"Gods, I am tired," Stewart said as he sat on the ground and leaned against a corpse of a Bestial, his blade lying on his left side. His left arm felt numb, and his lungs were on fire. Even both of his legs felt like they would fall off at any second.
"Same," Lone said as he sat on Stewart's right side and leaned against the corpse. Spread resting on his shoulder, though it wasn't any spear he had used before. It was a new spear he created using the giant leech's corpse.
The spear's blade was long and sharp, it was made of metal for sure. Yet, the color of the metal and the shape of the blade made it look like it was a fang of a mighty beast that was torn out and slammed onto the shaft of a spear. The red pulsating flesh on the socket only enhanced this image. The shaft was a regular brown shaft, and its bottom was empty.
"So, how did you kill that thing," Stewart asked Lone, his eyes looking ahead of him towards the setting sun. His eyes scanned the spear covered land, as though an army of spearmen had just rushed through and left their weapons behind. Some spears lay sprawled on the ground, while others were either planted into the dirt or into the corpses.
"It was actually luck," Lone said as he grabbed the arm of a nearby corpse, "in the moments of me being swarmed and me running away from that giant beast, I quickly understood my ability and how to use it properly. I always thought it could only be used on tools like blades or hammers, but it turns out I could actually use it on corpses."
Lone tossed the arm a bit into the air, catching it, before throwing it away. The arm sailed through the air before smacking against a spear, causing it to fall over and break.
"But, since I am using corpses and not tools forged by metal, they are somewhat weak. I mean, I had like five or so of them break on me mid strikes just from the force alone, and others broke just by using their abilities," Lone said as he smiled, his right hand clutching the shaft of his new spear.
"That reminds me, how was your battle with the talking Bestial?" Lone asked as he turned to face Stewart.
"It was exhausting. If I am honest, I was bullshitting most of the fight and was running on fumes. I was just lucky he fell for my trap," Stewart said as he tapped his left side with a finger, "but you definitely had it the hardest."
"Maybe," Lone paused for a bit before opening his mouth, "hey, are talking Bestials not common?"
Stewart stopped tapping his finger before breathing out, "No, in fact, as of today, there were no signs of any Bestial having the intelligence to talk or think. Sure, there may have been rumors, but that was all they were. But seeing one being able to talk and even think like a person doesn't bring me any hope for our future."
Lone frowned before asking, "How come?"
"During its... self introduction... it said that something stronger had ordered it to come here, and before that, that it had a leader. Meaning that this isn't some natural influx of Bestials entering the barrier, but an actual moving force," Stewart said bitterly. The smile on his face faltered for a bit.
"Do you think we have a chance if we make it to the fort?" Lone asked, as he looked at Stewart. Though he could have guessed the answer, he still needed to hear it.
Stewart paused, his mind thinking before he spoke one word, "no."
Lone didn't say anything else as he just looked forward at the setting sun. He was exhausted to the bones. In the games he played, they start you off easy, like in a town or maybe a fort, where you learn the basics. Sure, you may die here and there, but it was part of the game for you to lose. But his start was hell, not even a second in, and he had to fight for his life. If not for Z teaching him the basics and some more, he would have died.
"I wonder how many players even got through the first day," he thought as he looked at the sky. He watched as the blue sky slowly faded and the night sky took over. Maybe some of them had easy starts, or maybe they all started like him. Well, those who skipped the tutorial and went into the game had definitely died if they were starting out like him.
Lone licked his dry lips "Stewart, you talked about a city constantly... mind telling me about it?"
Stewart looked at Lone a bit confused before smiling, "Right, I keep forgetting you're just a kid. A scary and cold kid, but still a kid. But sure, what do you want to know?"
"If you have time, please tell me everything," Lone said as he clutched his spear. Using it as though it were a cane, he slowly stood up. He took small steps through the bodies, his eyes scanning the spears.
Seeing this, Stewart also got up and started walking alongside Lone's shoulder. Blade in hand, Stewart looked around, "I feel like you have a plan."
Lone eyes continued to scan the spears, "I do, you said we most likely don't have a chance even if we make it to the fort. That is because the Bestial force is going to be there, right?"
Stewart nodded as he looked at the corpses. Though they were dead, he couldn't be too sure.
"Then why not go the opposite way? From what it sounds like, the city is far from the fort," Lone said as his eyes landed on a spear, his legs picking up speed.
"It is, but to get there, we have to enter lands filled with no life in them. In the entire world, there are three lands that have life, such as trees, grass, or even clean water. Those are the Frozen Plains, Dragons Roost, and finally the city. Everywhere else is nothing more than a barren, dead land with rotting trees and corpses littering it," Stewart said as he sped up.
"Really? Man, our world is a hellhole," Stewart said as he slowed down, "but that is a good thing for us. That just means that encountering Bestials in those lands will be close to nothing. So that should be a good thing for us."
"How is that a good thing? We have no food or water, we are covered in wounds, and are basically walking through a wasteland with no sense of direction," Stewart said as he grabbed Lone's shoulder. He knew that Lone's train of thought was correct, but fear still gripped his heart. After all, who didn't fear death?
Even through his battles and his many near-death experiences, the thought of dying still made his heart beat wildly.
Lone stopped walking and turned his head to look at Stewart, "Tell me, would you rather go to a fort where certain death is waiting, or would you risk your already dead life to walk towards safety?"
Hearing this, Stewart didn't say anything as he just clutched Lone's shoulder for a bit before finally letting go, "I really can't see you as a kid."
"That's good then. If you could, then we both would have been long dead," Lone said as he walked forward and reached out. His hands clutching the shaft of a spear. Using his little strength, he pulled the spear out of the ground and allowed it to shine under the night sky.
[Slone], his first spear and the only one that could match his strength.
"You still won't activate, but that is okay. You will not kill for me, and that is also okay. But I will keep you by my side and wait until you are ready to be used," Lone said as he held [Slone] in one hand and his new spear in the other.
Lone looked back at Stewart and said, "So are you ready to walk once again?"