The first day of travel was a subdued affair. The news of other survivors and the deaths of those they knew loomed over the quiet group. They agreed last night to postpone the topic until they were farther from the battlefield and through the forest. It was clearly all anyone could think about though. Andrew and Isaac pulled the front wagon with ropes as others pushed from behind. There were scouts ahead of them, and a double file line of others behind them pushing and pulling the other two wagons.

"Hey. Just so you know." Isaac said through his labored breathing, "I've thought about it, and I don't mind if we move somewhere close to the crazies. But I'm never moving in with the crazies. I'll take my chances with the forest."

"Yeah. I getcha. Guns and people Isaac. We're all looking for people. I think we have to check it out, at least. Personally I hope you guys ran into the one weirdo of the bunch." Andrew huffed out.

"Yeah. Would be nice. He sure was confident though. I believe him. " Isaac said.

They paused around midday for a lunch break and the line exploded into little clusters of quiet conversation as they dug into their rations. They had enough for the trip, and a few days after. Then they would have to get self-sufficient, quick. His thoughts were inturrupted as Shelby weaved through the pockets of people to him.

"Hey." She said quietly, glancing from side to side to check that they were out of earshot of the others around them. "I know that one guy said some weird stuff to Isaac, but, I think he's making a big deal out of nothing." The words cascaded out, each quicker than the last. "Everyone out here right now is from the city. Did you know that? Most of my family is from the country, and not everyone is like that. Isaac and the others want to make these guys seem like a bunch of racists or bigots, but that’s, like, most of those people are good and decent. I'm sure of it. Just because they have guns and go hunting doesn't mean they're all, like, crazy hillbillies or something. They're not. The hunting, farming, working people who live out there are the kindest, most helpful people I've ever met."

"Yeah I get what you're saying." Andrew said, jumping in as Shelby took a breath. "And I think you're probably right, I highly doubt all the people in there are racist or bigoted or whatever. Isaac's concerns are valid though. It only takes one to pull the trigger. We'll come to a decision as a group. We'll probably head in that direction to meet with them one way or another anyways, we can check them out then. Okay?"

"Yeah. Okay, yeah. I just- we all need to work together out here. We can't let political crap from home divide us, we have to find a way to work together, and I think all this talk is just going to make things more complicated when we join them. " Shelby said, looking mildly mollified.

"You're absolutely right, we'll need all the help we can get, but I can't stop people from talking, and I won't try."

"That’s not what I- whatever. Just- think about it okay." Shelby said, turning and heading off to join the cluster of people mobbing the back of the ration wagon.

Andrew sighed, and took the moment of quiet to bring up his status again.

Available Skills:

[Sense Affinity: Expand your sense to gain detailed information on the affinities of a material, item, or creature.

Body Infusion, Eyes: Infuse your eyes with mana allowing you to magnify your vision to observe fine details or distant targets. This skill replaces Perception.

Arcane Brand: Create a personalized brand which can be added only to items you create. Individuals who know of you will instinctively recognize the brand as yours. If the brand is removed it will release a tiny amount of ***** mana, destroying the item entirely.]

Well. Sense affinity could be extremely helpful for experiementing, but I think I'm close to learning that on my own now. I've been able to roughly figure it out from looking at the mana types and concentrations anyways. I don't think I need it right now. Body infusion is interesting, specifying eyes suggests there are skills for other body parts. The basic ability is quite useful, but using the skill might also give me a hint to figuring out the other skills on my own. Big win there if I can figure it out. Arcane Brand. I really want to take a look at the censored mana type. The rest of the skill isn't as appealing. I might be able to use it to authenticate a message or something, though, would I have to make the paper myself? I'm not exactly planning on setting up a store or anything that would need this kind of brand. The mana though… Plenty of other opportunities to get levels, my artisan level is still low, and I won't have time to experiment on that mana type anytime soon anyways. Body infusion is the way to go. Something new and helpful for both scouting and inscription work. Potential for growth into other skills as well. Alright.

[Perception lvl 7 -> Body Infusion, Eyes lvl 1]

Andrew tried it out, activating the skill while focusing on the back of his hand. Mana seeped into his eyes in a gentle stream and his vision warped, zooming in until the lines on one knuckle consumed his view entirely. The sensations was mildly nauseating, and Andrew instantly felt vulnerable. His eyes flicked off of the knuckle and to the ground below which was an entirely incomprehensible blur. Andrew canceled the skill and looked up to see the crowds already breaking up and returning to their places in line. Andrew shrugged and headed back to the front wagon, getting a sip of water on the way in an attempt to calm his upset stomach. Kalan had apperently rotated out with Isaac, and he shot him a friendly wave as he grabbed one of the ropes.

Once the line started moving again, Andrew turned to Kalan. "Hey. What are your thoughts on this whole thing?"

"It doesn't matter if they're a bunch of bigots. My kids might be in that group of fifty and I'm going in there one way or another to find out." Kalan said. "A bunch of guns and more people to keep watch at night could be nice, but I won't stand for it if they try to fuck with one of ours."

"Yeah. Fair enough. Whatever you need, I'll back you up."

The rest of the day passed in relative peace for Andrew, though the campfires were abuzz with conversation on the topic. He did his best to remain neutral. He would have to meet these people before he came to a decision. The next two days passed by in a similar manner. Each day people would find him with new arguments for why they should, or should not join up with this other group. Each day Andrew tried to temper their increasingly passionate opinions with caution. They traveled loud, and most of the wildlife they saw fled before they got anywhere close. This forest felt younger to Andrew, the trees were smaller and their roots were far less of an obstacle than they would have been in the first forest they traversed. The plants in the underbrush were slightly different. Andrew had trouble telling the difference, but Kalan was adamant that they did not match the wild vegetables he had scrounged up in their original forest.

On the evening of the third day of travel they were still deep in the forest. Their pace was glacial compared to the scouts on the move and Shelby estimated it would take them another full day to clear the forest. They were forced to camp in a line along the trail. There wasn’t enough room to circle the wagons, and so little campfires popped up between each wagon. Andrew sat by his with Kalan and Tyler. Tyler was borrowing his chisel again, to work on inscribing more grenades in his free time. He was working on increasing his skills, and said he was going to try and pick a rune based on like Andrew. Kalan was quietly eating. Andrew was looking out into the darkness ahead of them, practicing his Body Infusion skill and trying to focus his attention inward to the flow of mana inside of him. It was difficult, and he was having a hard time sensing the fine movements of the mana as it flowed into his eyes. It seemed to break up into a bunch of little streamers which passed into specific points across the back of his eyes. A scream pierced the air from the far end of the wagon line and Andrew shot to his feet.

"Goblins! They're all around us! Find cover!" Carter's shout echoed out.

Andrew grabbed his shield and hammer before swinging out around the front of the wagon. The line was in chaos. He could see Shelby firing arrows out at the little shadows that jumped from tree to tree in the darkness all around the rear half of the line. Leah was the one screaming, an arrow poking out from between her ribs.

Fuck! They snuck up on us.

Andrew raised his battered, nearly broken shield and charged into the fray as he saw the shadowed shapes jump out from the bushes around them and start hacking at the confused mob of unprepared humans.