《Dead Emotion》Chapter 5: No Danger?
Advertisement
"Everybody, do not separate from the group." Gary gave his warning to the team.
They transverse the purple forest cautiously.
However, it was eerily quiet. Only sound of the leaves rustling from the slight breeze could be heard. Gary thought that it was weird. He raided many towers before, but nothing quite like this. From his previous experience, monsters roamed around endlessly. The minute he entered, he would encounter a monster or two.
"Just because there is no danger present, does not mean that there will be one."
The others took Gary's warning seriously. Beside Lyden, the rest had entered a tower before, thus, they all knew the danger of the towers.
After several minutes of walking, Lyden could not help feeling that something was out of place.
'How strange… There is no trace of the previous team.' Lyden thought. He observed his surroundings, but he found no trace of anyone from the ground to the trees. It was like no one have steps inside this forest ever.
'With no sign of anybody traveling by ground, can they fly through the air? Or were the previous team able to teleport.'
Lyden thought of many possibilities as he could, but he realized his mistake when he couldn't think of anything concrete.
He knew nothing about the previous team members aretisites' abilities, which led him to jump to exaggerated conclusions. He did not even know the limit of an aretisite's ability.
He came with little to no preparation and he did not gather any information. If they encountered danger in this forest, he had nothing to defend himself with.
Lyden broke out in a cold sweat. He felt a sudden chill as he thought about something.
'If they found out that I am a hunter without an aretisite, they would abandon me. The chance of surviving if they do is slim.' A small tug on his heart pulled him into a state of panic.
Lyden had experienced a life and death situation before when he was 10 years old.
He and his siblings were exploring the mountain late at night one day behind the orphanage.
However, he fell down a cliff because he could not see where he was going.
Advertisement
It was not until sunrise until Lyden was found.
His siblings did not know what happened after Lyden fell, but he never forgot that moment.
On that eventful day, he almost got eaten by a large wolf that day, but luckily for him, he was trapped between two large rocks when he fell, but small enough so that the wolf could not fit in.
Lyden never slept that night as the wolf stared at him between the gap.
It was not until the wolf heard the adults, who were looking for him, that it left. Till this day, it had traumatized him.
Its teeth, breathe, eyes, and the bloodlust hunted his dreams for many years till this day.
Even though it was a bad memory for him, it also became his strength. A reminder of what terror was and what can he do to not put himself in a similar situation.
'No, I should not rely on them,' Lyden gave a firm look. He came to find an aretisite.
Lyden feared his future. He did not want to feel powerless. He wanted the strength to protect what he deemed worthy.
He had no talent. He never did well in school. He did not have any passion, unlike many others.
Nonetheless, he wanted to put great effort into something.
As they walked in one direction without any sign of real danger. The other members began to relax a bit.
"Cindy, do you know anything about the previous team?" Lyden struck up a conversation with her. He wanted to gather more information to understand what was going on.
"The previous team? I don't know much about them. Why do you want to know?" Cindy did not care for gathering information because she felt that it would not be as much help.
"Just wondering."
"Hmm, let me ask Jai," Jai was Cindy friend. He was somewhat a reserve type and have not talked to anyone besides her.
"Do you know anything about the team who enter before us, Jai?"
"Not really. Why do you want to know?" Jai looked at Lyden. It was easy to overhear each other in such a quiet forest.
Advertisement
"Don't you think that something is off here, Jai? There are no traces of the previous team." Lyden replied.
"You are correct. I was already suspicious as soon as we got here. I already activated my aretisite to find any traces of the team before us, but I discover very little."
"Your aretisite?"
"My aretisite, naked ruby eyes, which allow me to see smells. I had it activated until but there was nothing. The smell probably became to faint to be noticed by my aretisite." Jai was concerned about this purple forest the whole time. He explored other towers before, but nothing like this.
So far, Jai experienced with other towers were straightforward. He would only need to defend himself against monsters until the barrier opens up. He did not need to do more than that since hunters do get a lot of money just from entering the tower by the government or private corporation. Many hunters would gather materials so they can sell it, but Jai would never do that if the risk of death is highly present.
With his naked ruby eyes, he can see any monster approaching him. Thus, he can escape or warn his teammates before anything happen.
The other team members, who were taken the forest lightly, heard Lyden and Jai conversation. The two reminded the rest of them to not loosen their guard in the tower.
After two hours of walking, Gary decided to head back. He did not know what was going on in this forest, but he knew something was not right. He felt little confidence in solving the mystery of this purple forest and as team leader, he did not want to put his teammates in unknown risk.
Also, Gary wanted to use Jai's ability to find his way back. He was afraid the further he went, the harder for Jai to guide the team back to the exit.
It was a good thing that the forest was not windy or else it would be heard for Jai to see the smell.
They agreed, however, Lyden was reluctant. If he leaves this tower, there will be no second chance. But he could not say anything and nodded his head in agreement.
With Jai's aretisite, it was easy to retrace their steps back to the barrier.
"The barrier still won't open up for 6 more hours," Gary said.
"That is so long! What a waste of time..." Terry complained. "We should just explore deeper into the forest and look for the other team."
"No, we will stay here. The only team member who has a utility skill here is Jai, and he can only do so much." Beside Jai, the other aretisites were mostly battle oriented.
Gary did not know Lyden aretisite, but he did not ask about it. He guessed that Lyden was the type of hunter that kept his aretisite a secret until needed.
"Why don't you cut those trees with your sword if you want to find them so much." Maina retorted. She thinks that Terry did not care about the safety of the previous team and just wanted to find something to bring back to sell.
Terry glared at Maina before walking away. He did not want to argue with her again.
Cindy and Jai shared their food supplies with Lyden while they waited. The two shared their stories of being a hunter and what they have experienced inside the tower.
More than five hours have passed.
Lyden was getting impatient as he thought about leaving this place with no gain. Of course, he would get money from the government, but it was not enough for an aretisite. For him to buy one, he would need a valid hunter permit.
Of course, there were black markets that sells aretisites, but that was highly illegal.
However, Lyden only heard about it on the internet and does not know anybody with connection about the black market.
'I'll have to risk it. I'll enter the forest by myself. But I have to wait until the barrier opens up. I don't want to have them risk their lives to look for me.' Lyden thought. This was his first team and he liked them. He did not want to see his teammates harm because of his selfish reason.
Advertisement
- In Serial6 Chapters
The Magical Revolution of the Reincarnated Princess and the Genius Young Lady
Anne-Sophia, the Princess who remembered her previous life at a young age, as well as her old self’s intense love of magic, set off to live out her fantasies in this fantasy world.One day, during a magical mishap, she stumbled upon a scene where her brother Algard was breaking off his engagement to his fiancee, Euphilia.What nobody could have foreseen is that this strange meeting would end up changing the course of history.
8 216 - In Serial87 Chapters
A World in Chaos
It was supposed to be a regular bus ride home for them. A normal day of returning home from college, but this bus ride will forever change their fates. None of them would ever forget what they saw on that day, an angel and a demon. But it wasn’t just them, the whole world was in chaos. All over the world, monsters, mutants, aliens, demons, and angels were appearing. Mankind was thrown into chaos as more and more of these beings started to appear. This is the story of unlikely encounters between humans and these beings. ****** ****** A World in Chaos is a story about how the modern era slowly begins to change because fantasy-like monsters begin to appear all around the world. The story follows Jude Craven on his journey on how he adapts with his whole world being changed. Jude Craven isn't your ordinary protagonist as he has his own scars and trauma but Jude will grow as he experiences a variety of situations that may or may not put his life in danger.A big focus of this fiction is Jude's interactions with others so there will be some romance, some friendship, but there will also be action. I hope you enjoy reading.
8 135 - In Serial11 Chapters
The Biomes
Follow a new biome while it grows into an adapting ecosystem at the whims of its creator. Watch as outsiders try to claim it as their own and delve into its depths. The outsiders are desperate to survive and conquer at the cost of many lives. The biome simply wants to grow. What is a biome? Why do the outsiders throw their lives away so easily? Find out by reading from both angles and learn of the mysteries surrounding them.
8 124 - In Serial14 Chapters
The Tetris Effect
This is a contemporary fantasy thriller novel, written in a literary style. A hacked-off online gamer, an ageing spiritual scientist, a psychotropic-addled anaesthetist, and a reclusive RPG developer, are thrown together on an unusual quest. When a regression experiment tears open a rift to the afterlife, two immortal guardians find themselves reincarnated as mortals, with no recollection of their ancient past. They become connected through an RPG called Atari Shock. The clock is ticking to find the lost immortals and take back the afterlife, but a mysterious future tech company has a powerful ally and intentions for the land of the dead. What do the challenges of this otherworld have to do with a reclusive gamer and a fragile developer, and can they come to terms with the true origins of their identities before the land of the dead is lost to a powerful primordial force?
8 184 - In Serial15 Chapters
Muna Miracle
Do you believe in Miracles? In 1980, a memorable moment in sports was during the XII Winter Olympics. Cold war tensions were high and the U.S Olympic hockey team found themselves against the indomitable Soviet Army Hockey team. The announcer, Al Michael posed a question that would forever be fixed in the minds of every man, woman, and child that ever wished for hope. That year, Soviets went home that year with the Olympic cup, soon followed by a nuclear warhead and the question would remain unanswered for many hundreds of years. Of course, a little ray of moonlight might change a few things.
8 179 - In Serial31 Chapters
BabyDoll~ l.s
What happens when the wide world famous star falls for a feminine boy?!Harry Styles. A boy who likes to dress in a pretty clothes that makes him feel beautiful and boost his confidence a bit. After being told by many how abnormal it is. He tries his best to ignore those comments. But sometimes it's just too hard!Louis Tomlinson. From the famous wide-world boyband, one direction. Who has to hide who truly is. A boy who's most of his life decisions being controlled. Because apparently, if the world knows his secret, it will destroy their career. One who just wants to stop hiding, while the other wants to be loved for who he is!What will happen when those two meet and fall for each other? Will they pull through the hardships and win? Or will they fall apart in the end?Join the boys on their journey to find out!
8 101