Neria took longer than anyone expected to speak up. Hera and Flint did try to ask her about what was goon on again, but she didn’t reply, and simply said she needed a bit more time to properly explain things. Still, after a long wait, she was finally ready.

“Ok… this is going to sound super weird. But what do you all know about prophecies?” the triton asked.

“What?” Skyler turned to face the healer.

“I know you heard me,” Neria replied.

“Are we talking like… a proper prophecy skill?” Hera tried to ask, as absurd as it sounded. That kind of thing didn’t exist. Not even the System could predict the future. Sure, it could make skills like [Attack Pathing], something that helps you understand the logic behind a movement and ‘predict’ its direction. But that wasn’t seeing the future. It was using the information available to reveal the most likely scenario. And even then, it wasn’t foolproof.

“No. Nothing like that. I know those are not a thing. I mean generally. Do you know what a prophecy is?” Neria asked.

“Yeah. It’s someone predicting the future. Beastmen have shamans who say they can do that by using bones, runes, smoke, tea, crystal balls, tarot cards, you name it. No one has a skill for it, though,” Roan added.

Neria nodded, “Yeah. That’s pretty much it. We have a very famous prophet back home. He is known for being right very often. Out of 10 predictions, he hits the mark on 2, and 3 are right, but you have to interpret the prophecy in a specific way. Another two are kind of right, but it’s a bit of a stretch. The last three are completely wrong or are just so generic that anyone could make them.”

“How generic? Like it’s going to rain?” Flint asked.

Neria shook her head, “More like, ‘after a storm without end, the land will be poisoned, and nothing will grow.’ Which, like, yeah. If a storm keeps going for months, it can change the soil enough to kill any plants living there. Especially if they are already in a harsh environment or if the storm drags the trees away. Then all the nutrients will be gone, and there is nothing left to return to the ground.”

“Ok… what does that have to do with you wanting to heal people? Did he make a prophecy about you?” Skyler asked.

“Yeah. When I was little, he said that I would be too weak to heal the right person during a war, and my failure would cause the death of many. That’s why I became a healer. Why I wanted to be healing the people in the war. I feel like it is my responsibility not to let that many people die.”

“What the… how is that your responsibility? Just because a crazy old man said that doesn’t mean you are to blame,” Skyler huffed.

“Even so, this is why I became a healer. To make sure I didn’t kill that many people.”

“You keep saying many, but do you even know an actual number? Like, many can be from three to 20 billion,” Vash said.

Neria shook her head, “No, the prophecy doesn’t specify.”

“Of course it doesn’t,” Hera sighed, “What did the prophecy actually say? Those things are usually super annoying to understand. At least in movies.”

“Hang on,” Neria opened her tablet and found the file, “In the depths where waves meet stone, amidst the echoes of war, a healer born of Triton blood shall face a trial unseen. Though her heart beat with compassion’s tide, her strength shall falter, and the currents of fate will pull her under. From her grasp, life shall slip like sand through fingers, and in its wake, a shadow shall darken the waters, claiming hundreds of souls in its somber embrace.”

Hera waited until the triton was done before letting out a loud groan, “Why? Why can’t people just say, ‘Hey, it’s like this.’”

“I don’t think his power works like that,” Neria replied.

“What power? People can’t predict the future! He is just lucky to get it right so often,” Skyler huffed.

“Even if he’s just lucky and is scamming everyone. I don’t want that on my conscience. It’s talking about hundreds of people,” Neria sighed.

“Souls,” Hera corrected.

“What?” the triton looked at her.

“The prophecy you mentioned talks about hundreds of souls, not people. Which could also mean monsters,” Hera explained.

“Do monsters have souls?” Roan asked.

“Do any of us? Like seriously, this is already a mess. Are we getting philosophical?” Skyler crossed her arms and leaned back.

“I mean… you do have a point. But going back to the prophecy. You mentioned that you only became a healer because of it?” Flint asked with a frown.

Neria nodded, but Vash was the one who continued speaking, “Ooh. I think I know why you asked that. It’s a self-fulfilling prophecy, right?”

Unauthorized duplication: this narrative has been taken without consent. Report sightings.

“That’s what I’m thinking,” Flint smiled.

“What do you mean?”

Vash raised his wing like a kid trying to speak up in class, “Can I? Can I?”

“Sure,” Flint shrugged.

“Think about movies. How when the evil King hears a prophecy about how a young lad from Horse Creek or whatever will topple his rule. What does the King do?”

“Destroys the village and kills everyone inside,” Neria replied.

“And by doing that, the young lad will somehow survive and eventually grow to lead the rebellion that will kill the evil King. That’s self-fulfilling. One that only happens because the moment you hear about it, your actions changed in order to make that a reality,” Flint added.

“So… you are saying that if I never became a healer, I might not end up killing hundreds?” Neria asked.

“You still might not!” Skyler shouted, “Seriously. Don’t tell me you dedicated your entire life to that nonsense.”

“Skyler!” Hera protested, but Neria shook her head.

“No. I already wanted to be a healer. I wanted to help people, and that seemed like the best way. This was just a last push. If I wasn’t a healer, I would be a fighter.”

Everyone froze when hearing that and turned to the triton.

“You? A fighter?” Roan asked, holding back his laughter.

“Yes. Is that so hard to believe?” Neria raised one eyebrow.

“No, no. Of course not,” Vash pulled his maracas from his waist, “Hold this for me, please.”

“What are you..”

THUNK!

The moment Vash let go of the instruments, the maracas slammed on the floor of the caravan. Neria quickly raised them, “What the hell are those things? How are they so heavy?”

“They are made of metal, and there are various minerals inside to create the sounds I need. Each is about 5 kilograms. No, too heavy for me, but I suppose not everyone has enough points in strength; miss almost a fighter,” Vash replied with a big smile, which caused Roan to burst out in laughter.

They teased Neria for a while, and soon they arrived at the alliance controlled town. It was a walled off city with an oval shape. Inside were another two sets of wall with the bunkers and heaviest fortifications in the center, together with any vital infrastructure like the water supply, the power plant, and a few of the vertical farms. The livestock was kept in the buildings, but the plants stayed on the underground levels, with sunstones replacing actual sunlight.

Randolf drove the caravan to one of the outer gates that focused on deliveries. The process of getting in was very easy since the army had already sent word of their arrival. In just a few minutes, the group was already looking for hotels to stay the night. Before dinner, Randolf would send them a text letting them know how long they would have to wait before leaving.

Still, it was a good thing. Neria had already convinced the rest of the team to go back to the army camp to help them the next day if they ended up staying there. She also promised to behave properly. The Harmony Guardians knew that there was no arguing with the triton, especially after the revelation of her motives, and decided to agree. It was better than doing nothing in the city, anyway. They already spent a few months having enough time for themselves. Sure, they were power leveling, but it wasn’t stressful or dangerous. Being a part of the army, even if for a few days, could be all they needed to feel like they were giving back to the alliance. They were all worried about how they gained so much from the intelligence agency but had done nothing to them back. No one asked them to, and it was clear that they would be going on more dangerous missions in the future, but for now, it still felt like things were too easy.

But that didn’t mean they couldn’t rest and have nice meals. Taking advantage of the fortune they made thanks to the Ultimate Dance Rumble dungeon, they found a nice restaurant to have dinner, and they would stay in the best hotels available. They also paid for Randolf, Drew, Veronica, Britta, Kalahan, and Remy. After all, the prices were not an issue, and it would mean that each member of the Harmony Guardians would pay for one extra room. During their meal, the caravan leader also took the chance to give everyone the bad news.

“Ok… So, we are stuck here for the next five days. The container is more damaged than I expected. Some of the axles that hold the wheels are just mush. The fact we didn’t break down on the way here is nothing short of a miracle,” the harpy sighed.

“Wait. Aren’t the axles, like, made out of metal?” Vash asked.

Randolf nodded, “Yes.”

“And they become mush? Like soft and gooey?”

“Yep. And that’s not because of heat. It’s cold to the touch, but it’s still like that,” Randolf just stared at his lasagna, clearly uncomfortable with the words coming out of his mouth.

“The humans were able to permanently liquefy the metal? Or did that happen in the Drowned Bog?” Flint asked.

“Reinforced metal. And everything was fine when we left the bog. I checked,” Drew replied.

“Fuck me… they must have some strong mages on their side,” Flint shook his head.

“Anyway. In theory, I can make some simple repairs to the caravan, but I don’t think it will hold the right amount of weight. Then, we will break down halfway between one city and the next. We can also end up getting stuck in a minor settlement until someone is able to bring us the materials for a proper fix. If we stay here, we have all the parts. Well, we will have all the parts. They lack some of the raw materials I need, but they can get them in a few days. Then, I can make the proper repairs and build the right axles, suspensions, and breaks that will hold for a very long time. As long as we don’t get blasted by whatever the fuck hit us this time.”

“Well. Then we have some time,” Neria looked at the Harmony Guardians, who all nodded in response. It seemed like they would be helping the army for a few days.

“At least we are here in the city. And from what the soldiers told me, the humans shouldn’t try to attack us anytime soon,” Remy said with a smile.

However, his optimist was met with an annoyed stare coming from Hera, “I can’t believe you just said that.”

“Yeah… that was a low blow, my guy,” Veronica shook her head.

“What? I didn’t say anything wrong, just that things are looking good and we won’t have to see an army attacking us,” Remy protested, only making the rest of the table groan with the exception of Britta and Kalahan. His two party members seemed just as confused as the beastmen.

Roan tapped the man’s shoulder, “Remy, let me give you some advice. You never say things like that.”

“Like what?”

“We won’t get attacked. Everything seems fine. It’s not like this will go wrong. At least it is not raining. Anything to the sort.”

“But... Why?”

“Because when you say that, you make something go wrong,” Drew replied.

Britta laughed, “C’mon, you don’t really believe in that. Do you?”

“I do. Nine times out of ten, if someone raises a flag. Something bad happens,” Hera nodded, but saw the confused expressions from not just the low level team, but also the caravan members, “Saying that kind of thing. That’s raising a flag.”

“Oh, Ok, yeah, that makes sense,” Drew nodded and turned back to Remy, “Raising a flag, as Hera put it, always makes things go wrong. It’s like you are predicting the future.”

Neria suddenly jumped up, “See! Prophecies can be real!”

Skyler rolled her eyes as she let out a loud groan. Hera chuckled, and she knew that the next few days would at least be interesting, with or without a flag.