DISCOVERY PART 4E

Day 427; 1848 (Evening)

Focus: 513

Arriving back at his camp, 513 scanned the surrounding area for damages, then jotted-down any equipment that had been compromised in the attack. Once all outstanding issues had been logged on a thin piece of leather parchment, 513 hastily dried the ink, folded it twice, then stuffed it between the overlapping folds of his armor.

513: “...I need pockets…”

He complained while staring at the dangling piece of thin leather hanging from his chest.

With a clear plan in mind, he hurriedly transferred the damaged goods to a quarantined section of the camp, isolating them from the rest of his equipment before it became too dark to see.

[Good, only a few items were compromised.] He thought, relieved.

When 513 started his final inspection, night's embrace had already enveloped the forest. To illuminate the scene, he used a crystal coal torch taken from the back of the sled. It effortlessly lit the ground below his feet in a distinctive yellow-orange tinge.

513: “Hmm.

He pondered while stroking his unkempt beard with his left hand.

513: “...this isn’t good...”

Grabbing a shovel from the sled, he walked over to a large patch of infected land -- marked by ashen debris floating over a dark, tar-like substance -- and started excavating.

[Let’s hope I can extract it all.] He thought as he piled clumps of blighted dirt and plant matter onto a leather tarpaulin layered with moss.

Once the tarp was filled to the brim with infected material, he hauled it over to a quarantined zone he had prepared earlier and started unloading.

513: “Pretty sure fire will stop this mess from spreading.”

He mumbled to himself, as he shovelled more of the blighted material into a mound several meters away from his campsite.

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Day 427; 1915 (Evening)

Focus: 513

When he had finished, large sections of land had been removed from the surrounding area. There were so many potholes that 513 felt like he was playing a constant game of pitfall when moving around the campsite.

Bringing the torch near the completed mound, 513 instinctively covered his mouth.

Plant matter that had been infected by the decaying tar had begun off-gassing noxious fumes into the air. The malodor was so foul that even 513 could not stomach the putrid smell.

Not able to withstand the stench, he walked away from the mound, found a tree to lean-up against, and then took a few moments to gather his breath.

When he resumed his inspection of the mound, he made yet another discovery. Large quantities of blighted dirt had petrified -- turning into ash -- and mixed together with the decaying tar, causing the tar’s volume to increase several-fold.

[Much more than expected.] He thought. [No matter, time to burn!]

Before starting the show, 513 retrieved a few key items from his tent, then returned to the mound determined to finish what he had started. From his supply pack, he procured a clay jar full of rendered fat. Shaking it thoroughly, he popped open the lid and poured its contents over the infected mound, as he walked around it.

Taking the crystal coal torch he had used to illuminate the area, he lit the grease-coated mound on fire.

513: “Fire! Fire, good!”

He exclaimed with glee, as the blighted mound erupted in flames.

Covering his eyes, he took a few steps back before steadying his posture.

[It’s fucking bright.] He complained.

After he had recovered, he hesitantly watched the mound burn from a distance, making sure to control the flames from spreading to healthier parts of the forest.

Then, he pondered what to do next.

513: “Hmm…I should grab the corpses...”

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Day 427; 1923 (Evening)

Focus: 513

A demented smile appeared on 513’s face as he tossed spider corpses on-top of the mound.

He didn’t stop at just a few. He threw all six in.

513: “Eheh. That should...whoa, FUCK!”

A span of one breath was all it took for the corpses to catch fire and immediately combust like a deflagrating powder keg. The ensuing explosion shot-up towards the treetops, dousing the area in a ball of light brighter than the sun.

513: “...maybe too much?...”

Clearly, he didn’t expect an explosion to occur.

[Mental note, don’t mix spiders with tar.] He silently mused.

As soon as he regained his eyesight, he searched the surrounding area for unforeseen damages.

Using the crystal coal torch, he cast light upon various locations unreached by the mound’s fire, periodically checking if the blight had spread from the quarantined area. Finding nothing of note, he heaved a sigh of relief and planted his rear to the ground.

[Don't get careless.] He warned himself, while he relaxed his muscles and stretched-out his fingers.

As the mound gradually burned to cinders, the tremors in his hands returned. So too did his throbbing headache.

Staring at his calloused palms, he thought to himself. [I never liked this side-effect. I need to rest before it gets worse.]

With his mind made-up, 513 stood-up and made his way to the tent.

[Heat from the fire should be enough to sterilize the blight and destroy the tar...I hope.] He contemplated, leaving the fire to burn on its own.

Inside of the tent, he reorganized his equipment, put away his tools, then sloppily moved towards the sled.

The moment his feet made contact with a thick layer of rolled-out moss he had prepared as a bed, his body collapsed, and he instantly fell asleep.

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Day 427; 2359 (Night)

Focus: ???

In the middle of the night, trouble stirred in the forest.

???: “Eh...eh..he”

The enormous, twisted figure obscured by darkness mumbled to itself as it took long, slow strides across the forest floor. Each awkward step it took caused the ground to quake beneath its massive root-like feet.

???: “Th...t...sho...d...wo...f...k”

Its broken speech continued as it lumbered along, causing asymmetrical depressions to form on the ground wherever it moved.

In time, it reached the smoldering heap of material 513 had quarantined and set ablaze earlier that night.

Stopping just shy of the heap’s base, the towering figure started to sway back-and-forth in an unpredictable pattern. It's stubby appendages, wildly flailed around like a collection of grubs squirming inside a bowl. Only after it had anchored itself to the ground, did it resume its attempts at speech.

???: “Eheh. Th...t...sh...shuuud...ooww...fu...fuuuck”

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Day 428; 0000 (Midnight)

Focus: 513

513, who had fallen asleep while fully armored, sat-up from his bed and pulsed True Sense.

[Aw hell...another weird creature.] He whined.

Just meters away from him, parked next to the burnt mound of corpses and infected material, was a large entity he had never seen before.

From what he could tell, its size rivaled that of the gargantuan trees of the forest but was only half as tall. If it hadn’t moved or made attempts to speak, he would have assumed it was just another tree.

[What’s it doing?] He pondered while observing the twisted, tree-like figure sway around for no foreseeable reason. [It’s like one of those inflatable tube men you find in shady car lots.]

Believing it would be wise to arm himself with appropriate weapons, he noiselessly snaked his way over to the sled and grabbed his sword-spear along with several javelins.

[I have a good feeling I’ll need these.] He considered, convinced that a clash with the creature was inevitable.

Crouching next to the sled, he stuck the butt-ends of the javelins into the ground so that they stood perpendicular, then patted his body, locating the handful of large knives he had secured onto his armor.

[Good, everything is in place.]

Once he was confident with his preparations, he pulsed True Sense, confirming his suspicions that the giant had not moved.

Then, he waited.

???: “Eheh. That should...whoa, FUCK!”

A cold chill crawled-up 513's spine as he heard the massive entity utter familiar words into the night.

For some reason, he felt as if he’d been verbally violated -- possibly an effect of lingering fear or surprise. Regardless, he masked his uncertainty behind the facade of an awkward smile.

Repeating the phrase like a broken record, the creature’s voice grew louder and more clear.

In fact, it was so clear that its pace, intonation, tone, articulation, and even delivery were identical to 513’s. Aside from the volume, it was like hearing a completed recording of himself; a recording of what he had spoken earlier that night when the mound exploded.

513: “...”

Finding himself speechless, 513 narrowed his eyes and exhaled slowly through his mouth.

[It’s like the Echo Serpent all over again.] He thought as he bared his teeth in defiance.

???: “EhEh. ThAt ShOuLd...FUUUCK...Ehe. Hehe. Hehe.”

In return, the creature responded, as-if reading his mind.

???: "HeHeHe...EHEHEHEHE!"

Using a distorted version of his voice and an improvisation of his words, the creature laughingly mocked 513.

[Do I really sound that...dreadful?…] He thought, self-consciously.

???: "THAT FUCK! EHEHE...EHEHE. EHEHEHE?!?!”

The creature further modified its speech as it continued to taunt, multi-layering several tonal versions of 513’s voice, including a vocal fry, to achieve a sound similar to the cerebral communications of Rialla and Areikys.

As it laughed, the resonance in its complex voice caused solid objects to tremor and vibrate.

[Shit, that’s not good…] 513 worried, fully knowing the potential of sound waves.

No longer swaying around indiscriminately, the creature’s towering figure leaned-over the mound and contorted its twisted frame to run parallel with 513’s hidden tent.

Then, it spoke.

???: “EHEHEHE...I...FOUND...YOU!!!”

---Chapter End