2026-10-09 16:37:03Kain looked at the panel that lit up blue, until his eyes began to glow.
He blinked several times, rubbed his eyes, and looked once again. It was still there. Floating in the night cold air, silent as death.
Find a safe place to go.
He was not sure of the meaning of the words or why they were in his line of sight. But he understood the benefit of the 50 pieces of gold and the grain. It meant survival. It would mean that he wouldn't have to see Joren and Linden die of hunger in this hole.
But it also meant that he could not tell them the truth.
He turned around and gazed at Linden. The veteran followed him closely and his grey eyes narrowed in suspicion.
What do you have wrong with you? Linden rasped. Looks like you've seen a ghost!
Kain tried to relax his face. He could not say to him of the glowing words. He would assume that Kain is crazy. Or, at the very least, he would assume that Kain was cursed.
We can't stay here," Kain said and turned away from the blue light.
Linden scoffed. “Joren's leg is broken; I'm bleeding through my bandages, we can't stand up, much less walk.”
“Yes, I know,” Kain said staunchly. "But this cave is too close to the battlefield. If Veyr sends scouts to confirm the kill they will find us here. We are cornered.
Linden fixed him with a glare.Linden glared at him. He was a old soldier. He knew Kain was right.
“What would you like my opinion to be, Captain?” he asked in a sarcastic tone.
Kain gazed out into the dark wood. He recalled the maps of the land that he had studied prior to the battle. To the east there's a ravine, rough terrain, but perhaps an old trapline cabin or a crevice we can hold.
“A valley in the night?” Linden shook his head. You’ll kill us before Veyr does!
“Veyr tried to kill us,” Kain snapped. He was finally out of his shell, frustrated and fearful. He deceived us, he put us to death, I will not sit here and wait for him to finish.
Between them there was a hush. Joren's face was as young as a child and scared when he looked at them both.
Joren said in a low voice, "I can walk, Captain. When it comes to doing something, I will crawl if I have to.
Kain was filled with thanks for the boy's bravery. He looked to Linden. We run away, we don't say anything, if we see anyone, we hide.
A long, ragged breath of sighing exhaled by Linden. “Well, if we die, I'm haunting you!”
Kain yanked Linden to his feet. The three of them shuffled out of the cave and into the dark woods, aided by a thick branch the one on the right, Joren, was able to find.
It was suffocating in the forest. Each crack of the snap made a sound as if someone had walked. All shadows were like the soldiers. Kain's heart was pounding in his chest. He was aware of what was ahead of him, but he could see a blue panel gliding past him on the side.
He concentrated on the words. Safe haven.
On the panel, a little blue glowing thing emerged. It was a meetup sign and it said east.
But Kain had no choice he had to follow the ghost or the god. He took his cue from the blue dot.
They had been walking through the woods for an hour when they came to the edge of a steep ravine. It was a rocky and uneven land, and there was a small, old, and decayed wooden house, situated next to a stone wall. A half-burrowed trapper's hut.
Kain’s heart leaped. He pulled Linden and Joren downwards. There was a door and the hut was very small, only three people could fit in it. It had walls. It was defensible.
Kain opened the door. The interior was musky and moldy. It was empty.
He restrained Linden on the wall, and Joren fell over to his side.
Kain was standing in the doorway looking out on the dark ravine.
In his head was a soft ping. The blue panel shimmered and the text shifted.
A safe haven has been secured.A safe haven has been secured (QUEST UPDATED).
REWARD CLAIMED: 50 GOLD, BASIC RATIONS.
Kain blinked. A little leather pouch appeared out of nowhere and sat on the dusty ground right in front of his boots in the hut.
He froze. He paused as if he had caught his death of a thousand cuts. He recalled Linden and Joren. Both were very tired and had closed their eyes. Both of them did not witness the event.
Kain lowered himself to his knees, his hands shaking. He took the pouch and opened it. Within there were a number of shiny gold coins and a few pieces of salted, dried meat.
It was real. It was all real.
His mind was racing, as soon as he could he put the pouch inside his tunic. He had gold. He had food. However, he wasn't expecting to know what this system was or why it chose him.
Crunch.
Kain went rigid.
A loud crack of a branch came from the top of the ravine. Then another. And another.
He slowly moved towards the door and looked through a small gap in the old wood.
Three men were on horses up on the ridge; they were all illuminated by the pale moonlight. Their uniforms were those of Commander Veyr's personal guard.
One of them yelled "Search the ravine! In the end, “veyr” seeks to have no survivors.
Kain gazed at Joren and Linden. They were in no shape to run.
He looked at the pouch of gold in his tunic. He had a tool. He had a reward. But he didn't have a plan.
Horses were approaching, and the sound of their hooves was heard.
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Chapter 12 :THE SIEGE
The first wave broke against the palisade.Kain felt the wall tremble beneath his boots where his forces and that of the enemy had engaged against the gate. Two-hundred fighting men surged towards the wooden doors, pressing back the reinforced iron gates with all of their might."Hold!"Kain bellowed, "Hold the line!"His men took up his cry. Gareth the blacksmith drove a soldier back with a hammer strike to the face, Ryna let out a string of arrows from her perch above the fray, and Linden held his spear high against a soldier in black despite his bad leg and the pain in his knee.The enemy pressed the attack, the gate groaning under the pressure.Kain glanced at the System panel that floated in his line of vision.What good was this going to do him in battle? It had provided him with Basic Tactics and Basic Fortification but those were for building and not for fighting.He needed to think of another way. Kain turned to Ryna who stood guardedly by the eastern wall."Ryna!"A shout from
Chapter 11 :THE FIRST WAVE
Kain was atop the knoll, looking at the northern pass.Below the valley, it was peaceful. The water was clear in the stream. The walls of the palisades were high. His people went round the camp, getting ready for battle. They were quiet but Kain could sense their fear. He carried a cold weight in his chest and a hum in the back of his mind.He had three days. Then two. Then one.On the last night, he called his warriors together. Twelve men and women capable of wielding a spear or drawing a bow. The rest were too old, too young, or too wounded. They remained within the palisade, and tended the fires.“It's important we don't have too many people here to hold the walls because we can't,” Kain said, his voice steady. So we won't attempt it, we will go to the pass. Ryna what did you see, Ryna?"Ryna stepped forward. The army is just one column, and they're moving quickly, they're not expecting to meet resistance."Good," Kain said. We'll get them to pay for every step, we will.He presen
Chapter 10 :THE HUNT
Kain chose five men.Linden, notwithstanding his limp. Gareth the blacksmith. Two farmers who used to be hunters. And Ryna, who was more familiar with the forest than anyone else.At midnight, they left the camp, silently moving among the trees. Kain's movements became smooth and silent as he raised the Basic skill. He heard all the noises, all the rumbles, all the inhales.The scouts were encamped in a small ravine 2 hours north of the valley. Kain sat on the ridge and watched them. Four men around a small fire. Their horses were tied up nearby. They were relaxed. Careless."Four," Ryna whispered. "We can take them.""No," Kain said. We don't come to kill them.Ryna frowned. So why do we have to be here?“It's about a message we are sending.”Kain explained the plan in hushed tones. Ryna's pupils dilated then contracted. She didn't like it. But she nodded.The hunters took up their positions on the ridge above the ravine. Kain and Ryna made their way down the hill, moving quietly lik
Chapter 9:THE PLAN
Kain couldn't sleep that night. Sitting by the fire, he looked at the wanted poster one last time before burning it in the leaping flames. Five hundred gold coins. Two hundred soldiers. A week at most.He had twenty people. Half of them were unable to fight and the other half were badly injured.The System panel floated before his eyes, the new quest glowing quietly on the dark material.[QUEST: PREPARE FOR BATTLE.][OBJECTIVE 1: Fortify the camp.][OBJECTIVE 2: Train your fighters.][OBJECTIVE 3: Create a battle plan.][REWARD: Unknown.]Kain skim read the objectives. Nothing complicated and just one task he couldn't complete because of sheer lack of time. At dawn he gathered his people together."I'm not lying to you," Kain said. "Reinforcements are coming for the Veyr. Two hundred soldiers. They will reach this valley in under a week."The survivors stared at him. Some looked anxious, some simply resigned to their fate, while others, such as Linden, just looked tired."We can't fig
Chapter 8 :THE TRADER
For three days, they stayed in the hills.Kain took his tribe to a small gorge on the north side of the valley, surrounded by dense pine forests. Eventually the scouts on the southern ridge lost interest and disappeared. However, Kain was not at ease. He knew that they would return.On the 4th morning, he called his people together.They will not be able to evade us forever, he said. Supplies, tools, food, weapons."Well, we have gold," Ryna said. “But, if we can't use it, then gold is no good.”Kain nodded. Two days to the north is a trading post run by Oren, a man who trades with anyone who will pay him. I will go by myself.I'm told, Linden said, stepping forward, “No.” His leg was mending, but he limped about. The leader of them is Veyr, if he gets hold of you then we're done."Then who?"I'm going to go," said Ryna. Said to be more familiar with the woods than anyone else, “Oren knows me, he'll deal with a woman by herself.”Kain hesitated. He did not want to put anybody in harm'
Chapter 7 :THE VALLEY
Kain and the others walked north the next two days.While Kain had the Basic Stealth skill to watch the tree line, it was the Basic Leadership that kept him acutely aware of his people and their struggles. Every time they stumbled, he slowed to let them rest.A scant twenty people comprised his following, some of whom suffered wounds from the battle while others, like the blacksmith, were simply villagers. There were three children among the survivors, which made Kain all the more determined to keep them alive. They all had their purpose, even if it wasn’t as fighters.Kain halted on the second night as the land dipped into a valley ringed by hills on either side. A thin, winding stream snaked along the valley floor and a relatively flat stretch of earth allowed enough space for Kain to pitch tents.“This will suffice,” Kain saidRyna’s brow was furrowed as she scanned the landscape. “It’s good that it’s defensible, but it hardly has walls.”“We will make it a wall,” Kain said.“We do
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