Our night in the mayor's house was surprisingly peaceful. I had expected something to happen, but it went by without any worries. It was strange not to wake at sunrise, but at the same time it was comforting. I always enjoyed sleeping halfway through the morning. The mayor had set up a small breakfast for us before he left to perform his duties. There were some fruits, a couple of vegetables, and even some warm bread, although by its temperature it had been some time since it was prepared. Maybe it only lasted this long because it was quite a warm day. He had left a message for us on some old piece of paper. He told us to go to the town hall in the village as soon as we woke up.
Which is exactly what we did. There was no need to wait around longer since we already knew what we were supposed to be doing. After we ate, of course. It was not every day that we were able to enjoy fresh fruit and bread. With the meal over, we left and started walking towards the center village. Seeing this place with the sun out gave it a very different feeling. It was not the grim and depressing as it had seemed during the night. A few of the houses had seen fresh cold paint with bright colors, but there were also a few things that made me pause. To the south, there was a house that let out a small plume of smoke. That likely meant that someone had a fire burning, which sounded crazy to me. That was the easiest way to attract an Eater. Maybe they were hoping the cold temperature, and the walls were enough to keep those creatures away, but I doubted it. The fact they got that close last night only confined how bad of an idea this was.
Not wanting to focus on that, I turned my attention towards the city itself, more specifically the one building we were going towards. Just like the mayor said, it was a large structure, much wider than anything else that we had seen. That was the town hall, a place for people to gather and do whatever they needed to do.
"Hey, you are Cassandra, right?" A rather enthusiastic teenage boy approached us.
"Yeah, and this is Astrid," I pointed to the Frosted Lumberjack.
"It is very nice to meet you. And thank you for coming with us today. I ended up missing what you did last night, but I heard it was amazing. Did the mayor already tell you what we are doing? I'm Doug, by the way."
"Yes, he did. Will anyone else be coming along?"
"Stop wasting time and come help me, boy," a gruff-looking man called to the teenage boy. His hair was mostly gray, and he had a thick beard.
"Sorry about that. Jose is a nice guy once you get to know him," Doug replied with a smile. The boy had long hair tied in a man bun and some loose clothing. The type people would use to go out hunting.
"Boy!" Jose called again, causing the teenager to rush away.
"Sorry I have to go. Just wait until the scout leader shows up, ok?"
We nodded and walked over to the side to wait for their leader. To everyone else, we probably looked like we were just staring at them without saying anything. Little did they know the rest of the time we were having a constant conversation thanks to [the System].
Cassandra: so what do you think?
Astrid: They seem fine. I am worried about the kid. Too excited.
Cassandras: Yeah. I don't think he knows the danger we are going to face.
Cassandra: Fair point. But at least we can handle ourselves.
Astrid: Do you think that kid is going to survive if there is trouble or something else?
Cassandra: Maybe. It's going to be up to us.
Astrid: Yeah, and that is the problem.
Cassandra: At least they their supplies look good. They have things not just for camping but also some medicine too.
Astrid: I don't know if that is going to make any difference.
"Excuse me," we turned to find a long-haired man with a stern face approaching. From the looks of it, he was the scout leader about to arrive. The man had first talked to the two men who had already introduced themselves to us before coming over. "Hello. I am Mason, the scoutmaster. I spoke earlier and will be the one taking point in this mission."
"Nice to meet you. I'm Cassandra," I said with a smile.
"Astrid." My companion added.
"I think you know, but last night, the mayor asked us to give you a hand. Protect you while you go to the ruins."
Mason nodded, "He mentioned. He also explained to me what you could do last night. And thank you for that one. It would be really hard for the village to lose someone again."
"What do you mean by that?" I asked.
"That is not the first time an Eater was near the village. If that happens, we decide that someone would attract it away and save the people who live here. They sacrifice himself by attacking and running. Usually able to find a hole or jump into the river so they either chase them. That way we can survive. It's a bit of a situation where the lives of the many outweighs the lives of the few. "
"That sounds really awful," I frowned.
"But we don't have much of a choice. If we don't do that, they would destroy everything here. So it's a small sacrifice for the greater good. Either way, thank you for the help."
I understood his intention to change the subject and went along with it, "Anyway, we are here to protect you. But we also have to save ourselves."
Mason looked back to make sure no one was listening in, "That is fine. Mayor warned me about that and honestly I cannot ask for anything else. I would appreciate if you give us a heads up before you start running or if you notice something that is too dangerous, but depending on the situation, I also understand it going to be quiet."
"The mayor mentioned you are looking for some specific stuff." I asked.
"We are looking for some manure, alcohol and I don't mean for drinking, as well as any seeds that might can be usable."
"Manure?" Astrid asked.
"There is a strange blend the old world use that is in the back but can help our crop grow quite well. It was one of the reasons we were able to have some fruits growing year round," Mason explained.
I glanced at Astrid, who seemed to understand why I was having such a reaction. That manure was likely something new powered by the System or at least by the particles. It was just that it would be an interesting finding. If that really was the case. But if it was something created by someone, then the situation could be very different.
"Where is that manure located?"
"The cave network that the mayor told you about is close to the stockpile. Which is why we are hesitant to go. But I think we should be good for now." Mason replied.
"Got it. And anything else we find is fair game?" I asked.
"Correct. That's the deal," Mason replied.
"We leave when?" Astrid asked.
"We are pretty much ready. Just need to finish up a last check. So whenever you are feeling ready you can go and I will be."
"I do think we need to free someone who is stuck in the prison before we head out," I turned to Astrid, remembering of the asshole we saw last night.
Mason snapped his fingers, "Oh right. The mayor asked me to tell you that you do not have to worry about that anymore. The person who was stuck has already been rescued."
"Perfect I know we were supposed to go out later, but the sooner we go the better. That way we were not waisting sunlight," I turned to the scout leader.
"Ok. Give me 15-20 minutes, then we can head out. Just going to do one more check on our supplies to make sure we are ready. After all, we are carrying you know food and water for five," he said.
"I appreciate that. But we also have our own supplies if needed."
"You are not leaving those things behind?" He was pointing at our backpacks and I shook my head.
"No. With all due respect, we are in a strange village with people we don't know. So we are not going to be leaving our stuff behind. Call me paranoid, but it feels better to keep things with us."
"I understand that. It makes things feel better if we know what everybody is looking for. And don't worry, we won't be hoeing your supplies."
With a nod, I added, "Also, There is one thing I do want to talk to you about. I understand you are doing this as team leader and you are going to be having final say on the things that we do, but when it comes to danger, you are going to have to listen to us. Ok?"
Mason paused, "Gonna be honest, that is hard to accept. You are asking me to put not just my life, but my team's life in your hands."
Astrid nodded. "You are safe."
"Exactly. You are safe with us. We are just saying that because I know more about how to survive monsters and, well, Eaters, of course. I would not expect you to believe me, but considering last night, I think we were able to show our accomplishments at least a little."
Mason stared at me for a long moment before letting out a sigh. "Yeah dude, it is kind of hard for me, but you did prove yourself, so I will do my best to allow you to do what you need to do. But if you have the chance, I would appreciate some information before whatever you are going to do."
"I would love to promise that, but you know I cannot. Depending on the situation, we might just need to. I will explain this already."
"Yeah, yeah. I know. I am not going to say it is going to be easy, but I think we can work together, nonetheless."
With that small conversation out of the way, the man returned to his team and started explaining a few things. Not long after, we were outside of the village already moving towards the nearby ruined city. According to Mason, it was a place called Butte in the old world. Or at least that is what the signs outside said. Most of them were destroyed or completely corroded but there were still a couple of stone engravings that could be found. Just not in the locations we were going to best buy.
The city itself was big. Bigger than anything I had ever seen. Despite all my bravado and attempts at being nonchalant about the situation, I was excited. It was the first time I ever had seen a ruined city this close, much less going to one. I could not help but wonder if there was anything from the old world that I would be able to find. Anything that might be salvageable or just places that I could visit to know how life was before. We slowly approached the tall buildings, the tropical structures, and the streets filled with broken-down cars as the entire group slowly entered the ruined city of Butte.