waking up on a cold stone floor. In this almost complete darkness, he could only see around a meter in front of him, as his eyes were starting to adjust. Seeing that his words echoed out through, what seems to be, a large cavern, Taylor started to slowly get up without making a sound. At this moment, he was not sure if this was a dream, was he in a prison cell, or is this just some post-death imagery after the experiment back, what seems to be, a couple minutes ago. Davidson was still wearing his protective white suit, which seems to have been mostly destroyed in the experiment, but his body seemed to be intact. He checks his senses - and this just seemed to be too realistic to be a dream. Being as trained as he is, he quietly started taking small steps back. After 10 seconds or so, he hit a solid stone wall that he started to slowly follow. While doing so, he started searching his pockets or his belt for anything useful. The only thing he could find is 1 unused stimulant - which was quite obvious since he left the unnecessary things back at the laboratory, so nothing would be in the way of the experiment. He pockets the syringe back. The air was starting to get colder and colder as he was progressing down the stone wall. It got to the point where he could see his own breath, which he tried to keep as steady and as slow as possible. And, all of a sudden, his foot hits something solid. Taylor looked down, just to have his cold sweat break through - it was an image of his, at this point hardly recognizable, comrade - Claus. His body was torn apart, missing the bottom half of his torso, his eyeballs hanging from their sockets and his skin withered. The stench immediately hit Taylor, so he quickly covered his nose with the top part of his camo shirt. -"What the actual hell is going on here? A nightmare?" -he thought to himself. Stepping over the body, Taylor continued his path toward a possible exit. The air was getting colder, but he sensed a small gust of wind coming from the direction he is going. *CRACK!* All of a sudden, a loud cracking noise echoes through the cavern, and the source of it seemed to come from the direction Taylor is traveling. Without hesitation, he hid behind the closest rock. Waiting a moment or two, he started hearing small footsteps coming his direction. Slow, but sloppy. Davidson covered his mouth and started breathing as slowly as possible, trying not to make a sound. After 20 or so seconds, the footsteps got to right around the rock he was hiding behind. Passing by him was a large, horrific-looking creature - glowing skin, 4 legs, large gnarly teeth in the front of a terrifying jaw. It was sniffing around itself, looking quite alert. A bit of sweat broke out of Taylor''s forehead. The creature seemed to pass by and went deeper into the cave where Taylor had come from. Using this chance, Davidson continued his path. He kept stepping over dozens of skeletal and decomposing bodies, but taking closer looks at some of them, he could not recognize any of his other comrades. Looking over a decomposing, torn body of what seemed to once be an old human man - he gets a glimpse of something shining underneath the pebbles next to the body. Using his foot, he slowly and quietly clears it and picks up a dusted shortsword. -"A sword? What is this suppose to mean?" - he thought to himself while continuing down the path. Going further and further down the path, Taylor started thinking that all of this feels too real to be a dream, but at the same time too weird to be real. Eventually, going through a curving tunnel, he finally starts seeing a glimpse of daylight peeking through broken corners of the stone walls. At this point the temperature dropped below -15C and his body slowly started to shiver from the cold. Taking a deep breath of cold, but fresh air, Taylor makes a small stop before going out of this tunnel. He sits down and pulls the bits of ruined protective suit that he had out. Rummaging through the pieces, he takes the biggest and the least ruined ones and wraps them around the areas of his body where the skin is exposed. The military camo shirt that he is wearing is sufficient enough to withstand some degree of low temperature, but it had no sleeves, and the pants were made out of expensive fabric which made them cold and slash-resistant aswell.This novel is published on a different platform. Support the original author by finding the official source. Looking silly, but functional, Taylor picks up small pieces of the discarded suit fabric and pockets them. He finally starts making his way towards the exit. No more than a minute passes, as Davidson starts hearing the whistling wind and sees small bits of snowflakes dropping down from the holes in the ceiling. A gentle breeze comes through, as he steps out of the cavern into the shining, beautiful sunlight. It takes his eyes a moment to adjust to the outside brightness, but eventually, he is brought to a stunning view - a vast mountain range covered in snow, almost reflecting the sunlight. Small bits of trees and plant life growing through the sides of the stone. He steps closer to the visible edge of the peak and looks down - just to see a mile drop ending with a thick fog, blocking his vision. -"Alright, this is quite a sight. For now, let''s just pretend it''s not a dream. What is the last thing I remember?... The Miracle, right! We were so close to finishing the experiment! Or... did we actually succeed and this is the result? Are these the Alps? Did I get teleported or something? But that would just make no sense scientifically... Think, think! What the hell is going on around here? What was that beast in the cave? I''ve seen the body of Claus, was that the beast''s work? Where am I?! Too many questions, and it looks like I''mnot going to get any answers." -thought Taylor to himself, whilst looking around himself, still carrying the shortsword in his right hand. -"Calm down Taylor, let''s analyze the situation. First priority - is to survive." He finds a nice spot away from the cliff, sits down on a rock and starts going through his possessions. He searches his pockets. -"My wallet with $13, a pen, a chocolate bar and a sword. These pieces of protective suit can probably shield me from the cold some-what for a little while, these boots will also last longer. What if I encounter an enemy? Am I really forced into using a goddamn medieval sword? Is this the 800''s?" Giving off a heavy sigh, he continues his chain of thoughts:-"Alright, first things first - let''s try and get off to lower ground - the wind might be getting stronger and stronger - and at night it might be too dangerous to climb. Let''s try finding some...Flint!" Taylor stands up and starts slowly heading down the pathway that has some footprints in the snow, whilst keeping an eye on any pieces of flint - that could help him start a fire if he needs. Also using his hands, he breaks off some branches from the nearby thin trees and pockets them for later. Proceeding further down the path, the vision gets more and more blurry, as the snow fog is getting thicker. After an hour of intense searching, he finally finds a bit of hard black rock imbed in the mountain, which he recognizes as flint. Using his sword, he hacks multiple times and gets a small piece of it - just enough he needed. The sword suffered some severe damage, as it bent a little bit, but still seemed functional. Taking small 5-minute breaks in between, Taylor kept going down the pathway for over an hour, as he started noticing the sun disappearing behind the tall mountains, as the day was switching with the night. It''s time to find shelter. Eventually, before the sun completely sets, using whatever vision he has left, he manages to find a small curve in the in the wall, that would be deep enough to partially cover him from the blowing wind, although it was not a cave. -"This should do for now. I need to spend some time organizing a possible plan for my further actions, but first - fire. I won''t survive long enough without heat. Water... I don''t have water. I can try melting the snow, but drinking that might bring a disease... I have no other choice. This chocolate bar might give me a day of extra energy." Taylor puts the branches that he got earlier closer together and puts some pieces of stone around them to make a makeshift fire pit. He waits an hour in thinking, covering himself more up in pieces of protective suit, and looking into the distant mountains. As the sun has almost set, and the small beams of orange-ish light had started to disappear, Davidson readies himself for a series of difficult tasks. But first, fire. He pulls out the $10 bill that he had with him, puts it below the sticks in the firepit and, using the pieces of flint that he had gathered earlier, starts heavily smashing the stones against each other, producing bits of sparks in the process. Doing this for over 10 minutes, he finally manages to light the bill on fire, which spreads out onto the sticks. With the warmth taking him, Taylor pulls out a large piece of the ruined suit fabric, scoops some of the snow towards to firepit, and uses that fabric to contain the melting snow. -"Not boiled, but better than nothing". He drinks all of the warm water from the container, puts some pieces of the suit down on the ground to act as a cover to protect from the cold stone, and lays down. With the crackling sound of fire next to him and the gentle whistle of the wind around him, Taylor tries to have a night''s rest. Stormed Valor - P2 Taylor spends the first few hours of the night thinking about his further plans, but eventually, unconsciousness takes his mind. Suddenly, the black nothingness is replaced with flashing images and memories. At first, the images of the old house he used to live with his parents. Old, but comforting and beautiful. The images slowly move towards the frontal door of the house. The door suddenly slams open inside, and everything around takes a bright red coloring. Inside the house, there are dead soldiers, forests on fire, exploding tanks. These are the memories of the horrible days Taylor had to endure in Afghanistan years ago. The calmness of his mind is overtaken with anger and fear, and the images start shaking. All of a sudden, everything disappears into nothingness again. Just a cold, ever-present black void. It feels like hours, days, months pass, as Taylor''s mind drifts through it. He feels calm and at peace. Through this void, he starts seeing a small bead of light. Small, miserable, but warming. Taylor wants to touch it, embrace it, feel it. The image flashes and he suddenly stands in gray, barren wasteland, spreading miles across. And in the middle of it stand 3 large black towers, almost reaching into the skies. The image flashes, and then he stands on top of one of the towers, as he could see the wasteland around him. His attention shifts from the view to the form in front of him: a purple spherical mass, humming and spinning around itself, held in a large skeletal arm. Peaking through the mass, Taylor sees a deformed human face, horrible, but grinning. It stares right into his eyes, which causes immediate fear and danger in his heart. A cold sweat starts dripping down his back, as all of a sudden... *THUMP* All of the images fade, and Taylor wakes up from his sleep, back in reality. The howling and the savage sound of the wind, stronger than before, and the sound of thunder woke him up, but he was not aware of how long he had slept. Not having enough time to think, he instinctively bags his makeshift bedsheet of suit fabric, picks up his sword and starts rapidly making his way down the previous path. -"This is not good, a storm so high in the mountains will cause landslides... I need to find a cave or some sort of shelter, but I can''t go back to that monster. There is only one way out - down." The path wasn''t narrow per say, it was around 3 meters to the edge of the cliff, but it was still something to be concerned about in this heavy wind, so Taylor keeps his shoulder close to the mountain wall. The visibility was even worse than before - he could see around 2 meters in front of him. Leaving his last shelter place 50 or so meters behind, there is another thunderous noise in the distance, which causes the mountain wall to shake. Taylor immediately puts his back against the wall in case of a landslide. A minute or so passes without an issue, and he continues to make his way down. After 15 or so minutes, Taylor hears the faint clapping of wings. He goes prone into the snow and covers himself with white pieces of suit fabric. 20 or so seconds pass, as he notices a quite large white-skinned winged creature dives past him down below. He couldn''t take a good look at it, but the cover he took seemed to work. The least he wants right now is to attract any unnecessary attention. He stands up, packs back the fabric, cleans himself from snow and continues further down. And again, there is a burst of light and a deafening thunderous sound, as a thunderbolt hits the side of the mountain he is closest to. The same moment Taylor pushes his back against the wall, as a large landslide is falling on the pathway from above. A couple of moments pass, as the landslides impacts with the stone path, making bits and pieces of stone to fall off with it, narrowing it even more. Taylor was caught in this mess, but, thankfully, managed to keep himself from sliding off the cliff. A moment of silence passes, as he crawls out of the snow, freezing cold. He quickly cleans himself up, and, seeing that parts of the stone path collapsed, he uses his sword to keep ensuring that the path in front of him is stable. Starting to feel exhausted from the cold, Taylor keeps pushing forward. Eventually, he starts seeing an entrance to some sort of a cave on the side of the path. He ducks inside and behind the closest rock. The wind howling outside, but feeling safe, Taylor takes a deep breath. He made it to relative safety. -"Now, this seems to lead somewhere further into the mountain. Maybe I''m lucky enough to find an abandoned fireplace or something, or is it going to be another monster?"- he thought to himself. For it being relatively dark in the cave, Taylor takes a few minute break for his eyes to adjust the darkness. After that, he starts moving further in, whilst keeping close to the wall. This cavern was not as big as the one he woke up in, it''s around 6ft wide and 7ft tall, so Taylor, being 5,6ft tall, could almost touch the ceiling. As the light of the outside starts slowly disappearing behind him, he starts seeing another light ahead. This time, not sunlight, but something else. Being unaware of what it is, Taylor ducks low and starts quietly approaching it. A couple of moments pass, as he starts seeing what seems to be a firelight. -"A camp?... No, a torch!" -he noticed it as he got closer. -"It''s lit up, so it must mean somebody or something has been around here not too long ago. I should be careful extra careful for now" -he thinks to himself while tightening his grip on the sword. He eventually passes the torch, which is hanging on the wall and hits a large wooden double door, which is blocking his way further. The door doesn''t seem to have a doorknob, and it appears to be old and poorly made. Taylor quietly tries pushing on the door, but it doesn''t seem to budge. He then backs away around 15ft into the shadows, takes a small stone and throws it at the door. With an echoing impact, the stone hits the door and falls to the ground. Taylor patiently waits a couple of moments. Then, the door starts slowly shifting and opening outward. And appearing from it is a small humanoid, green-skinned creature, in a set of old and ragged leather armor and with a shortsword drawn in his hand. -"A...goblin? I''ve seen these creatures in fantasy movies and novels, but here? I guess I shouldn''t be surprised considering the latest events, but...Alright, think. What am I going to get if I attack it? It''s smaller than me, and it doesn''t seem to notice me, so I can do it quick and silent. But if there are more inside, how am I going to go about it? Kill all of them? Or, maybe, talk with them, if they will even understand me..." The goblin looks around the door and slowly starts heading back inside. At this moment, Taylor rushes forward to him without hesitation. Hearing the running sounds, the goblinoid creature turns around the check the source of the noise and notices Taylor running towards him, but it was too late. Davidson had already shortened the distance between them down to hand''s reach, and the goblin''s neck is snapped, as he falls down to the ground, lifeless. -"Well, I didn''t expect him to have the reaction time of a turtle. He didn''t seem particularly smart either. Perhaps I could benefit from checking inside. Maybe, I can find some food, water, resources. This chocolate bar won''t last me long." - thinks Taylor, as he pulls out the chocolate bar and takes a bite, still feeling hungry from not being able to eat due to the storm.The tale has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident. Taking a bite of 1/3 of the chocolate bar, Taylor looks inside the door, stepping over the dead goblin''s body. He could see a set of 2 torches on the side of the wall that were lighting up the cavern that was leading further down. Beside one of the torches there was a small wooden table with a wooden chair, and on the table, there was a small metal mug and a piece of half-eaten bread. Taylor pulls the goblin inside the room and closes the door behind him. Waiting a moment to see if anyone else is coming, he starts patting the goblin down without remorse. After all, he had killed a lot of people back in his days, and right now it is necessary to survive. Eventually, Taylor finds a small leather pouch on the goblin''s belt, which he takes and puts on the table. Untying the string holding it shut, he looks inside and finds 2 small shining silver-colored coins alongside with 12 extra copper-colored coins. -"Coins? I''m guessing this is the local currency. And I can now be sure that this is not our world. I''ve studied history back in the day, and nowhere have I seen these kinds of engravings...And this language is quite unfamiliar to me. Either way, this might come in handy" - as he puts the coins in his pocket. -"And a dagger? Looks rusty, but seems functional. I know how to use a military knife, so this is probably the closest thing I can find right now. Better off with this than a sword for now". -thinks Taylor as he continues searching the goblin. Ugly-looking and smelly, the goblin didn''t seem to have a lot on him. A shortsword, a dagger, and some coins. Taylor leaves his old shortsword on the table while holding the newly-obtained dagger in his right hand. Taking the half-eaten smelly bread with him, he continues further down the cave. The silence of the place is not disturbed by Taylor, as he is taking slow and silent steps. Back in the day, he had multiple missions where his team had to do recon and blend into the enemy''s lines, so keeping quiet and being decisive is familiar to him. He passes multiple sets of torches, and after around 2-3 minutes he starts hearing multiple voices. He stops in the shadows and waits. The sources of the voices seemed to be coming from around the corner of the cavern, around 20 or so feet away from Taylor. Trying to listen to the conversation, he didn''t seem to understand a single word, and it sounded like multiple children speaking to each other. Taylor slowly proceeds further towards the sounds. He makes it to the corner of the wall, where there is a small outcrop to the right, but the path still continues further in front of him. The outcrop seems to be where the voices are coming from. Keeping himself in the darkness, he peeks around the corner and sees the image of 4 humanoids, looking similar to the one he had encountered. They are sitting around a campfire, and 2 of them seem to be tearing into pieces of raw bloodied meat. Taylor notices a small dead and butchered beast behind them, that he doesn''t seem to recognize the nature of. Being as unpleasant as it is, Taylor stays completely calm and doesn''t flinch. There is a torch on the side of the outcropping, so he knows that if he tries passing further down, he would be seen by these creatures. So, he stays at the corner of the wall and waits. 15 or so minutes pass, as one of the creatures stands up after finishing his meal and starts heading in Taylor''s direction. The other 3 seem to stay put and continue their conversation. Taylor slowly backs off 10 or so feet back and waits silently in the shadows. The creature turns around the corner of the outcropping and keeps heading his direction. Being 5 or so feet away from Taylor, he doesn''t seem to notice any danger. Suddenly, a hand grabs the creature''s small head and pulls it towards it. The creatures gets spun around and gets his mouth heavily blocked by a large hand. And, almost in an instant, his throat gets slit. Taylor silently pulls the body to the shadows and puts it down. The other 3, which were about 15ft away from where this happened, didn''t seem to notice anything. Taylor rapidly moves towards the corner again and starts waiting for a better moment. A couple of minutes again pass, and one of the 3 creatures stands up and goes toward the dead creature behind them to take another piece of meat. The other 2 are talking to each other, one of them is facing towards Taylor and one of them away. As one of them kneels down near the dead creature, with his back towards the pathway, Taylor had already started his assault. Holding the dagger, he runs over to the one facing away from him and snaps his neck. Seeing this, and having a little bit of time to react, the goblin facing towards Taylor jumps up and unsheathes his sword. With this commotion, the creature at the dead beast also turns around, but having little time to react, gets a quick stab in the throat, falling unconscious. Now there was only 1 goblin and Taylor left, facing each other. The remaining goblin lunges his sword towards his enemy, but Taylor manages to dodge to the side. Using this opening to strike, he lunges forward with his dagger, but the goblin managed to parry it and launches an immediate counterattack. Unexpected from the speed of this one, Taylor had clearly underestimated the power of these creatures in close combat. The sword managed to cut a wound at Taylor''s left arm. Resisting the pain and using this opening, Taylor swiftly strikes the dagger at the goblin''s head, which firmly stuck inside the skull. The creature fell to the floor, lifeless. The pain was sipping in, and blood was dripping down Taylor''s arm, but he was not wasting time. He pulls the shirt he was wearing apart and starts wrapping it around his wound. He ties it up firmly and starts quickly rummaging through the dead bodies and the whole place for anything useful. He still was keeping in mind that he has a stimulant left, but he wanted to save it for a completely dire situation. For now, regardless of it being painful, the wound was not lethal and it could heal itself with proper medication. Calming his mind again, he gathers the things he had found. 2 more silver pieces and 5 copper pieces, alongside with 2 daggers, 4 short swords and around 7ft of rope. He piles the 4 bodies together and takes the 2 daggers with the coins and wraps the rope around his waist. -"Well, that was unexpected. My recklessness has put me in this situation. If I don''t find proper bandages or medication soon, I will catch a disease. And I don''t have time for rest right now". Leaving the outcropping behind him he continues further down the cave. With the pain getting worse and worse, he stayed calm and silent, whilst making sure he was not leaving a blood trail behind him. He starts noticing that the path is leading down the mountain, which he was hoping for. Past the outcropping, there were no torches, so he had to slow down and keep close to the wall, not to attract any attention. After an hour or so of not encountering anybody, he notices that on the side of the path there is a large rock. Quickly inspecting it, he notices scratch marks at the bottom of it and clues that lead him to believe that this was purposefully pushed here by somebody or something. And indeed, taking a closer look at the sides of it, he notices that there is an opening in the wall that this rock is blocking. Hoping to find shelter, Taylor puts down his daggers and, using his stronger arm and the weight of his body, he starts pushing the boulder away. He was pretty well-built, but the wound was making him slower and weaker. But, eventually, he pushes the rock to the side, just enough for him to pass through. He crouches past it and enters a small, 4ft wide and 4ft tall room, which was too small for him to stand up, so he had to crouch. In this room, he noticed piled on top of each other 2 skeletal bodies: one of them dressed in old ragged black leathers and the other one - in rusty metal plates. As Taylor noticed them, the stench hit him as well. -"Looks like I''m going to spend some time with you two, I''m sorry for intruding." - he thinks to himself, jokingly. Crawling fully inside, Taylor unpacks his makeshift bedsheet and sits on it, while taking a short rest. Thinking about his further plans and calculating possibilities, he eyes down the 2 skeletal bodies and sees a small backpack that is underneath them. He pushed himself towards it, pulled away the bodies and started looking through this old, dusted leather backpack. On the inside, he found a rotten apple, a piece of parchment with something written on it that he couldn''t understand and a dusted blue robe, that he pulled out and ripped apart for some bandages. Replacing his bloodied shirt that he used to cover the wound with fresh robe bandages, he takes a couple of minutes in silence and rests. He feels that the wound on his arm is gradually starting to heal itself, in a very rapid and unusual for a human way. Noticing this, he couldn''t help but be confused, but grateful for whatever phenomenon this might me. Maybe its the God helping him, although Taylor did not believe in one himself. 10 or so minutes of his rest pass, as Davidson starts hearing multiple quiet footsteps coming his way, alongside with a set of heavy and loud ones. He immediately grabs onto his daggers and waits. Stormed Valor - P3 Passingby is a group of 3 goblins and a hulking humanoid with a large club - Taylor got a glimpse of it, and, as he is guessing, it might be some sort of a patrol. The place he made a mess in an hour or so away from his current position, so these creatures will take a while to report back. And, seeing that he cannot take on the group with his wounded arm, he lets them pass, without them noticing him. As the footsteps are getting further and further away, Taylor starts moving out of his cover and starts moving further down the cave. The further he keeps going, the warmer it gets. He starts hearing distant sounds of water drops, echoing through the cave. -"Must be some sort of a lake nearby, or, perhaps, a waterfall? I could get a better idea of where I am if I manage to find it." 20 or so minutes of Taylor walking through the cavern passes, as the pathway splits into 3 directions. He takes a moment and carefully inspects all 3 of them andtakes the left path, where he felt the air being less stale. Being exhausted, but determined, he starts hearing a distant waterfall and the air starts becoming fresher. Stepping out of the dark cavern, the bright sunlight almost blinds him, as he had spent some time in a darker environment. Taking a moment for his eyes to adjust, Taylor is presented with a stunning view: a small alcove on the side of the mountain,filled with bright-green trees, beautiful mountain stones coated with yellow flowers. In the distance, there was a waterfall, tumbling down the mountain into a bliss-pool. The slow wind was warm and charming, spreading the honey-sweet smell of the flowers. -"Ah!" -Taylor gave out a sign of excitement and appreciation. -"There are only a few places in the world that could be of such beauty, and all of them are protected and restricted. I can now be certain... I am not on Earth." And it is true, anynatural places on Earth where the human civilization had not yet spread, are heavily protected and safeguarded, preserved for future generations. Being a man that has been through a war, lived in cities with pollution, Taylor could not help himself but take a short rest, taking in big breaths of fresh air, but still being cautious of his surroundings. Taking a closer look at this alcove, which he was on top of on a small platform, he notices that he is not that far fromthe actual ground - only half a mile or so. He also notices that on top of the waterfall there are small plumes of smoke rising up into the sky - seemingly a campfire. -"I would have a better chance of finding some sort of human life than trying to find food from those goblins." Taking a short, 5-minute break, he starts moving down the small stone stairs leading into the alcove. He eventually makes it down and starts moving through the small forest towards the direction of the cliff, in hopes of finding a pathway down. Walking through the forest, Taylor notices different plants and trees he had never seen before - bushes growing strange white berries, large tree leaves. Nevertheless, the smell was charming. Using a better part of half an hour, Taylor approaches the cliffside. Spending some time, he doesn''t manage to find any pathway down, but he does find the side of the mountain where it would seem to be the best to try and climb down - the cliff was not terribly steep. Regardless, without using any equipment, Taylor tries to climb down. Using his daggers to some-what hold onto some edges, he starts climbing down. The first few minutes were easy, but the further he got down - the harder it became. At one point, one of his daggers slips from his hand, causing Taylor to almost fall off, but his other hand had a good enough purchase. Adjusting himself, he looks down below at his dagger tumbling down the cliffside and eventually disappearing into the distance. -"Argh..." Finding small purchases and taking rather large breaks in between, seeing as climbing without gear is both dangerous and exhausting, Taylor starts noticing the sun is way past the zenith and soon day is going to start changing with the night. Seeing that, he hurriedly starts climbing further down. By the time the sun had almost set, Taylor finally managed to climb all the way down, without a big of an issue. His concerns right now are that he is tired, hungry and directionless. Taking the last bite off his chocolate bar and delaying the hunger, he takes a closer look at the environment - small bits and pieces of forested areas followed up by large hills - that is the most he could see from this distance at sundown. He himself was at the very base of the mountain that is covered by flowers and he could see the distant river flowing down the mountain. He starts slowly heading in its direction. As the sun had already set, hemanaged to make his way towards the estuary, where he sees another waterfall in the mountain, which flows into the very same river. In width,the stream is about 20ft. Walking towards the water after taking a close look around it, Taylor takes a handful of water and drinks it. It is refreshing and cold. After that, he starts heading down the river, away from the mountain, but keeping his distance away. An hour or so passes as Taylor starts seeing a faint bit of light past the trees in the distance. Taking a moment and a closer look from the distance, it seems to be a small watermill attached to a 2-story house. -"Maybe I can find a friendly face there" -thought Taylor to himself, whilst heading towards the house. 5 or so minutes pass, as Taylor starts seeing moving lights in the area around the house along with humanoid figures holding them. Approaching closer, without trying to sneak, he confirms that these are humans. This whole compound is not large - about 50ft wide area surrounded by a metal fence, with a 2-story red brick house and a watermill to the side. Stepping towards the frontal gate at the fencing, Taylor''s form illuminates from the torchlight. Nobody seems to pay immediate attention to him. He hides his daggers on his belt, steps forward towards the gate and knocks on it. It''s not loud, but enough for somebody outside the house to hear. A moment passes as a human man, about in his 30''s, wearing a black hooded cloak with a spear to his side approaches the gate.The story has been taken without consent; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident. -"Who goes there?" -says the man in a low and unwelcoming voice. -"I''m terribly sorry for such a late intrusion, but I''m a traveler looking for help. May I talk to somebody about that?" -Taylor responds calmly. The man takes a nice and close look at Taylor, noticing his unfamiliar clothing and seeing no weapons or equipment on him. Clearly, this man didn''t mean any threat to him. -"Alright, that''s fine. Sorry for the rudeness, it''s just there has been a lot ofenemies lately around the area. We can never be too sure. Come in". -says the man in a softer voice, while opening the gate. Stepping inside, Taylor now notices some flower patches scattered around the nice grass inside the compound. Going from the gate towards the house is a small stone road. -"I think the owner might be able to help you. Follow me". As they were approaching the house, Taylor notices that there is one more guard that he could see in the area. Currently, he was patrolling around the house. The actual house seems to be made out of nice red brick, with a couple of windows on each floor. Taylor notices one open window on the second floor with a faint bit of light coming out of it. There is also a lot of light coming from the first-floor windows. As they were walking, Taylor was thinking through the possible conversation options, he was trying to make up an identity for himself. -"Looks like I was right earlier about the age here. I hope I can get some information from whoever owns this place, maybe a nearby city or something like that. And I''m not sure how much is this money I have worth. Can I buy enough food with it at least? Maybe they have some medication.." -as Taylor says that, he touches the side of his arm where he got wounded earlier. Covered with a makeshift bandage, it didn''t seem to hurt at all. If anything, for him it felt like there was no wound there. As they got to the doorstep, the guard knocks three times on the double-door. After a moment, a human woman in a nice white dress with braided black opens the door. -"Is anything wrong, Drake?" -the woman says in a soft and gentle voice. -"Khem," -the man adjusts his throat -"this person knocked on the frontal gates and seeks some help." The woman looks at Taylor from head to toe and says -"Well, not often we see travelers in these lands. Please, come in".-says the woman and invites Taylor inside the house. Stepping back, the guard she referred to as ''Drake'' steps back and goes back to his duties, while Taylor quickly cleans his boots at the doorstep and comes inside. The smell of freshly-cooked meats hits Taylor as he comes inside. The interior is warm, charming but simple. In this frontal hallway of the house, there are a couple of small hooks for coats, a small landscape painting on the side of the wooden wall and a brown carpet on the floor. The corridor goes through about 3 or so feet as it splits into 2 sides. -"Come, enjoy the meal with us. We''ll hear you out, mister?..." -"Feodor, call me Feodor". -Taylor replies hesitantly. -"Alright, Feodor, follow me". They both slowly head to the end of the corridor, turn left and head into a small dining room, with a wooden table and 8 wooden chairs next to it. At the end of this room, there is a small lit hearth. On the sides of the room, there are a couple of shelves with utensils and books. On top of the wall where the hearth is there is a large portrait of an old human man in glasses and a black jacket. On the table, there are a couple of dishes: freshly-cooked meats, salads, and drinks. The woman points towards one of the chairs where Taylor happily sits down. She sits on the opposite side of him. -"So, mister Feodor, I can listen to your request for now, if you wish. The other members of our family will gather in about 5 minutes. Oh, and my name is Appoline, AppolineWillowbone". -"Nice to meet you, Mrs. Willowbone. Thank you for your kindness inviting me in. As you can see, I don''t have a lot of things on me - recently traveling, I''ve had some unfortunate events and lost most of my belongings. I''ve come to you, the closest household I could find, to seek provisions and ask about some things. If you don''t mind, of course." -"Yes, yes, we can provide you with some food and clothes if you have the coin, but you can ask your questions now." -taking a sip from the cup, the woman carefully listens to Taylor. -"Thank you, Mrs. Willowbone." -Taylor had already prepared some questions, but he didn''t think it would be this easy to get an audience, considering his looks. The bandage on his hand was still soaked in blood and he smelled awful from all the things he had to do, but that didn''t seem to bother the woman even a bit. -"I''ve been traveling a lot lately and decided to get a good view on top of that mountain over there. However, some nasty creatures forced me to leave my things behind and flee. I''ve only had limited supplies and no weapons, so I tried seeking out help as fast as possible. That''s how I ended up here. My first question is supplies - how much and for what cost can you provide?"- Taylor''s speech seemed reasonable enough for Mrs. Willowbone. -"We could probably muster about 3 days of dried rations, it doesn''t spoil fast and easy to eat. That''ll run you about 3 silver pieces.". -"3 silver?!" -Taylor thought to himself."That is currently most of my money, but it seems like I don''t have a choice. In fact, I''m not familiar with the prices here, so it actually might be an amazing deal." -"Alright, I will buy those from you, thank you. Now my 2nd question is - where is the closest city or village I could find a place to stay at?" -"Oh, well, the closest big city is Ikhae, but that is about 100 miles away from here. If we''re talking a village with an inn, then your best bet would beYrork, I know there is at least 1innthere. It''s about 15 miles away from here. You can''t miss it if you go down the road northward". At this point, a group of 4 people enters the dining room: an older-looking gentleman in a nice black jacket, slick black hair, and a mustache. Following him, there are 3 children - a boy and 2 girls. The boy seems to be in his early teens and the girls still in their childhood. Noticing the man, Taylor stands up and slightly bows towards him: -"My name is Feodor, very nice to meet you, Mr. Willowbone." -says Taylor in a very polite manner. -"Nice to meet you too, Mr. Feodor. Is this our guest, Appoline?" -says the man politely, although looking quite disgusted by Taylor''s appearance. -"Yes, it is. This gentleman came to us to seek help. I''m going to sell him some provisions and answer his questions. He won''t be bothering you, so don''t worry." The man sits at the far end of the table withthe children to his sides. They all start eating the food in front of them. Taylor also joins in, as he continues the conversation with Appoline. -"My 3rd question is, may I stay somewhere for tonight? I don''t mind if it''s a barn or anything." -"Of course, you can stay for the night at the mill, but only for this night. That''s the most I can offer to you." -"I am very grateful, Mrs. Willowbone" -finishing the meal, Taylor stands up from the table.-"Mr. and Mrs. Willowbone, I thank you for your patience. I can buy the rations tomorrow when I leave, but for now, I will go sleep at the mill. Have a good night." -"Tell Drake that we allowed you to stay at the mill and he''ll open the doors for you. Have a good night." -Mrs. Willowbone says as she shows Taylor out of the house. Eventually, Taylor finds the same guard that he spoke to earlier and is lead towards the watermill building - a small wooden hovel. Drake leads Taylor inside, then walks back and locks the door behind him. This small, 10 by 10ft wooden hovel didn''t have too many things in it - a couple barrels, sacks, and crates stacked on top of each other alongside a grinding mechanism in the middle - it seems that this place is used to make flour. At first glance, Taylor guesses that the family membersare farmers. Or, at least, they own a farm. Either way, Taylor finds a nice corner, pulls over one of the grain sacks and sits on it. Unwrapping the old bandage, Taylor finds out that his wound is almost completely healed, which surprised him, as he had not taken any medication. In fact, now that he thinks of it, he forgot to ask for any from theWillowbones, but it seems that he doesn''t need any. With the faint sound of the watermill and a slow wind howl outside, Taylor spends some time thinking to himself, before falling asleep for the night. Stormed Valor - P4 Early in the morning,accompanied by the sound of a rolling watermill alongside the bird''s singing, Taylor''s eyes slowly roll up and blink as he rouses from his sleep. The nightwas warm, gentle and reasonably quiet, so he got plenty of sleep. Rising up from the sack he''s been sleeping on,Taylor notices tiny beams of sunlight finding their way inside the cabin through numerous holes in the wood, warming and lighting up the rather dark and simple interior of the shack,granting it new colors. Appreciating the atmosphere, Taylor stands up his full height and does a quick 5-minute morning body exercise. Stretching his left arm, wherepreviously there has been a wound, he doesn''t notice any pain and, in fact, the arm seems to have regained all of its senses. -"Wonderful and interesting. I cannot be completely certain until I do some experiments, but it seems that my body regenerates a lot faster than it has before. That wound I had would take weeks, if not a month, to fully heal, with the proper medicine. Yet here, it took less than a full day, without any medicine. I should definitelylook into this..." As Taylor was thinking this to himself while doing his morning exercise, he suddenly hears 3 loud knocks on the door followed up by a rough, manly but familiar voice: -"Mr. Feodor,it''s time for you to leave, there will be workers here soon. Whenever you are ready, follow me, the Lady has prepared you your supplies." -that was the voice of Drake, the guard Taylor had met yesterday. -"Right with you!" Quickly cleaning his sleeping place and placing the sack back in place, Taylor hurriedly opens the cabin''s door and walks outside. Immediately he is greeted by the pleasantsmell of fresh water from the nearby river in the mix with the sweetness of a nearby apple tree. He is escorted by an already impatient and sleepy-looking Drake, waiting for his shift to finish. Appreciating the ambiance, Taylorstrolls by the yard with him to the front of the estate, whereMrs. Willowbone, wearing a nice white dress, is hiding under a tree''s shadow on a bench, reading through a book. As they approach,Willowbonenotices them. She puts thevolume to the side, stands up and walks towards the doorstep, where there is an already prepared brown-leather backpack. She gestures for Taylor to come over. -"Good morning, Mr. Feodor. I''ve prepared the supplies you requested: 3 days worth of dried rations. The backpack is a gift". -"I''m very thankful, Mrs. Willowbone. One day, perhaps, I will repay for your hospitality". -"I understand how it must feel to lose your things, especially to those nasty goblins. They have been everywhere around, but, thankfully, we got Drake and the other guards to protect us. I hope you can get back on your ''adventuring'' track as soon as you can. Best of luck, Feodor". Taylor slightly bows towards the lady, turns around and exits the compound. Remembering the directions he had gotten earlier, he quickly finds the dirt road between the trees and startsheading the opposite direction from the mountain - northward, to the settlement called''Ikhae''.The author''s content has been appropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon. -------------------------------------------------------------------------- Before leaving, Taylor has put the pieces of the white-suit fabric into his backpack and checked on the rations - 5 palm-sizedwrapswith dried bread and 2 waterskins with water.Taylor put the remainder of his suit pieces, which would probably be enough to only cover his chest, beneath those supplies. He also put the 2 daggers on top of all of that, while concealing the 3rd one in his pocket, for an emergency. Already an hour away from the Willowbone estate, Taylor decides to test out his regeneration abilities. He takes up the dagger and slightly cuts his finger. He cleans the blood away and continues walking, checking on the finger once in a while. -"15 miles, she said...I remember having to run with a full set of equipment for more than that. This should be relatively easy." 30 minutes after the cut, Taylor checks on his finger and notices that the wound has completely healed. -"Pretty damn fast...I wonder if other people have this as well. Or, maybe, this is just normal for everyone? I''ll keep it a secret for now. I hope I can get to the village by sunset at this speed. Maybe I can gather some more information about this place from the townsfolk and find some work. I''ll start with the information". Eventually, the road leaves the forest and continues past the rolling green hills, coated in blooming white flowers. Taylor climbs up one of the largest hills next to him to get a better view of the area. Looking back where he came from, he notices that the mountain, in fact, is not a lonely mountain. It''s alarge mountain chain that stretches both ways beyond his view. Looking westward, hecatches something moving high up in the clouds, just out of view, casting a large round shadow. The shape is moving rapidly away from him. -"What could of that been? Interesting...". Looking the direction he is heading, hediscovers that the rolling green hills stretch for another mile or so further, followed up by a bright-green tree canopy. Climbing back down the hill and continuing down the path, Taylor spends the next 4 or so hours without a break rapidly making his way further. Eventually, he takes 30 minutes to himself. He unpacks one of the rations and eats half of it while taking large sips from one of the waterskins. The dried bread is crunchy and is good enough to sustain him. Having a meal on the side of the road, Taylor starts hearing the clanging of horses. Taking a better look, he catches a wooden cart being pulled by 2 horses, about 200ft away from him down the road. He packs the rations back in his backpack and starts heading closer to the road. On top of the small, wooden cart with no cover and filled with boxes, Taylor notices a human man, in about his 40-s, holding the reins. The man is wearing a simple ragged white shirt and a straw hat. Ashe passes by the cart, the man taps his hat in a greeting manner. Taylor nods back. As he passed the cart, Taylor took a quick glance inside of it. While whatever the man is transporting was concealed by the wooden boxes, hecatches a scent of wheat and grain. Also, near one of the boxes, he notices a sleeping child. The reason for Taylor''s curiosity is the lack of information. Right now, he wants to get as much of it as possible without drawing any unnecessary attention. For the past day, he managed to construct a couple of theories: One - a rough technological state of the world. Considering the usage of a watermill for grinding, horse carts for transport, nobility, currency, and weaponry - medieval era. However, there were still a lot of questions. Considering how politeMrs. Willowbone was to a stranger, he is not sure of the political structure. The next6 hours pass by without a notice - the bright yellow sunlight is changed with an orange-ish sunset, followed up with the gradual negative change of temperature. Passing through the forest he had seen before, Taylor notices small but bright lights emerging in the dark distance. Small, familiar beads of orange light. -"That must be Ikhae...I''ve almost made it, not more than half a mile away." As he says that, he starts noticing the change of the light''s color from orange to bright yellow. Even being a distance away, he catches distant plumes of smoke rising up from the direction. -"Fire?!"