It did not take much longer for the camp to get back into order. Those who worked to heal people and repair the camp started to rest. Groups started to gather together in comfort. While some tried to find optimism and laughter, there was still a lingering sadness in the camp. It was not as joyous as it was before the attack. People were lost, and the effects were heavy on the hearts of those who remained.
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The camp had not yet decided what to do with the sword left behind by Carter. On inspection of the sword, its color and presence felt wrong. The blackness of the sword seemed to almost reject light, which made it look almost featureless. Then it gave off an uncomfortable aura to anyone around it. Like the blade desperately wanted to feed on Essence. This led to the decision to keep the sword in one spot until Natasha arrived, and then the group would decide what to do with it.
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Until Natasha arrived, Austin and Maya decided they would play with Elliot. They figured that the best thing for their mental health was to take their mind off the events of the day. It also allowed them to distract Elliot from the truth of what happened. This was not a reality they wanted Elliot to face.
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Some of the other families had decided the same, and soon the families joined together to play. Children and parents chased each other around in a game of tag. While this did not erase the sadness of the day, it allowed for a moment of joy. Children laughed as they caught their parents. For many of the parents, it allowed them to cherish the small, happy moments even more.
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As the day turned into evening, the children settled down, and people started to huddle around and eat their dinner. Neither Austin nor Maya felt like cooking much, and Austin summoned sandwiches for the family from a scroll. They ate their sandwiches in relative quiet. Austin spent most of the time watching over the camp as he ate. He scanned and tried to look for vulnerabilities. The events of the day made Austin decide that he needed to take more responsibility for the people of the camp and not just his family.
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While most people were engrossed in their food, Austin ate his food absentmindedly as he scanned the camp. This led to Austin being the first to notice when someone entered the camp from the forest. He felt a sense of relief as he saw Natasha and her expedition group break through the trees.
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Natasha and the other scouts in her group had wide smiles on their faces as they entered the camp. Austin could only assume that they had a successful expedition. As the group walked further into the camp, their smiles and laughter quickly died. Natasha was the first to notice that something was wrong with the camp, and the others quickly followed suit.
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The group set their packs down and scattered throughout the camp. The group went to different high-ranking members of the camp. While some went to Beth and Mike, Natasha approached Austin.
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“We need to have an emergency meeting,” Natasha said gravely.
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“I agree,” Austin said as he pushed himself off the ground. He turned to Maya and handed her the little bit that was left of his sandwich. “I’ll be right back.”
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Maya took the sandwich and nodded. After Austin gave her and Elliot kisses on their heads, he walked with Natasha to a gathering area. It did not take long for several other high-ranking members to join the group. Many of the members in the group had solemn expressions on their faces as they waited for the meeting to start.
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“I’m not really sure where to start,” Natasha said. Her usual cheery expression was replaced with a deep frown and dark tone. “Maybe one of you could tell me what happened. Then I can give you the news of our expedition.”
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Everyone nervously looked at each other. While the events of the day were not their fault, no one wanted to break the news to Natasha. Eventually, eyes landed on Austin, and he knew he could not avoid telling Natasha about the day.
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“As you can see, today was a tragedy,” Austin began to report the events. “Contrary to our predictions, Chet attacked our camp. Several lives were lost, but we were able to force them to retreat before any more lives were lost. Gavin managed to kill one of his subordinates, and we have collected his weapon.”
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Natasha nodded as Austin talked, then she was silent for a moment. She seemed to process the information before deciding on how to respond. Her gaze was serious and cold as she processed the information.
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“So our numbers did not matter, and they attacked us anyway,” Natasha said flatly. “It seems to me like your suggestion to wait to make alliances was a mistake.”
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“Even if we made an alliance, that wouldn’t have prevented the attack,” Austin protested. “If anything, we taught him that he can’t just freely attack us without suffering a casualty.”
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“You don’t know that!” Natasha snapped. “Maybe an alliance would have given us the strength to deter him from attacking. But instead, I was gone on an expedition while our people died!”
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“He’s crazy! He would have attacked us either way!” Austin could feel his blood boil. He felt like Natasha blamed him for the attack.
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“But I should have been here,” Natasha responded. “Instead, I was out in the forest under your suggestion.”
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“Neither of you is to blame,” Beth spoke up. “We can’t predict the future, and we did what we thought was best. No one could have imagined that Chet was crazy enough to attack a whole camp with three people.”
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“She is right,” Mike nodded. “I’m not happy about the people we lost, but we can’t blame each other. You two need to stand united. Especially as we think of next steps. While I don’t think that Chet will attack us again soon, we do need to worry about the possibility of the other two kings taking advantage of our weakness.”
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“That’s right, I’m not sure if it’s smart to go on any more expeditions,” Natasha nodded. While she tried to return to a calm tone, there was still a bit of remaining anger left. “Instead, we need to focus on preparing our people for another attack.”
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“I agree. I would like to be able to gain more resources, but that does not seem like the smart decision now,” Austin said. “Our best bet is focusing the resources we do have to make the people here stronger and prepared. Were you able to find anything?”
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“Yes, we were able to find a few weapons and a good deal of herbs. Our prediction was right,” Natasha said. “With proper care, I think the herbs will give us powerful elixirs.”
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“We should get those herbs to the alchemists of the camp, then. What do you think we should do with the weapons? We have the ones you recovered and the one left behind by Chet’s subordinate,” Austin said.
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“I think we should keep that sword under watch,” Mike suggested. “It feels wrong to me, and I don’t think it’s a good idea for anyone to wield it. If we could destroy it, I would.”
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“I agree, it may be a powerful tool, but I think it is too risky to use,” Beth nodded.
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“I’ll trust your judgement on it,” Natasha said. “We will alternate looking over it. As for the other weapons, we have four of them. With the fact that Austin and I are already pretty strong, maybe they should go to someone else.”
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“Not a bad idea,” Mike said. “Maybe we can have a contest?”
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“A contest sounds like a good idea,” Beth smiled. “It might get people’s minds off today‘s events and will light a fire under people to get stronger.”
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“A contest it is,” Natasha cracked a smile. Even just the thought of a contest excited her. “We’ll work out the specifics, but I think the challenges should each focus on the basics of Essence control.”
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“Sounds perfect, I think it will really push them,” Austin said with a somber tone. “But there is one last thing we need to discuss. We need to perform a funeral for the lost.”
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The momentary excitement for the contest was lost from the group in an instant. Austin knew this would happen when he brought it up, but he also knew that it needed to be discussed. They could not just leave the bodies as they were.
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The group sat in silence for a moment. Some were in contemplation, while others just thought of the lost. It was a difficult subject to talk about. The moment they performed the funeral, everything would truly become real. It was accepting that they lost people.
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“Natasha, if I may ask, did your master give you resources? Not just training resources but food?” Austin broke the silence.
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“Yes, my master said that I shouldn’t be foraging for scraps. So she gave me plenty of food to make it to the end of the Survival Game,” Natasha nodded. “Why are you asking?”
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“My master did the same. What if at the funeral we have a feast? Not to celebrate their deaths or course, but to give everyone a reason to keep going,” Austin suggested
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“That’s not a bad idea,” Mike said. “Give them a taste of something normal to remind them that this isn’t forever.”
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“I like it, we can announce the contest after the feast as well,” Natasha’s voice was filled with determination. “We won’t forget them, but they will motivate us to move forward.”
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The group started to talk about the logistics of the funeral after that. They had decided that they would hold the funeral at the end of the next day. There was a clearing not too far from the camp that they could set up funeral pyres at.
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After finishing up plans, the group retired to their respective areas. Austin felt exhausted after the long discussion. It reminded him of when he was dragged into meetings at his job, and the meetings would be more exhausting than any of his other work.
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Austin walked back to Maya and Elliot. Elliot was already asleep while Maya was reading by a campfire. He let out a relieved sigh as he sat next to Maya. He did not say anything; instead, his eyes got lost in the campfire. As he watched the campfire, it was like his mind cleared of all thoughts.
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Maya noticed Austin’s stress as he sat down and did not immediately press him. Instead, she quietly closed her book and leaned up next to him. She knew it was best to let Austin sit with his thoughts, but she would try to comfort him as best as she could.
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Austin wrapped his arm around Maya and pulled her closer. He did not feel like talking much, but he wanted to feel her presence. That was enough to help relieve him of the stress of the day. So much had happened throughout the day, and he just desperately needed to decompress.
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Austin never imagined that he would be planning a funeral when he woke up that morning. It was like a daunting reality had hit him. They had made plans for the future, but Austin had gotten used to the casual lifestyle he managed to create for himself and his family. They were always working to get stronger and prepare, but the reality of the danger felt gone with Austin’s increased strength. He was reminded that the danger was never truly gone in the Survival Game. Worse were the thoughts of the future. They would come back to a world with other people fighting for control. Austin was not sure if the danger and fighting would ever end.
