Off Toward The Capital

Hilde had run a ways from the lair before she veered left to travel in a circle around their home base. She was going rather slowly for her. She figured that at this pace, she could notice anything of importance while still being able to make it back in time for lunch. She also read over the descriptions of her new equipment. “Let’s see handwraps of might, sash of evasion, cloud stepping shoes, and an amulet of the spectral hoof.” Hilde saw a nearby river and decided to test out her new shoes. She found that they literally produced a solid cloud under her foot that she could step off of, but that the cloud only lasted about two seconds. She also found that she didn’t have to take a normal step. Rather, she could allow her momentum to carry her far into the distance before taking another step if she pushed off hard enough. Landing back on the side of the river, she noticed her mana pool had drained. Hilde thought it was odd that she was the only one with a third resource pool that she was aware of. She had HP and mana like everyone else, but she also had ki points. Which is what her new amulet and her fancier class abilities used. She tried out the amulet and punched forward, and saw a spectral hoof fly forward 20 meters past her fist at a ridiculous speed. These might actually be faster than running over to punch something. That’s cool. Hilde saw she was coming up on a settlement. I probably shouldn’t actually go in. She looked around for a vantage point to get a better overview of the place.

The settlement was a small town with a wooden palisade surrounding it. There were five gates; two were on the river itself, as the town straddled both sides of the river. Two more gates were on the opposite side of the river, one leading northwest and the other northeast. Hilde thought the one to the northeast likely led towards the capital. The final gate was due south. After making some notes. Hilde moved on. She found little more of substantial interest. Some caves here and there. A few notable clearings to set up camp in, but honestly, it was mostly just forest, especially south of their lair.

Flora went to check on the two closest settlements marked on the map. The first one was this tiny hamlet, only about two kilometers away, that had fewer than a hundred people. Though Flora did notice that Slevia and Maja were acting the parts of two individuals in the town. She had debated going and talking with them, but decided that it was ultimately not the time to do that.

When traveling to the next settlement, Flora looked over her new equipment. The quiver would store an absurd amount of ammunition, and if she had multiple types of ammo, she would always draw the type she wanted. She got a pair of bracers that increased her damage, though she wasn’t exactly sure how they worked. She was also confused about her new armor since it definitely covered less, and was even more skin-tight, but when looking at her status sheet, she found her defensive score had gone up. The last item was a ring with a cat’s eye gemstone on it. It allowed her to see in any darkness, but also gave her pupils a distinct cat-like appearance.

Right as Flora reached the second settlement, Ellen reported that she had acquired some maps of the empire, which greatly pleased Flora. She had been annoyed that she had just run off, but at least she was being productive. The second settlement was massive and a good hour away from the lair on foot. Well on foot for most people. It had high stone walls, a military barracks, and by her count, a few hundred soldiers stationed there. Not including the large city guard in that number. Well shit. This is bad. We really need to make sure not to draw attention. I bet that if the other team finds our location, they can likely mobilize aid against us. So many soldiers would completely screw us over. Smug did say to make sure we didn’t reveal our location. I guess that wasn’t just fluff. I’ll have to make sure we don’t let them find us. Honestly, even knowing a general area would be bad. When exiting the city, Flora noticed there were multiple large stables. She decided to visit one to see if she could buy a horse. An ASTRID showed her what options were available, and she took a sleek black looking horse, purchasing a saddle and two weeks' worth of feed for it. She paid with a few gold coins from the claw machine and rode back to the lair.

On the way back, Flora received another communication from Ellen. She thought the gift Ellen left for the others was hilarious. She was concerned about Ellen getting caught, but there was little she could do about that right now. When Flora got back, she put her horse in the stable they had. As she went inside, she saw everyone but Chloe and Hilde in the lounge. Mary was laying out dishes, while Merida and Aubrey were putting on their new gear. Flora asked, “Where’s Chloe? Also, Hilde not back yet?”

Mary replied, “Chloe found out we had a lab and went there after Aubrey found a task involving it. Chloe said she would come back at lunchtime, so she should be here soon. Hilde hasn’t gotten back yet either.”

Hilde slid into the room a second later. “Hey, Mistress, I could feel you wanted me here.”

Mary looked at her, confused. “Umm… not overly are you sure?”

“I definitely got a feeling I needed to deliver someone to you, Mistress. Wasn’t sure who, though. Something about desserts?” Flora snorted and then burst out laughing. “What’s funny?”

“Well, as I got back, Ellen sent me a message about the other team’s progress; they are all only level three right now. Like they took a task this morning and only just got there today. They also have almost no upgraded gear. I have a feeling Mark just found out about the present Ellen left for the other team, too. A present courtesy of Sally.” Flora said with a grin. “I’m willing to bet Mark assumed either you, Ellen, or me was the culprit. Mary, correct me if I’m wrong, but in Mark’s position, you would totally make use of our TF, right?”

“I think it would be on a case-by-case basis. Why?”

“Well, he probably thought ‘Hilde deliver yourself to me’ or something similar. I bet he also yelled for Ellen to reveal herself, too. Hopefully, Ellen will contact us soon; otherwise, we might need to go rescue her. I do have one question, Mary. Do you think Mark would make use of my hypnosis?”

“No way.” Mary firmly shook her head. “Not unless my mind was fucked with. Even then, it would have to be pretty bad. If I were back in the state I was when I took the caramels, I still wouldn’t do it, not again. I think it would have to be something that almost completely got rid of my inhibitions for that to happen.” At the mention of Mary losing her inhibitions, Flora and Merida both felt awkward. “Honestly, let me fix that issue right now. Pretty Kitty,” Flora dropped into hypnosis. “Flora, during a challenge I’m involved in from now on, I need your permission to drop you into your trances.”

“You need my permission.”

“Good Fierce Lioness.” Flora shook her head, coming out of the trance. “I wanted to make sure even if I’m compromised because of a challenge, I won’t take advantage of you. Especially since you mentioned that Mark might have eaten something from Sally.”

Chloe entered the lounge. “What is this about that breast-obsessed host?”

“Not all that important,” Mary replied. Seeing that Chloe still wanted an answer, she continued. “I have a feeling Cassandra might have hired her to contribute to the LARP. There were baked goods in the dungeon that Flora and Ellen decided to take all the extras of. Apparently, Ellen decided to lay them out for the other party during their lunch, which they just had.”

“That’s some quick thinking on Ellen’s part,” Chloe said approvingly. “How do we know this, though? Is Ellen back?”

Merida shook her head. “Naw. One o' her items wis a ring o' sendin'. It allows her tae send short messages an' receive a short reply in return. It has a short cooldown, so ye cannae really hae a lang conversation wi' it, but ye can relay important info.”

Everyone made their way to the table. Mary had prepared sandwiches. Flora was delighted to see that Mary had made a very similar sandwich to the one after they looked in the mirror together, particularly for her. The rest were a variety of sandwiches cut in half for people to have. Chloe asked, “Why does Flora get a special sandwich?”

Mary replied. “I’ve only looked into the mirror with her, Laura, and Talia. I guess this is as good of time as any to let you all know. When I look into the mirror with you, my vision changes. I retain a lot more information. In my vision, you each essentially have your own hallway. I typically get impressions from each one. If I look into it with you, I can actually walk down those hallways. It gives me a better understanding of where we end up. I think I also get some information about your likes, dislikes, and even your kinks. It isn’t like it is a list or that I can consciously tell you what I learned, either. So far, the big things I’ve picked up are people's preferences in food and drink. Again, not consciously.”

Chloe asked, with a sly grin. “So… if we want the individualized treatment, we need to look into the mirror with you?”

“Yes, but it isn’t in my chambers here.”

~Ping~

Cassandra: My bad. Oversight resolved.

Mary rolled her eyes. “Okay, I guess it is now.”

“Well, if you want to use it, do it immediately after lunch.” Flora said, “We might not be here tonight.”

“Why not?” Chloe asked.

“I don’t want to do any tasks nearby. While out scouting the nearby settlements, I found two things of note. The hamlet has some relevant NPCs, as they were played by Maja and Slevia. I’m concerned that they might be secretly strong individuals who, if we raided the town, might screw us. The other thing is that in the nearby city is a massive military ****. They are only an hour from here. If the other team can positively locate our base, I worry that they might just be able to call on the military to **** here.”

Chloe furrowed her brow. “That seems rather unfair. Doesn’t that give them a huge advantage?”

Hilde shook her head. “I don’t think so. Think about it, their objective is to stop the ritual. Which I’m pretty sure requires them to break into the sanctum over there.” Hilde thumbed towards the archway leading to where they were summoned. “What would happen if they simply couldn’t find this place the whole round? We would win by default. Eventually, though, we will be strong enough that a bunch of low-level cannon fodder won’t matter. Heck, that sanctum upgrade might even be some sort of shield barrier. I think the military **** is mostly there to prevent us from literally slaughtering a whole town for XP to quickly grind some levels. Or doing anything too overt. At least initially.”

Chloe said, “Speaking of that sanctum upgrade, if you get to choose Flora, you should definitely upgrade the workshop.”

“Why? Not saying no, but why?”

“Well, I’m currently working on a task that will upgrade it right now. There are actually four tasks on the board at the moment to upgrade it. There are a few other things that can be upgraded as well. The thing is, the fourth task for any upgrade is stupidly difficult and tedious.” Chloe put down her sandwich and passed two quivers to Flora, along with a sealed box. “These have been what I have been able to make this morning. There are two ways to use the workshop slash lab we have. The first is like a game. You essentially stand at a table and ‘hammer’,” Chloe mimed hammering in thin air. “Until the product is done, this is far more tedious, but for some brewing that doesn’t require you to be there constantly, it is a decent use of time to queue things up. Alternatively, you can do all the work yourself. This can result in you being able to do things much faster at the risk that you might screwup.” As Flora inspected the items Chloe handed her. Chloe explained what they did. “The first quiver, I essentially made arrows out of the dildo bolts. They should pack a bigger punch and leave them sensitive in the place hit for a while, meaning follow-up attacks will result in more damage if you or someone else hits the same area. The second quiver incorporated those poisoned darts into the arrow heads, meaning that they will get the same dose of lactating, animal noise poison. I was able to find an antidote to it, but sorry, Aubrey, I can’t do anything about what happened in the Hall of Glory.”

“Ba’a baaa,” Aubrey said. Chloe noticed she had increased another cup size since this morning.

Chloe gave Aubrey a weak smile. “Now, the reason I want you to upgrade that, if you can, is that I think having that upgraded a lot earlier a second time will have a larger impact, as we can craft better gear for ourselves that way. The last box was something I didn’t want to risk screwing up, so I spent the last hour making it.” Flora opened the box and found a single obsidian arrow, though the arrow tip looked even darker. “I combined the poison Hilde gave me with some of the dildo material and the poison on the darts. This arrow should result in the instant incapacitation of anyone under the level of seven and deal massive damage to anyone over that level, with the possibility of incapacitation anyway. Don’t expect more of these Flora, so make sure you don’t miss when using it.”

Flora put all the ammo in her new quiver. “Thanks, I’ll definitely consider it. You make a really good point. Are there any other sanctum upgrade quests that we could easily do today?”

Aubrey shook her head. Chloe replied, “Most of them require multiple steps. Honestly, I’m not sure I will complete my task today as is. But I think I can get by the end of the day tomorrow.”

Flora, “So you want to stay here, then I take it?” Chloe nodded. “Fine, but the rest of us will be leaving, possibly for a few days. Is that okay with you?”

“Sure, there are various tasks here that I can work on.”

Flora turned to Aubrey, “Did you find any tasks we can do near the capital?”

Aubrey nodded and held up two fingers. Aubrey went and grabbed the two from the board and handed them to Flora. Flora read them over. “Okay, so here’s the plan then. We are all going north towards the capital and going to do both these tasks, one today and probably one tomorrow. But first, we will go to the nearby city to buy horses.” Having a plan in place, they set off shortly after lunch.

The trip to the settlement took far shorter this time. With Flora and Mary sharing the horse, Hilde’s natural speed, Merida’s flight, and Aubrey’s equipment being pink and therefore making her faster than normal, allowed the group to get there in thirty minutes instead of the hour it took Flora before. They bought horses for everyone and set out for the capital. Shortly after beginning their journey north, Flora got another message from Ellen. “Hey, Hilde, you mind running up ahead to join Ellen in Lakeview? She might need help sooner rather than later. I told her we would be there before sunset, but would send you now.”

“Where is Lakeview? There were four lakes around the capital.”

“Ellen said it was the southeast lake, so the closest one to the right of the road.”

Hilde nodded, “Okay, not a problem. Someone will have to lead my horse, though.” Hilde jumped off her horse, keeping pace with everyone else. She handed the reins to Mary and then sprinted off into the distance.

Flora asked, “Does anyone know exactly how fast she can go?”

Mary replied, “I’m pretty sure she can go supersonic, but I’m not sure. Freya said that she was the equivalent of a speedster. So think Quicksilver or The Flash. Probably with fewer bullshit powers tacked on. But she gets tired using it too much.”

Merida had Merigold come out and take over Hilde’s horse for Mary’s convenience. The five rode in silence for a good thirty minutes when Merigold asked. “Mary, ye said the TFs ye wad tak' advantage o' are on a case-by-case basis.”

“That’s right. Why?”

“Weel, I wis juist wunnerin' if ye wad be willin' tae mess wi' Sam’s list or Allie’s sliders tae oor benefit?”

Mary looked over the bridge of her glasses at Merigold. “Just to clarify, you want me to mess with my wife’s body and mind to screw her over. Thereby forcing Mark, and therefore me. Into repeatedly messing with her, trying to change her before the other one can?”

“I… Naw like a' the time. That isna whit I meant. But… let’s say that we end up fechtin' the ither pairty later the day. Maybe because they try tae stop the quest Ellen is on. I wis wunnerin' if, like richt afore fechtin' them, ye micht laigher her muscle mass, mak' her comically tap-heavy, maybe laigher her intelligence, an' up her sensitivity. Naw like repeatedly mess wi' her, juist… strategically mess wi' her.” Mary glared at Merigold. “Look, it’s fine tae say naw, I wis juist askin'. Though ye brocht up the fact that she’s yer wife. I thocht ye werenae gaun tae play favorites in challenges. That is at least whit is in Merida’s memories. If that TF wis on onyone else, I think ye wad say aye, am I wrang?”

Mary frowned. Damnit. “Okay, Merigold, you have a point. I’ll consider using it like that, but only as a tactic when we know we are fighting them. As for Sam’s list, absolutely not. I already saw that Mark massively altered it not too long ago; he will have his reasons for that, and judging by what was made active, I’m not sure how comfortable I am with us using the rest of Sally’s baked goods, Flora.”

“What do you mean?” Flora asked.

“I’m pretty sure they had quite a few of the desserts. It wouldn't surprise me to learn later that something happens between Mark and one of them that wouldn’t have happened without the desserts. Especially if I ate the brownies, which are the ones I’m most likely to have had based purely on my preferences. Sam’s list currently indicates that whatever happened, she got hit with the desserts. I’m willing to bet Allie asked me to change her list to prevent Sam from ending up traumatized after the effects wore off. At the very least, Flora, could you not use the ones that might push someone into a sexual situation that they would regret later? I think we have had quite enough of that this round already.”

Flora sighed, “Yeah, not a problem next time Ellen contacts me, I’ll let her know too.”

Aubrey said, “Baaaa.” To get everyone’s attention, she then made a series of gestures with her hair, pointing to Flora and then Merida, then making a ‘?’ above herself.

Flora said, “You want to know what is wrong between the two of us?” Aubrey nodded. Flora didn’t seem to want to respond.

Merida said, “In the dungeon yesterdae. Hilde an' I wir intimate wi' ane anither. I also used ma boon on Hilde. It wis because o' the collar I had on, but…”

Aubrey reached out and patted Merida on the back with her hair. Aubrey then made words with her hair, ‘Why… are… you… two… fighting… ? Not… either… of.. yours… fault.’

Flora said, “We aren’t fighting.”

‘You… are… clearly… mad… at… her.’

Merida was confused by Aubrey’s support, but wasn’t going to interrupt.

“Aubrey, how would you feel if Chloe or Mark slept with Alexis?” Aubrey raised an eyebrow. “Yes, I’m serious, Aubrey. Regardless of the circumstances, are you really telling me you wouldn’t be at least a bit upset if Chloe slept with someone besides you or Mark?”

‘Not… if… it… was… not… really… her… choice…’ Aubrey signed with her hair. ‘Merida… was… not… in… her… right… mind… maybe… you… should… put… on… the… collar… to… under… stand… the… effects… better… Am… I… wrong… in… assuming… you… think… Merida… was… basically… drunk… and… had… some… level… of… blame… ?’ Flora didn’t immediately answer. ‘I… do… not… believe… that… is… the… case… You… forgave… Mary… for… breaking… your… trust… did… you… not… ?’

“Mary wasn’t at fault,” Flora said. “That was the caramels.”

Mary said, “I think that’s Aubrey’s point. Not that I totally agree with the idea that I don’t hold some blame for my actions, back then.”

Aubrey signed, ‘Exactly.’

Flora frowned as Mary continued, “In fact, you’ve already said you understand it isn’t Merida’s fault. That it wasn’t her, but the collar and the gas combined.”

Merida finally spoke up. “Mary, Aubrey, thank ye for tryin' tae help here, but please let Flora be upset if she needs tae feel that way. I ken a' too weel that somethin' can hurt, an' ye realise there isnae really anyone tae blame for the pain. Let her feel whit she feels.”

Mary nodded, but Aubrey frowned, clearly not pleased. Aubrey didn’t press the issue further, though. Flora turned to look at Merida directly for the first time since they parted yesterday. God, she looks so miserable. I want to hug her so badly to make her feel better. Screw it! Flora stood up on her horse and jumped over to Merida’s horse and sat down behind Merida, and just hugged her fiercely. Merigold grabbed Flora’s horse’s reins so it wouldn’t run away. Flora quietly said to Merida. “I’ve forgiven you. I meant that when I said it. But it still hurts. It hurts more to be away from you, though. It hurts to see you so sad. It’ll pass with time, I’m sure. I don’t know how long I’ll need, but I know that I don’t want us to be through.”

Merida felt her chest tighten at Flora’s words. The weight she had felt had lessened considerably. She placed on hand on Flora’s. “Thank ye, my bonnie lass. I ken I want tae be wi' ye, too. I’ll wait for this tae pass. If I can help, let me ken; otherwise, I’ll gie ye space an' let ye come tae me.” Merida just enjoyed Flora’s embrace for a while. She noticed Flora’s grip tightened and a light purr coming from behind her.

Merigold sent Merida a mental message. “She’s asleep. I think she fell asleep because of how soft your tail fur is.”

“That or she’s just tired, with everything that has happened.”

Merigold nodded as the five kept riding towards the capital.