Visha thought about what Chi had said before about being the leader. She had to admit, it did seem that way.
She looked at Uri and Xeno, deciding to pass the task off to them. She didn't feel like being responsible for so many people. She didn't even know much about the Beast Continent. How is she supposed to be a leader?
Pushing the thought aside, she cleared her throat.
"These," she pointed around the cave, "are called Luminous Crystals. The ones Kit and Nimo found are the most common kind. No matter what kind of luminous crystal, they are usually found in underground caves."
"The ones we have now are mainly used to make the place brighter. If you crush it and mix it with water, you can make it into paint." She gestured to Kit and Nimo, who were covered in crushed luminous crystals.
"I'm guessing they crushed some when they were playing. They started sweating, and that's why they look like this."
She then pointed to the bread-moss and gloomcap fungus.
"These two things don't usually grow together, but they thrive under the light of the Softlight crystal. That's what these are called."
Visha turned to Chi, "You won't have to complain about food for a while. These are edible."
"The stones?" Chi asked.
"Not the stones," Visha laughed. "The moss and fungi. If you cook them with some iron tubers and meat, it makes a good stew."
Turning away from Chi, Visha addressed everyone.
" The Softlight crystal can be used if we want to grow more moss and fungus later on. Another kind of crystal is the Heartstone. It isn't as common as Softlight crystal. It's like the ever-embers Uri and Xeno gave you before. But you wouldn't need so many. If you combine all five caves, the heartstone would be able to keep it warm. It's a gold colour."
"Then you have the Flare crystal, also uncommon. This one is completely transparent and has no light. You can use it to prevent meat from spoiling. You can put it in water so it won't be dirty. It can also help ward off enemies. If you put it close to or in a fire, it will make a blinding light appear. A heavy blow to the crystal can cause it flash. So you have enough time to blind your enemies and escape."
The more she spoke, the more excited she became. Especially for the final two crystals.
"The next one is the Resonant crystal. Now, this one is rare. It's a beautiful iridescent crystal that shimmers different colours. You can use it to communicate. If we ever get lost, we can use it to find each other. When we are close enough, it will start to glow and vibrate. It's not as big as the others. They aren't much bigger than my pinkie."
She extended her pinkie as a reference.
"The one I'm really excited for is rare. So rare, it should be a treasure if anyone ever sees it. The Verdant Crystal. It's a translucent green and seems to have faint veins running through it. It can help cure illnesses and fix wounds. If we had it when the Blight started, I wouldn't need to go looking for glimmer-moss. If you have certain rare herbs you need, they are usually close to Verdant crystals. Even if it isn't their natural habitat. It even helps them grow."
Visha smiled when she talked about it. As she read through the Hearth-Keepers' recipe book, she became more interested in the herbs in this world. There are so many things here that would be useful if she were to take them back.
Even without going back, she thinks there are ways to put them to use here.
She wants to try to make her own recipes. Even improve on the ones in the Hearth-Keepers' book.
As the people before her listened, they understood why she was so excited. Being able to keep warm together in the winter. Finding people who might be lost. Curing The Blight.
These are things they can relate to. They have experience of losing companions. They have experienced The Blight. Not just now, but before when they had a tribe. And a stone that can make their entire home warm, that's a good thing. The winters are too harsh sometimes.
Willa, Heta, Cato, and Fil thought about the old people and their friends back in the tribe. Old people usually crowd into one cave. There are normally numerous cases of them freezing to death. If they had something like the Heartstone, they wouldn't need to worry.
Uri and Xeno puffed with pride as they heard Visha talk about the stones.
This is their mate. No matter what is happening, she can help. She always knows a lot.
As soon as Visha finished speaking, the four people took off, scrambling trying to dig up the stones.
Visha watched them with confusion.
"They want to find the stones you're talking about. They are most likely thinking about their friends in the tribe." Uri said, seeing her confusion.
"What does looking for stones have to do with their friends?"
"They want to go back to the tribe." Xeno sighed. "They think that since Kit can shift now, they can go back. And Cato, since drinking the vitality stew, had become stronger. The reason he was cast out isn't only because he supported our family. His strength had been fading since he was injured last winter."
Visha furrowed her eyebrows. She had never thought of going to the tiger tribe. A set of people who would cast out a child for something he can't control, she wasn't interested.
She understood that it was the nature of this world. But she wouldn't be able to forgive something like that had it been her.
"Their lifeblood is in the tribe. They have been taught about the unity of the tribe. The tribe helps them, and they help the tribe. It's something we all learn." Xeno continued.
Visha looked at him. "So you want to go back?"
Xeno looked at Visha, then at Uri, at the missing left arm.
Since the day they cast him out of the tribe, he had no intention of going back. When Uri got hurt to protect them, it solidified his reason not to go back. He knew that even if Uri's beast form wasn't affected by the loss of his arm, others would not see it that way.
To them, he would no longer be useful. Whichever form is injured, they are dubbed as being forsaken by the beast god.
Visha followed his gaze, seeing the missing arm on Uri.
"They won't take me in if you go back," Uri said, his voice contained no emotion.
Xeno's eyes met Uri's, "I never had any intention of going back. They were able to abandon us once; they can do it again."
"Are you sure? I can stay outside the tribe. We can't let Visha wander like us."
Xeno's eyes turned to Visha.
Before he could say anything, Visha spoke up. "Don't look at me. I don't want to go." She raised her hands, shaking her head to show her reluctance.
"I can't find any besides the blue and white ones!" Heta shouted in their direction, interrupting the conversation.
Still looking, everyone said they were having the same experience.
"If we can't find any, that means there aren't any in this cave. There might be other caves, but that would mean searching the entire grotto. And even if we search, it isn't a guarantee that we will find what you're looking for."
"Then why did you tell us about it if you know we can't find it?" Heta shouted angrily.
Visha was already annoyed that they wanted to go back to a place that threw them away. Coupled with Heta's usual attitude towards her, she couldn't help but shout back.
"Did I tell you that it's here?! I never said there were any here. I wanted them to open it so we could look. It's good enough if we can find the first three. Do you think the last two would be easy to find? You just walk around and pick it up? Didn't you hear what I said? It's rare! Don't you know what rare means? What the fuck is wrong with you? Stop getting on my fucking nerves!"
Everyone stopped moving, not expecting Visha to shout.
Usually, when Heta confronts her, Visha would ignore it.
Visha wasn't done yet. "Heta, I don't know what your problem is with me. But whatever it is, you can shove it up your ass and smoke it. I have been nothing but nice to you. Do you think food just appears out of thin air? Do you think I want to sit there and watch you curse me for being selfish? Tell me, how am I being selfish? What exactly do you want from me?"
Heta was speechless. She didn't really dislike Visha. However, from the first time, when she had them leave the cave, it was easier to continue to dislike her than to apologize. It's been more than a week since they moved here, and she thought it was more comfortable than before.
She just couldn't bring herself to apologize.
Not getting a response, Visha walked away.
Although she vented on Heta, she didn't think she was wrong.