For years, I was ignored by my father, the great being Player Audacity. My goal to reconnect with him was something I always strived for, using the vague clues he would leave me to do my best, and it eventually led me back to his gaze.....
How did we go from vague messages to this?
Hey! While you're in the area, I was told about a book that should contain some important info in those ruins. Go grab it. It's near the left most side and towards the back, 2 or so blocks, into the ruin. You'll see a collapsed storefront made out of stone and the skeletal remains of 3 people. You'll be at the correct building if you see a yellow flower that is growing out of the rubble at an awkward, nearly horizontal angle. Also, that type of flower is edible if you're hungry, and before you jump to conclusions, that is just a normal edible flower that will not grant you any benefits and will taste like any other type of edible flower. Nevertheless, dig up the rubble and the book is there with the blank, black leather binding.
As we made our way down the road, Selene and Liora followed behind at a distance. A part of me felt bad for tricking them into following, but another knew that this was the right path no matter how it felt.
"Holy crap! So they used temperature runes to cause rapid condensation combined with wind runes to gather the droplets from the spray to make it even more efficient. How is it powered? Did they have someone charge it every day?"
Her tangent seemed to be getting more and more sporadic as even others looking at the old magitech left in the ruins gave her a wide berth. Selene was walking with me, but it was closer to say she was projecting herself to walk along the wall.
"So if they had a battlement there, and a tar pot there, did they have any spelltech cannons or salamander powder weapons? Were those around at the time? If not, were they stationed with ballistas?"
Her mumbling was constant and in a way like the sound of the ATV when we were driving, but in a more distracting way because you could understand the words. A part of me wanted to turn around and get angry, however I held my tongue, focusing on following the lead my father had given me, heading down the road.
The buildings were collapsed with ruins and already turned over stones greeting most who would go down this road, but as I counted the buildings I arrived at a somewhat intact building, at least the front of it was. While the skeletal remains were gone, probably buried when the ruins became a tourist spot, the miasma they had leaked was still feelable as I stepped over the rubble of the doorway and into the interior.
Sure enough, a yellow flower grew almost sideways from a small dirt mound nearby as I let my strings uncurl and began to wrap them around what looked to be the sturdier parts of the ceiling, lifting and moving the stones as I began my search.
The progress was slow at first before Selene became interested and much to my slight annoyance, began to easily pick up and move aside the rocks I had been struggling to move. Though to her respect, she has a 34 in strength, making her about 3 times stronger than most people, so while 100 pound rocks are not easy for me, she is tossing them aside like she was using a tool.
"I-Is this the book you were looking for?"
Selene called as she turned and held out a black leather cover book. I helped her out of the small pit she had dug herself into as I shook what I could of the dirt and dust away from the book.
I had partially been expecting something a bit more grand but this looked like a fancy pocket journal, though it could also be true a chunk of the book had been cut off in the rubble.
"Yes, I heard rumors some shops had stuff left over and I felt something weird."
The lie rolled off my tongue easily, and before Selene could even start to question it I opened the small booklet and began to read its contents.
Logbook of project J71 codename Pilgrim 1
By Dr. Einwright
I was about to turn the page when Selene seemed to lunge, placing her palm over the pages as a twinge of annoyance shot through me.
"Selene, move i'm trying to re-"
I paused as my eyes met her gaze, and a sense of alarm went through me. Selene's face was as pale as bone, cold sweat running down her body as her entire body seemed to be shivering both from fear, and what seemed like an overload of adrenaline.
"T-T-Thalia, please f-for the l-love of all things holy p-p-put that b-book down."
Selene's stutter was common, but I had never heard it be this bad before, combined with her strange behavior made me pause, the small argument between listening to my father and accepting the terrified and earnest plea of my friend battling for who would win out.
"So this is where you all wen-... Hey Selene, you don't look so good. Thalia? What happened?"
Liora said as she rounded the doorway and walked inside to see Selene shivering all over, at this point hugging her arms like she was trying to stop shaking.
"I-I don't know, we found this journal I sensed by a Dr. Einwright and-"
"Burn it."
My eyes turned towards Liora with a slight look of alarm as she was starting at the book in my hand like it was a rat with rabies, waiting to escape and bite people to spread its disease.
"I don't understand, it's just a book."
I argued, hugging it to my chest, a small panic at failing the one and only mission my father had given me with a complete set of instructions looming.
"No, it's a book by Dr. Einwright, and we were warned once already, I doubt it will just be a warning if we look into him again."
"Its a research journal, all it talks about is an old experiment run by a scientist."
I said flipping to the next page as I began to read.
Day 91
They told me to recreate that thing, they can't even give me a name because "they would have to kill me". I know I'm damn good at what I do, but there is a point where the requests just border on ludicrous. Never the Less I need to at least try, luckly I have been given assistance by Sir Rogthar, and while his methods are.... Unorthodox, he is apparently a predominant figure in the golomancy field which should be able to give insights into the designs of organ placements and such. Regardless I have my apprehensions. They basically want me to isolate the authority of death into a living being, such a contradiction is laughable. It would make more sense in an item, like a scythe, or maybe in a set of sheers or something.
Above the page I could see Liora and Selene diving, trying to stop me, but as my eyes drifted over the last sentence, a system notification appeared
You should have listened to your friends, after all
Some information is dangerous you know.
You have been targeted by Knowledge Hunter: Azurite Chimera(A)
Audacity has intervened
Hey Red it's not as entertaining for any of us to just send an A rank Knowledge Hunter to slaughter them. However, maybe send one more fitting of her capabilities to punish her for audacity and revel in their struggle - Audacity
You are no longer being targeted by Knowledge Hunter: Azurite Chimera(A)
You have been targeted by Knowledge Hunter: Hand Horse(C)